The Patchwork Picnic: Lola’s Toy Box Book One (Danny Parker, illus by Guy Shield, Hardie Grant Egmont)

The Patchwork Picnic is the first book in the ‘Lola’s Toy Box’ series aimed at children aged five years and up. It centres on Lola and her toy clown Buddy. The toy box in question is magical: when you step inside it you’re transported to the ‘Kingdom’ where toys come to life. In The Patchwork Picnic, Lola stumbles upon some trouble brewing at the Teddy Bear’s Picnic, and has to prove her worth in front of Felix—her own teddy bear, who is ruler of the Kingdom. The concept of the story is interesting but I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was reading a weird amalgamation of Thomas the Tank Engine and Toy Story. The series has been written and illustrated by two men, Danny Parker and Guy Shield, and although it’s aimed at girls, boys are sure to get a kick out of the adventures that Lola finds herself in. The Patchwork Picnic will appeal to children who like a bit of ‘imaginative fantasy’ in their stories, with three other chapter books to follow.

Katie Haydon is the mother of an imaginative five-year-old and a former assistant editor of Books+Publishing

Books+Publishing pre-publication reviews are supported by the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund.

Category: Reviews