If we were having a themed wedding, there's a good chance that theme would be chocolate. Because who doesn't love chocolate? Lulu certainly does in this story.
Unusual, quirky children's books can be hit or miss, but this one is a definite hit. Told in cartoon strip form, with illustrations reminiscent of the brilliant Raymond Briggs, it mixes the real world with dreamy fantasies that have a touch of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll and Sir John Tenniel to them.
Lulu is going to be a bridesmaid for her aunty and she's so excited she has to tell everyone at school about her dress (with 200 petticoats), the car (made of real silver) and the cake (as tall as their teacher). It's possible Lulu might like to exaggerate… On the eve of the wedding, though, she and her baby brother are getting under foot and in the way, so they're shooed out of the kitchen where all the fun is, and told to play quietly. And ooof, if that isn't a phrase I heard a few dozen times as a child. For Lulu, playing quietly means devouring her left over Easter chocolate (good girl) but just like too much cheese, a chocolate overdose can lead to some rather funny dreams…
This story, though a new release, has a wonderfully old fashioned feel to it and in fact was originally published in 1990. There were so many elements to the story that reminded me of my own childhood, such as finding random bits of food under the radiator (I once ate a chocolate coin I found in June that had most likely been there since the previous Christmas), sleeping on the sofa at the grandparents' house because there weren't enough bed rooms, or drinking plastic beakers full of fizzy drinks on special occasions like a family wedding, not to mention getting into trouble for something a sibling has done because you should have known better and stopped them.
This story is funny, entertaining and light hearted. The comic strip style means not too many words are needed (we have dialogue rather than narrative), and there's lots of lovely, lovely onomatopoeia too, meaning what is left is an easy to read text that is packed full of story, even in relatively few words. It's an easy one for them to read on their own, and they'll giggle at Lulu and her naughty antics because there are some things you are just not supposed to do. Like eat 3 chocolate kittens and 16 eggs in one sitting (even if you do spit out the eggs with the yucky fillings). Of course when you grow up you can do, and eat whatever you want, except for that dreadful period of time where you keep feeling like you should probably start your wedding diet, but bizarrely repeatedly end up at the ice cream farm instead.
This is a fabulous story that I thoroughly enjoyed and I'd like to thank the publishers for sending us a copy to review. While it didn't give me any ideas on how to sneakily introduce a chocolate theme to my wedding, it was a super tasty read and gets a full 5 stars.
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