Wed Wabbit

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Lissa Evans is a great storyteller and the book is very funny as well as reminding us of the importance of celebrating and valuing the differences which make us all special and unique. Full of humour, Wed Wabbit would also make a wonderful read aloud story for enjoying and sharing. For me it’s a rollercoaster of emotions that I’m trying to manipulate the reader into’ - Alex Wheatle on fictional world building, creating new language and seeing yourself in a book One of the people in my reviewing group said that the hidden subtext was this: instead of genuinely travelling to another world, Fidge is in fact having a nervous breakdown due to feeling guilty and heavily missing her sister. This book is very much open to different interpretations as to whether or not Wimbley Woo land is real or not, a connection with Alice in Wonderland.) I love this book not just for its fearless heroine but because it touches on that universal truth – that occasionally children yearn for a world that is bigger, and more exciting, than the tiny protected environment they’re boarded up in. Plus its really, really funny.

Yes: Fidge, and Graham, and all of Minnie’s toys (including a pink and purple elephant named Ella and a bright pink diamanté mobile phone that makes a very annoying sound when it rings), and Graham’s “transitional object” (a plastic promotional carrot from a supermarket, which his rather dippy parents are hoping will serve as a locus for all of his fears and help him cope with change), are in The Land of the Wimbley Woos. And not just in a generic sense, either: they are, specifically, in Minnie’s copy, and therefore in Minnie’s version of Wimbley Land. (The Purple Wimblies, upon all of which she has drawn moustaches in felt-tip in her copy of the book, are moustachioed here.) Much more problematic, though, is the fact that Wed Wabbit is also in the book—and here, in what is clearly some corner of Minnie’s fearful and confused psyche, he is extremely powerful. In fact, he has overthrown the Wimbley King (who doesn’t mind, mostly because his greatest ambition is to be left alone), and established himself as a vast (literally; everything is bigger in Wimbley Land, so Wed Wabbit is about twenty feet tall) and terrifying dictator. However, I would not dismiss this book! If you know a young person who would enjoy this book, I would recommend it. It is really interesting in terms of the messages behind it and it is quite a fun book for a young person to read. (There is also quite a lot of problem-solving in it, just in case you are into that!). A book I would not slate in the slightest. Think of the jokes that were made by the “funny kid” at your school – they were often surprisingly sophisticated and fully capable of making the teacher laugh as well as the other pupils. So when you write your funny prose for kids, write it for yourself as well; your audience is always and ever the ten-year-old inside you. Make her laugh. Fidge’s troubles begin during a thunder storm when she falls into the land of the Wimbley Woos. All seems perfect at first, until Graham also arrives (along with his transitional object – Dr Carrot). It appears that a cruel dictator has overthrown Wimbley Land. Fidge and Graham need to join forces to help save the Wimbley Woos from an uncertain fate…What is the effect of setting the story in a fantastical setting, where different rules apply? Do you find Wimbley Land believable? How well does the author bring it to life for you?

Lissa Evans is a marvel, a genuinely funny, clever writer who takes you to the last place you expect to go…Wed Wabbit is a classic in the making. An unmissable literary carrot. The Times Almost all children have a toy that is precious to them - whether it's a worn-out teddy bear, a doll, or even a tin car or a plane, these are the precious objects that bring us comfort and joy when we're young. The Midnight Guardians author Ross Montgomery shares 8 brilliant books about the magic of childhood toys... Therefore, part of this story is about acceptance: after Fidge is initially very sceptical towards Minnie’s toys and stories, she eventually learns to accept them and happily go along with them for the sake of her sister. Due to how her not doing this led to Minnie’s accident, followed by how crucial Minnie’s information was to her when she was in Wimbley Land, this moral lesson is very present by the end of the book.Ella and Dr Carrot — and indeed Wed Wabbit —have quite distinctive ways of speaking, what does it tell you about their personalities? WESTLE THEM TO THE DUNGEONS AND TOMOWWOW THEY WILL FACE THE TEWWIBLE WEALITY OF THE PUNISHMENTS WOOM!!! Also the voice in the book was geared more towards older children, I think... Fidge is almost 11 but feels more like at least 14, and the text was too specific, for example: "And then it nodded at her captor, and Fidge was given a shove between the shoulder blades that sent her stumbling into the twilight." (94)