Perfect

Danny Parker

Freya Blackwood

Little Hare, 2015

32pp., hbk., RRP $A24.95

9781921894848

Remember the good old days before mobile phones and tablets became ubiquitous?  When children spent their time outdoors making their own fun and didn’t have time to complain about being bored?  Or that the battery was flat or their credit had run out?  Well in this beautiful story-in-rhyme inspired by the author’s daughter, Danny Parker and Freya Blackwood take us back to that time when hours stretch endlessly on a perfect day just waiting to be filled with imagination and fun.

Some sunshine and something to nibble

Some space with enough room to scribble

An apron and bowls for mixing

Some glue, and some things that need fixing…

Parker’s gentle words and Blackwood’s reflective illustrations take the reader back to a free, idyllic childhood that is easy to recapture as the children indulge in simple pleasures like flying a kite, going to the beach or just staring through the window at a stormy sky and letting their imagination run wild. Enjoying it as much as the children is the cat who accompanies them everywhere keeping careful watch and making the most of opportunities to snatch a treat or a cuddle.

Young readers will delight in recognising themselves in the story as they recall and recount days where they have done similar simple things like building a cubby from chairs and a sheet while, at the same time, getting ideas for new activities from the things that surround them. Learning about their neighbourhood will add a depth to their understanding of it and may even spark a new interest that leads them down new pathways.

Although on the surface this appears to be a book for younger readers, it could be the catalyst for the best times ever. Perfect for this time of the year when the holidays seem to stretch endlessly on now the excitement of Christmas is over, Perfect should inspire lots of activities that get the children into the fresh air and enjoying what’s on offer for free.  Once they start the range of escapades on offer will become apparent and they won’t want to go back to school!  Creating a plan and a budget and involving the children in the decision-making will engage them and develop life skills that will stand them in good stead next holidays!  They might even have so much to do that they start a list for next time!

So share the story, pack an adventure backpack and begin the explorations.

It’s also perfect for the story-in-rhyme item in the Share-a-Story guide.