Lulu Bell’s Fantastic Holiday Fun
9781925324372
Lulu Bell’s Amazing Animal Adventures
9781925324358
Belinda Murrell
Serena Geddes
Random House, 2016
pbk., RRP $A19.99
Have your newly independent readers discovered this series about Lulu Bell who is just eight and the practical one in a family that includes her six-year-old sister Rosie, who loves wearing angel wings and sparkly shoes; her three-year-old brother Gus who always wears his superhero suit; her dad, a busy vet and her mum, an artist- not to mention a menagerie of pets. Based on the author’s own experiences of growing up in a vet hospital, this series has an authenticity that really appeals to its target audience, particularly as that is the age when so many of them dream of living the life themselves and they relate to the characters, particularly strong, level-headed Lulu.
These two additions to the series are collections of four favourite stories bound up in one volume – perfect for those like Miss 9 who has been reading them since their inception and who just want to keep reading and not have to wait for the next title. Each story is complete and Serena Geddes bring the characters and the incidents to life.
Lulu Bell’s Amazing Animal Adventures includes Lulu Bell and the Birthday Unicorn, Lulu Bell and the Cubby Fort Lulu Bell and the Tiger Cub, and Lulu Bell and the Pyjama Party while Lulu Bell’s Fantastic Holiday Fun includes Lulu Bell and the Koala Joey Lulu Bell and the Sea Turtle Lulu Bell and the Pirate Fun and Lulu Bell and the Circus Pup.
Each of these has been reviewed individually on this blog (search for Murrell) and if you want to see the complete series then it is available on the publisher’s website, Knowing how popular it had been since they were first released when Miss 9 was only 7, I bought the series late last year for the library I was working in and it was immediately a great success. Word spread like wildfire because Belinda Murrell has a real storyteller’s knack of being able to create something wonderful out of something that most see as just ordinary life and it is this that appeals to the readers because they can connect the text to themselves (or their dreams) very easily. This is a series about ordinary people doing regular things, grounded in reality and perfect for those who want that sort of read.