The Zebra’s Great Escape

Katherine Rundell

Sara Ogilvie

Bloomsbury, 2022

60pp., hbk., RRP $A29.99

9781408885758

Mink doesn’t believe in rules. She loves running wild and free. While she is swinging in her yard she meets a baby zebra named Gabriel who is very distressed because he has lost his parents, Mink senses this and they touch heads  causing colours to stream out and start a communication between the two that leads to great adventure. When the little zebra tells her that his parents have been captured by the evil Mr Spit -who looks just like the villain of every child’s imagination –  Mink knows that it’s up to her to help rescue them

So begins a grand adventure to rescue a whole menagerie of imprisoned animals – from aardvarks to zebras –  with the help of a a dog called Rainbow and  a squirrel called Rodentia who can all communicate with each other, connected by the same colour scheme– an adventure that will take all of Mink’s courage and determination…

This is more than your standard 32 page picture book as it straddles the borders of that format with the length of a stepping-stone novel, thus helping the young reader transition to reading longer stories but still offering all the pictorial support needed to augment the text. It is a tale of friendship, courage and resolve that moves along at a fast pace, and the reader can put themselves in Mink’s place as she is determined to outwit the evil Mr Spit. 

Reminiscent of Dr Dolittle and his ability to talk to the animals, this is a story to capture the imagination and lead the reader on an adventure to remember.