This is the story of a boy who takes it upon himself to help a lost penguin find his way home. His first quest is to find where the wordless penguin has come from. But no-one seems to be missing a penguin. He finally discovers that penguins hail from the South Pole. So now the boy finds himself facing a bigger problem: How will he ever get the penguin home?
And so begins a story of determination, journey and most of all, friendship.
A great book for children aged 3-7 years, Oliver Jeffers’ watercolour illustrations are expressive and dreamlike in quality and are instrumental in bringing the story to life. His words are strung together beautifully. My favorite sentence: “‘Some birds are just like that” is Jeffers’ explanation as to why a flock of birds fail to respond to the boy’s request for help. It is lines like these that help to set a gentle humorous tone throughout.
The ending reveals to us that something thought lost is often something found. Jeffers takes the reader by the hand and walks them through each stage of what turns out to be, quite an emotional journey. He is able to delicately wrap a variety of feelings, from humour to sadness, in one lovely little ball of warmth. I find myself closing the book with feelings of pleasure and contentment. No doubt the reason my three year old often selects this book as his bedtime story and as Lost and Found is storytelling at its best, this is fine with me.
- this review by new KBR contributor Gillian Harrison
Title: Lost and Found
Author/Illustrator: Oliver Jeffers
Publisher: HarperCollins, $14.99 RRP
Publication Date: December 2005
ISBN: 9780007150366
Format: Soft cover
For ages: 3-7
Type: Picture Book
