In Claude in the City, we meet an adorable puppy, of Francophilian persuasion, complete with red beret, who lives with Mr and Mrs Shinyshoes, so called because their shoes are shiny.
Claude likes to wear lovely jumpers. He has a best friend called Sir Bobblysock, who smells a bit like cheese, and together this dynamic duo set about town for a spot of beret shopping, art gallery-cruising, café-hopping and crim-busting. As you do.
And if all that's not enough, the next day Bobblysock wakes up very sick and very sad. Concerned, Claude makes a mercy dash to the hospital. The sight of that stripy sock in a wheelchair, lined up with the other patients ... priceless.
Thank goodness Bobblysock is only suffering a small hole in the heel, but it really was fate that led Claude to the hospital in the first instance. This inadvertently heroic dog manages to save the day, again by rescuing an ailing troupe of female wrestlers.
As you do.
Claude in the City is a warm, humorous, beautifully-penned book, with an engaging storyline, whimsical and smile-worthy illustrations and a set of characters that plant you firmly in a 1940s French comedy.
Love.
Also in this series - Claude on Holiday.
Title: Claude in the City
Author/Illustrator: Alex T Smith
Publisher: Hachette, $14.99 RRP
Publication Date: March 2011
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780340998991
For ages: 5 - 10
Type: Junior Fiction
