The Tale of Wobbly Jim and a Parrot Named Sue – Book Review

Australian children’s books are our favourites – and we just found a brilliant one in Kate Toon’s ‘The Tale of Wobbly Jim and a Parrot Named Sue’.

Reading is a big part of our daily routine – I sneak an extra 10 minutes in bed each morning when the boys snuggle in for a story, and a bedtime book is part of our night time wind down. Reading with kids has been shown to have so many benefits for a child’s development. Even before they can recognise words and letters it has been shown to be important to read aloud to your child from a young age. It helps develop their vocabulary, grows their imagination and curiosity, builds their confidence and gets them ready to read. For this reason it’s important, in my opinion, for children’s books to be fun for adults too. Opportunities to add silly voices are always a bonus for me (pirates = five star opportunity!)

I love books that make us giggle and have a little bit of silly in them, and my absolute favourite is finding a book that rhymes. Choosing Australian children’s books is also high on the list for us.

Wobbly Jim ticks all these boxes – and the boys love it just as much – not least because it has pirates, sharks and dolphin wee (any reference to wee or poo is an instant hit in our house!)

Swashbuckling Adventure

Our main character, pirate Wobbly Jim, has lead a colourful life. He lost one leg to a hungry shark, and his beloved boat ‘The Merry Cow’ is caught in a terrible storm. Jim and his first mate, Dave the bear – face their adversities with positivity, friendship and a seashell pie.

Jim and Dave are visiting an island for a day trip when they help out a parrot in need . Little do they know that Sue the Parrot will arrive when they get into a spot of trouble, and that their act of kindness will be returned in a dramatic sea rescue.

Wobbly Jim is a tale of friendship, fun, adventure and overcoming adversity. The illustrations are colourful and captivating and the story is heart warming and positive.

If you’re ready for some swashbuckling fun and love Australian children’s books too then we’ve got a signed copy of The Tale of Wobbly Jim and a Parrot Named Sue to give away – simply comment below why you’d love to win and you could be adventuring on the high seas before you can say barnacles for breakfast.

You can buy a copy of Wobbly Jim and a Parrot Named Sue on Kate’s website.

We found these little plaster painting kits in Kmart for only $5 – there is a parrot in there who looks astonishingly like Sue and it was a great craft to complement the book. We painted ‘Sue’ in bright colours and then played out the book when she was dry!

If you’re interested in book related play, Tory over at Minted Rogue has a great series of book and play ideas which we’ve loved trying.

Have you seen our list of the best children’s books for travelling Australia? There are ideas here for all levels to get the family excited about your next Aussie adventure.

If you also love a spot of theatre in reading to your kids then check out this great list of books that are perfect for your inner thespian.