</em#x3E; It’s Little Wolf!

Little Wolf’s Book of Badness by Ian Whybrow, ill. by Tony Ross (Collins 1995) | Illustration © 1995 by Tony Ross

 What a weird time this is. Covid-19 is on a global rampage, leaving everyone feeling discombobulated.

It feels like we’re in free fall - that anything could happen next. Which is a good reason to ground ourselves in the present, and be thankful for the blessings around us. I have the sun on my back, and it feels good. I am still fortunate enough to be able to go out for walks in the Dorset countryside. But by the time I publish the article, the world could look very different again.

Out in Spain, my sister and nephew Isaac’s fifteen-day lockdown has been extended by a further two weeks. Isaac (aged seven) and I now video chat each day. (Before the pandemic, we rarely spoke on the phone). It’s been so much fun! Partly because I get to put on my performer’s hat and read aloud to him. And the book I’m sharing? Little Wolf’s Book of Badness by Ian Whybrow, illustrated by Tony Ross (Collins 1995).

 

From Little Wolf’s Book of Badness by Ian Whybrow, ill. by Tony Ross (Collins 1995) | Illustration © 1995 by Tony Ross

 

I once had to illustrate two naughty wolf cubs. They make a cameo appearance in Boris Goes Camping (Oxford University Press), and trash Camp Cluck. But this Little Wolf isn’t naughty enough (according to his parents, at least). So he’s sent away to Cunning College to learn the 9 Rules of Badness and earn a Gold BAD Badge, from none other than his wicked Uncle Bigbad. (All Little Wolf wants to do, meanwhile, is stay at home with his baby brother, Smellybreff.)

Little Wolf’s Book of Badness is the first in a series. Stuck to the front endpaper of my hardback edition is an unassuming manilla envelope with a warning sticker: KEEP YOUR PAWS OFF. And inside - a secret letter from Little Wolf’s dad to his brother, Uncle Bigbad - begging him to ‘make a beast of Little Wolf’:

 

Little is a bad boy at heart, I am sure, but he is worryingly well-behaved at the moment. He has been far too nice to Smellybreff, his baby brother, and only yesterday he went to bed early without being growled at. …

 

I bought my copy from Harrods of all places. I’m so glad I did, because Little Wolf has become one of my favourite stories to read aloud. Jane read it to me first, when we were on holiday in Cornwall. Years later, I read daily instalments at a children’s holiday club; then to my own kids, of course. And now, nephew Isaac.

The story itself consists of Little Wolf’s letters home, with great pen and ink illustrations (and splatters) by Tony Ross. Here’s how it begins:

 

On the road to Lonesome Lake Day 1 - morning

Dear Mum and Dad,

Please please PLEEEEEZ let me come home. I have been walking and walking all day, and guess how far? Not even ten miles, I bet. I have not even reached Lonesome Lake yet. You know I hate going on adventures. So why do I have to go hundreds of miles to Uncle Bigbad’s school in the middle of a dark damp forest?

 

That night, Little Wolf writes some more.

 

I am a bit lost…

[T]he moon has come up and I can just see my pen and paper but I wish it was brighter. My tent is stupid. It falls down all the time, so I have curled up in my rucksack. Camping is my worst thing, and maps too. I am frozz, I am hopeless.

Yours tiredoutly,

Little Wolf

 

A former teacher who writes with both adult and young readers in mind, author Whybrow ‘has a brilliant ear for voices and takes pride in the fact that his work reads aloud very well.’ So says the jacket flap blurb - and it’s true!

The result is some solid characterisation written with dry humour, like this:

 

… [I] did do a trick on a beetle today. I said, “Hello, sonny, would you like to play a game?”

So he said, “OK, why not?” So I said, “Go on then, say ‘What is the time, Mister Wolf’.”

So he said, “Why?” So I said, “You will see in a minute.” So he said, “OK. What is the time, Mister Wolf?” and I said, “DINNER TIME, har, har!”

He was quite tasty.

Wait til Uncle hears that, he will make me a prefect, I bet!

 

From Little Wolf’s Book of Badness by Ian Whybrow, ill. by Tony Ross (Collins 1995) | Illustration © 1995 by Tony Ross

 

Rule number 5, in particular, has tickled Isaac’s funny-bone: If it squeaks, eat it.

Like myself (and, I’m increasingly discovering, kid lit greats like Richard Scarry and Eric Carle), Whybrow has strong memories of being read to as a child: ‘I loved the sense that my mother and father were enjoying themselves too. For me, that’s the real acid test for any good book - that there’s something in it for everyone to enjoy.’ No wonder Isaac and I are having so much fun sharing the book together!

At the start of each session, we howl like Little Wolf - Arrroooo! Using video chat when I can, I hold up the pictures for him to see. I’m often interrupted by frequent questions - but that’s all part of the fun! Sometimes Isaac directs his question at Little Wolf (“How did you get up onto the roof?”), in which case I reply in character. (Leading to the curiously creative scenario where I am taking someone else’s creation and giving it further life.)

 










































 

Isaac: “Super-Uncle Tim - is Frettnin Forest near you or no?”

Me: “No - is it anywhere near you?”

Isaac: “No! I’m absolutely nowhere near Frettnin Forest. I’m near the beach. I live in a massive urbanisation similar to a town. Does Uncle eat whole pizzas without cutting them - all in one piece? … What’s a disguise?… What’s a cub scout?…”

(These interactions are made all the more precious, since Isaac is autistic.)

On Day 10, Little Wolf arrives at Cunning College - and the sense of impending doom is rising.

 

Much too late to ring the bell. If I wake up Uncle now he is sure to eat me. … I just hope [he] isn’t too cruel. I do not want to get boiled.

This could be my last letter.

Ever.

And it will be all your fault.

Yours damply,

Master L Wolf

 

Brilliant!

The following day, Little Wolf plucks up the courage and rings on the doorbell - ding ding.

 

Next thing, boom boom, big feet coming down the hall, loads of huff and puff.

 

The door of Cunning College creaks open - eeeeee-aaaaah - to reveal the villainous Uncle Bigbad!

 

Uncle Bigbad [is] all tall and thin and horrible... His eyebrows are furry like caterpillars and they join in the middle. He is very fierce, and he has got great big red eyes and great big long yellow teeth and great big long streams of dribble dribbling down. He reminds me a bit of Dad, but hungrier.

 










































 

Whybrow’s text is perfectly matched with Ross’s art. The Oxford Companion to Children’s Literature notes that ‘Ross has an anarchic, comedic style and does not gloss over the darker parts of the stories he illustrates.’ Little Wolf allows him to illustrate rabbit rolls, mice pies and of course, the iconic Big, Bad Wolf.

Unsurprisingly, Bigbad does not appreciate the arrival of his nephew -

 

He snarled his great big horrible snarl and he said in his great big horrible posh voice, “GGGRRR! BEGONE VILE BALL OF FLUFF! FLY AND FLEE OR I SHALL FETCH THE VACUUM CLEANER AND HOOVER YOU UP OFF MY FRONT STEP!”

 

I love the pointers from Whybrow as to how to make Uncle Bigbad sound: posh AND LOUD!

Here’s my take on his characters:   










































 

I shan’t give away the ending of Little Wolf. Suffice to say, our brave cub earns his BAD badge (in a roundabout kind of way) - and the adventure ends with a bang!

 I’m planning on working out a way of sharing storytime with a broader group, most likely via a prerecorded video.

But nothing beats that interactive, intimacy of sharing a story with one or two children - even if it has to be done remotely. There is great concern as to what the long term impact of C-19 social distancing and isolation policies will have on our kids. But we can all do our part to help support them. The president of Sesame Workshop (the nonprofit educational organisation behind Sesame Street) explains: “The most important thing is for children to have caring adults that they’re engaged with.”

Is there a small person in your life who you could read to during this time of social distancing? Maybe not a family member - but a child you know? Please consider reaching out to them (if only to give their carers a break!). If your internet connection can handle it, then video chat is great! If not, a regular phone call will work. It will help open up conversations about all sorts of things - so don’t try and suppress the interruptions as you read. The point is, you’re engaging and connecting. Who cares if the book goes unread?

Life is short, so let’s make it sweet where we can.

 Here’s some picture books that I have illustrated over the years for Ian Whybrow
































































































































Do you have a childhood book that comforts you?Please let me know! Sources Little Wolf’s Book of Badness by Ian Whybrow, ill. by Tony Ross (Collins 1995) THE OXFORD COMPANION TO CHILDREN’S LITERATURE BY DANIEL HAHN (OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS SECOND EDITION, 2015) Love and Structure Will Carry Us Through by Jessica Grose (The New York Times: Parenting, March 25, 2020)