'I AM HUNGRY' A fun book to share with your kids

I AM HUNGRY by Michael Rosen, illustrated by Robert Starling(Walker Books, 2022)Good to Read for:the adorable squirrelinspiring creative playsharing a laugh with your kidsI AM HUNGRY (based on the poem from A Great Big Cuddle) is written by former Children’s Laureate Michael Rosen. Hot off the press from Walker Book, it will be a huge hit with pre-schoolers. 

At the start, a note to Grown-ups explains the book’s premise: The narrator (a cute squirrel) is hungry. (“So hungry,” explains Rosen in its trailer, “it could eat, well – almost anything.”) And when the squirrel feels hungry, it daydreams about things it could eat. ‘Sometimes it’s crazy things you can’t eat, like a dream or a wish.’ The squirrel (casually swinging on top of an empty bird feeder) goes on to encourage readers to use the book as a launchpad for some creative play of their own:

 

[T]ake it in turns to think of real things you’d like to eat and then mix them up with amazing and impossible things. See who can come up with the craziest stuff!

 

It’s a simple but valuable addition to the book that reminds parents to have fun with their kids. It will get your child giggling and spark some crazy imaginative play if you do.

Anyway, the small, red squirrel has clearly been practising this game of make-believe! At first, the tasty delights it dreams of eating are reasonable enough (even for a squirrel): 

 

I’m SO hungry, I’ll…

eat a bread roll,

popcorn in a bowl,

one plate of boiled rice,

two chocolate mice…

   

I AM HUNGRY is an excellent example of a quality picture book. Written with its audience in mind, Rosen gives Starling space to expand the narrative and add to the story through the illustrations. For example, when the squirrel dreams of eating ‘some fried fish’, the accompanying picture shows him with a newspaper-wrapped fish supper – hotly pursued by a gang of marauding gulls! Moments like these are valuable to children learning to read, as it empowers them to tell the story in their own words.

   

Gradually, Rosen unleashes his gently anarchic humour, and the squirrel’s dream morsels become increasingly bonkers. (For example, ‘a funny joke’, ‘a frying pan’ and ‘a dark and stormy night’!) ‘In true Michael Rosen style,’ notes BookTrust, ‘nothing is too silly’. Starling’s accompanying illustrations brilliantly capture the humour of Rosen’s outlandish text! His squirrel is so expressive and utterly adorable. (I especially love the images showing the squirrel eating a frying pan and elsewhere, reaching out for ‘a bit of the moon’ from atop ‘a giant prune’!)

There are few sounds more precious than a young child’s laughter. So a picture book that’s designed to elicit giggles is definitely something worth sharing. My own kids are now 22 and 16 years old. Trust me - they grow fast! There’ll only be so many storytimes – so don’t miss the opportunity to connect and make memories with your own kids while you can!

(If you haven’t done so already, sign up for your free weekly email. My story recommendations and tips will help you choose picture books with confidence.)

   

I AM HUNGRY (with its irresistible narrator) is silly fun that kids will adore. What’s more, they’ll enjoy sharing their own crazy ideas with you. And if anyone can out-think the squirrel’s wild flights of fantasy, it’ll be a three-year-old!

Giant prune, anyone?!

STORIES WORTH SHARINGI AM HUNGRY by Michael Rosen, illustrated by Robert Starling(Walker Books, 2022)Good to Read for:the adorable squirrelinspiring creative playsharing a joke with your kidsCopyright © 2022 Michael Rosen (Text) & Robert Starling (Illustrations)From I AM HUNGRY by Michael Rosen & Robert StarlingReproduced by permission of Walker Books Ltd, London, SE11 5HJ www.walker.co.ukGOOD TO READPicture books pre-schoolers will LOVE

Tip Tap Went the Crab by Tim Hopgood

How Kind by Mary Murphy

Tiny Little Fly by Michael Rosen and Kevin Waldron

Max at Night by Ed Vere

Say Hello to the Dinosaurs! by Ian Whybrow & Tim Warnes

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SOURCES

I AM HUNGRY by Michael Rosen, illustrated by Robert Starling (Walker Books, 2022) I Am Hungry | Book | Kids' Poems and Stories with Michael Rosen (Kids Poems and Stories with Michael Rosen, youtube.co.uk, 6 January 2022) I am Hungry (booktrust.org.uk)© 2022 BY TIM WARNES(UNLESS OTHERWISE ATTRIBUTED)****USE OF THIRD PARTY COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL FALLS UNDER FAIR USE/FAIR DEALING PRACTICE.