Hugless Douglas and the Big Sleep Over

Hugless Douglas

by David Melling

Paperback

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Storytime, Humor, Fiction, Friendship

Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

David Melling grew up in London with various siblings and a selection of animals, including a dog. It took him a while to decide what he wanted to do, but he never stopped drawing. He worked as a cel renderer and background artist in several animation studios before he began illustrating children’s books. His work includes the Hugless Douglas series and The Kiss That Missed, which was short-listed for the Kate Greenaway Medal. To date he has created around 150 books in over thirty languages. David Melling lives in Oxfordshire, England, with his wife and two children.

Reviews

[Nola Lorraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hugless Douglas is excited because he's going over to Rabbit's place for a sleepover. Along the way, he runs into his friend Little Sheep and asks her to come with him as Rabbit has lots of room. However, he doesn't realise he's picked up some other passengers along the way and things get a bit squeezy in Rabbit's burrow. What will the friends do to ensure everyone has a fun and comfy night?

This is another charming book in the Hugless Douglas collection. The illustrations are really fun, with lots to look at. There's a double-page spread at the end that includes fun pictures of other things you might take with you on a sleepover. A great book that entertains adults as well as the kids.

[Della · Rating 5 out of 5]

Douglas is now my favourite kids character ahead of Kipper. These are wonderful books about a lovely bear and his little gang of sheep. With lovely text and beautiful pictures these are perfect bedtime reading. The last pages are full of amusing pics of the sheep conected to the story, a perfect book!

[Kristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Мечето Дългас е забавно, тромаво и с много приятели. Едни овце винаги са там наоколо и правят ситуацията още по-забавна.
Ако историята не беше толкова накъсана и хаотична, щеше лесно да стане фаворит и да получи 5 звезди.

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Douglas. He is just so lovely. This time Douglas is off to a sleep over with rabbit. I also love the little sheep in the story they are all so different and so cute! Another great Douglas book.

[April Thompson Freeman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Douglas is such a cute character. And THOSE sheep!

[Eugenia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cerita lucu dan menghangatkan hati jelang tidur :)

Kali ini, Douglas akan menginap di lubang si Kelinci. Karena baik hati, ia mengajak setiap hewan yang dijumpainya dalam perjalanan. Douglas tidak mendengarkan ketika Burung Hantu berkata bahwa lubang kelinci tidak mungkin cukup memuat mereka semua. Namun bagi Douglas yang terpenting hanya satu, Kelinci pasti akan senang karena lebih banyak hewan yang akan ikut menginap.

Yah, Douglas memang benar. Kelinci terlihat senang melihat barisan hewan yang datang bersama Douglas. Sayangnya, kata-kata Burung Hantu pun benar, lubang kelinci tidak cukup! Maka, semua hewan berusaha keras untuk memasuki lubang dan membuat diri mereka nyaman. Sampai sesuatu menggelitik hidung Douglas! Bersinnya yang meriah membuat malam menginap menjadi semakin seru.

Menurutmu, apa yang terjadi?
Selamat membaca, ya!

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rabbit invites Douglas to her house for a sleepover. He packs several items to take with him. On the way over he gets lost, so little sheep shows him the way. Upon arrival there are more guests than rabbit expected, so she dug a bigger hole for everyone to get comfy. Douglas sneezes, and everything shifts.

[Lara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this is my favorite of the Douglas books so far! I love Little Sheep - and the sneeze!! Overall, a very sweet book, with more of Melling's adorable illustrations. Again, plenty of chances for silly voices too. A great book for talking about overnights away from home (tie in to a bigger theme of travel, too, if you want) and of course bears or sheep or rabbits.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ahhhhh. It’s time for a sleepover at rabbits. And no matter how big, or how many sheep, there is always room at rabbits. Except when it’s not. These books give me such a Pooh feeling. I love it, and hope it continues.

[Romain · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very funny!

[Emily Carter-Dunn · Rating 3 out of 5]

An OK read, but lacking any real storyline. A bit everywhere.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A classic sleepover story. I love Douglas's generous spirit!

[Sarita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very cute and love the pictures.

[Amanda Gregory · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 9 year old son loves the hugless Douglas books

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Douglas is going for a sleepover at Rabbit's, but on the way he somehow acquires ten sheep. And Rabbit's burrow might be a bit tight for all those guests...
Cute illustrations and a fun story.

[Anne-Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third in the Hugless Douglas series and I think it might just be my favourite of the three. To recap: In Hugless Douglas (Hodder 2010), Douglas wakes from a long sleep and tries to find a hug that suits him, looking for big tall and comfy hugs in all the wrong places until Rabbit takes him to the best hug of all. In Don’t Worry [Hugless] Douglas (Hodder 2011) Douglas gets a new hat from his dad but in his excitement the hat gets ruined. He looks for advice about what to tell his dad, before finding out that telling the truth is the best option.

In Hugless Douglas and the Big Sleep, Douglas is heading for a sleepover with Rabbit: “There’s plenty of room at Rabbit’s.” But not before choosing what to take with him, getting lost, picking up some friends along the way and ending sleeping not quite where originally planned...

It’s the attention to detail that make me love these books so much. This may be why I like Hugless Douglas and the Big Sleep so much, because it brings themes from the original Hugless Douglas book: the honeybee pyjamas, the bush with eyes, the owl saying “Twooooo Twit!”. I also love how the sky subtly darkens throughout the book with a sunset sky before night falls – something that you can even see in the storyboard.

This double spread also has that Winnie-the-Pooh trapped in Rabbit’s house feel, except in this case Rabbit is very happy for Douglas to visit and the problem is getting into her house, not out of it. (And I just love how this Rabbit instantly just decides to dig a bigger hole because she is, after all, a rabbit…)

My daughters both love Hugless Douglas, and the Douglas books are suitable for a wide age range. MG (just 5) gets a lot more of the humour (pointing out the sheep stuck on Douglas’ back for instance). DG (almost 3) loves the stories. I drool over the details! As I write this, MG has stolen Hugless Douglas and the Big Sleep from me and is copying the words from the book while attempting to read as many as she can. Earlier she was using the pictures to read the story to her little sister.

The attention to detail really is just fantastic: there are always ten sheep (even when they’re just eyes in a bush), Douglas’ storybook front and back cover is an exact match to the first Hugless Douglas book, one of the sheep is pulling the pyjamas out of the bag before Douglas is shown wearing them (though how he gets them on must be a book in itself!)

The final double page spread of “things to take on a sleepover” is packed with humour (especially the cuddly toy), but I think my favourite has to be: a friend. Hugless Douglas can be every child’s friend so off you go now, grab yourself a copy and enjoy. And don’t forget to read it to your children once you’ve enjoyed it...

Review first appeared: http://childledchaos.me.uk/2012/04/04...

[K.L. Bernard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Douglas the bear is at it again. He has been invited to a sleepover at Rabbits house. His sleepover bag is really full and heavy with all the things he felt he couldn't do without. On the way he gets a little lost, he climbed a tree so he could see where he should be. The tree crashed and he squished some sheep, who he then invited to Rabbits. Once at Rabbits, there was a little problem getting Douglas down the rabbit hole. Will Douglas ever get inside so he can wear his honey bee pajamas and read a bedtime story? You''ll have to read the story to see.

Children and parents will love this hilarious tale. Lively and colorful illustrations will have readers laughing out loud as the characters make their way through the story. The back pages show what animals might pack for a sleepover. Young readers can easily learn to read this hilarious tale which incorporates simple sentences.

[Heidi-Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the illustrations. Adorable, fun, and plenty to look at in a lap-read or read-alone. This would be a lot of fun in storytime. Just missed my bedtime theme, but I'm sure I could fit it in. I have to, for the sneezing part alone! Made me smile a lot. I could incorporate a little bit of counting in this, and I'm sure the kids would get the humor.

4/3/13 & 4/4/13 Not bad but not fab. They liked seeing the sheep stuck on his bag. And they liked seeing them all squished in rabbit's home. But barely any laughs over the sheep being sneezed out of rabbit's home. I thought those were some of the best illustrations in the book. Oh well. Wed. group joined me in counting the sheep, Thu. did not. They didn't love it, but at least they were still and paid attention.

[Rukshana Begum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Douglas packs his bag for a sleepover at Rabbit's house, " There's plenty of room at Rabbit's."
He gets lost on his way to Rabbit's house and meets Little Sheep. Douglas invites Little Sheep to the sleep over too, only to realise that a he has carried extra guests with him on his backpack. Douglas is unable to get into Rabbits house as its too small, so Rabbit digs a bigger hole for him.

This is a great book for a story time read with younger children. The final page also gives a list of things for a sleepover.

[Zendora · Rating 3 out of 5]

Why does Hugless have sprinkles all over his body? That was the first thing I was asked when I showed someone this book. I'm figuring it because of something that happened in previous books, which means I will have to hunt them down to answer that question. Which might not be a bad thing, because Hugless Douglas is a cute lovable character. This book shares similarities to Karma Wilson's Bear series with more cartoonist illustrations and no rhyme.

[W · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a cute story but the subtly hilarious illustrations are what make it genius. Check out the last pages, where there's a list of items to bring on a sleepover, and squee over the drawings accompanying "Woolly socks" and "Friend."

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an enjoyable read-aloud story that is clever and witty. It’s short and not too substantial, but it would be fun to read. It’s all about bear and his sleepover at rabbit’s and how there’s not as much space there as he originally thought.

[Irene Palfy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I simply love Douglas and his friends.. David Melling is just genius...

[Jenny Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

My children love Douglas but what they really, really love are his friends the sheep- the back pages in the Douglas books featuring the sheep in amusing positions make them laugh and laugh and laugh!

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

Douglas is excited to go to Rabbit's sleepover. But with too many animals and not enough space, how will Douglas ever get to sleep?"--P. [4] of cover.

[Peacegal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the illustrations, but the storyline was a bit sloppy.

[Christina Erickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great story for those kids who have not had a sleepover yet and do not know what to expect.

[Alida · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!! I actually laughed out loud. The drawings are wonderful, particularly the expressions in the sheep. This one goes in my collection.

[Adrienne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute little story that will have kids laughing.

[Monica Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hugless Douglas is a charmer! Super cute read!