Anteater on the Stairs

by Peter Cottrill

Joe, a new neighbor, tells Sophie stories about his fabulous pets but doesn't listen when she tells about her pet Snowy, a polar bear

1 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1994

Reviews

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a lovely surprise. Sophie is moving into a new house. She meets her neighbor Joe who talks all about the exotic animals that live when him. But Sophie discovers that some of the animals are not as real as Joe makes it out to be. But Sophie is willing to let Joe play with snowy. Her pet….

[Sarah A · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a truly gorgeous children's book! I don't know why I have never seen it before - I only found it whilst hunting for books about anteaters for my daughter's school project!
It opens as Sophie is moving into a new house. She meets Joe who lives down the road and who boasts of all the wonderful and exotic animals he has at his house. Sophie tries to talk about her pet Snowy but Joe arrogantly interrupts. The next day Sophie waits for Joe's promised visit with two of his animals. When he doesn't come, she goes looking and his mom lets her in. She explores his house looking for the promised exotic wildlife - but only finds toy animals. She goes home via the shops to buy food for Snowy, and finds Joe waiting for her.
Adults will pick up on the hints along the way which lead to an awesome conclusion about what snowy is!
A wonderful book showing kids how they can use their imagination to make their toys comes to life and make any scenario happen. We loved it!