View source for Mrs Vickers' Favourite Knickers by Kara Lebihan and Deborah Allwright

{{infobox2
|title=Mrs Vickers' Favourite Knickers
|author=Kara Lebihan and Deborah Allwright
|reviewer=Margaret Young
|genre=For Sharing
|rating=3.5
|buy=Maybe
|borrow=Yes
|isbn=978-1405253956
|pages=32
|publisher=Egmont Books Ltd
|date=May 2013
|aznuk=1405253959
|aznus=1405253959
|cover=1405253959
|website=http://karalebihan.com/
|video=
|summary=Children love knickers so this book will bring plenty of snickers, but as fun as it is to read the first few times, it does lose something with repetition.
}}
Mrs Vickers' Favourite Knickers have an adventure of their own, flying high above town over the sea, before finally making a rather unusual landing right back were they started from. Children of a certain age love knickers, and I'm certain this book would be a smash hit with a nursery or reception class, and even children up to about 7or 8 are likely to enjoy reading this once. This book is quite short, and ideal for children with very short attention spans, and considering the subject matter is almost certain to hold the attention of a large group of children easily.

There really isn't much of a story, the knickers are blown away by the wind and whoosh through the town. The illustrations really add to this story as and my children did find several of these amusing, especially the knickers winding up in someone's wedding video and a very shocked looked teacher or headmaster as the knickers fly through a classroom. The illustrations are bright and cheery with enough bold colours to capture even the youngest child's attention, and tell far more of the story then the text itself. Although the story is very short, you can stretch it out and make it more interesting by ad-libbing the  speech of various characters in the pictures, and I think this is the part of the book my son enjoys the most.  There are also several other funny things to search for in the illustrations adding a bit of novelty to future readings as you discover more details. The ending is amusing as well, as it looks like the end may be just the beginning of another underwear adventure.

This is not a rhyming book, although the odd pair of words like Vickers and knickers rhyme, but it does have a nice cadence to it, and it is a very pleasant book to read out loud. This is a book for sharing only. Many of the words, such as ''inquisitive'' are simply too challenging for an emergent reader, and the story itself will be a bit too childish by the time a child is old enough to read this on their own. It does have the advantage of large clear text though, which a child can easily follow as a parent reads along.

Both of my sons enjoyed this the first time we read it, especially my 4 year old. My youngest child does like this book well enough to keep and has enjoyed reading this, but it does lose something with repeated reading. I think this book would best suit very young children, ages 2 to 4, or reading groups, such as a nursery group. Mrs Vickers' Knickers will most certainly be read again occasionally in our home,  but it is not the sort of book that is likely to be read time and time again. In fact I suspect it would never have gone past the second reading if the extra dialogue I add to the book did not change with each reading. On the plus side, this is a book that is very easy to add to, and something you can encourage the child to do as well, by asking - what do you think he is saying while pointing out a character. But, while the book is absolutely brilliant the first time you read it and sure to bring plenty of laughter, it just doesn't have what it takes to be chosen over and over. I would very strongly recommend this for schools or nurseries, but can only give a more reserved recommendation for parents. It is most certainly a book that children will enjoy, but the question remains as to whether they will want to hear it often enough to be worth purchasing

For similar humour we can recommend:

[[Aliens In Underpants Save The World by Claire Freedman and Ben Cort]]

[[Pirates Love Underpants by Claire Freedman and Ben Cort]]

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[[Category:Kara Lebihan]]
[[Category:Deborah Allwright]]