View source for My Teacher is a Monster! (No, I Am Not.) by Peter Brown

{{infobox2
|title=My Teacher is a Monster! (No, I Am Not.)
|author=Peter Brown
|reviewer=Rachael Spencer
|genre=For Sharing
|rating=4.5
|buy=Maybe
|borrow=Yes
|isbn=9781447257479
|pages=40
|publisher=Macmillan Children's Books
|date=July 2014
|aznuk=1447257480
|aznus=1447257472
|cover=1447257480 
|website=
|video=
|summary=Bobby's teacher is a MONSTER. Or is she? When Bobby bumps into her in the park one day he ends up seeing his stomping, roaring teacher in a different light. This book about a young boy who doesn't like his teacher is an excellent read for school children, and a great lesson in not judging a book by its cover.
}}
School can be a difficult place for children, especially if your teacher is a stomping, roaring monster like Miss Kirby. Bobby spends most of his time worrying about what to do about his monster of a teacher, and the best place for him to think about it is in the park. He goes there one day to contemplate the situation, but who does he meet? Miss Kirby! She isn't stomping or roaring though, she is feeding the ducks. 

In the following pages, Bobby and Miss Kirby rescue a hat, fly paper aeroplanes and quack with the ducks. This is an excellent story for school children who might be nervous of their teachers. The story unfolds really well to create a great arc, making the characters come to life page by page in a very clever way.

The illustrations are drawn in an incredibly unique and interesting style, with a simple layout and bold colours, making it feel engaging and clear, thus easily accessible. The same goes for the text, simple language and an easy to follow story mean that this book could be read alone by a more confident first reader, which is perfect for the age being targeted as they would probably also relate well to the story.

I love to find books like this, which are  maybe more individual than some other picture books on the market, and which allow younger children to tackle some more in depth subject matters; who knows, maybe some children who pick up this title will stop feeling quite so intimidated by their teachers?

Though this book might be a little more of an acquired taste, style-wise, I would definitely recommend you give it a go if you have primary school aged children – it's a lovely story which aims to prove that teachers are just like us. Well, mostly...

If you like this, why not try reading [[Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers]]?

{{amazontext|amazon=1447257480}}
{{amazonUStext|amazon=1447257472}}

{{commenthead}}
[[Category:Emerging Readers]]