View source for The Mummy Shop by Abie Longstaff and Lauren Beard

{{infobox2
|title=The Mummy Shop
|sort=Mummy Shop, The
|author=Abie Longstaff and Lauren Beard
|reviewer=Jo Heffer
|genre=For Sharing
|rating=4
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|isbn=9781407114927
|pages=32
|publisher=Scholastic
|date=March 2013
|aznuk=1407114921
|aznus=1407114921
|cover=1407114921
|summary=Deep down, all little children know that their mummies love them to bits but sometimes mummies can be a bit annoying especially when they are telling them  not to bounce on the bed or to go to bed early. At these times it could be very tempting to start thinking about getting a new mummy and where better to start looking than ''The Mummy Shop''...
}}
One small boy is feeling very cross with his mummy. She has told him to tidy his room, to help at the supermarket and then has made him go to bed when he has only just started playing. He is so cross that when he reads this advert in the paper:

''Tired of your mummy telling you what to do?''<br>
''Get a new one from the Mummy Shop today!''<br>
''There’s a mummy to suit everyone!''

he decides to call the number. He discusses his problem with a friendly voice at the other end of the line who soon promises to send round a new mummy who will allow bouncing on the bed all day. This sounds great but the small boy soon realises that this mummy cannot cook. Therefore he has to send her back and get a new one. Unfortunately although the next one can cook, everything is made out of carrots so she also has to go back. This keeps happening because none of the mummies is ever quite perfect. There is even one mummy who does not like cuddling! Eventually though, one mummy does walk through the door and she really is perfect! It’s no surprise that this is the mummy who made the little boy so cross at the start of the story.

This book is a lot of fun but also one that will hopefully encourage small children to appreciate their own mums a bit more. The idea of a ‘Mummy Shop’ is very funny. The shop is actually run by a snooty looking fox and all the mummies that he sends are actually different animals which is probably the reason why the mummies are not quite perfect.  For example, the mummy who only cooks carrots is a rabbit and the one that does not like cuddling is a hedgehog.

The story is written in an entertaining way and all the words are quite accessible. The text is also set out in an interesting way with many words bigger and bolder in order to draw attention to them. The accompanying illustrations are all very enjoyable too and really help to understand what is going on in the story.

Overall, this is a very enjoyable book which would make a delightful bedtime story – just as long as it doesn’t give children the idea of going to ''The Mummy Shop'' themselves!

Why not also take a look at [[Mum's Cronky Car by Anita Pouroulis and Jon Lycett-Smith]]

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[[Category:Abie Longstaff]]
[[Category:Lauren Beard]]