View source for Tim The Tiny Horse At Large by Harry Hill

{{infobox1
|title=Tim The Tiny Horse At Large
|author=Harry Hill
|reviewer=Keith Dudhnath
|genre=Humour
|summary=Tim the Tiny Horse is back, with some more mundane yet surreal episodes in his life. Families will love passing round this funny book amongst themselves, with its quirky sense of humour that transcends age barriers.
|rating=4
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|pages=176
|publisher=Faber Children's Books
|date=October 2009
|isbn=978-0571244157
|cover=0571244157
|aznuk=0571244157
|aznus=0571244157
}}

It's been a while since Tim and Fly's [[Tim the Tiny Horse by Harry Hill|last adventures]], and changes are afoot in Tim's tiny world: Fly is getting married to his girlfriend. Tim's a little worried because they've only known each other for a week. The marriage goes ahead, and Tim finds himself kicking his heels, so he gets a pet. And so the brief episodes in the life of a horse who lives in a matchbox continue.

''Tim The Tiny Horse At Large'' is all very silly, as is everything that Harry Hill touches. The stories are both mundane and fantastic - Tim is such a small horse that he can use a spaghetti hoop as a muzzle. The humour is direct and surreal, which won't necessarily be to everyone's taste, but is to mine. Hill's illustrations are simple, almost childish, but they suit the faux amateur nature of the story.

I'm not really sure who's the perfect audience for ''Tim The Tiny Horse At Large''. Some of the jokes will go over the heads of newly confident readers - I can't imagine many of them will fully get the cameos from Barry Cryer and Robert Winston. Teens and adults will laugh at lots of it, but think bits of it are childish. I laughed (although admittedly not quite as much as I did at [[The Further Adventures of the Queen Mum by Harry Hill|The Further Adventures of the Queen Mum]]). I don't think it's Harry Hill at his absolute best, but even when not on top top form, he's still funnier than most.

Such is its charm that it's suitable for all, rather than suitable for none: every age group will get a little something different from it. It's the sort of book that someone in the family gets as a Christmas present, and then everyone passes around, sniggering at it, as they eat and drink too much. It almost doesn't matter who it belongs to; everyone will enjoy it. Recommended.

My thanks to the publishers for sending it to Bookbag.

Adults and teens looking to laugh their heads off should take a look at Bookbag's [[Top Ten Funniest Books]]. Confident readers will love [[The Boy in the Dress by David Walliams and Quentin Blake]], which is another great example of 'him off the telly' writing a book. Fans of the surreal should look no further than [[It's Them Monkey Pirates Again! by Mark Skelton and Ben Redlich]].  You might also enjoy [[Nelson to the Rescue by Simon Weston]].  For another book that's surreal, try [[The Factory Made Boy by Christine Nostlinger]].

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[[Category:Confident Readers]]
[[Category:Teens]]