The Gruffalo tells the story of a mouse and its walk through the deep, dark wood. There, it uses its cleverness to escape from being eaten by a fox, an owl, a snake and... The Gruffalo!
The book is a bestseller and has won numerous prizes such as the gold award in the 1999 Nestlé Smarties Book Prize. It was adapted into a short animated film by the BBC in 2009. Julia Donaldson has since collaborated with illustrator Axel Scheffler to produce other books such as The Gruffalo's Child and The Snail and the Whale. An activity book, audiobook and music CD have also been produced for The Gruffalo.
The story is written in rhyming couplets and the dialogue between the mouse and the other characters is repetitive. The language used is simple and easy to understand. Understanding of more difficult words is aided by the illustrations, allowing the reader to visualise things such as "knobbly knees" and "poisonous wart". The repetitiveness and simple language make it suitable for younger children (3 to 6 years old). Older children may get bored. It would be fun for adults to read this aloud to children and have them role play as the characters. For a more engaging experience, different voices can be used for the different characters.
The illustrations are vibrant and at first glance appear to be simple. However, take a closer look and you may spot other small woodland creatures like a woodpecker and a dragonfly going about their day. These and the main characters of the story can be used to teach children about the animals that can be found in the woods. This is of course only applicable to children who live in temperate climes. Those living in the tropics would encounter different animals!
Overall, The Gruffalo is a charming and enjoyable story to read with younger children. It also has a nice lesson for children: might is not the only way to get ahead in life; quick wits can help too. I give it 4 out of 5 stars.
Author: Julia Donaldson
Illustrator: Axel Scheffler
First published in 1999 by Macmillan Children's Books
Website: http://www.gruffalo.com/
Age range: 3 to 6 years old
NA's rating: 4/5
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