posted on 14 May 2017

Wishker by Heather Pindar, illustrated by Sarah Jennings

This is is fun story which gives a modern spin on the many traditional stories about being careful about what you wish for. Mirabel is fed up with never being given what she wants but meeting the magical Wishker, ' a rufty tufty roaming cat 'changes everything. He offers her a wish for each of his six whiskers.

Her first wish is for adults to say yes to everything she asks for and she is delighted to be allowed ice cream for every meal plus all her friends coming to stay at her house for ever. The wonderfully colourful illustrations convey the exuberant joy of being able to make lots of mess and play well past bedtime. Even Gran closes her eyes looking overcome with bliss as she enjoys a bowl piled high with scoops of ice cream but, as you might guess - there is resulting mayhem. It becomes even more chaotic when Mirabel wishes for clowns, fire- eaters and acrobats from the circus to join them. When she invites animals from the zoo to come to live in the increasingly overcrowded house, she realises that her wishes are far from ideal. I liked the way that the double page spread shows the living room is packed full of splashed paint, broken glass and curtains on fire but her grandad is obliviously reading his newspaper with Wishker the cat sitting comfortably on his lap. It is Mirabel that looks concerned and she has the power to do something about it because she has some wishes left. The next two pages take us deeper into the consequences of having all these people and animals living together with all the muddy footprints, stinky smells and relentless noise. Even grandad is finding it increasingly uncomfortable on the sofa shared with several zebras, one of which is eating a huge bucket of ice cream with a spoon.

She very sensibly uses her fifth wish to wish everything to return to normal again. She decides to risk asking the rest of the family to let Wishker live in the house as one cat is no trouble compared with lions and monkeys. Having experienced the noise and mess from these and the other animals from the zoo, they agree to let him stay. The final twist is to show her brother Jim thinking about what he would wish for because the cat has given him his last whisker. I can almost hear the shrieks of laughter from children as they see his thought bubbles which include Mirabel being bombarded with footballs and him living in a castle with her stranded on the other side of the moat. Which one will he choose? What would they wish for? This is a splendidly interactive book that I think would be very much enjoyed by young children everywhere.

Karen Argent

May 2016