posted on 16 Sep 2024

Midnight Adventures in Primrose Park by Helen Peters, illustrated by Isobel Lundie

Do you live anywhere near a park, a common or open countryside? If the answer to that question is yes, have you ever spent any time thinking about what the wildlife might be up to during the night as you sleep? If you haven’t, then Helen Peters’ new book, Midnight Adventures in Primrose Park might make you think a bit more about this amazing nocturnal world.

Hassan and his mum, Asma live near Primrose Park and love wildlife – Asma works at the local wildlife rescue centre – and all their skills will be needed to help two young animals who get into distress when they are out and about in the dark.

Dapple the fawn is out in the park with his mother, Fern. When Dapple strays a bit to far, Fern goes in search of him and finds herself entangled in a wire fence and unable to escape. Unless someone can be found to help, this is going to end badly – so Dapple heads off to try and alert someone to their plight.

The young fawn ends up outside the house where Hassan is sleeping and the young boy is woken by the deer’s cries of alarm. Trusting his instincts, Hassan persuades his mother to join in him and follow Dapple back into the park.

Will they be in time to help save Fern? How will they deal with the crisis?

Olive the otter pup lives in a holt on the river that runs through the Park along with her twin brother, Oban and their mum, Iris. Usually, otters love the rain but, like all creatures, don’t much like it when it comes down too heavily because it swells the river and turns it into a dangerous, fast-following torrent that can be dangerous to even the strongest swimmer.

On this night the rain comes down in sheets and because the river is flowing so fast, Olive’s mother tells the twins they must stay in the holt when she goes out looking for food. But how many youngsters always listen to their parents?

Olive decides she’s not going to miss out on fun and slips out to play in the river – and disaster strikes.

Luckily for her, Hassam and Asma are on hand to save the young creature from drowning and take Olive off to the rescue centre and plan to keep her there until the river has calmed down the following day. But her mum, Iris, has other ideas….

You can find out what happens when you buy your own copy…

Available from Barrington Stoke – who specialise in books for reluctant readers of all kinds – and delightfully illustrated by Isobel Lundie, you will be able to get a copy from your local independent bookshop. 

 

Terry Potter

September 2024