It’s been a while since I wrote about the books I’ve been sharing with Leo as things became extremely busy in the run up to Christmas. So, today I thought I’d share a book we’ve been enjoying ,that we were kindly gifted at the end of last year. As a parent the name of the book may well send shivers down your spine as the main character, Jenny, is described as The Naughtiest Girl In The World. Fear not though this book isn’t a manual for how your child can create more daily havoc for you, but is a beautifully illustrated children’s tale ideal for sharing together.
Released last year The Naughtiest Girl In The World is part of a series of books about the adventures of Jenny and her magical cat Philip who live in Yorkshire. Adopted by her Aunt & Uncle, Jenny finds any opportunity to be ‘naughty’ from drawing on walls to splodging ice cream on her clean clothes and seems to thrive on the attention especially enjoying her time spent on the naughty step – somewhere I’m sure all parents will be familiar with!
Philip, the family cat, likes to sit beside Jenny whilst she sits out her time on the naughty step, but he is no ordinary cat – he can talk! On one particular occasion Philip gets talking to Jenny about her behaviour and helps her st see just how lucky she truly is, helping her to see why she needs to think about her actions.
This book is a real pleasure to read and has some important messages at it’s heart that I really enjoyed discussing with Leo. It talks about how some children, in other countries have to live in warzones and don’t even have a safe place to live, offering the perfect opportunity to open the lines of discussion with children. Whilst as a parent you don’t want to worry or scare your child with the harsh realities of the world, I think it is incredibly important that they realise not everyone lives in the same environment or situation as them and this book offers an easy way to start that conversation.
Also, by showing Jenny a snapshot in the story Philip explains that the world needs good people to help those in bad situations, encouraging her to use her actions to spread goodness instead. Again this is another really important message for children to learn, that being kind and good costs nothing and if everyone in the world did the same it would be a much nicer place.
As a parent I favour books that offer a subtle message alongside the story, as this one does, and I think the author has achieved the perfect balance between the two. It’s also great to see a lead character in a children’s book that isn’t ‘perfect’ as it’s a truer representation of real kids! Leo and I really enjoyed meeting Jenny and Phillip in this book and hope to see more of what they get up to in future releases.
The Adventures of Jenny and Philip: The Naughtiest Girl In The World is available to purchase from Amazon*
Fraser’s Fun House 
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