Dick King Smith

Advantages: A great book
Disadvantages: Last in series

...I loved these books when I was younger! There are six in the series, and "Sophie's Lucky" is the last one. The main character of the books is, of course, Sophie, a 7-year-old girl with a love for animals and a determination to be a 'lady farmer' one day (along with her best friend Andrew, who she recently became engaged to). In this book, Sophie and her family go to visit their great-great-aunt Al in the Highlands of Scotland. It's funny, with a very sad but very satisfying ending to the series. As well as Sophie there are her brothers (identical, sports-obsessed twins Matthew and Mark) her best friend Andrew (a farmer's son) Dawn (her girly, blonde arch-enemy) and many more. Dick King-Smith writes very well, capturing all the different characters excellently. This is a great series of books which I'd definitely recommend for 6... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: An easy, amusing, vaguely educational read
Disadvantages: Can't think of any

...Dick King-Smith Dick King-Smith is a bestselling children's' author, and it is easy to see why. He is the author of The Sheep Pig, which was made into the film, Babe. Dick King-Smith spent twenty years as a farmer before becoming an author, and his experiences with animals show through in his writing which has a real sensitivity. The Hodgeheg The Hodgeheg is a story about a hedgehog called Victor Maximilian St George, or Max for short. He and his family have spent their lives dreaming about reaching the park, but are prevented from doing so by a main road. The first line of the book is "Your Auntie Betty has copped it," and introduces the Max the hedgehogs family. It also introduces the problem faced by hedgehogs the country over, that of being run over. Max is a bright hedgehog, far cleverer than his sisters, and he sets upon... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Good book
Disadvantages: Bad film

...I read this when I was younger a long time before the film came out. I think that it is essentially like much of Dick King-Smith's work in that it is aimed at young children and is mainly based around animals and how they feel. This was actually one of the books that persuaded me to become vegetarian (along with Charlotte's web) as it is based around a pig that has been won at a fair and is intended for the dinner table. The pig is befrinded by the family of sheep-dogs that live on the farm, but also becomes friends with the sheep. This enables the pig to become the perfect sheep herder as he only has to ask them to do what he wants. However, will his talent go to waste? Don't want to spoil the plot for anyone so you'll have to read it for yourself. This is essentially a sweet and innocent look at life from the eyes of an endearing... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful