The Terrible Trio 3: The Mystery of the Lost Cape product reviews

Miss Eight was so engrossed in reading her new book that she read it straight through twice, and was then discovered in bed one morning with the book still in her hand - a telltale sign that some covert reading was being done after hours! Mr Seven was just as interested, and now that his reading skills are developing fast, he is able to read at his own pace. The Terrible Trio series is ideally suited to this age group as the storyline is accessible and the vocabulary is enough to challenge them but not to the extent of being too difficult.

The humour is pitched at exactly the right level for a seven- and eight-year-old. The idea of one of Emu's superpowers being the ability to kick other creatures' bottoms is very funny indeed. Even funnier is when the trio choruses "Hooray for safe bottoms!" And do penguins even have bottoms? It is very hard to tell. As for rubber ducks, plenty of children have toy ducks that can swim in the bath with them, but I am sure most of them are called something other than "Chick Chick".

Graphic novels are ideal for children of all ages; they can encourage reluctant readers to give books a go. Miss Eight and Mr Seven need no excuse to read - both have grown up with storybooks and love reading. With this format there is the added temptation to colour some of the line drawings. They are presented in such a way that they invite a child to get out some crayons or coloured pencils and get to work. (Felt tipped pens and pencils are not advised however as they might bleed through to the other side.) Miss Eight commented that she thought the trio should be wearing pants as they looked funny without them. I am not sure how you could get a penguin into a pair of trousers. A kilt maybe? Or perhaps the reader could draw them on?

There is a strong message within the story that it is not necessary to rely on outside help to get what you want. Emu learns that his superpowers work even without his cape; he can still kick bottoms! Barry can think laterally, proving this by using his wonderful handwriting to make signs. Although he enjoys playing a superhero with Emu's cloak, he has to accept that it is naughty to pretend you are someone you are not - especially when you don't need to. And how ethical is it anyway for the trio to use items from the lost property box. Is it stealing?

Finally, there is the important theme of friendship and loyalty. When Emu threatens the trio, they try to protect one another by each taking the blame for the cloak getting torn. And when the other two discover Barry's secret, Marge gets annoyed because he would not let her be a telephone. All ends well, however, as their friendship is too important to be threatened by something so unimportant.