Just So Stories

Harper Collins Australia

May 2024

• ISBN: 9781460764428
• ISBN 10: 1460764420
• Imprint: HarperCollins AU
• RRP: $16.99

People who know me are well aware of my love of wordplay, especially puns, so this hilarious new series is right up my alley. You might say I almost jumped for joy and honestly, your kiddos will find it un-frog-ettable as well.

The Frog Squad is an elite group of amphibians who are defenders of justice and ready to serve. Well, they would be even more ready to serve if they were properly funded [now isn’t that a familiar scenario?]. To compensate for their lack of adequate financial support, they have embarked on a reality TV show [kind of like Police Ten 7 without the Kiwi accents] which explains the commercial breaks throughout. These are for frog-related products such Warts’n’All skin cleanser, for the frog with sadly smooth skin.

The Frog Squad is alerted to a disaster at sea, with an ice cream tanker at risk of losing its contents and creating an environmental disaster for sealife. Their mission is to stop that happening, and they do, but not without some highly dramatic obstructions from arch-enemy, Professor Buford Cain, and his TOADS (The Organisation of Amphibious Scoundrels) hench-toads – I mean, henchmen.

There are gadgets, swift thinking, problem-solving and sheer luck involved in thwarting the villains and your kiddos will love all of it. This is really clever writing from the Temples because the froggy hijinks are an exceedingly successful tactic for also providing scientific facts, both amphibian and ecological related, specific vocabulary and a variety of writing styles which would easily leapfrog into classroom activities. These would be aided by the useful teaching notes.

Heavily illustrated, it is virtually a graphic novel which, in itself, also lends itself to some creative writing, not to mention, the illustrations themselves are a joy, being so expressive in a very cartoonish way that begs for children to attempt some of their own frog characters.

A quick read for an adult, and easily accessible even for your less-able readers which makes this a must-have. One thing I really love about it [aside from the puns!] is that the laughs don’t come from the ‘toilet humour’ which seems to be endemic in so many other similar books. For this alone, I applaud the authors [I am SO over poo and fart ‘jokes’].

This series is going to take off like a frog in a sock with your kiddos, I predict, so hop to it and get it into your orders basket now. I’m keeping it in my relief day go-to basket as it will make a terrific read-aloud that won’t take long but will engage – and be that perfect reward for tasks done efficiently and quickly.

All in all, it’s a 5 🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸 rating from me and I’m looking forward to the next episode very much. Here’s a few froggy jokes to share with your tadpoles.