Just So Stories

Walker Books

April 2025

ISBN13:9781760658045

Australia RRP:$25.99

New Zealand RRP:$27.99

Last week I was unwell for a few days with a horrid summer cold. Even when I started to feel better, I was still a long way from 100%. Just as I started to crawl back up the scale, along comes Alfred. This week we’re on cyclone watch, with the shops full of crazies buying up everything on the shelves, just like the covid stampedes of a few years back.

But today this gem of a book, my friends, completely obliterated all that. It made my heart leap, made me laugh out loud, made me go ‘awwwww’ and, as always, rendered me awe-struck at the sheer talent of Caroline Magerl.

Caroline’s art is superbly evocative always, even when it’s of seemingly everyday scenes or snippets of life. I am privileged to have my own small perfect piece of it, gifted by this amazing creator friend.

Now, in truly magnificent fashion, Caroline has wrought a wordless picture book that, in fact, needs no words at all, saying all that needs to be said through the expressive illustrations. The narrative plays out with exquisite clarity, humour and warmth. There is so much to love about this little person, her dad and their dog.

Ottily puts on her beautiful fairy outfit when she wakes up, waves her magic wand expectantly, and interrupts her dad, trudging with the vacuum cleaner, duster tucked under his arm [I know exactly how he feels! I have the same thoughts about vacuuming.]. Small person rejects suggestions of a banana or cereal or yoghurt or a googy egg for breakfast. She wants a fancy cupcake, thanks very much! So Dad makes Ottily a tomato sandwich 🤨.

Now, as it happens, I love tomato sandwiches – fresh white bread, real butter, tomato straight from the garden – YUM! however, Small Ottily is distinctly unimpressed, and the sandwich takes a swift flight via her shanghai!

Undeterred, off she goes to the bakery to get herself a cake.

But what happens next is a true delight, as readers will discover when Ottily gets home to find Dad has tried to bake her a cake but it is now a lump of blackened mess. How to turn a disaster into a delight or perhaps a soggy sandwich into an outstanding outing? This father knows exactly the thing, and the daddy&daughter adventure is an absolute joy. Just wait till you see it!

Of course, I can bang on about how you can use this in your classroom as a writing stimulus and have your Smalls write out their version of the narrative, and, no doubt, many will do so. It’s what we’ve always done with the wordless readers we used to start off with for our little newbies.

But, honestly, the real joy in this IS the joy! Your kids will be burbling over the top of each other, as you share it, and they scramble to tell each other what’s happening. Make no mistake, this is just a stand-out picture book of superb quality. It is a must-have for any collection, home or school. I cannot praise it highly enough. You could use it from prep upwards but it would be equally wonderful to use with your older kiddos.

You. Must. Order. It. Do it now, I mean right now – go pre-order because you don’t want to miss out!! It gets a 5🧚 🧁🍅🧁🍅 rating from me.

EDIT: 24/07/2025 When a picture is worth a thousand words …