Meerkat splash by Aura Parker
Puffin, 2019. ISBN: 9780143792895.
(Age:3+) Recommended. Themes: Meerkats, Humour, Bath time, Verse,
Colours. In rhyming pairs of lines the story of a group of
differently coloured meerkats coming down the internal tunnels of a
meerkat burrow to their bath is told. Meerkat black, blue, green,
white and even pink, find their way to the large tub of water,
splashing around before bedtime.
Younger readers will love the bright breezy illustrations, full of
colour and movement showing the meerkats finding their way to the
bathroom. The colours of the animals are replicated in the
background of each page, reiterating the name that matches each.
Children will love telling the reader the colour and pointing out
the matching hue on each page.
The text begs children to call out the rhyming word, asking them to
predict the word that comes next, marvelling at the number of words
used to describe the meerkats' time in the bath. Splish, splash,
splosh, swim, slide etc will ensure the attention of the reader as
they try out these words for themselves.
Full of energy the meerkats love their bath and readers will spy
various things used by them in the bath, recognising their own bath
time. But one more meerkat is ready to jump in, and readers will get
ready for the commotion that this one creates, laughing at the waves
as they wash over them all. A fun filled treat for all bath times.
Fran Knight
