This book features all of the characters from the first Hairy MacLary book in a touch and feel form. It’s a larger format than most other board books in the Hairy MacLary series.
I’m liking
My boy LOVES this book. He is 10 months old and immediately goes to the feely parts of each page. Most of the pages have more than one part to feel. A bonus is that the fabric parts mean the pages don’t close tightly, which makes it much easier for little hands to turn the pages without skipping any. My boy will happily sit by himself for quite a while flipping the pages and investigating the textures.
I think older children would enjoy spotting pictures they know from other books. Most are from the original book, but I also recognised ones from Hairy Maclary’s Caterwaul Capers and Hairy MacLary’s bone. I haven’t identified all of them though. I’m sure older kids would love a treasure hunt to get them all.
I think the use of pink velcro for Scarface Claw’s tongue is inspired. It has the perfect scratchy catchy feel of a cat’s tongue, and is so much more interesting than fur.
Having more than one feely spot on most pages mean a wider range of textures to explore.
Things that made me go hmmmm
I prefer books with plots, and Lynley Dodd is a genius of plot. This book is just a list of the characters, and feels like it ends abruptly. They could have added in a few more pages and completed the plot of the original book.
Okay, I know that “Hairy MacLary, Friends and Arch-enemy” doesn’t have the same ring to it as the title, but since when was Scarface Claw a friend of Hairy’s??? As a kid this would have really bugged me!
The book has a slight making-the-most-of-the-franchise feel about it since it only uses artwork from previous titles. Although, as mentioned above, this could be a plus for some, I would have liked at least one original picture in the book.
The conclusion
This is definitely one for the younger Hairy fans. The textures are well chosen and varied, and the book will give hours of fun for little hands.
