The warm, comforting ending would also help to instil a sense of wellbeing with the reader.

The picturebook contains many helpful tips for children if they themselves should ever fund themselves in Duck's position, lost and unsure of their surroundings.

Not only does the book have interesting and detailed images which would easily provide lots of discussion, it has a moral message. However, there is also another form of knowledge being conveyed. There is an implied reader knowledge of basic features of the story like animals names, what is a pumpkin etc. When Duck gets distracted by the Pepper Shop for example, both Cat and Squirrel are facing right, continuing their journey into the city where Duck is facing the left. The picturebook effectively uses the characters direction to show the journey they are embarking on. Who could look at the confusing, bustling, overwhelming drawing of the city and not empathise with poor, lost Duck. The pictures tell the story alongside the words and help to create a response in the reader. The illustrations create a wonderful world which you feel pulled into by the reoccurring, full bleed pages. The book cleverly uses smaller illustrations to accompany the written word so children may follow each step of the story even if they cannot read the text. This book immediately grabbed my attention through the detailed and eye-catching illustrations. I simply loved Cooper's cityscapes here, her use of color, even her decorative endpapers! Lovely, lovely, lovely! I will definitely be tracking down the third title to feature these characters, Delicious! Will Duck ever find Cat and Squirrel again.?Ī Pipkin of Pepper is an engaging follow-up to Helen Cooper's initial story about this trio, with a narrative that will keep young readers involved - haven't most children become lost, at some point - and gorgeous illustrations that fairly leap off the page, in all their autumn splendor. Predictably (given the contretemps of the first book), it is Duck who causes a commotion, when he gets so distracted by his idea that their soup would benefit from pepper, as well as salt, that he fails to keep up with his friends. Cat, Squirrel and Duck - the three soup-making friends (and roommates) whose first adventure was chronicled in the Kate Greenaway Medal-winning Pumpkin Soup - return for another adventure in this second book, setting off for the big city on a shopping expedition, when they run out of salt.

Pumpkin soup story book