Daisy Runs Wild by Caz Goodwin
Illustrations by Ashley King
Publisher: Hardie Grant Egmont|Little Hare Books
Date: 1 March 2020
R.R.P. $19.99
Daisy is back and funnier than ever!!
I loved the first Daisy book, and I wasn’t disappointed the second time around; Caz Goodwin has the knack of making me laugh, a lot!
Jasper makes Daisy a custom-built machine so she can ‘stroll’ around town with him. All is going well until it’s not…something is wrong with Daisy, but what? Daisy tears past some people doing yoga, she squeals and squawks, and bumps into Mrs Pallot, who goes head over heels.
Of course, I would love to tell you how it ends, but you will have to read it yourself to find out.
Caz Goodwin has a delightful style of writing; I believe she understands the audience she is writing for, and the flow of her writing makes you want to go back frequently to enjoy the story over. The central storyline of Daisy seems to be humour, with a dash of learning to communicate so your friend knows what is wrong, caring for others and friendship. I know that we try and give children’s books a theme, but sometimes I feel like it is just fun to be funny. Does a picture book really always have to be based around a theme?
Ashley King has again delivered spectacular illustrations and has managed to make me laugh with her illustrations that pair so well with the text. I value an illustrator that manages to tell their own story as well as that of the writer. The use of bold colours makes the book stand out from the rest and fits well with Daisy and Jasper’s quirky friendship.
I recommend that this daisy on your to-read list for this year because you will laugh, no matter what your age. It is, without a doubt, a perfect group storytime book and a good read-a-loud for the new reader.
Caz is a natural storyteller, and I hope we see more funny writing from her soon.
Thanks, Caz Goodwin for the opportunity to read and review your book.
Little Big Reads 