You're Somebody Special, Walliwigs! by Joan Rankin (The Bodley Head, £9.99).
WALLIWIGS is different from the rest of the hens. The main reason for this is because he's a scrawny little parrot.
You see, Walliwigs' mum was a bit daft and decided to build her nest on top of a ship's funnel. When the ship started to move and mum had gone for a fly, Walliwigs was left.
After being captured and almost made into pineapple parrot pie, Walliwigs is adopted by Martha, a mother hen, who knows he's special.
Even though the other hens resent him as a misfit, Martha loves him just the way he is. And sure enough... he turns out to be a very special bird indeed.
Joan Rankin has produced a charming book that younger children enjoy having read to them but the text is "grown up" enough to appeal to older readers too.
The illustrations are offbeat but endearing and help make this one a real winner. David Hudson-Wood
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