Dear Tooth Fairy by Alan Durant, illustrated by Vanessa Cabban (Walker Books, £9.99)

EVEN the most streetwise urchin will come over all gooey at the mention of the Tooth Fairy.

Why? Maybe it's because there's money involved. Maybe it's because losing milk teeth is part of that mysterious process known as "growing up".

Maybe it's because adults want you to believe, but mostly, I suspect, it's the money.

Dear Tooth Fairy is an unusual book. It's unusual because it has lots of gimmicks - little envelopes stuck on the pages packed with letters from the Tooth Fairy, a poster, a fortune-teller, a fairy coin - but it's a good story as well.

It doesn't need the gimmicks to engage young readers - the story is strong enough - so they are a bonus.

They are useful in that they may well entice your average streetwise urchin to sit down with the book rather than pick up a PlayStation game, or turn on the television.

The story is straightforward enough. Holly's tooth is wobbly. It gets wobblier and wobblier and then falls out.

But Holly's not sure she wants to give her tooth up to the Fairy just yet.

There are a few questions she wants to ask first. So she does.

Alan Durant is a past master at writing entertaining books that make children think (That's Not Right, Always and Forever, Spider McDrew).

Vanessa Cabban's delicate illustrations complement the text and are sure to inspire younger children to attempt to stay awake all night when their next tooth falls out, in a bid to glimpse the magical Tooth Fairy.

Jim Collins