The Cook and the King

Nice book for kids grade 1 and timely delivery

I bought this hard back book thinking it was a board book my mistake, so i wasn't able to gift it to the intended three year old i bought it for.This wasn't a problem as my six year old knew the story and was keen to asked to keep this book, The Cook And The King, which is a great story to read, the story tells how the King begins his search of finding a cook, but ends up employing Wobbly Bob who s anything but a cook! And what the king fails to realise is he does his own cooking but only once he’s caught his own fish, oh and dug up some potatoes to cut into chips to go with his fish. A very amusing, funny, witty and silly multi talented King indeed.The illustrator David Roberts really has captured the characters with the very vocal king and Wobbly Bob that they appear to come to life.Just one very small downside i hadn’t experienced before, was the book is of a large size, holding the sleeve onto the book turning the pages wasn’t as smooth as a paper back of similar size.I also wouldn’t recommend this for little hands as the pages are too big for little one’s to turn them over.A great book for a teacher to read and show her class.Thank you for reading please click helpful if my review was helpful thank you.

Good illustrations and an ok story from Julia Donaldson but as this is a way off her best, it feels a bit disappointing. A simple story with no real value, lesson, morals or laughs really. A silly king and an even sillier cook make some food and then eat it. But not in the funny kind of silly way, they’re just silly, in a daft kind of way. It always seems disappointing when I read it and I feel it’s not giving good messages to my kids so it is mostly left on the shelf next to all our other JD books.

The children I work with enjoy this a lot (2-5 years); it is another Julia Donaldson story which captivates their attention and leaves a message ringing in their ears. Their play quickly reflected the book in areas like the home corner where they would be busy cooking (or not cooking if you’re the chef!) and some of the conversations around working together and sharing were noticeable following a few readings and recapping with an adult.

This is a tale of strength of character, of bravery and team work. The king is in search of a new cook, but naturally he has terribly high standards. No one is up to the job, but one cook shows promise - Wobbly Bob, a meek character who needs guidance, reassurance and a helping hand from the King.My children love this story and when we reach the end, they ask me to read it again and again and again! That’s testament enough !Of particular note, the illustrations are delightful. In all, it’s a perfect marriage of words and pictures.

I have a 5yo and 3yo and we are massive fans of Julia D however this book is just not as good as her others. It seems to end suddenly and kind of feels like there needs to be a moral to the tale. The kids like it well enough but I would much rather read the snail and the whale or lots of her other works over this.