#365PictureBooks 10. YIKES, Stinkysaurus! by Pamela Butchart, illustrated by Sam Lloyd

Butchart, P., & Lloyd, S. (2014). YIKES, Stinkysaurus! London, UK: Bloomsbury.

ISBN: 9781408837078
Pages: 32
Age Level: Early Childhood 0-6
Genre: Picture Storybook
Rating: 3 stars

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On a bit of a dinosaur roll here....  

Poor Stinkysaurus has a bit of a problem.  He's the scariest dinosaur by far, but that is purely because he is so DISGUSTING! None of the other dinosaurs want to play with him.  He even manages to kill plants!  One day Triceratops has decided she's had enough.  They have to get him clean.  But how to do it?

The story is told in simple rhyme using language that younger children can understand.  The layout and font of the text has been done in a in a way that beginning readers can easily read alone.  Each two-page spread has one verse of the rhyme.  Bold, and larger font, is used to emphasise particular words which will help beginning readers make the story interesting when they read it.

Lloyd's illustrations are in keeping with the intended age group.  They are very simplistic, but children can still clearly make out the different dinosaurs.  All the dinosaurs faces are drawn side-on while their facial features are displayed front-on, giving the dinosaurs a very cute appearance.  Lloyd's use of bright colours for the dinosaurs with slightly muted or toned down colours for the background images really make the dinosaurs the focus of the illustration.

The yuck factor is clearly visible in the illustration of Stinkysaurus.  Pong fumes radiating off him, snot dripping from his nose, and a green tinge to his body (You'll realise later on that his natural colour is not greeny-orange!!).  He's also a bit of a snotty sneezer.  I particularly like the page where he covers all the other dinosaurs in green goo - ICK! 

This is a cute story about personal hygiene using dinosaurs as the focal point.  Young kids will enjoy the humour and icky illustrations, while hopefully taking on board the need for their own personal cleanliness.  It's definitely a story aimed at younger children, and I'm sure our year 1's will love it. 

I got my copy of YIKES, Stinkysaurus! from the Taradale Primary School library where I work. 

Woops! I couldn't find a copy at our local public library.