Author: Catherine Emmett
Illustrator: Ben Mantle
This picture book is all about McDarkly, a purple creature who loves to garden and is King of his Swamp. He lives quietly and alone and likes nothing more than growing beautiful orchids in his dank and stinky swamp. Then one day, the noisy and selfish king arrives and has plans to turn the swamp into a roller-skate park!
McDarkly is very upset and afraid that his favourite orchids will be killed as his swampy home is covered in concrete. The king can not see what a magical place the swamp is. Luckily, the king’s daughter is interested in plants and wants to do some research on McDarkly’s orchids. The king gives McDarkly ten days to get the orchids ready and prove that the swamp isn’t damp and dark and is worth saving.
There is so much to do and so little time. McDarkly is determined to save his swamp but then an army of furry green caterpillars arrive to munch all his orchids and destroy all his hard work! What will McDarkly do? How can the swamp be saved?
This is a great picture book for young readers. It introduces the idea of caring for our environment and will be enjoyed by anyone who is interested in nature or gardening. The text is written is rhyme which is great to read out loud or to yourself and the illustrations are so good that we’d love to visit McDarky’s swamp!
My score: 5/5
The Library Mouse Tales 