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Spinderella
Spinderella longs to win at football, but she can't count the goals! Spinderella needs the help of her Hairy Godmother..... Fantastic facts about numbers inside. Play the amazing Spider's Legs game.
48 pages, Library Binding
First published January 1, 2002
8 people are currently reading
213 people want to read
About the author
Julia Donaldson
1,230 books1,926 followersGrowing up
I grew up in a tall Victorian London house with my parents, grandmother, aunt, uncle, younger sister Mary and cat Geoffrey (who was really a prince in disguise. Mary and I would argue about which of us would marry him).
Mary and I were always creating imaginary characters and mimicking real ones, and I used to write shows and choreograph ballets for us. A wind-up gramophone wafted out Chopin waltzes.
I studied Drama and French at Bristol University, where I met Malcolm, a guitar-playing medic to whom I’m now married.
Busking and books
Before Malcolm and I had our three sons we used to go busking together and I would write special songs for each country; the best one was in Italian about pasta.
The busking led to a career in singing and songwriting, mainly for children’s television. I became an expert at writing to order on such subjects as guinea pigs, window-cleaning and horrible smells. “We want a song about throwing crumpled-up wrapping paper into the bin” was a typical request from the BBC.
I also continued to write “grown-up” songs and perform them in folk clubs and on the radio, and have recently released two CDs of these songs.
One of my television songs, A SQUASH AND A SQUEEZE, was made into a book in 1993, with illustrations by the wonderful Axel Scheffler. It was great to hold the book in my hand without it vanishing in the air the way the songs did. This prompted me to unearth some plays I’d written for a school reading group, and since then I’ve had 20 plays published. Most children love acting and it’s a tremendous way to improve their reading.
My real breakthrough was THE GRUFFALO, again illustrated by Axel. We work separately - he’s in London and I’m in Glasgow - but he sends me letters with lovely funny pictures on the envelopes.
I really enjoy writing verse, even though it can be fiendishly difficult. I used to memorise poems as a child and it means a lot to me when parents tell me their child can recite one of my books.
Funnily enough, I find it harder to write not in verse, though I feel I am now getting the hang of it! My novel THE GIANTS AND THE JONESES is going to be made into a film by the same team who made the Harry Potter movies, and I have written three books of stories about the anarchic PRINCESS MIRROR-BELLE who appears from the mirror and disrupts the life of an otherwise ordinary eight-year-old. I have just finished writing a novel for teenagers.
When I’m not writing I am often performing, at book festivals and in theatres. I really enjoy getting the children in the audience to help me act out the stories and sing the songs. When Malcolm can take time off from the hospital he and his guitar come too. and it feels as if we’ve come full circle - back to busking.
I grew up in a tall Victorian London house with my parents, grandmother, aunt, uncle, younger sister Mary and cat Geoffrey (who was really a prince in disguise. Mary and I would argue about which of us would marry him).
Mary and I were always creating imaginary characters and mimicking real ones, and I used to write shows and choreograph ballets for us. A wind-up gramophone wafted out Chopin waltzes.
I studied Drama and French at Bristol University, where I met Malcolm, a guitar-playing medic to whom I’m now married.
Busking and books
Before Malcolm and I had our three sons we used to go busking together and I would write special songs for each country; the best one was in Italian about pasta.
The busking led to a career in singing and songwriting, mainly for children’s television. I became an expert at writing to order on such subjects as guinea pigs, window-cleaning and horrible smells. “We want a song about throwing crumpled-up wrapping paper into the bin” was a typical request from the BBC.
I also continued to write “grown-up” songs and perform them in folk clubs and on the radio, and have recently released two CDs of these songs.
One of my television songs, A SQUASH AND A SQUEEZE, was made into a book in 1993, with illustrations by the wonderful Axel Scheffler. It was great to hold the book in my hand without it vanishing in the air the way the songs did. This prompted me to unearth some plays I’d written for a school reading group, and since then I’ve had 20 plays published. Most children love acting and it’s a tremendous way to improve their reading.
My real breakthrough was THE GRUFFALO, again illustrated by Axel. We work separately - he’s in London and I’m in Glasgow - but he sends me letters with lovely funny pictures on the envelopes.
I really enjoy writing verse, even though it can be fiendishly difficult. I used to memorise poems as a child and it means a lot to me when parents tell me their child can recite one of my books.
Funnily enough, I find it harder to write not in verse, though I feel I am now getting the hang of it! My novel THE GIANTS AND THE JONESES is going to be made into a film by the same team who made the Harry Potter movies, and I have written three books of stories about the anarchic PRINCESS MIRROR-BELLE who appears from the mirror and disrupts the life of an otherwise ordinary eight-year-old. I have just finished writing a novel for teenagers.
When I’m not writing I am often performing, at book festivals and in theatres. I really enjoy getting the children in the audience to help me act out the stories and sing the songs. When Malcolm can take time off from the hospital he and his guitar come too. and it feels as if we’ve come full circle - back to busking.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
October 13, 2020
Spinderella is a fun and engaging picture book that helps little ones with counting.
The small spider is obsessed with numbers but all her other nine siblings only show an intrest in football, whilst her mother is more concerned with her children eating flys.
An uneven match of 7 v 3 sees the team with more players comfortable winners and inspires Spinderella to learn to count.
The way the book shows the children counting is well spread out as the group of 20 school kids divided in to two groups of 10 - with half putting on red bibs.
The resulting evenly balanced teams of 5 spiders-a-side produced an exciting and thrilling match with a nice finish!
The small spider is obsessed with numbers but all her other nine siblings only show an intrest in football, whilst her mother is more concerned with her children eating flys.
An uneven match of 7 v 3 sees the team with more players comfortable winners and inspires Spinderella to learn to count.
The way the book shows the children counting is well spread out as the group of 20 school kids divided in to two groups of 10 - with half putting on red bibs.
The resulting evenly balanced teams of 5 spiders-a-side produced an exciting and thrilling match with a nice finish!
November 16, 2018
Love this book! It’s a fun and engaging story which will benefit KS1 maths- counting to 20 and relating that to the context of football and spiders. It also includes areas that involves halving and multiplication. The pictures are gorgeous bright and bold that all children will find a delight. My 5 year old loves this book and has definitely helped with number recognition and counting.
September 6, 2021
Now you know that counting is important, Naina.
And if these are the books you are making me read, I might as well add them to my challenge.
And if these are the books you are making me read, I might as well add them to my challenge.
August 29, 2021
This is a story about a spider called Spinderella who wants to learn about numbers but her family dismiss her desire as they don't think learning to count is important. Then, a hairy godmother arrives to make Spinderella's dream of learning numbers come true and she is finally able to show her family the benefits of counting through a game of football.
Spinderella is perfect for newly independent readers in KS1. It importantly promotes the benefits of learning Maths to children. It's funny, informative and character-driven.
Spinderella is perfect for newly independent readers in KS1. It importantly promotes the benefits of learning Maths to children. It's funny, informative and character-driven.
September 30, 2024
Noora said: I loved when the twinkly spiders love to dance and when the spiders friends were nice to each other and played together. I want to read it again at bedtime.
October 9, 2021
The cover of this book is so beautifully illustrated that I really hoped the remainder of the book would be so pretty, but actually the illustrations let this one down a little bit. The story on the other hand, about Spinderella the spider who likes to play football with her brothers and sisters (of which there are many!) is a brilliant way of helping small children with numbers.
We picked this book up from the supermarket for Halloween, hoping it would be a bit spooky, which it isn't but it was great regardless. Spinderella the spider has a passion for football! She tries to play a match with her brothers and sisters but she doesn’t know how many spiders should be on each team. Even worse, she can’t count the goals! Luckily for Spinderella, her Hairy Godmother has a plan.
I think the book is great as an educational option on the book shelf, but I think it could be even better if the glossy cover transpired across the book.
We picked this book up from the supermarket for Halloween, hoping it would be a bit spooky, which it isn't but it was great regardless. Spinderella the spider has a passion for football! She tries to play a match with her brothers and sisters but she doesn’t know how many spiders should be on each team. Even worse, she can’t count the goals! Luckily for Spinderella, her Hairy Godmother has a plan.
I think the book is great as an educational option on the book shelf, but I think it could be even better if the glossy cover transpired across the book.
November 25, 2018
Spinderella wants nothing more than to be able to count and you'd think that living in a primary school with her mother and siblings that it would all come naturally but not so. Spinderella is left out of the equation and her family aren't interested in numbers at all. But all is not lost, her Hairy Godmother appears and guides her towards the wonderful world of numbers much to Spinderella's delight and, ultimately, her family too.
Thanks to Busy Mummy, I got to share this with both my boys several times and they enjoyed the quaint humour throughout. Although they missed all the Cinderella references (playing football rather than going to one), they enjoyed a spider's-eye view of school life.
Thanks to Busy Mummy, I got to share this with both my boys several times and they enjoyed the quaint humour throughout. Although they missed all the Cinderella references (playing football rather than going to one), they enjoyed a spider's-eye view of school life.
January 12, 2022
To be honest, this isn't one of my favourite Julia Donaldson books. It doesn't have the same flow and flair that she usually showcases.
I personally found the story a bit slow and long.
However, it does help to introduce the importance of maths and my son does pick the story out quite regularly.
More than I would like lol.
So there must be something good about it.
I wouldn't personally recommend it but Melek probably would.
September 23, 2024
Spinderella desperately wants to learn to count and play a game of football.
She tries to learn by counting flies but her mother gets impatient.
So her hairy godmother tells her to sneak into the school room to learn alongside the kids.
There she learns to count up to twenty and this comes in handy when she plays her brothers at football to keep count of the score.
Then her family understand the importance of numbers.
A sweet whimsical early learning picture book that my nephew really enjoys.
She tries to learn by counting flies but her mother gets impatient.
So her hairy godmother tells her to sneak into the school room to learn alongside the kids.
There she learns to count up to twenty and this comes in handy when she plays her brothers at football to keep count of the score.
Then her family understand the importance of numbers.
A sweet whimsical early learning picture book that my nephew really enjoys.
September 26, 2018
Spinderella is a must read, it is engaging throughout and has amazing illustrations that link to the story. This book supports children with their mathematical skills including counting and also discusses teamwork. When reading this story I have noticed that it is similar to Cinderella (the title gives this away) but also how the story is structured.
Must read to children!
Must read to children!
November 1, 2019
Spinderella wants to learn about numbers, but the rest of her family doesn't care about them. Her Hairy Godmother shows up and takes her to a human classroom where she learns to count and to solve many of her family's number problems. Very loosely connected to Cinderella, but a funny book about the importance of numbers nonetheless.
October 2, 2020
Spinderella! Just the name conjures fun and adventure in this charming level reader for early readers. A Hairy Godmother, soccer balls (or football in this case, as the title is British), and fun with friends makes this a winning read for those readers growing in confidence. Liively illustrations and text.
September 17, 2023
My go-to picture book for numeracy learning with my Kinders.
"Spinderella" by Julia Donaldson is a cute story about a cute little spider, with plenty of maths concepts embedded. Counting 1-20, simple division, multiplication and maps all feature throughout the story.
You also cheer for the young heroine as she gains respect in her family.
"Spinderella" by Julia Donaldson is a cute story about a cute little spider, with plenty of maths concepts embedded. Counting 1-20, simple division, multiplication and maps all feature throughout the story.
You also cheer for the young heroine as she gains respect in her family.
December 31, 2016
Sweet enough story about a young spider who wants to learn to count and shows her family how important counting is, but not spectacular considering it's a Donaldson. Kind of got the feeling she wrote it in her lunch hour. And wasn't Spinderella Salt 'n' Pepa's DJ?? (Showing my age)
October 3, 2017
Nice simple little book about counting with lovely illustrations
November 3, 2017
Great for maths in KS1 and exploring its relevance and applications in everyday life. Also good for counting within 20, doubling and halving and multiplication and division by 2 and 8.
January 2, 2018
My grandkids really enjoyed this book, had to read this a few times over the christmas period
September 11, 2018
Really great for counting and sharing - good maths links.
December 14, 2018
If your kids have problems reading this is the book for them
January 30, 2019
A lovely book that can be read time and time again.
November 12, 2020
Spinderella is a spider. She was playing football!
February 14, 2021
Nice story, it was about numbers and footballs.
June 20, 2021
Books with basic math are fun and harder to come across, in my experience. The girls really enjoyed this one.
May 10, 2022
A nice book to get children to learn numbers and get into mathematics. I enjoyed the illustrations. They are colourful and engaging.
September 4, 2023
Realistic and informative
October 19, 2024
I loved it.
June 4, 2025
Typically fabulous Julia Donaldson book. Marvellous teaching resource for infant teachers to reinforce the idea of number.
May 24, 2021
A must read for football lovers ❤
January 26, 2019
My daugther went through a phase with loving spiders so I bought her this book for Christmas (also because I love Julia Donaldson). She was very excited about it. Spiders, football, counting AND bright and beautiful colors what more need I say. The story is cute and witty at the same time and I know that this will be a book we return to again and again.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews