School Can Wait

by Tessa Dahl, Korky Paul (Illustrator)

When Max and his dad find a reindeer in their local woods, stranded there after one of Father Christmas' visits, it's the beginning of a magical adventure. Fairy voices whispering verses tell Max he is on a mission, a mission even more important than getting back to school on Monday.

64 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

Reviews

[Chechoui · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book as a fan of Korky Paul's illustrations. I found the story entertaining, but I wished the illustrations were in color and there were more of them. The talking animals was a fun focal point of the story. Of interesting note, this book was published in 1990 and I read it in 2012. The 1990 illustration depicts the President of the United States as being a man of color with a white wife, which was progressive at the time of publication and whaddayaknow, 20+ years later, it's 2012 and the US President is African American.

[Derelict Space Sheep · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story lies somewhere between an overly wordy picture book and a heavily illustrated middle grade novel featuring zany, animal-rescuing adventures. The eight-year-old protagonist is very much along for the ride but Korky Paul's black-and-white drawings do much to enliven the characters.