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The Missing Piece
A heart-warming, fresh and original story about family and friendship from brand-new picture book author, writer and performer Jordan Stephens.Sunny loves jigsaw puzzles – the bigger the better. When she completes one, she gets a warm, happy honeybee buzz. One day, her Gran gives her a ONE-THOUSAND-PIECE puzzle. Piece after piece, all by herself, she puts together the picture, until … DISASTER! The final piece is missing. Sunny may be small, but she is very determined – so she sets off to find it.As the day whizzes by in a whirl of new places and friends, Sunny discovers that looking for something is every bit as fun as finding it, and that perhaps the missing piece was there all along …
- GenresPicture BooksChildrens
32 pages, Hardcover
First published August 18, 2022
1 person is currently reading
19 people want to read
About the author
Jordan Stephens
6 books34 followersBorn 1992, Jordan was one half of the hip hop duo Rizzle Kicks. He is now an actor, writer and mental health activist.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
September 4, 2023
Artwork: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
February 28, 2023
I am always a little wary these days about books that are about friendship - only because so many picture books have this as their theme and it feels as though it's now almost a requirement for story to exist. So when I read the blurb on this book aloud to my Year 1 children, I did wonder if I would find a saccharine message at the end.
However, I was pleasantly surprised. Sunny - by name and nature - loves doing jigsaw puzzles, especially the ones her Gran gives her to complete. The thing that makes Sunny happiest in life is when she puts the final piece in - but she does worry what will happen when she's done all the puzzles. How will she find her happiness? Gran asks Sunny what it is about the final piece that causes her so much satisfaction and joy but Sunny can't describe it.
Then, the unimaginable happens. The 1,000-piece puzzle ends at 999 and the missing piece is nowhere to be found. Gran sends Sunny out on a search and find quest, to all the neighbours who've borrowed the puzzle before and might know where the piece is. At each house, Sunny is both disappointed and excited to meet someone new, who wants to join in her adventure.
The concept behind the book works well on both a realistic and metaphorical level, and the illustrations are just gorgeous. They burst with colour and movement and joy, making this a visual feast. The children were very quiet when I read this to them because they were engaged with every word and picture, and loved every minute.
However, I was pleasantly surprised. Sunny - by name and nature - loves doing jigsaw puzzles, especially the ones her Gran gives her to complete. The thing that makes Sunny happiest in life is when she puts the final piece in - but she does worry what will happen when she's done all the puzzles. How will she find her happiness? Gran asks Sunny what it is about the final piece that causes her so much satisfaction and joy but Sunny can't describe it.
Then, the unimaginable happens. The 1,000-piece puzzle ends at 999 and the missing piece is nowhere to be found. Gran sends Sunny out on a search and find quest, to all the neighbours who've borrowed the puzzle before and might know where the piece is. At each house, Sunny is both disappointed and excited to meet someone new, who wants to join in her adventure.
The concept behind the book works well on both a realistic and metaphorical level, and the illustrations are just gorgeous. They burst with colour and movement and joy, making this a visual feast. The children were very quiet when I read this to them because they were engaged with every word and picture, and loved every minute.
February 26, 2023
Sunny loves doing puzzles. She loves connecting all the pieces to make a whole. It makes her feel calm and safe and that there is an order to everything she does. When she runs out of puzzles of her own, her gran gives her a thousand piece jigsaw to do, but when she gets to the end and one piece is missing, Sunny has to figure out how to complete the pattern herself.
This is a lovely story about learning to make friends and the connections we can make creatively when things aren't always as neat as they should be. Great illustrations by Beth Suzanna give this real heart and warmth.
This is a lovely story about learning to make friends and the connections we can make creatively when things aren't always as neat as they should be. Great illustrations by Beth Suzanna give this real heart and warmth.
April 28, 2024
firmly believe more adults should tap into picture books
(& the art for this was wonderful)
(& the art for this was wonderful)
September 27, 2024
A lovely grandmother/granddaughter relationship!
January 12, 2025
Divine to the nth degree ✨️.
February 24, 2023
While I felt that this was a sweet story about finding new friends, it just didn’t quite pack the same punch as the other picture books I read that day. I really liked the illustrations and the relationship between the little girl and her gran. Overall, this was just okay. I don’t have any overtly negative or positive to say, I’m neutral about it.
October 26, 2023
Så for meg hvordan den sluttet, at hun var den savnede biten, men den hadde en annen og mye dypere slutt. En bok om vennskap og det å sette pris på de små tingene underveis i livet. Denne er fin som samtalestarter både i familiehjem og i klasserom. Hva er de viktige tingene her i livet, kanskje man kan sette pris på både enetid og samværetid, men kanskje lurt med litt av begge?
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews