My Parents Cancelled My Birthday by Jo Simmons, illus. Nathan Reed.

My Parents Cancelled My Birthday by Jo Simmons, illus. Nathan Reed. Pub. Bloomsbury, 2019.

This is an easy to read novel for primary and Intermediate readers who have a vivid sense of humour and imagination. It is what I call intelligent silliness and believe me  the weird things that go on will have you in stitches.

Tom is nearly eleven and he wants a birthday like one of his school mates had. Unfortunately things happen in his family that cause his parents to cancel his birthday.

It starts with the family pig named Tiny. He lives on the roof of the garage because there is no room elsewhere on their section. When Nana comes round with her chihuahua named Margherita, Tiny falls off the roof and squashes the dog flat. Tony puts it in a pizza box and buries it in the sandpit at the local nursery school.

There is uproar in Tom’s family. Nan is distraught, his younger sister Meg blames herself saying she is jinxed because the tooth fairy has neglected to leave money for her lost tooth. Father can’t finish the novel he has written and has a headache and mother is stressed by work. After Margherita got flattened Tom’s parents cancel his birthday.

Tom then goes into crazy overdrive to get his birthday back.

From the author of I Swapped my Brother on the Internet also reviewed on this blog. For reluctant readers.

You will laugh yourself silly. Nathan Reed’s illustrations enhance the humour and the characters superbly.