Huxley and Flapjack: Trouble at Sea

One hot day, when Flapjack is keeping cool, reading his book in the bath, Huxley has one of his bright ideas and decides that they should go to the seaside. Once there, they meet Winston, Wizz to his friends, who invites them aboard his submarine to search for a shipwreck called the Isabella. Huxley is keen to look for treasure, leading the more cautious Flapjack into trouble.

Adorable as ever, best friends, Huxley and Flapjack continue to demonstrate that opposites really do attract! Huxley is as impulsive and ever, seizing every chance to seek adventure with little thought to the consequences whilst Flapjack remains quite timid, far more reflective and often giving into his friend’s whims. But whatever their differences, their friendship remains true, strong and affectionate!

The story moves at a pleasing pace, keeping readers entertained and engaged whilst the plentiful illustrations are a joy to 'read' alongside the text. Readers will delight in noticing all the little jokes in the pictures and there are plenty of places where the illustrations are perfect for encouraging conversations to develop empathy and recognise where Huxley is mis-reading his friend’s feelings about situations.

A brilliant bedtime or class story, Trouble at Sea also lends itself perfectly to being used to inspire a book group session. Huxley, Flapjack and their new little crab friend would all make lovely 'jumping jack' figures or stick puppets which could then be used to retell - or reinvent - the story. The story might inspire a sandcastle building competition, going on a picnic or creating a plastic-bottle submarine… Like Race to the Rescue,

Trouble at Sea is a wonderfully funny, enjoyable story, perfect for newly independent readers and thoroughly enjoyable for adults too!  I can't wait for the next one!

96 pages / Ages 6+ / Reviewed by Sue Wilsher, teacher

Suggested Reading Age 5+

Huxley and Flapjack: Trouble at Sea is jam-packed with fun and is such a joy to read! Being the second book in the series, Huxley - a super-excitable koala, and Flapjack - a rather timid penguin, are familiar characters to my daughter and I. We love them both, but particularly enjoy how adventurous and open-minded Huxley's approach to life is.

In Trouble at Sea, the dynamic duo take a trip to the seaside where they meet the eccentric captain of a submarine, Whizz. Together they embark on a journey into the deep, in search of a shipwreck and the potential treasure it holds. On their way, they bump into their fair share of problems but it is nothing this pair can't solve!

We were amused by the way each character approached the sticky situations; Huxley taking a gung-ho attitude, almost unaware of the issues, while Flapjack worries and craves calmness. My eight-year-old daughter could relate to both personalities and was invested in this story from the first page. Although we read this book together, she read the first book in this series (Huxley and Flapjack: Race to the Rescue) independently with ease. She laughed out loud several times, pointing to the funny illustrations, and enjoyed it so much, she was keen to start the second story immediately.

The bright, detailed pictures are awesome and really capture the characters' temperaments. Having coloured images on every page makes these books perfect for newly independent readers. We also feel these are a great option as a light bedtime read for those more confident readers.

As a teacher of 7-8 year olds, I will be adding both of these books to my class library. I know the children will love them, and it will spark some high quality book talk. We highly recommend Huxley and Flapjack and are really looking forward to reading all about their next adventure!

96 pages / Reviewed by Jemma Jeffrey, teacher

Suggested Reading Age 5+