The One-Stop Story Shop

The One-Stop Story Shop is the tale of a fearless knight who goes hunting for a dragon to slay, although, it seems this particular time his story becomes 'stuck'; his predictable nemesis,'The Terrible Dragon' is not there to fight! He's gone on holiday! When this happens there seems only one thing to do and that is to visit the One-stop Story Shop for a new dragon.

This magical store is stuffed to the brim with tales, props and characters galore. Although when the frustrated knight insists to the shopkeeper, he needs the feistiest dragon he's got, it's the one thing he's all out of and instead he's offered a fearsome ferret! Not quite what he's looking for. With some changes to the character, maybe some changes in setting are needed too, and the helpful shopkeeper makes some interesting suggestions for the knight such as the wild west, exploring the jungle, or a deep space adventure facing the 'Space Ferret of Doom!', none of which seem to be the happy ending our knight is looking for.

As we follow along with this hilarious romp of an adventure, we learn that maybe the best stories are sometimes the ones we least expect, and friendships can flourish in even the most unconventional pairings. This is a perfect book to share with a class of enthusiastic writers, to teach children about setting and character description. It's also a great read to work alongside learning about mixed-up fairy tales and key features of particular genres.

Children will be encouraged to let their imaginations run wild with this story to see what new adventures they can come up with for the knight, who in fact decides that he no longer wants to battle a beastly dragon in ready-made tales and that there is a whole world of stories just waiting for him (and ferret of course!) to explore. The illustrations in this book are side-splitting, bright and bold and action packed with so much detail it is certain you will find something new almost every time you read it.

Picture book / Reviewed by Nikki Stiles, teacher.

Suggested Reading Age 5+