The Queen's Lift-Off

The Queen's Lift-Off is the latest in Steve Antony's series of books revolving around the adventures of the head of our royal family. Being a fan of the other books in the series, I was excited to read and review this text. The story begins with The Queen helping the Prince and Princess build a rocker in the gardens of Buckingham Palace. I think many readers will make the connection to Prince George and Princess Charlotte and imagine that our Queen has just as much fun as the one in the story. Soon, the three royals are flying into space and going on a journey around the solar system. Following in the footsteps of the other books, this involves visiting many locations that are well known and using high quality language to describe how she moved between these locations. Despite this being a book with very little text, the language used is of high enough quality to inspire and engage the reader throughout. As a reader, I truly visualised the queen zooming, zipping and soaring around the planets. The illustrations that accompany the book are of an equally high standard. Steve Antony has created pictures that fit in perfectly with the language and really take you on a visual journey with each page turned. One of the fun elements to the book are all the hidden characters and items to find on the pages, such as the alien waiter hidden on each page. There are also lots of throwbacks to the other books in the series as well as other Steve Antony publications. Having used The Queen's Handbag as the basis of a KS1 learning topic about the UK and landmarks, I would happily use this book in a similar way when learning about space and the solar system. I can envision children being engaged fully in the topic, especially with the planet names being used correctly throughout the book. A fun and engaging read, perfect for children in both EYFS and KS1 settings. Picture book / Ages 3+ / Reviewed by Kyle Matravers

Suggested Reading Age 3+