Top Gun of the Sky by Martin Bradley – Review

Using very bold and striking graphics to illustrate a poem (originally titled The Fawley Falcon) the book is in the classic early readers mold for children’s books, it is very child friendly (no long words) and Bo was able to read and understand the majority f it by herself. Along with the normal words and pictures there is a flick book image on the edge of each page that illustrates a peregrines stoop. And the poem is followed by a brief guide to falconry terms and then some practical advice on how to draw a peregrine like in the book.

I’m going to quote Bo here, you get a real honesty from kids sometimes! “I like the images but I preferred the other book” “I like how the tower looks like a giant battery” (yeah you’ll have to look at the book to understand) “The flick bit is fun” “it’s a bit boring” “I liked finding stuff in the other book” (I did warn you that you have to read both reviews!)

This is a great first attempt at getting the subject matter of raptors (or wildlife in general) over to small kids, any parent out there will know that most books with wildlife for kids the characters are speaking etc. so not exactly realistic, this book makes a valiant first attempt at entering the genre in a new way. Personally I found the imagery excellent (maybe it is a little too old for a 5 year old?) and I do love that some of the proceeds go to the Hawk Conservancy Trust (a very worthwhile charity).

If I had come across this book I would have bought it (maybe a year or so ago, to read with Bo and get her enthused about nature, she reads bird books now so it’s a little late!) I think it is a great design, and will in future years hopefully bring a new crop of children into the wildlife families folds.