Title: A Bit Lost
Author: Chris Haughton
Illustrator: Chris Haughton
Publisher: Walker Books
Genre: Children’s picture book
Book format: Board book (as part of Shh: A Chris Haughton Boxed Set)
Sweet Strawberries: 
Description: Uh-oh! Little Owl has fallen out of the nest…
*Free copy provided by publisher for review…
Review: This is such a cute and funny picture book with some brilliant illustrations. ‘A Bit Lost’ is a small board book with matt pages and good and thick card for the pages, as well as rounded edges so it won’t hurt young children’s hands. The story is a simple one but it’s something easily relatable: Little Owl falls out of the nest with a bump and now he can’t find his Mummy. A kind squirrel offers to help him find her and asks Little Owl what she looks like. So Little Owl describes her, in simple ways and Squirrel thinks they know who Little Owl’s mummy is, except maybe there’s more than one animal that looks like Mummy!
The book is such a simple story but it’s on a topic so many can relate to (or have worried about). As Squirrel shows Little Owl the different animals that must be Mummy, the poor owl gets more and more upset as none of them are his mum. Of course in the end he finds his mum and there’s a sweet moment of reunion making the book feel lovely, but there’s also some lovely humour in the way that Little Owl falls out of the nest and what happens right at the end. There’s a constant repetition with the story which children will enjoy and it’s so simply written and yet I can’t help but want to look at this book again and again just because the illustrations are so sweet!
I really enjoy Chris Haughton’s illustration style. I like how bold the colours are and how the characters stand out. The images aren’t too detailed and yet I really like the way the landscape behind the characters has been done especially with a set palette of colours which match the front cover colour. The illustrations of the animals really show the emotions of the characters and I love how cute and yet lost poor Little Owl looks. You can see both the worry, upset and joy on characters faces, all the while looking so very cute!
Inside the first page is actually an interesting half-page which shows well how Little Owl is in the nest one minute and then falling out the next. I always like books with some interesting and slightly different pages like this. Overall I think this is a lovely picture book and I love how simple the story is and how much fun it is to look at again and again. I’m sure so many children will adore the illustrations and the fun story and will enjoy looking at this more than once!
What do you think of this book? Have you ever been through an experience like Little Owl, of feeling lost as a child or not knowing where your parent was for a short time? Let me know what you think in the comments below 🙂
The Strawberry Post 