Badger And Crab's Adventure - Children's Book Review (age 7-9)

Badger And Crab's Adventure is the latest release from author Catherine Trimby. Recommended for independent readers aged around 7-9, it tells the story of an unlikely friendship and has a message about preserving and looking after our UK wildlife, rather than feeling we have a right to control it for our own amusement or gain.

The story is centred on a badger and a crab, who meet one night on the beach. It isn't Badger's usual haunt, but he answers a cry for help and finds himself in a whole new world of sand and wetness. They have a common enemy, humans, and when both face imminent danger, they have to come to each other's rescue to survive.

Badger And Crab's Adventure is a great little tale with peril and excitement, and the characters really do come across as very distinct and likeable, even grumpy Mr Badger. It feels like an extended chapter in a larger book or a part of a series, you get the impression that there is a lot more to come.

This is a shorter book, with only 60 undersized pages, but it manages to convey a big message. It won't intimidate any young independent reader, despite the fact it has few illustrations. It looks so small and 'easy' and caught the attention of my almost 8 year old immediately. Badger And Crab's Adventure is recommended for age 7-9 and I think that's ideal. The language is easy to understand, but there are handful of longer words and more complex sentences.

The story itself reminds me of children's animal stories from when I was a child - Watership Down, Beatrix Potter books, Ring Of Bright Water etc, with talking animals who all understand each other and their battle to survive in spite of the humans.

The illustrations by Carol Davies are funny, quirky and cute, and have a very modern feel, in contrast to the storyline. It works really well and does make you imagine the events taking place now, despite the fact that the book could be set in almost any time period and on any part of the UK coastline.

Badger And Crab's Adventure is written by Catherine Trimby and illustrated by Carol Davies. Published by Troubador and available now rrp £7.99. It would be remiss not to mention that this is quite expensive for a book of this size, but it is also available as an e-book for £2.99. Both the e-book and the paperback are available from Amazon (affiliate link). 

The Amazon link is an affiliate link, which means if you order through my link, I get a few pence as thank you for taking the time to add it to this post. One day I may be an internet millionaire (definitely not in English pounds though).