A really super hero by Charlotte Lance

Allen and Unwin, 2013. ISBN 9781 74331 302 2
(Age: 4+) Warmly recommended. Picture book. Heroism. Trying vainly to get her spot in the limelight, her photo in the paper, and people to talk about her, the hero of this charming tale tries all sorts of ways to become heroic. She has her Mum sew an 'S' on her pants, but when Mum sews it on a little oddly, she must move sideways so that people can see the sign. She tries to help the postman but ends up squashing his bike, she mixes up a potion, only to burnout the smoke alarm. All sorts of funny things happen as she tries in vain to be noticed: her invisible cloak will not work, her ability to move things just by thought does not work. All through the story Mum is behind her, helping, cleaning up, getting more and more exasperated with the daughter. She is a delight to watch.
The bright breezy stanzas of verse are lovely to read aloud and will delight the audience as well as the reader. The seemingly simple illustrations with pencil and water colour are full of interest and little jokes. Readers will really enjoy closely looking at them and gain another level of understanding about the tale. Readers will be able to predict the rhyming words in each stanza, learning some new words as they read. Using the opening lines,
'I want to be a hero
A really super one'
would make an energetic lesson with students attempting another two lines to follow the first two, reprising their skills at rhyme and rhythm, scanning and poetry.
Fran Knight