Thank you, Foreword Clarion Reviews for the first official London review and 5 Stars!!🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
KeeKee’s Big Adventures in London, England is part travel guide, part exploration,
and all about making friends and being open to learning about new places—an adventure not to be missed.
Shannon Jones’s picture book KeeKee’s Big Adventures in London, England provides a colorful and realistic depiction of London as KeeKee the calico kitty explores it and learns all about it.
KeeKee travels the world in a hot air balloon, having adventures and learning about different cultures. This story follows her to London, where she gets off at the Globe Theatre and meets Will, a sheep version of William Shakespeare. Will takes her around to all the places she wants to visit. They ride a double-decker bus, visit “pickle dilly,” learn that Big Ben is the bell inside Elizabeth Tower, and have tea with the queen. KeeKee then leaves for her next adventure, but not without including a guide and glossary to explain all things London.
Explanatory in nature, KeeKee’s adventures leave a true impression of what it’s like to visit London. KeeKee’s misconceptions and quirky names for places allow for real-time lessons from Will that are fun and descriptive. The included glossary lets KeeKee explore without stopping to explain the language—sans funny names for food, which she jokes about lovingly.
KeeKee is a great tourist, eager to learn and kind to those she meets. She makes light of being around famous people like Shakespeare and the queen, and her curiosity and openness to making friends are easy to relate to. She’s unafraid of being wrong and takes time for the important things while traveling, even stopping to smell the roses in the queen’s garden.
The font size is small, and text is sparse on the page, but a lot is conveyed in few words. Full-spread illustrations make up for things unsaid. The story is fast and easy to comprehend. It is without conflict to complement its teaching style.
Casey Uhelski’s stunning illustrations bring London to life. They are colorful and consistent and add a dreamlike quality to the city, making it appealing to visit. True to life, KeeKee and Will navigate rain in the city, take the Underground, and even show up on a map through Hyde Park. This extra attention to detail makes the setting realistic and enticing all at once.
KeeKee’s Big Adventures in London, England is part travel guide, part exploration, and all about making friends and being open to learning about new places—an adventure not to be missed.
Reviewed by Rebecca Monterusso