Clementine Rose and the Seaside Escape by Jacqueline Harvey

Random House Australia Children's, 2014. ISBN: 9781742757513.
Love her or loathe her (and I loved her) Enid Blyton was very savvy about what children liked to read and do and turned that into a hugely successful career.
The Clementine Rose books put me in mind of EB's foresight, so much of which is common practice today - children like to collect 'sets', the covers and spines of a series should be instantly identifiable and look complete on a shelf, children like to read about, and identify with, ordinary characters and settings with a pinch of adventure or mischief thrown in, naughtiness is not acceptable nor rewarded and vocabulary should not be so challenging as to put off readers.
This is the 5th in the Clementine Rose series and in this story, CR is on a holiday at the beach with her family, while their own hotel is being renovated. Lady Clarissa, (Clementine's adopted mother - see previous books!), Uncle Digby, Aunt Violet and Lavender the teacup pig are very pleased to be at Endersely-on-Sea and find their landlady, Mrs Dent, very welcoming. Mrs Dent's grandchildren are also staying and while Freddy is also very friendly, Della is a nasty little girl who needs putting in her place.
Playing on the beach, exploring caves holding secrets and a tiny pig escaping during a wild storm are all part of Clementine Rose's holiday - and all guaranteed to hold the interest of small girls of six and up - either reading independently or as a read-aloud.
Find out more about Clementine Rose here.
Sue Warren