Aggie Flea steals the show! by Tania Ingram. Illus. by A. Yi

Aggie Flea STEALS the SHOW written by Tania Ingram, is the second entertaining younger novel in the Aggie Flea series. The first book Aggie Flea is NOT a LIAR, recognisable by its bright pink cover, has just been announced as a 2024 CBCA Notable book for the Younger Reader category. For those who have not yet met 10 year old Aggie Flea, be prepared for a roller coaster ride of bubbly bouncy energy with plenty of misunderstandings. Aggie has a BIG imagination and she is constantly throwing herself into situations with the best of intentions but oblivious to what may go wrong. 

The second book, this time with a cover in purple tones, is all about the school play. Aggie desperately wants the role of Web Legs, the superhero spider from Mars in the play titled Lucas and the (farting) Pineapple from Space. She decides to change into her spider legs costume at school to impress her teacher Mrs Fossy but Aggie has forgotten that Mrs Fossy is petrified of spiders and causes her to collapse. Aggie is asked to go home for the remainder of the school day and is collected by her Aunt Pip who is minding her and her older brother 13 year old Jack while their mum is away. But it turns out Aunt Pip and the headmaster Mr Strong have a past which is highly embarrassing for Aggie.

Aggie’s audition goes well and she is chosen for the part of Web Legs over her nasty nemesis Zara Miller. The class spend time preparing for the play with Aggie learning her lines and best friend Kumi designing the enormous farting pineapple. Aggie has a hilarious costume hiccup which leads to a very upsetting moment for Kumi but Aggie realises she has done the wrong thing and tries to make amends. In the end the play is a success after the new ‘love’ interest of her brother Jack helps out Aggie with an even better costume.

Readers will be treated to lots of laughs from the situations Aggie gets herself into but are also left wondering what could possibly happen next. Within the story are graphic novel inserts about Princess Zombie of whom Aggie is a great fan and whose own life at times mirrors that of her idol. The use of illustrations throughout and the highlighting of different words allow this story to be accessible to a range of different reading styles. This is an enjoyable series for younger readers and it will be exciting to read the next instalment of Aggie Flea.

Themes: School Play, Family, Friends, Drama, Catastrophes, Humour.

Kathryn Beilby