Say freeze by Miranda Birthisel and Rebel Challenger

An old adage about the wind changing, is given a bright and breezy reimagining in this funny tale of the lengths Josie goes to make people laugh. ‘If the wind changes, that face will stick’ is one incarnation of the warning given by adults when a child makes a scowling face. Josie is a prankster, one the teacher, Miss Place, can do without and on photo day Josie pulls the biggest face she can conjure to make the class laugh and so spoil the photograph. Miss Pronounce gives her the warning, but to no avail, and when the wind does change, faces of both students and teachers are set.

Readers will laugh out loud at the rhyming text, full of puns on the teachers’ names, drawing out lots of fun in predicting rhyming words and words that go with the particular teacher.

The catastrophic storm whips iron from roofs, turns the clouds black, sends some teachers up the trees, while others hide beneath a table. But all have had their faces frozen into the grimaces caused by Josie’s prank. Miss Hap’s tongue is hanging from her mouth, Miss Fortune is very out of sorts thinking about her imminent wedding and needing to be able to speak. Miss Fit send them all back to their classrooms, but Miss Pronounce looks like a hermit crab and Mr Meaner blows up the science lab, Miss Diagnose the school nurse is busy in the sick bay but their new headmaster is appallingly distorted.

Readers will heartily enjoy the reimagining of the adage and think of a few more lines to add with other ingenious teachers’ names. They will enjoy the hilarious illustrations, giving range to a wide variety of scowling faces, and very frustrated teachers. The very witty twist in the tale with cause gales of laughter as they can see the possibilities of an evening with the oddly faced teachers.

Themes: Humour, Read aloud, School, Weather.

Fran Knight