The scary solo by Sally Rippin
Hey Jack! series. Hardie Grant Egmont. ISBN: 9781742971261.
Age: First chapter book readers (6-8). Hey Jack is the
spin off series of Billie B Brown and takes the same easy
chapter book format with large print and illustrations on most
pages. Readers of the Billie series will already be familiar with
Jack as Billie's best friend and next door neighbour and will now be
able to see the world from the perspective of the somewhat shy yet
aspiring Jack. In this instalment we follow Jack on an emotional
rollercoaster of jittery, nervous, scared, angry, jealous, sad,
grumpy, excited and proud feelings.
The journey begins with Jack wanting to sing a solo in the school
concert but during try outs he gets nervous and his best friend
Billy gets the solo instead of him. Jack has to deal with all the
emotions that arise because of this but then when the night of the
concert comes and Billy is hit with an attack of nervousness Jack
knows exactly how his friend is feeling and is able to help her out.
The main themes of this story are about being with a good friend and
recognising and dealing with emotions. I would like to think that
the Hey Jack series would appeal to both young boys and
girls, especially with girl fans of Billie B Brown already being
familiar with the lovable character of Jack.
Nicole Smith-Forrest