The ugg boot war by Kylie Fornasier

Ill. by Tom Jellett. Mates series. Omnibus, 2014. ISBN 9781862919990.
(Age: 6-9) Highly recommended. Humour, Ugg boots, Family.
Books in the Mates series never fail to please. They are all shorter novels with six short chapters, luminous illustrations and larger print for the newly arrived novel reader, with some of the possibly new words in a different font. All is engaging, interesting and enticing.
And ugg boots, what a gem of a story. Jake is so embarrassed by his father's determination to wear ugg boots whenever his feet are on the ground that he makes up his mind to rid the household of them. Then in six crisply told chapters we are taken in to Jake's attempts at doing just that. At first he hides them but to no avail, they are retrieved by the dog and then mum. Finally he puts them in the bin but is then so racked by guilt that he runs after the rubbish truck as it disappears around the next corner. All is not lost however and a neat resolution between father and son occurs.
A double page at the end gives a brief outline of the ugg boot history and for those who are unaware of this series, they are all listed at the end of the book.
An engaging plot, well written and joyously illustrated, this book will be rarely seen on the shelves. This is a series to watch out for, I love them all.
Fran Knight