The Ugly Five

What an absolute gem of a book! The Ugly Five is everything you’d expect from the Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler duo — rhythmic, funny, and packed with heart. We’ve read this countless times already and it hasn’t lost its charm.The story follows five African animals that aren’t traditionally “beautiful” — the wildebeest, warthog, hyena, lappet-faced vulture, and marabou stork — but they learn to embrace their uniqueness and worth, and it sends such a strong and positive message to little ones.The illustrations are stunning, full of character and humour. And the board book format is sturdy — perfect for younger children who love flipping pages on their own.⸻✅ Pros🦓 Great message about self-love and embracing what makes you different📚 Rhyming text makes it fun to read aloud🎨 Beautiful illustrations by Axel Scheffler👶 Gift edition board book is durable and perfect for toddlers🤣 Kids love the animal sounds and silly moments⸻❌ Cons🤏 A bit shorter than some other Donaldson books — would love even more!⸻Overall: A brilliant story with laughs, learning, and love. Whether you’re building a Julia Donaldson collection or just want a thoughtful gift for a child, The Ugly Five is a wonderful pick.

Really great rythmic story about the African Ugly Five and how they are really very lovely. Amusing and heart warming. So glad I bought this paperback book for my grandchildren. Has great illustrations too.

Lovely book and quality. lovely images, ideal for helping kids with their African homework

Another great book from Julia Donaldson. My 5 years old Grandson Loves this book.

You can always trust Julia Donaldson to deliver a top quality kids read for the little ones (that can also be enjoyed by the adults reading it to them over and over). Me and Miss 3 really enjoy her rhyming, fun-filled tales, particularly those wonderfully illustrated by Axel Scheffler. In this one the pictures and the underlying story of the lesser-loved animals (as opposed to the famed 'Big Five' in African safaris) are probably the best point - Donaldson's verse is fun but not quite as memorable or on-beat as some of her other great tales. A good addition to the collection without being her best work.

As always great stories the children loveJulia Donaldson

Another great book from the collection. I felt a little sad reading it but keep going until the end!

‘Inspired by the real-life '𝗨𝗴𝗹𝘆 𝗙𝗶𝘃𝗲' safari animals’, in order of appearance in this rhyme, by Julia Donaldson:~ the wildebeest~ the spotted hyena~ the lappet-faced vulture~ the warthog~ the marabou storkMoving up from 1 to 5, with little ‘songs’ that define their individual claim to be ‘the ugliest’, the accompanying artwork is unmistakably Axel Scheffler ~ those facial expressions really catching the eye (pun intended)!‼️N.B. By nature, there is some 'crunching on bones' on a couple of pages! The current stock images above refer.From the back cover (image below refers):~ ‘Meet the ugliest animals on the savannah.They’re gangly, warty, bumpy, bristly, spotty, stinky, and totally irresistible!We’re the 𝐮𝐠𝐥𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐯𝐞, we’re the ugly five.Everyone 𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐬 when they see us 𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞.’Book with CDooOooPoking out from the others on our bookshelf, the wider-than-average paperback measures roughly 30 cm x 23 cm; the card cover enhanced by a shiny gold foil enhancement to the front that glistens in the change of light.Inside are 32 good quality, matte-finish pages; the rhyme running over 28 in double-page spread format.The text is clear in black on white throughout, on the left-hand page; the picture being on the right-hand one, each with that ‘the more you look; the more you see’...until we get to the last double-page spread, which brings in a change of background colour + a neat twist in the ‘song’.The final 2 pages offer the chance to ponder a while ~ ‘learning without realising’.Chunkier words include:~ ambled~ trampling~ ungainly~ ugliest~ crunching~ hideous~ appalled~ revolting~ splashing~ tempted~ deafening~ gruesome~ perfectly~ casting~ peeping~ bombshells📝 ‘This picture book rhyme is a celebration of animals who are often unloved but nevertheless play an important role on the African plain.’First published 2017, the 2018 paperback I received on my order has a sticker on the front (I am not keen on this idea). Some patience is required, but it did eventually remove without trace.