Lester’s Dreadful Sweater, by K.G. Campbell

I have to confess every autumn I have the greatest intentions in knitting my girls something other than a simple scarf. As soon as I see the leaves are about to turn colour, I race to the wool shop and purchase a ridiculous amount of wool in all sorts of beautiful shades and I scour Pinterest in the search of patterns for cool ponchos, waistcoats and pretty little hats. Within days of putting wool to needle I’ve miserably failed following the pattern and my baskets of wool are left sitting lonely, albeit pretty, by the couch.

But this year all has changed. Since reading Esther’s awesome post on making pompoms for a spring branches bouquet earlier in the year, I sat down with the girls last week and we spent half a cosy day making super cool pompoms for an autumn craft. As our basket of pompoms crazily filled up, I remembered a really fun book we have on the joys (and the woes – for some) of knitting.

Enter Lester’s Dreadful Sweater ! Peppered with lively alliteration and clever wordplay Lester’s Dreadful Sweater by K. G. Campbell captures perfectly the embarrassment Lester feels each day he walks into school with a new hideous sweater on.

When Aunt Clara comes to stay with Lester, following an encounter with a crocodile, all seems fine; that is until she knits him a sweater. The first one was “less-than pleasant yellow and smothered with purple pompoms.” Then “there was the terribly turquoise one with several unexpected sleeves.” As soon as Lester receives each frightening sweater he finds a way to rid them. But unlucky for him Aunt Clara is a rather speedy knitter and by the time dawn approaches a “woolly mountain” has already appeared.

I love reading this book with the girls! Filled with mature vocabulary and quirky illustrations every time we read this book we gain some extra enjoyment out of it. And the best bit is, the story ends not with Lester hurting Aunt Clara’s feelings – rather quite the opposite. It ends with Aunt Clara feeling ever so stylish and being chauffeured away in a fanciful caravan.

Lester’s Dreadful Sweater is a book filled with creativity and always encourages my girls imaginations. Don’t you just love a book that can inspire a child’s creativity?

The book is available from all good bookstores or online from Amazon (US and UK ).

Vanessa xx

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