OnlineBookClub.org

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Enchanted Beach Hut" by Suzanne King.]

The Enchanted Beach Hut by Suzanne King and Steve Kemp is a book in the fiction genre. It is a short story for children in the age group of five to ten years.

Emmeline’s mother passed away when she was five and in her will she left a beach hut to Emmeline. Little did Emmeline know that this beach hut is going to be her gateway to many adventures in future. Emmeline and her cat, Chesterpuss, have to go away for the summer to stay with her aunt Adna and cousin Alice, since her dad is overseas and won’t be back for some time. Her Aunt Adna is very strict, especially regarding the health of her daughter, Alice, who is not allowed out of her room due to her ailing condition. Visitors are not allowed inside Alice's room for a long time since Aunt Adna believes that they might be carrying germs. As Emmeline and Chesterpuss move into the gloom of Aunt Adna’s house, they realize that the only way to lift the dullness from the house and help Alice’s condition, is to use the beach hut. What magic does the beach hut possess? Will Emmeline be able to help Alice and keep the enchantment of the beach hut a secret from her aunt?

The writing style of the author is easy to read and follow, for the age group mentioned. There are some hilarious illustrations in the book which will keep the young reader engaged. Though the length of the book seems apt for a short story, there was the scope for adding a few details or delving further into Emmeline’s past, for the benefit of the readers. A bit more background about the beach hut, how did Emmeline discover its secret, etc would have been helpful to put the story in context.

The story has some funny characters. I think my favorite was Chesterpuss. His character is a lot like Garfield’s in some aspects, since he is a rude talking cat who cares about food the most. His antics are the most entertaining to read about in the story. There are other interesting characters as well like Mr. Lobster and Bunglephant. This story seems a bit too simple but I think it will be apt as a short bedtime story for kids.

The Enchanted Beach Hut is a fun and short read for young kids, with pretty pictures. I rate it 3 out of 4 stars.

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The Enchanted Beach Hut
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Like ananya92's review? Post a comment saying so!

Thank you for taking time to review my book - I'm glad you enjoyed Chesterpuss - he is a funny character - and I'm glad this comes through in the book.

I've studied writing for children 7-9 years and hopefully the language and word length of 'The Enchanted Beach Hut' reflects this. The illustrations were drawn by Steve Kemp, a fantastic artist, who can put his hand to anything. He read my story and then brought my characters to life and I'm most grateful to him. I'm a big fan of Quentin Blake and I wanted some quirky spiky blank ink illustrations and he produced just that.

I'm currently writing the 2nd book of the series and also working on a children's ghost story for Susan Hill 'The Woman in Black' author.

I hope you enjoy my book and thank you in advance if you buy and leave a review.

I liked reading your book and I will definitely buy it for my younger cousins.

Thank you. Where abouts in the world do you live ?

India

Wonderful! I will look out for a sale from India. Thanks so much

Seems like a fun read for kids. Nice review.

Thank you for writing this review. It sounds like a good choice for our summer reading list!

Hope you enjoy it and would love to know your reviews

Thanks

The story really is easy to follow (though I only read the sample of it). I hope I'd be able to read the whole of it soon. Nice cover page and title! It caught my attention

Sounds like a very interesting and enjoyable book. I am so intrigued about the beach hut and the adventures of Emmeline and her cat. I think kids would enjoy this book. Good job on the review.

Sounds like a great book for children to enjoy! My 5 year old is just beginning to read, and I'm sure he would enjoy this one.