I Can Catch a Monster

A little rebel girl goes on a quest to catch a monster in this empowering tale about bravery and kindness from the creator of the New York Times Best Illustrated Book Little Red, Bethan Woollvin.Meet Bo the Brave. She's smart, she's strong and she is definitely in charge. Bo's brothers say she is too little to catch a monster. But Bo has other ideas, so she sets off on a quest to capture herself a beast. Can she defeat the furious griffin, conquer the hideous kraken and triumph over the monstrous dragon? Or if not, can she make friends with them?I Can Catch a Monster is a funny and vibrant picture book with a message about not judging by appearance and standing up for yourself and your friends, from the Macmillan Prize-winning creator of Little Red, Rapunzel and Hansel and Gretel, Bethan Woollvin.

Woollvin’s characteristically bold style and her creations’ big, stylised eyes lend themselves brilliantly to subversive storytelling., A fierce, inquisitive heroine, a cast of mythical beasts and Woollvin's distinctive art makes this a rich treat, Bethan Woollvin’s picture books are instantly recognisable and her strong, graphic, Moomin-influenced illustrations are beautifully engaging and quirky. [...] An empowering read for all small heroes, and a lovely reminder that most of us, even monsters, are actually quite nice, Bethan was once asked to describe her books in three words – she chose ‘bold, dark and sneaky’ *– this is most definitely all of those but also delightful and endearing – do read it!, Woollvin’s bold, daring and fiercely comical story conveys important messages about not judging by appearance and standing up for yourself and your friends. The perfect book to empower your daughters!

Bethan Woollvin won the Macmillan Prize for Illustration in 2014 for Little Red – her classy, bold interpretation of Little Red Riding Hood. It was a startlingly confident debut which she followed with an equally striking and feminist take on Rapunzel, with not a handsome prince in sight, followed by her twist on Hansel and Gretel and the brilliant I Can Catch a Monster. She is also the illustrator of The Button Book by Sally Nicholls and Meet the Planets by Caryl Hart. The eldest in a family of ten children, Bethan understands well what appeals to a variety of age groups, and all her work exudes a natural dry wit and charm. She graduated from Anglia Ruskin University with a First Class Degree in Illustration in 2015 and now lives in Sheffield.

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