Wilfred and Olbert’s Totally Wild Chase is a crazy, action packed, fast paced adventure which also introduces children to a variety of animals and their habitats. There’s so much to see in the fabulously humorous illustrations and the inclusion of so many different animals can stimulate lots of discussion and learning activities.
The Story: A strange butterfly flies through the window as Wilfred Wiseman and Olbert Oldbottom are having a cup of tea. This leads to a race between the two explorers to identify the butterfly in an attempt to win the Nature Discovery Prize. Their adventure takes them through a variety of very different habitats. But will they ever catch the strange butterfly and who will win the prize?
Wilfred and Olbert’s crazy race to be the first to discover a new species of butterfly includes trekking through the desert, diving in the ocean, climbing mountains and going deep into the jungle. Throughout the story their rivalry manifests in various ways as both attempt to be the first to discover the butterfly but then the two explorers come to the realisation that working together can be more beneficial.
There is so much humour in the story and in the illustrations, we love the gadgets that Wilfred pulls out of his backpack in times of trouble, we especially like his pocket balloon and his mobile crane. Olbert’s ‘shortcuts’ also make us laugh, particularly the secret tunnel in the forest and the way he crosses the lake in the grasslands. However, despite the rivalry, the friends are there for each other when things get dangerous and by the time they ‘meet’ the butterfly they are working as a team.
The pages have puzzles and spotting challenges for readers to solve (although it’s not necessary to solve a puzzle to move onto the next page). Scrabble letters are hidden throughout the book and need to be rearranged to complete a final puzzle. The animals, insects and birds are labelled throughout the story and the gorgeous endpapers also introduce us to three more undiscovered animals that are hidden in the book.
Wilfred and Olbert’s Totally Wild Chase is a fabulous book to keep children (and adults!) entertained. The mix of story, puzzles and the introduction of so many animals makes this a great book for a long journey. We love Lomp’s fabulous illustrations and think it’s great that alongside an amusing, action packed adventure he also portrays a great message about the importance of friendship.
Age Range: 4 +
Author / Illustrator: Stephan Lomp
Thank you to Little Tiger Press for sending us a copy of this fun adventure. My daughter really enjoyed it and asked if there is going to be another book like this 🙂
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