Lola & Fred

by: Christoph Heuer

Published by: 4N Publishing

Reviewed by Laura V. Hilton

One day Lola the turtle and Fred the frog are watching the birds flying. The birds look like they are having so much fun, that Lola and Fred decide they want to fly, too. So, they try to figure out how to become airborne. But all their carefully constructed plans seem to go awry. Boards attached to their sides break. A rocket hitched on their back explodes, leaving them nothing but black smoke. Is there anything they can do to be able to fly like the birds?

Lola & Fred is a unique approach for a children's book. At first, when I looked at it, I thought, "how can I review this, there aren't any words!" but when I sat down to "read" this book to my four- and one-year-old, I found I could tell the story easily enough. There were some scenes I had trouble understanding, but for the most part, it is a truly enjoyable tale for young children.

At the end of the book, a new character named Tom the monkey is introduced. Now we know that the next book in the series will be Lola & Fred & Tom. My young daughters both enjoyed the book, and even my ten- and fifteen-year-old stopped what they were doing to laugh about the misadventures of Lola & Fred.

Armchair Interviews says this is an easy book to read, one enjoyed by a range of ages as well.