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Laura James’ love of storytelling began at an early age and led her to undertake a degree in Film Studies and an MA in Writing for Young People at Bath Spa University. The Adventures of Pug are based on the antics of her own very silly dogs, Brian and Florence. Together the three of them live in a tiny cottage just outside of Bath where they have lots of adventures and eat lots of jam tarts – all in the name of research of course! Laura’s first book, Captain Pug, was shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize in 2017.
Author photo © Red Rabbit Photography
For those of you who don't know, Fabio is indeed the world's greatest flamingo detective, a kind of pink, long-legged Hercule Poirot. He's assisted in his work by his friend Gilbert, a giraffe, who is very well-meaning but mostly at least one step behind Fabio when it comes to solving their cases. This story concerns the dramatic theft of a priceless jewel from a passenger on the Ostrich Express and, as detective stories go, it's very satisfying indeed, with a twist in the tail that readers won't see coming, while Fabio, Gilbert and their various animal co-stars are delightful characters. Illustrations on every page - in flamboyant, dayglo pinks and oranges, make this as interesting to look at as it is to read, and this is a perfect book for readers just enjoying reading on their own.
With a cast of characters as colourful as the day-glo pinks and greens of its illustrations, and a plot that’s just as bright, Fabio the World’s Greatest Flamingo Detective is going to wow young readers. Guests and staff are stunned when a talented hippo disappears right in the middle of her performance in the Hotel Royale’s talent competition. Fortunately Fabio is on hand to solve the mystery, and a couple of others in the process. Children who enjoy detective stories will love following the clues with Fabio, and children and adults alike will delight in the lush setting and in the comedy provided by Fabio’s co-stars, including hapless assistant Gilbert the Giraffe. For another quirky, satisfying animal detective series see Alex T Smith’s new Mr Penguin books.
When pug is woken suddenly in the middle of the night by Lady Miranda shouting about lions, he begins to think they mustn’t be very nice and a teeny bit scary. However, Lady Miranda believes the only way to overcome a fear is to stare it straight in the face and so the next day they go to the local safari park. Unfortunately the ticket lady doesn’t believe a sedan chair to be the safest vehicle to take through the lion enclosure, no matter how fast footman Will and footman Liam are! And so they decide to visit some slightly less dangerous animals instead: animals such as penguins, meerkats, sloths, monkeys and even a young lion cub called Florence! But someone with a sinister plan to steal the lion cub is also visiting and Pug finds himself IN the lion enclosure itself, trying to help his new friend, Florence escape their captor’s evil clutches. It would seem however that the big lions are rather less friendly than Florence, but before long Lady Miranda is on her way to rescue her beloved Pug. A wonderfully humorous story with engaging two colour illustrations. This third title in The Adventures of Pug series is perfect for dog lovers and a brilliant introduction to chapter books for young readers. ~ Shelley Fallows - You can also find Shelley here.
Pug is exactly the kind of hero young children happily identify with: he’s a good friend, sometimes bemused by the grown-up world but a quick learner, and always at the centre of the action. In this story Lady Miranda and he swap a hobby horse for the real thing and before he knows it, Pug is competing at show-jumping (totally accidentally), and developing his cowboy skills including lassoing. It makes for a very enjoyable story and Pug is super-cute in his Stetson in the lovely illustrations. The story is full of incident and surprises with the central friendship between Pug and Miranda the glue that holds it together. ~ Andrea Reece
Julia Eccleshare's Book of the Month May 2016 A deliciously madcap doggy adventure for Pug, the pampered dog of the even more pampered Lady Miranda. When Lady Miranda determines that Pug will be the ship’s captain when they go for an outing on the boating lake and dresses him accordingly, she forgets one important thing: Pug is afraid of the water! But when Pug gets pug-napped as he is foraging in someone else’s picnic he finds himself off on a very watery adventure indeed. Highly entertaining, wittily illustrated and fun to read alone. 6+ ~ Julia Eccleshare Julia Eccleshare's Picks of the Month for May 2016 The Bubble Boy by Stewart Foster There is a Tribe of Kids by Lane Smith Captain Pug by Laura James The First Hippo on the Moon by David Walliams
In a small town on the banks of Lake Laloozee lives Fabio, the world's greatest flamingo detective. He's not tall or strong, but slight and pink. And he's very, very clever ... Most of the time. But when an unusual lapse of judgement leads Fabio to accept a ride in his associate Gilbert's plane, little does he know he'll be nose-diving into a new mystery! When the tiny plane crash-lands near a remote village in the savannah, all Fabio wants is a pink lemonade to calm his nerves. But the town well has dried up, and the water didn't just disappear on its own! Fabio's on the case, and it's going to take a daring sting operation to set things right. The third book in the hilarious and stylish illustrated mystery series from the author of Captain Pug.
In a small town on the banks of Lake Laloozee lives the world's greatest flamingo detective. His name is Fabio. He's not tall or strong, but slight and pink. And he's very, very clever. It's the height of summer and Fabio and his associate Gilbert are taking a relaxing holiday journey on the fastest train in the world! But no sooner does the conductor call `All aboard' than a very expensive ruby necklace disappears and the great detective is back on the case! The second book in the hilarious illustrated mystery series by the author of Captain Pug.
Pug and Lady Miranda are off to the seaside! Pug is dreaming of naps under the beach umbrella, but when a little mishap means he has to wear an eyepatch, things quickly get a lot less snoozy! Soon Pirate Pug and his ragtag crew of friends find themselves on the trail of buried treasure. They have to reach the island where X marks the spot before the other pirates beat them to it. There's just one problem - Pug is scared of water! Laura James's fourth book about a roly-poly pug and his best friend, Lady Miranda, is perfect for fans of Claude and Squishy McFluff
'Zany ... Even reluctant readers will have a blast' IRISH TIMES In a small town on the banks of Lake Laloozee lives the world's greatest flamingo detective. His name is Fabio. He's not tall or strong, but slight and pink. And he's very, very clever. When Fabio and his giraffe associate Gilbert (terrible at disguises) drop in to the Hotel Royale for a lemonade (pink, naturally), Fabio is persuaded to judge the hotel's talent contest. But when the most promising contestant - Julia the jazz-singing hippopotamus - goes missing, Fabio must put his thinking cap back on and solve the mystery! This new mystery series from Laura James, author of Captain Pug, will have animal lovers and would-be detectives in stitches. Perfect for fans of Claude, Foxy Tales and The Pink Panther!
Meet the brilliant, the wonderful, the courageous ... Safari Pug! The third book in a joyful illustrated series for fans of Claude and Squishy McFluff. When Pug and Lady Miranda have a scary run-in with a lion one night (it might be hiding under the bed), Lady M decides Pug needs to face his fears and go on safari. Pug goes a bit wobbly when he finds out he'll be coming nose to nose with Florence, the rare white lion cub, but he soon realises that lions may not be the most dangerous thing in the wildlife park ...
Meet the brilliant, the wonderful, the courageous ... Cowboy Pug! The second book in a joyful new illustrated series for fans of Claude and Squishy McFluff. Pug and his faithful companion, Lady Miranda, are going to be cowboys for the day - and first of all they're going horsetrading! But with their noble steed Horsey safely acquired, it's not long before they find themselves on the wrong side of the law. Can Pug the reluctant hero overcome his fears and save the day once more?
Pug is going on a seafaring adventure. He's had jam tarts for breakfast. He's wearing a smart sailor suit. There's just one problem. Pug is afraid of the water! Captain Pug is the first book in a glorious new illustrated series for fans of Claude and Squishy McFluff.
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