Written by father and son team Brett and David ‘Elmer’ McKee there’s the feel of a fable to this picturebook. The Nasties are scaring the King and his people with their terrible caterwauling. Brave young Sir Ned volunteers to sort them out and heads into the woods to find them. He’s quickly joined by a troll, a witch and a very suspicious looking wolf – none other than the Nasties themselves in fact. Things aren’t going well for our hero but he saves the day by teaching the trio to sing in tune, turning bad into good. The story is great fun for children and adults alike and David McKee’s characterful and humorous illustrations are just dazzling, the forest drenched with colour, scenes of dancing full of movement and joy. Superb. ~ Andrea Reece
The whole kingdom is plagued by the screeching, howling din made by the Nasties, so the King sends Sir Ned to deal with them. A wolf, a witch and a troll help Ned along the way, but it turns out he has walked into danger - these three are the notorious Nasties themselves! Luckily he works out why they sound so awful and teaches them to listen to each other, so they ask him to join the band rather than turning him into dinner.
