We are big Julia Donaldson fans, so when we came across The Ugly five, which is one of Donaldsons lesser known books, we were keen to give it a go.

The Ugly Five" by Julia Donaldson is all about Africa's less conventionally attractive animals and celebrates their charm and character. Set against the backdrop of the African savannah, the story introduces readers to the "Ugly Five" - the wildebeest, hyena, warthog, vulture, and marabou stork. Despite being labeled as "ugly" by some, these animals embark on a journey of self-discovery, embracing their unique traits and forming a close-knit friendship.

This book aims to highlight the beauty in diversity and teaches valuable lessons about self-acceptance and friendship. My favourite part of the book comes near the end where the animals are told just how loved they are, just the way they are!

As with all of Julia Donaldson’s book this is a lovely one to read, with its rhyming and sing song tone. When my children were little, I loved reading it too them. As they grew older, they had such lovely memories of having it read to them that they were keen to pick it up to read to themselves.

This book is particularly good for if you have little ones who are animal lovers. My son in particular loved learning some new facts about some lesser known animals and they both loved hearing about how smelly they were and the disgusting things they liked to eat.

I would highly recommend The Ugly Five for anyone with young children.

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