The Friendship Bench

Description

The Friendship Bench

Wendy Meddour and Daniel Egnéus

(OUP)

Is there any way that Shadow might join Tilly at school? Mum says that she and Shadow will be waiting for Tilly outside. However, outside with them is where Tilly yearns to be. It seems outside at school means all on your own. Yet, could The Friendship Bench  offer ‘new friends to play with‘. However, might that mean a journey to the other end of the playground, and a discovery that the bench is busy. It seems the teacher suggests Tilly should try again…

What might happen if Tilly sits alongside a lone boy? It seems they do not have to look at each other, for there are shoes and sky and seagull and grass upon which to stare. Then again, what is supposed to happen by sitting on this place? Tilly and the boy surmise ‘it isn’t working‘ and wonder if ‘it’s broken‘. Then again, maybe they could fix it? Thereafter, what about sticks and leaves and ‘magic sand‘?

It seems that the picture books we’ve enjoyed from Wendy Meddour and Daniel Egnéus are rich with warmth and meaning. Then again, we recognise ourselves in the situations, from Tilly’s fears to her excitement at meeting Flint. What’s more, there’s opportunity to read between the lines, so that we recognise the teacher’s direction and then the possibility of what is mended by Tilly and Flint. Like their Tibble and Grandpa or Tisha and the Blossom, this story is subtle and heart warming, so that we linger over pictures of soaring skies, tumbling sand and gentle, hopeful friendships. Bookwagon loves and recommends The Friendship Bench for home reading, and sharing in school, too.