A little hedgehog promises his grandmother that he won't go onto the wasteland (the road) where the dragons (vehicles) live, but one day he's tempted onto the road by a hungry crow. Will he manage to get home safely? This story can be used to introduce young children to the concepts of road safety and stranger-danger. Extract: There once was a little hedgehog who lived with his grandmother. Every evening when the little hedgehog went out to play, his grandmother would always say: "Don't ever go onto the hard wasteland. There are dragons there. Great giant creatures, with eyes shining brighter than the moon. Their roar is deafening, and their breath is poisonous. They have no claws, but their round feet will trample you." Every evening the hedgehog promised his grandmother he wouldn't go near the wasteland. But one day, as he played with some fallen leaves, he heard the roaring of the dragons. He wanted to see if they really were as big as his grandmother said. "I'll just have a peek, that's all," he thought. "I won't step on the wasteland."

 

There are 36 pages in this book. This is a picture book. A picture book uses pictures and text to tell the story. The number of words varies from zero ('wordless') to around 1k over 32 pages. Picture books are typically aimed at young readers (age 3-6) but can also be aimed at older children (7+). This book was published 2012 by Dickimaw Books .

Nicola Talbot has a diploma in creative writing at the University of East Anglia and is a member of East Anglian Writers.