The Green Ship

The Green Ship is yet another classic by Quentin Blake and a must for the library of all 6 to 8-year-olds,( as well as all Blake lovers between the ages of 6 and 80). The basic idea is a wonderful stroke of the imagination. The green ship which Alice and her brother find in the grounds of the big house isn't a real ship but one that's been created by the cutting of bushes and trees into the shape of bow and stern, funnels and masts. And there's even a fully equipped wooden wheelhouse. When kind old Mrs Tredegar produces an Atlas there's nothing to hold them back. Each day they imagine voyaging to some new place-- Italy, Egypt, the Arctic, the Equator, and for each Quentin Blake produces yet another evocative, funny, moving illustration. A heart-warming tale about a special relationship between an imaginative adult and two children as well as about the magic of the imagination. --Tamsin Palmer

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A book to treasure - Rated
When you've shared this book once, you will want to have it to keep. The dfes recommends it for Year 4; but my Year 1 child loved the text and the illustrations. She thought "the ending means that the children have grown up to be the sort of grown ups who still like adventures". A book to treasure!

Enchanting - Rated
What a super book! A wonderfully old fashioned, plaintive tale about children discovering a "green ship" made from trees in a clearing in a wood. It's so sad at the end when Quentin Blake's evocative pictures show the ship all grown over heralding the end of the adventure.

Magnificent - Rated
This is a brilliant book. I am 33 years old and stumbled across it in my local library. I knew Mr Blakes work through Mr Dahl.

This is such a moving book and little boy is enthralled by its reading.

I am afraid that the scene where Mrs Tredegar (that was her name) ties the ship up makes me cry.

In an age where inane drivel such a "Big Brother" passes for popular culture, I am so pleased that it is possible for innocence and intellect to prevail in this delightful book.

a moving story for children and grown-ups - Rated
This story gets me weeping inside just thinking about it. Whenever I read it to my two little girls I choke up.

This simple tale is about childhood adventure but also about growing up and having to leave behind a part of our childhood. Perhaps the story touches the piece of us that remembers that sense of loss. It's victorious also, as it deals with the resolution of loss in adulthood.

This is a children's book but I think Wise Mr Blake wrote it as much for the grown-ups.

Buy the book for your children. Keep it for you.

A Joy to read - Rated
This enchanting story has become a favourite with my 4 year old although it would be good for children a little older as well. As always, Quentin Blake's illustrations are magnificent and the story itself is a delightful tale that will challenge and stimulate young minds ith its tale of imaginary voyages in an imaginary ship in the garden of a friendly old lady. The picture of the thunderstorm is almost worth the price of the book alone.