Beautiful, but too random - Rated 
The illustrations in this are lovely; brightly coloured, clear and intricate. The storyline is familiar, but I recently enjoyed "A Boy Wants a Dinosaur" more, which has the same structure but more point. I felt that the book was a celebration of a particular child (grandchild of the author?) rather than being a really creative piece of literature.
disappointing - Rated 
Nicely illustrated, but not a patch on the Maurice Sendak trilogy 'Where the Wild Things Are', 'In the Night Kitchen', and 'Outisde, Over There' from which it appears to have taken its influence. For real night-time adventures, turn to the Sendak.
What a gorgeous book! - Rated 
The illustrations in this book set it apart from the crowd - they are detailed and bright with a light, enchanted quality. The story is simple -the small and child-like Emperor of Absurdia tumbles out of bed into a wonderfully odd world with sky fish and umbrella trees, for example. There's a wardrobe master who helps him get dressed in an eclectic combination of clothes and then off he goes on a snuggly scarf hunt, all reminiscent of the ritual in small children's home where the child is dressed before the search for the favourite toy begins.
The emperor has a great time chasing a little dragon through the extremes of Absurdia into a deep dark cave - and then a giant dragon emerges. My children smile at 'Help! An emperor hunt!' as the Emperor does a quick about turn, fortunately reaching safety.
Back in bed the Emperor sinks into weird dreams... and the reader is brought back to reality, seeing a small boy in his bed room surrounded by toys etc that look exceptionally like the characters of Absurdia. The idea of using characters from a child's room to populate a wonderful other world is not original but this book is beautifully done from beginning to end with a fast adventure story, friendly monsters and lovely vocabulary, and a good twist at the end. A winner.
If you like the style of this then try `Something Else' by the same illustrator or Mick Inkpen's Blue Nose Island series.
A wonderful flight of fantasy, with a twist in the tail.. - Rated
I bought this book on the strength of its nomination for the 2006 Nestlé Children's Book Prize (it ended up winning a silver medal) and it did not disappoint. It has since become one of Alice's (3 years) all-time favourites.
It evokes a topsy-turvy fantasy world where Alice in Wonderland absurdity meets Dr. Zeuss-like strange-but-cuddly creatures. The whole thing springs to life through the beautifully detailed illustrations, the style of which will be familiar to Observer readers as Chris Riddell is the political cartoonist there. The text is both imaginative and well crafted for its target age-group, with a rhythm that Alice loves and just enough repetition to indulge her lust for anticipating the next line. "...into the arms of the wardrobe monster" is now a stock phrase in our house.
The ending has a nice little twist which will put a smile on the face of the adult storytellers, although it's a bit subtle for Alice just yet. I look forward to the day when she 'discovers' it, but in the meantime there is plenty here for her to enjoy.
Childrens' tastes are notoriously fickle (as well they should be) but she just keeps asking for this book and it is now one of the most requested ever bedtime reads.
Very warmly recommended.
beautiful - Rated
A beautiful book with magical drawings and a wondeful story
if you like this you will also love Horatio Happened
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