Just Another Ordinary Day – Rod Clement

I love this book! As a parent I love routines. It helps me to be organized and it teaches kids what to expect and what they need to do in their day. But not everyones routine is the same and even if they go through the same motions they will differ. Amanda is just having another ordinary day. From waking up in the morning, eating breakfast, going to school, having science, forgetting lunch, playing with the new girl, going home, having a shower, eating dinner, reading a book and going to bed. A pretty average day until you look at the illustrations and find that her day is really extraordinary. Awaking to a genii gonging an alarm; flying down stairs on metal wings; being driven to school by the oldest person she knows (a dinosaur); playing with the new girl who is an alien planet; going home in an off road vehicle such as an elephant; and showering in a waterfall.

The text is intentionally boring and the humour of this book is in the contrast between the text and the illustrations. For older children reading the text to them once without the pictures and then again with the illustrations really brings out the incongruity of the text and pictures. Younger kids love this books as even though Amanda is doing all the things they would do it their day, her day is amazing and magical. 9/10