Review - Hack and Whack

Hack and Whack
by Francesca Simon
illustrated by Charlotte Cotterill
Date: 2017
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 32
Format: e-book
Source: library

Hack and Whack - two angelic looking Viking toddler twins - are on the attack! As they go marauding around their village, upsetting the apple carts, little do they know there is a force far more powerful than they: their mum! The story ends on the terrible two being plunged into a cold bath!

Gloriously funny, slapstick, fast paced action from the queen of funny.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

I'm sorry. Was this supposed to be funny? This is one of the most boring, pointless picture books I've read in a while. Annoying repetition ("We're Hack and Whack on the attack!"), unpleasantly busy pictures, and two insufferable protagonists make this book one to skip. There's no real plot, other than a couple of brats getting into trouble by terrorizing the village by stealing, running around with weapons, and destroying property. (They even tip over an outhouse at one point... with some poor guy inside!)

Their mom has done a crap job of raising them. They're not toddlers, despite what the synopsis says (see my point about the outhouse tipping; how would toddlers manage that?). They're just a couple of little delinquents in training, and they deserved far more punishment than a simple bath.

Ugh. I hate books that try to make bad behaviour funny.

Premise: 1/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 1/5
Illustrations: 2/5
Originality: 2/5

Enjoyment: 0/5

Overall: 1 out of 5