Fabio, The World’s Greatest Flamingo Detective
Written by Laura James, Illustrated by Emily Fox, Published by Bloomsbury
The colourful covers of Fabio, The World’s Greatest Flamingo detective, beg to be collected. Why get just one when clearly they come as a set and want to be together? Currently there are three books in the series but I believe (and hope) more will be added!
In the first adventure, The Case of the Missing Hippo, we meet Fabio and his associate GIlbert. Gilbert isn’t always the most helpful but he certainly tries and is very loyal. He does sometimes get things right!
Fabio has been asked to judge the local talent show and wishes to sit back with his pink lemonade and enjoy the show. However, when Julia, the jazz singing Hippo goes missing, Fabio sets to work. A fun adventure and a mystery to solve, not to mention the neon pages and splashes of colour, roll together into the start of a fab new series. This cover is bright green with splashes of pink!
When we next see Fabio, he is boarding The Ostrich Express. In true Agatha Christie fashion, a priceless ruby is stolen and everyone on board quickly becomes a suspect. It will take all of Fabio’s detailed observations to sniff the culprit out. It soon becomes apparant that not all are who they say and there is more than the stolen ruby to solve. The cover of this titles is bright orange and there are splashes of colour throughout this wonderfully illustrated book.
In the bright yellow third mystery, Fabio has made a mistake. He has gotten into Gilbert’s latest purchase- a small plane. Gilbert is unsure how to fly it properly and it seems the previous owner left the petrol tank empty. This spells trouble for the detecting pair. When they inevitably crash, it is near a town with a mystery to solve. The town is dry- the water has dried up and there are some suspicious characters lurking about. Can Fabio and Gilbert get water flowing back into the town?
If anyone is up to solving these three cases, it is certainly Fabio. He has a special charm and elegance for a detective and Gilbert, though bumbling and funny, has a knack for asking the right questions.
This is a brilliant series for younger readers wanting adventure and mystery. The illustrations and colours will occupy any reader looking for details to help solve the crimes.
I am looking forward to more from Fabio and Gilbert- I certainly need the rainbow of covers to brighten my shelves!
My Shelves Are Full 