The Ish Mother has read and reviewed The Knight Who Might, the newest picture book from Lou Treleaven, this laugh out loud story is all about positive attitude and giving it a go, even when you are bound to fail! Illustrated by Kyle Beckett.
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The Knight Who Might tries really hard to be a knight but things don’t always go to plan – even with a magic horse, sword and helmet! However, when The Knight Who Might spots a knight competition advertised, he sees his chance to show the world what a positive attitude can do! |
‘The Knight Who Might’ is a really good book for talking about perseverance, but also about perseverance. The main character really wants to be a knight, but struggles with every skill he needs, from riding a horse to even wearing armour. Nevertheless he keeps trying, firm in the belief that one day he might be a knight.
His self-belief is impressive, particularly as he is surrounded by voices of doubt. His magic talking horse, sword and helmet are all ready to tell him that he might not be a knight. And when he enters a competition for knights, instead of supporting him they all hide, believing that without them he won’t go through with it.But the Knight Who Might is undeterred and sets off for the competition alone. When he sees his first rival, The Lord With The Scary Looking Sword, doubt creeps in for the first time. But just then his magic team come to his aid and encourage him to try.
I love the message of this book. It can be used to talk about perseverance and how we mustn’t be discouraged if we struggle with something at first, but also how we can be good friends and support people even when they’re finding things difficult. It’s so important to teach children how to build others up rather than point out their flaws and difficulties. I also really like the fact that the ending isn’t as triumphant as you might expect, but still remains positive. So many underdog stories end with an implausible triumph, but I think it’s a stronger message to show that things don’t always go how you want but good can still come out of difficult situations.
The message is delivered in a light and humorous way, with some great wordplay thrown in (I do love a good pun!) and witty illustrations to make little readers smile. It doesn’t feel like a story with a message, so is good for sneaking in a positive message with children who might be more resistant to more obviously didactic books.