Have you ever made a wish on a shooting star?  Tom has, but his wish has gone horribly wrong.  Now he can shrink anything he likes and it’s going to get him in a whole heap of trouble.  Read about Tom’s misadventures in F.R. Hitchcock’s wonderful new book, Shrunk!

After Tom moves in with his grandmother next to the Bywater-by-Sea Model Village, he makes a wish on a shooting star and gets the curious ability to shrink things. The first thing he shrinks is Jupiter, then some sheep and a boat.

But without Jupiter in place, the Earth is slowly being drawn towards the Sun. With the angry (and miniaturised) school bully yelling from his pocket, Tom has to return Jupiter and save Earth — all while trying to make friends in his new home.

Shrunk! is a wacky, weird and wonderful little story full of hilarious antics.  It’s so nice to read a story for children that feels really fresh and completely different.  There’s something for everyone in this wonderful story – wishes gone wrong, missing planets, meteors crashing to earth, shrinking animals and people, horrible little boys, a race against time, and lots and lots of laughs.

I love all the characters in the book, from Tom who ends up with a rather useless and annoying power, to his Grandma who knows more than she’s letting on, his unfortunate, geeky friend Eric, Eric’s dad who believes he has been abducted by aliens, and Jacob the big (or should that be small) bully.  The hilarious antics of the characters will have children cracking up laughing, especially Jacob vs. the squirrel.

Shrunk! is F.R. Hitchcock’s first children’s book and I hope I get to read many more of her stories.  Shrunk! is perfect for children who like funny stories or stories with a touch of magic or science.  It’s a great book for children to read themselves and it also works really well as a read aloud (for around 8 years and older).  It’s a short read too so it’s great for reluctant readers.

5 out of 5 stars