Question

English literature

Story Nicobobinus.

Answer the following questions :

1. In your own words describe Nicobobinus as a young boy. What makes him special or different? ​

Answer 1

Answer:

I first read Nicobobinus the year it was published, when I was seven, and my Dad – a huge Monty Python fan – excitedly brought it home from the bookshop. I remember him showing me the cover, and the sense of curiosity and anticipation which Michael Foreman’s illustration of a yellow-footed upside-down boy evoked was heightened by my Dad’s high expectations of the book. When he started reading it to me at bedtime that same day, neither of us were disappointed.

At the core of the story is Nicobobinus, the boy who can do anything, and his best friend Rosie, the source of his confidence and instigator of their adventure. From the first line, ‘This is the story of the most extraordinary child who ever stuck his tongue out at the Prime Minister’, the reader knows exactly what they’re in for; wonderful irreverent silliness, often at the expense of adults. The book begins on Nicobobinus’ doorstep, with Rosie suggesting a journey to the Land of Dragons as an alternative to weeding. From there, Nicobobinus and Rosie get themselves tangled up in all manner of tricky situations.

Towards the start of the story, Nicobobinus, on the run from the first in a series of extremely unpleasant adults, meets a golden man who turns his feet and one hand to gold. Much of the rest of the book is spent trying to find a cure, while avoiding the unwanted attentions of ruthless pirate monks, a desperate doctor, and a corrupt king, all of whom intend to do Nicobobinus harm so they can get their greedy hands on his valuable limbs. The landscapes that the children pass through on this journey are brilliantly inventive, including an ocean of slow moving mountains and a rainbow lake full of leopards.