On A Magical Do-Nothing Day

About this book

A boy and his mother go to stay in a woodland cabin on a rainy day. While his mother works at her computer, she makes him go outside to play. Reluctant at first to put his computer game down, the boy takes it outside, only to lose it in a pond. But then, four huge snails appear in the rain and a journey of exploration begins, leading the boy to wonder why he hasn't done any of these wonderful things before?

This beautiful, arty picture book has a real sense of warmth and wonder at the natural world in the illustration. The message – about playing outside instead of being stuck on computers all day – manages to represent the great outdoors as exciting, fun and full of mystery, and it's lovely that, at the end, Mum turns off her computer and joins the little boy in being in the moment, too.