Supertato by Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet is a story that gets asked for again and again – but if your children (or you!) are ready to try something new, teacher Scott Evans has some great ideas! Don’t forget to share your recommendations too…
Scott Evans
Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet’s fantastically funny Supertato, published in 2014, is tremendously popular with preschool and early years-aged children and is now a firm family favourite.
That’s no surprise, as the Supertato books are a laugh-out-loud series of stories about an unlikely superhero spud, filled with bright and bold illustrations and clever text. We follow Supertato on his many missions to protect the other vegetables from the Evil Pea and save the world.
There are, of course, all the other brilliant books from the Hendra & Linnet partnership to check out too: Barry the Fish with Fingers, No-Bot: the Robot with No Bottom, Cake, Egg, I Need a Wee!… but if you need a recommendation for something new after reading Supertato, here are some ideas!
It’s night-time in the supermarket and all is quiet and still. But wait. Something has escaped from the freezer, something with evil plans. This little escapee (or escapea?) wants to cause chaos. Can Supertato save the day? A hilarious and anarchic story with truly brilliant characters – one that you’ll be asked to read again and again.
Cake is delighted when he receives his first ever party invitation. But will being a cake at a birthday party really end well…? Lots of humour and vibrant illustrations will have children giggling in anticipation as they wait to discover Cake’s fate.
Six eggs are having a lovely time when a seventh egg appears – but this egg is totally the wrong way around! Containing only one word – ‘egg’ – this picture book is delightfully expressive and funny, as well as being a clever story about acceptance.
For more veggie-inspired adventures…
The Runaway Pea by Kjartan Poskitt and Alex Willmore presents the colourful and clever perspective of a pea on a runaway journey from its plate, determined not to be eaten.
Colin and Lee: Carrot and Pea by Morag Hood is an amusing look at an unlikely friendship between two very different vegetables, with a lovely message about embracing other people’s differences as strengths.
T‑Veg: The Tale of a Carrot Crunching Dinosaur by Smriti Prasadam-Halls and Katherina Manolessou is also a tale about how it’s good to be different and unapologetically yourself – from the viewpoint of a vegetarian Tyrannosaurus Rex.
New studies suggest that children have an increased appetite for vegetables if they are regularly shown pictures of them, so why not use picture books like Veg Patch Party by Clare Foges and Al Murphy (part of the very successful Kitchen Disco series), Oliver’s Vegetables by Vivian French and Alison Bartlett, and Lauren Child’s I Will Not Ever Never Eat a Tomato to familiarise them with eating their five-a-day in a funny, rhyming and memorable way.
Charlie tricks his younger sister, Lola – an extremely fussy eater – into eating all her least favourite foods.
For more food-based fiction…
Had enough vegetables? There are lots of other food-based fictional adventures your children might enjoy. Try the award-winning Best Laugh Out Loud Picture Book from the Lollies Book Awards 2020, Ten Fat Sausages by Michelle Robinson and Tor Freeman – it tells the subversively silly story of sausages making a great escape from their saucepan and will remind readers of the nursery rhyme, as well as being a counting book to help little ones.
For more funny food-based stories, there’s Hello, Hot Dog! by Lily Murray and Jarvis, which is told in a delightful conversational style and is likely to induce plenty of laughing out loud in young readers. And then there’s How to Eat Pizza by Jon Burgerman, which is equally guaranteed to provide many giggles.
Everything in this sausagey counting book works perfectly: from the big, bold illustration to the satisfying rhyme that works well for preschoolers. It will also entertain adults and older children, who will really get the silly humour.
Hot Dog is having a lovely snooze on a comfy bread roll when he sees a bottle of ketchup approaching and realises he’s about to become… LUNCH! A quirky tale told in a delightful conversational style, which is full of humour and mild jeopardy.
For small superheroes who love the Supertato stories…
If you’re looking for other picture books about superheroes, Timothy Knapman and Joe Berger’s Superhero Parentsseries feature lovely stories to share together as a family.
And if you want to read books where the child is the main character who saves the day, we really recommend reading Superkid by Claire Freedman and Sarah McIntyre, Superhero Baby by Patricia Hegarty and Alex Willmore and Super Daisy by Kes Gray and Nick Sharratt.
Or, for something completely different, Michael Foreman’s Superfrog has some of Supertato’s superhero storylines alongside an underwater theme from the perspective of a frog.
No one is more heroic for the little girl featured in this retro Pop Art-styled picture book than her playground-chasing, cake-making, teddy-finding, bubble-bearded Supermum.
As Suphero Baby darts from one catastrophe to the next to save the day, she realises that these are not mere accidents. They are in fact the work of a dastardly Super Villain and she is astounded when she discovers the culprit’s identity.
For more Supertato series suggestions…
With Supertato being the first book in the bestselling seven-book series, there’s plenty more to read. So why not try all of them?
Next in the series is Supertato: Veggies Assemble, followed by Supertato: Run Veggies Run; Supertato: Evil Pea Rules; Supertato: Veggies in the Valley of Doom; Supertato: Carnival Catastro-Pea! and published just this year, Supertato Super Squad!
There have even been a couple of Superato mini-books published to celebrate World Book Day – Supertato: Hap-pea Ever After and Supertato: Books Are Rubbish!
The best thing is that you can read the books in any order, although we recommend starting with book one to get to know the characters. So get ready to have lots of foodish fun with the whole SUPER series!
It’s night-time in the supermarket and all is quiet and still. But wait. Something has escaped from the freezer, something with evil plans. This little escapee (or escapea?) wants to cause chaos. Can Supertato save the day? A hilarious and anarchic story with truly brilliant characters – one that you’ll be asked to read again and again.
Supertato is on a mission to teach Evil Pea a lesson and rallies the Super Squad to help – but what do sprinkle-covered cupcakes have to do with defeating their nemesis? A hilarious, action-packed, and delicious picture book.
When themischievous pea adds a bottle of Bubbly Troubly to the vegetables bath, chaos breaks out in the supermarket! Supertato and friends must save the daywith science in this hilarious, bubbly adventure.
Supertato disguises himself as an Easter egg to try and trick the Evil Pea into returning all the stolen chocolate… but it’s going to take a little more than some natty foil to get past this evil vegetable! Can Supertato save the day?
The latest book in the Supertato series brings another fast-paced and colourful story, full of exciting twists and turns. But as well as being an adventure story full of fun and laughter, it’s also a sweet tale about friends who always look out for each other.
Join in!
You’ve heard our suggestions – now we’d love you to tell us yours! Do you know the perfect book for a fan of the Supertato series? Did your little one go from reading Supertato to another brilliant story?
We’d love to hear which books you’ve enjoyed sharing after Superato! Let us know by messaging us on social media @BookTrust using the hashtag #WhatToReadAfter
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