This is a really clever book that tells one story through the words and another one with the pictures, as they reveal something bigger. Shirley and her parents go to the seaside and Shirley is left on her own to play. Her parents talk to her, telling her not to do things, but Shirley (in the pictures) is in an imaginary world of her own having wonderful adventures battling pirates etc.

This would be great to discuss the counterpoint between the two stories with the children, looking at the author’s choice of language for the parents and the illustrations of Shirley. They could write their own descriptions/ words for each of the pictures to match Shirley’s adventures and compare this to the original. This would highlight Burningham’s craft in a way the children could understand.