This was super cute! Mouse is so excited to be living with his very best friend, Giant Owl! They used to have so much fun playing chase- Giant Owl never quite caught Mouse, till that last time.... Mouse even has his own room (a birdcage), and Giant Owl feeds him all the donuts he wants. What fun will they have next? Read and find out! The illustrations are fabulous, very bright, bold, and tell a different story than Mouse does. This book will have everyone laughing, kids and adults alike!

#MyBestFriend #NetGalley

Clever, with a sort of wicked humor, on par with Children Make Terrible Pets or I Want My Hat Back. The key is in the owl that rolls it's eyes and lunges and snaps as the mouse goes on about what good friends they are. The emotions are clearly portrayed so young readers will need little prompting to grasp what is actually happening between teh characters. The simple subversion is both entertaining and valuable in teaching interpretation skills.

This is another winner for me from Rob Hodgson.

Mouse has a very unlikely best friend who he loves to spend time with - Giant Owl! As we read the story with it's bright pictures you get the sense that maybe Giant Owl and Mouse have different ideas about what this friendship might mean to them.

As an adult the predator-prey relationship is clear from the pictures, but naive mouse is the narrator here and there are excellent opportunities for inference from the pictures and predictions about what will happen.

This would be a great read aloud story with a group of children who are beginning to infer from pictures and make predictions about a story. I will definitely add this one to our classroom bookshelf when the opportunity arises.

I received an eARC of this book from the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is one of those fabulous picture books where the words and the pictures are telling two very different stories and you can’t help but laugh at Mouse’s complete ignorance of Giant Owl’s true agenda. There is so much expression in both Mouse and particularly Giant Owl that just makes this book so hilarious. My favourite scene has to be when Giant Owl offers Mouse doughnuts which ultimately results in Mouse getting a very big belly.

I am a big fan of Rob’s previous books, The Cave and The Woods, but I think My Best Friend is his best book yet! Rob has cleverly created the perfect balance between dark and light-hearted humour with Mouse’s words and the illustrations of Giant Owl telling two completely different sides of the tale. I loved it!

**This is from a longer review on my blog to be published 26 May**

My Best Friend by Rob Hodgson is a brilliantly funny story that tells a completely different story in the illustrations to the story being told in the text.

Mouse just loves his best friend Giant Owl. Giant Owl is so kind and generous and the most genuinely wonderful playmate a mouse could have. But is Giant Owl really as loyal as Mouse thinks he is?

For me, this book is absolutely made by its hilarious and wonderfully characterful illustrations. I love Mouse’s naïveté combined with Giant Owl’s misfortune-related exasperation. Wee Reader has requested this story over and over again, particularly enjoying the parts where Mouse gorges himself on a huge pile of doughnuts until he’s fattened up and where Giant Owl does an enormous burp!

What’s great about this type of book that has a kind of dual narrative is that I can get my 3 year old to carefully study the images and then tell me what’s really going on between the lines. And because he find it so funny he remains completely engaged. We have also chatted about the kinds of foods different animals usually eat in the wild (though he was adamant that mice like to eat doughnuts – given half a chance maybe…).

If you fancy a good laugh with your little one then I’d highly recommend getting hold of this book!

Isaac really enjoyed this book, expect the main character. Well written with good illustrations. Looking forward to getting this in paperback to add to our kids book collection.

• Paperback: 32 pages
• Age Range: 3 - 6 years

A gorgeously illustrated story about a little white mouse and his ‘friendship’ with Giant Owl. Mouse LOVES his new friend and determinedly sees everything Owl does in an endearing and lovely way whilst the reader realises that Giant Owl might just have an ulterior motive… A beautiful story for littlest readers everywhere.

I would like to thank both Net Galley and Frances Lincoln Children's Books for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The most hilarious kid's picture book I've ever read - with a terrific level of snark to it that any adult would appreciate wholeheartedly - is a simple tale of friendship narrated by Mouse, a white rodent who's recently met his new best friend, Giant Owl, when the big bird picked him out (up, actually) from anyone else to be friends with. In bold, funny illustrations we watch Mouse and Giant Owl playing chasing games, as well as the generous owl bringing his new buddy sugar-enriched treats even though they tend to fatten up Mouse - err, that is, make him put on weight. In fact, Giant Owl is such a good friend, he evens gets Mouse his own little home, complete with shiny white bars. But what happens when Mouse suddenly wakes up in an enclosed, moist, dark place with his new best friend nowhere to be found might just be a revelation Mouse isn't ready for. With its wonderfully wicked, sarcastic sense of humor chronicling the friendship between one clueless little mouse and his big, hungry feathered friend, this picture book is a winner for both young and old alike that - no worries - plays out to a satisfying but kid-friendly/G-rated conclusion, the reader enjoying a few laugh-out-loud moments along the way. (Available May 19) 5/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

A silly story that will keep your young reader engaged with the contrasting color of the illustrations. Mouse really doesn’t understand his relationship with Giant Owl...and it makes for a quirky read.

My Best Friend is a quirky, cute picture book written and illustrated by Rob Hodgson. Mouse thinks Owl is his best friend....but is he?! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital copy of this children's book.

I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

This is a comical, funny book about a little mouse who perceives the big owl to be his best friend but the pictures tell a different story. This book is fun and children will want to share it again and again! We certainly will be!

My Best Friend is a story about the relationship between a mouse and an owl, told from the mouse’s point of view. Mouse views Owl’s actions through the lens of friendship, but are Owl’s actions those of a friend? The story is engaging and the illustrations are beautiful.

As an educator, My Best Friend could be used to facilitate teaching of perspective taking or inferences/predictions.

Thank you to Quarto Publishing Group and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rob Hodgson is back again with another equally brilliant book! Children will love figuring out the true nature of Owl and Mouse's 'friendship'. Rob's illustration is wonderful - look out for the little details like the worms popping out of branches throughout and Owl's characterful and humorous expressions. Fans of Jon Klassen's humour will love this too.

My daughter absolutely LOVED this book. It made her laugh a lot. Her favorite part was when the owl tried to eat his best friend because he thought it was a good snack. But, then he vomited him out.

I found the book to be funny as well. As adults, we know Owl wants to eat Mouse but Mouse is so gullible. He's too sweet. Owl looks so grumpy throughout the entire book. The whole thing was entertaining. This was a book that I enjoyed reading with my little one.

A cute little picture book about a mouse and his owl "friend". This is the kind of book I really enjoy reading with children where they have to read between the lines to understand what is really happening. A funny but short story that I'm sure many children will enjoy!

This book was very funny for the adult reader who knows exactly what the author is implying! Whether I would really want to read it to my child as a bedtime story though...

The illustrations were strong and it is the right length for bedtime.

This made me laugh.

Mouse tells us about their best friend, Owl, who might have their own agenda.
I felt kind of reminded of Tom & Jerry, only with a very, very naive mouse. I'd totally read more episodes.

The fun comes from the way Mouse tells the story and the contrast to the things we see in the pictures. Mouse is excited to get an own house, but maybe it's really a cage so Mouse can't run away?

Short and sweet. Would like to read more.

I recieved a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Kids will like this plays with your expectations and kids can look at it and laugh at that he thinks they are bffs but owl wants to eat him.

Art: Like little details like the two worms- pink and yellow

My Best Friend is an odd little book about a not so friendly "friendship." It's kind of silly, but the humor will only be found with older readers. Then there is the whole idea of what is between owl and mouse being called friendship. I can imagine that this book could be used to talk about unhealthy friendships, but it is a bit peculiar.

What at first glance seems like a simple, cutesy story about the friendship between a mouse and owl is actually a hilarious romp about a mouse who is completely clueless that his best friend Owl has one goal: to eat him! We also get a particularly satisfying (what kid doesn't love a good burp?) ending. This book will work best with a slightly older (late preschool to elementary) audience who can pick up on clues in the illustrations that Mouse is not a reliable (or wise) narrator. The illustrations are bold and brightly colored; they, paired with the comedy, make this one a great read-aloud pick. Reminiscent of "The Wolf, the Duck, and the Mouse" and "Please Don't Eat Me."