A funny little book about Manjit, a new boy at school who is lonely at first but soon befriends Leon, who invites him to tea at his house. Manjit has never been to anyone's house for tea before (which was rather hard to believe) is afraid of having an unpleasant experience. But he soon realises that there is nothing to be afraid of, and has a lovely experience that he wants to repeat. While it was cute story, I think children might find the whole premise of Manjit's initial pancake-phobia rather unrealistic and find his instantaneous change to loving "weird pancakes" a little ridiculous. Perhaps not a great "guide" book for a new child at school who is realistically hesitant about forming new friendships, but a good book for some silly laughs.

Books are seldom simpler, but catch the right reader with this at the right time and the world can change. Manjit is anxious about finding a friend at his new school, and then worried about the problems having tea round someone's house might lead to when he does find that friend. Who knows – the dad could be a dragon, and soup or peas could be on the menu. Or even pancakes... There's no real twist or anything here, but the story still reads as being full of narrative, and the worries of the lad are nicely evoked. And all the while the illustrations still manage to almost carry the plot without the help of the text, so this is ultra-accessible.