I've never failed to be totally entranced by anything Katherine Rundell writes, and this was... fabulous.

A fabulous adventure, led by the spirited Mink. A longer than normal picture book - which I loved - filled with magic, adventure and zebras!

I had previously read this on Netgalley and heard Katherine Rundell speak about writing this book. It is such an enjoyable story, made even better by the illustrations in the physical copy. It has a super under the dust jacket cover as well! A young girl named Mink is not one for rules or bedtimes, she likes freedom and running wild. When she meets Gabriel, a baby zebra, a new adventure begins. An evil man has stolen the zebra’s parents and he got lost in the city. Luckily, Mink is helpful and resourceful and vows to help Gabriel. It turns out, the evil man has stolen an entire alphabet of animals and they all want to go home. Mink’s determination will lead the way with brilliant outcomes. With stunning illustrations from Sara Ogilvie, Katherine’s story of courage, family and friendships is the perfect antidote to a bad day.

A great short story by Katherine Rundell, ideal for KS1 children and those just starting chapter books. A heartwarming story of a Zebra who has lost its Mum and Dad and a girl called Mink who learns she can hear what animals are saying and helps with the great escape. A lovely book, highly recommend.

tache, black polished boots and whom drives around in a green van. Early on into the investigation, the pair discover that this lean mustachioed criminal has targeted more animals than Gabriel's parents. And so begins an epic adventure to rescue a multitude of animals. A humorous and heartwarming story by Katherine Rundell. Although, she does still remind us that we are all indeed very aware of the fact that animals are still being harmed and trophy hunting remains prominent. However, as adults we're incredibly good at ignoring the issues - "adults very rarely notice things I absolutely adored this book. Katherine Rundell's words sing across the page and Sara Ogilvie paints pictures for the listener just like Gabriel in the story. Any story involving a man embracing a thin moustache and black polished boots is destined to be a brilliant read. It just so happens, that this story is written by Katherine Rundell, and illustrated by Sara Ogilvie which elevates it to the levels of a timeless picture book

This was every bit the fun adventure that I wanted it to be! The illustrations throughout are glorious, the writing magical and transporting. Just adored the premise of this too and the villain gives real Cruella vibes. With the unlikely friendship between zebra and child, this book is picture book perfection. And packaged so beautifully it would make an amazing Christmas gift.

A slightly eccentric story with a powerful message and stunning illustrations. This is slightly longer than a normal picture book and yet not quite a chapter book, making it original and different (I think it might be similar in length to David Walliams picture books. I loved the relationship between the child and the zebra and, for me, there were definite echoes of 101 Dalmatians but with wild animals. This story and the beauty of the pictures stayed with me after reading even though I found parts of the story a little bizarre. It feels classic in feel, as though it was written a while ago. I love Katherine Rundell's novels and this offered something for a different age-group. It's a story I'll keep thinking about.

A wonderful story about the friendship between a young girl and a zebra who she must help in him find his parents again. I would highly recommend this for young readers who are just getting into reading themselves, and would be an absolute treat as a bedtime story.

My Review:A very exciting story about Mink who does not like bedtimes and her newly acquired friend Gabriel the Zebra. Gabriel's parents are taken by a collector and Gabriel is trying to get them back, however got lost. This is how he found Mink, or mink found him? Lets say they found each other. Mink then finds out that animals do speak in colours that she now can see and Gabriel is able to explain what happened. Together with help from grumpy dog Rainbow and a lot more animals that spread the word, they are on their way to find Gabriel’s mum and dad. they end up finding lots more animals, the collector has been collecting animals from A to Z, so each animal he has collected start with a letter from the alphabet. Luckily Mink, Gabriel, Rainbow and all the other animals manage to break free and scare the collector away. There follows a big party that goes on for days, ‘as Wild creatures - like zebra, lions and children - do not, after all, believe in bedtime’ It is a lovely story, well written, making it a nice read, the pictures really help the story along and give Mink and the animals plenty of character.

Katherine Rundell is a magician when it comes to writing for children of all ages. She is always pitch perfect for the age range whether it be through the dram and comedy of a tale or the language choices that entertain and challenge. Zebra's Great Escape is no exception- a wonderfully entertaining read for 7 year olds or the independent young reader 6-8. This is the story of Mink who befriends a zebra - Gabriel -who is searching for his missing parents. The story takes Mink and Gabriel on then hunt for the missing Zebras with the assistance of a dog called Rainbow and a squirrel called Rodentia who discover an evil man building up a collection of imprisoned animals from A-Z. Sara Ogilvie's illustrations are wonderful and bring the story further to light . This is an excellent bed time read/class read or a book for a confident young reader to enjoy. Highly recommended - another winner by a great writer.

Very funny and imaginative history.
Great illustrations and colours.
Kid will enjoy the story for sure.

Book 2 was our first Katherine Rundell book, the zebras great escape. This was slightly for an older audience as there was more of a story to the read however as the person reading it, I enjoyed it. The art work by Sara Ogilvie is fantastic and reminded me of the books I read as a kid. This story is about Mink, who finds a zebra who’s parents have been taken. Mink goes on an adventure to save the animals. As my niece loves animals, she enjoyed listening to this point and talking about the images.

As a fan of Katherine Rundell's Middle grade books (The Rooftoppers, The Explorers) and Non- Fiction (Why You Should Read Children's Books, Even Though You Are So Old and Wise) I was intrigued to see how she tackled a book aimed at a younger audience in "The Zebra's Great Escape". Proving to be a writer who has a way with words that enchants readers of any age, Rundell did not disappoint.

The Zebra's Great escape takes us on an adventure with Mink, a lively girl who "doesn't believe in bedtimes" and is daring enough to befriend a Zebra in need of help: "The Collector of animals in cages" Mr. Spit has captured the zebra's parents.
Animated by the vibrant and playful illustrations of Sara Ogilvie, this was a wonderfully playful and heartfelt story that made me nostalgic about the books I so very much loved as a child (think of 101 Dalmatians, Noah's Arc, Peter Pan and of authors like Roald Dahl and Enid Blyton) which master a true sense of childhood fun, fear, silliness and discovery in the face of the world's hardships and cruelties.

This is bound to be a story that children will enjoy and want to re-read, be it with an adult or independently as they develop from readers of picture books to chapter books.

A book that's certainly worth consideration, but that seemed to me at times to be built out of two ideas that didn't quite hang together. Young Mink suddenly finds a zebra one day, and does as any young girl would – takes it home and stuffs it under the bed. The first really clever thing about this is that the two can converse – the beast knows enough English, or another way at least in which it can understand her, and Mink is "talked to" via a huge waft of colours that somehow convey meaning, emotion and everything else language uses. Tacked on to that slightly is a kind of animal Child Snatcher, who has gained a particularly quirky collection, that needs rescuing – like said zebra's parents. I like the communication idea, I am fine with the adventure side of things, but like pop songs that use a chorus from one idea and the verses from another, the match feels a little too evident. Three and a half stars.

I was very excited to see that Katherine Rundell has created a picture book as I enjoy her middle grade fiction. This picture book is for a slightly older primary school audience as there is more of a story to it. A little girl discovers a young zebra hiding near her house and she discovers that his parents have been kidnapped by the evil Mr Spit. There is then a mission to rescue an A to Z of animals from Mr Spit who has kept them all locked up in cages. I really enjoyed the idea of the animals being able to talk to our heroine Mink through ‘colours in the air’ and I would have liked this to be expanded on. The illustrations were wonderfully funny and bright and captured the sense of urgency. A lovely picture book all round.