Title: Sid’s Big Fib

Written by: Roo Parkin

Illustrated by: Irina Avgustinovich

Published by: Maverick Books

Sid’s Big Fib is one of the best picture books I have read this year. It is an extremely engaging and relatable picture book with a unique, fun concept that to be honest I wish I came up with myself. This brilliant story focuses on two children desperately trying to outshine each other. Sid is frustrated his friend Stella is always doing things ‘better’ than him, which drives him to launch a fib of epic proportions. Each fib will keep the children laughing and turning the pages eager to know what he will say next. 

Sid’s fibs gets bigger and bigger until eventually the whole charade is discovered and he has a lot of explaining and apologies to make. I like the way Roo Parkin shows us at each stage of the fib getting more extreme, that he thinks of a way to get out of it and stop the lie but even so still can’t help himself continuing with the fib. I believe young children will be able to identify with Sid’s actions and how difficult it is to back down and tell the truth. I also think it is great the way Roo Parkin shows there are consequences for his actions.

I enjoyed the use of different font size and boldness and speech bubbles to add variation to the text. Irina Avgustinovich’s illustrations also help to bring the Sid’s fibs and exaggerations to life. The use of bright colours, background stars and planets and the hilarious expressions on the character’s faces complement Roo’s portrayal of the characters and events completely. 

At the end of the book Sid discovers it is more fun to do things together without making up exaggerated stories to outdo each other.

With underlying themes of honesty and friendship, this is the perfect book for reading aloud to a class. or during quality time with your child. I would recommend Sid’s Big fib for use in discussions about telling fibs and thinking about the consequences and the right thing to do.

You can buy copies of Sid’s Big Fib by Roo Parkin and Irina Avgustinovich from Maverick, or from your local bookshop, or online at uk.bookshop.org, an organisation with a mission to financially support local, independent bookshops. It is also available at:

• Hive
• Waterstones
• Amazon