A Funny Sort of Minister

Written by Dominique Demers

Illustrated by Tony Ross

Translated by Sander Berg

Alma Books

978-1-84688-456-6

96 pp.

Ages 7-11

January 2020 

The unconventional and spirited woman of Dominique Demers's The Adventures of Miss Charlotte has returned and this time she's accidentally delving into politics (hence the ministerial role in the title).

Miss Charlotte is heading by train to see her friends in Saint-Anatole when she accidentally grabs the bag of the Prime Minister, Roger Rarejoy. When she goes to the address with which it is labelled, she is sent away as a crazy lady (she doesn't just tell them outright she has his bag). But the prime minister's son, Gustave-Aurèle, wants to help her find his father and make his father proud, something the boy never feels he has accomplished, no matter how hard he works.  So together Miss Charlotte and Gustave-Aurèle follow the prime minister's schedule, hoping to catch up with him.

But, when the two unlikely companions end up at a car factory and learn the prime minister has not arrived to the impatient crowd, Miss Charlotte takes it upon herself to act as his representative, unveiling a new car and renaming it GA-GA after Gustave-Aurèle. She delights everyone with her lively presentation that includes a song and dance and has them heralding her as the new kind of politician. That is, everyone except the prime minister and his entourage who start to believe that Gustave-Aurèle has been kidnapped by the woman who incidentally reminds the PM of happy times with his own Auntie Josephine.

The hilarity continues with Miss Charlotte and Gustave-Aurèle seeking to get the important papers to the prime minister, particularly those that set out a new policy for education that requires more and more time in school and none for play, with the two parties ultimately converging to a charming reunion between father and son and the realization that play is an important part of learning.

Dominique Demers's original French-language series has charmed countless young readers across the world and we're fortunate that these English translations are being published now. These early chapter books provide straightforward but engaging plots with strong characters and subtle messages about creativity and play, bridging the genre between early readers and middle grade fiction beautifully. The writing draws the reader in immediately, as the distracted Miss Charlotte loses her bag and the Prime Minister, through a series of mishaps, enters the station. Then it's one scene after another, visually explicit and always funny with misunderstanding and confusion, that leads to the story's end when Miss Charlotte disappears with only a letter to tie up her latest adventure.

From A Funny Sort of Minister by Dominique Demers, illus. by Tony Ross

Complemented with the illustrations of well-known British artist Tony Ross, A Funny Sort of Minister will tickle young readers with its cheerful yet silly circumstances while they applaud Miss Charlotte's recognition of the value of learning outside the box, and the classroom.

••••••••••••••••••••••
 

I encourage young readers who are looking for funny early chapter books to consider reading the whole series (two of which I have reviewed):

The New Teacher (2016)

The Mysterious Librarian (2017)

The New Football Coach (2019)
A Funny Sort of Minister (2020)