Ottoline Goes to School by Chris Riddell

Ottoline, the girl who lives alone in an apartment in the city with Mr. Munroe, a Norwegian Bog Fairy, meets another young woman, Cecily, who goes to the Alice B. Smith School for the Differently Gifted, and soon, after hearing stories from Cecily, Ottoline tells her parents that she also wants to go to the school.

Her parents arrange it for her, and soon she and Mr. Munroe are on the way to school with Cecily, her pet pony, Mumbles, and many of the other students. Soon, Ottoline was learning many new things, and struggling to discover her own gifts.

But all was not well at the school. Strange noises were heard in the night, and Cecily claimed the school was haunted by the Horse of the Hammersteins. While all the other students were frightened by the story, Ottoline was intrigued, and became determined to solve the mystery and put the ghost to rest.

But she wouldn't be able to do it on her own. For this, she is going to need the help of not only Mr. Munroe, but of all the pets at the school. But is it really the Horse of the Hammersteins haunting the school, or is there another, more prosaic, explanation?

Building on the characters from Ottoline and the Yellow Cat, Chris Riddell has crafted another book that is fun for kids to read. This book introduces us to the son of the invisible man, and his invisible dog, the very Frankenstein-ish looking butler, Solihull, and quite a number of friendly ghosts who make their home in the Alice B. Smith School for the Differently Gifted.

And once again, half the story is told in the pictures that accompany the story, allowing readers to feel like they are attending the school as well. Kids will also like the kinds of classes Ottoline takes, including "Giggling Studies" and "Sitting" as well as the lunchtime bun fight. Readers will laugh and smile their way through the story, and perhaps guess what Ottoline's gift is before she learns it.

This is a cute book with pictures that add a lot to the story, so much so that reading it again is still fun, even after you have finished the story. This is a book that can be enjoyed again and again. Highly recommended.