Lola’s Woolly Jumper

Lola the lamb lives a happy, carefree life on the farm. She has friends to play with, many things to jump on, and plenty of grass to munch. But Lola simply isn’t satisfied. What she wants more than anything is a jumper like the one worn by Farmer Joe. She tries and fails to make a jumper out of mud, grass and straw. In tears, Lola despairs until Farmer Joe steps in to help and shows her how wool shorn from her fleece coat can be cleaned, carded, spun, dyed and knitted into a beautiful blue jumper.

Van De Kerckhove both wrote and illustrated this sweet and simple story about achieving your dreams with hard work, patience, and help from someone you trust. The digitally rendered illustrations are colourful and mildly expressive, if also flat and stilted when depicting movement. An unnamed mouse and cat provide comic relief in the background of many double-page spreads for keen-eyed readers. While Farmer Joe is shown teaching carding and spinning, Lola inexplicably knows how to knit without guidance, something which may leave some readers wondering where the previously naïve Lola learned this skill. The book would benefit from a glossary of knitting terms to explain key concepts and tools like the spinning wheel.