A riot of nonsense and adventure, may well become a classic in the great English nonsense tradition

Joyously surreal, set in landscapes full of toffee, deferential choirs of badgers, heavenly water-slides and velvet chairs . . . Their pachydermous protagonist governs a benevolent plutocracy- but the books' great joy is the frequent sly and subtle lampooning of his capitalist pomp

The books are very funny, installing a large cast of unlikely characters . . . in a world of mildly squiffy logic . . . And the illustrations are among Quentin Blake’s best work, scrawls and splotches that finally and unarguably distil character. But most important, this is political satire of a high order — Animal Farm for pre-teens, but wittier and more relevant to our own world

Few books are laugh-out-loud funny; fewer still are the children's books that have you stifling titters on the train . . . Uncle is a brilliantly sustained exercise in nonsense, played with the straightest of faces

You ask any class "Who's heard of Alice in Wonderland" and up goes a forest of hands. Uncle is on the same level and should be more widely read and enjoyed

Would make a great gift for literary eccentrics of any age

I think Uncle stuck with me because of its combination of excess, gadgetry and eccentricity - all of which are modes of being I have attempted to emulate in my adult life. I blame J.P. Martin

If there was ever a children's series generating fanatical, "cult" adoration, this is it. And deservedly so

To portray divorce with humour and sympathy takes great skill and Jacquline Wilson demonstrates she has this in abundance with this delightful book. . . . A wonderful, moving, yet funny book - a special read

Honest, angry, sometimes sad and always very readable . . . Adults could learn something here about the emotional turmoil suffered by a child with divided loyalties

Dido is compelling and beautifully written

What a fantastic job Adel Geras has done bringing these characters to life

Full of suspense and the characters were written so well that you were really pulled into their lives

The book comes billed as "a passionate tale of love, betrayal and revenge" - and it is indeed, an excellent, intelligent read which will stretch minds just as it will stretch vocabularies. It is vivid in the world it creates, intriguing as it takes you there and satisfying when it leaves you

Adele Geras gave us brilliant evocations of the ancient world with Troy and Ithaka. With Dido she again takes a classical setting and story and breathes freshness, and above all an up-to-date connection, into the people and the places whilst skilfully remaining faithful to her sources