A lazy mum’s guide to World Book Day

Claire Quansah - 27 Feb 18

The first Thursday in March is fast approaching and what does that mean? Not the start of spring, or the countdown to Easter, but World Book Day. Again.

The day children and parents are clearly split into two camps. Team 1: Unhealthily competitive, creatively crafty and/or lovers of fancy dress. The ones who probably wish it was World Book Week to so they could pull out all the stops and avoid being restricted to just one all singing, all dancing costume.

Then there’s Team 2: Short of time, money, crafting abilities and/or a child with minimal inclination to do the school run looking like an Oompa Loompa after a big night out.

At Mumsomnia Towers, we are longstanding members of the latter. As a mother who is not particularly ‘crafty’ with a child who despises fancy dress, but both love reading, we’ve developed a love-hate relationship with WBD. So when people say ‘just raid your fancy dress box’, in my house, that literally means checking my collection of special occasion dresses… Not particularly useful for this event.

To be honest, getting him out of the door in clean and correct uniform is a daily achievement and that’s when we know what he needs to wear. So adding the time, creative and possibly financial pressures of World Book Day just don’t work for me.

Don’t get me wrong. I love that WBD doesn’t just tell kids to read more, but actually makes it easier for them to do so by giving them all book tokens – what’s not to like about a new book for £1?

But the growing obsession with fancy dress, rather than emphasis on reading, fills us all with dread. I’d much prefer it if children were asked to bring in their favourite book, or write their own story. Alas, that’s not the case, so the annual challenge continues.

However, we will not let this defeat us! We love a challenge and for the past few years we’ve managed to raid wardrobes and flick through pages to come up with some easy, non-fancy, but identifiable (to some extent) book characters. And it’s even been quite fun.

If you are a member of Team 1, look away now. What I’m about to say will probably bore you to death with the lack of creativity and ‘WOW factor’. But to all my Team 2 squad mates, whose children share my son’s hatred for fancy dress or want to save time or a few pennies, here are our favourite suggestions:

• George (George’s Marvellous Medicine) – Own clothes, and stick a label on an old milk bottle saying ‘not for grannies or chickens’. If you are feeling extra creative you could fill your bottle
• Boy (The Witches) – Own clothes, and stick a label on an old bottle saying ‘Potion 86: Delayed Action Mouse Maker)
• Boy (There’s a Wocket in My Pocket) – Own clothes (are you noticing a theme?) Print off a picture of said Wocket and yes, stick it in your pocket
• Thing 1 or 2 (The Cat in the Hat) – Red t-shirt and you can create a Thing 1/2 label to stick on (even better if you have twins!)
• Pea (Princess & the Pea) – Green trousers and green top. Boom
• Danny (Danny the Champion of the World) – Own clothes (wouldn’t advocate taking a pheasant as a prop, but maybe a photo of one!)
• Greg (Diary of a Wimpy Kid) – White t-shirt, black shorts or trousers and a black rucksack, accentuated with a teenage slouch, which will become much easier to embrace as the
• Muggle (Harry Potter) – OK, this is kind of pushing it, but when desperation calls…

I guess the main thing to remember is that no matter how much you love or hate World Book Day, it is just one day. One day to do something a bit different, improve your ‘problem solving skills’ and have fun. Then go home and read a good book. In suitably appropriate clothing of course.

Claire Quansah

30 something Mancunian mother, wife and dancing queen. When I'm not juggling 2 boys, I'm either doing PR, drinking wine, eating cake or trying to shift the cake weight. Sometimes I share my musings at www.mumsomnia.wordpress.com

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