Maxi

This opening scene by Mathilde Stein is exactly how a good opening scene should be. With such a well-balanced mix of tension, humour, action and slight confusion, your curiosity is piqued to such an extent within just those few sentences that you can’t help but read on to find out more about the little lapdog with the big name.

It soon becomes clear why the little protagonist is so upset. Maxi wants an owner, but no ‘boring grannies’ – and certainly no ‘boring grannies with stuffy bags’ to carry him around in. That’s his worst nightmare. No, Maxi longs for a tough owner, like Ben the police officer from the reality TV show. But there’s not much chance of that happening. So, Maxi goes in search of an owner himself.

The expressive cartoonish colour pictures by the renowned illustrator Jan Jutte are the perfect match for this story and its sparkling language. Just when Maxi spots what he thinks is his ‘dream owner’ and races after him, we suddenly see the old lady again, even before Maxi himself notices her. Her delighted expression and her outstretched arms say that, whatever it takes, she wants to make Maxi hers.

The ensuing chase scene is pure slapstick. But Stein offers more than over-the-top exaggeration. Because… who is the old lady really? While Stein makes her naïve Maxi believe that he’s found his ‘dream owner’, Jutte subtly reveals that the shady-looking man might not be who Maxi thinks he is – and the same goes for the little old lady. This ingeniously shifting narrative perspective between author and illustrator results in a delightful tale, which ultimately gives Maxi the best owner ever. This book is irresistible from start to finish.