Uncle Cleans Up

It is a time of rejoicing at Homeward, the Labyrinthine castle-city that is as magical as Oz and as full of wonders as Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. Uncle, the wise, kind, generous, and fabulously rich elephant who rules over Homeward, has joined with his many friends to celebrate their triumph over the ruffians in neighboring Badfort. Still, there’s plenty of cleaning up to do in Homeward: the waterworks are tainted with vinegar, housing is scarce, and the Dwarftown Railway is terribly overcrowded— meanwhile the Badfort crowd has devised its most diabolical plan yet. Uncle will need all the help he can get from his faithful assistant Old Monkey and from Goodman the literate cat—and possibly a wizard’s spell—to get through this mess. Uncle Cleans Up displays the same subversive humor and ingenious plotting as its predecessor, Uncle, and serves as a no less delightful introduction to J. P. Martin’s fantastic world; Quentin Blake’s quirky drawings accompany a tale that has been charming children and adults alike for nearly fifty years.   J.P. Martin, illustrated by Quentin Blake