Supertato
by Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet · Supertato #2
Superhero potato plus a veggie team-up equals laugh-out-loud storytime
The story
A supervillain pea sneaks into a supermarket at night and flicks off the freezer master switch — and now everything is defrosting. Supertato races in to save his produce friends, but the Evil Pea has brought reinforcements. A joyful superhero-parody picture book about calling for help and winning as a team.
Age verdict
Ages 3-5 is the sweet spot; works well as a read-aloud from 2.5 and is still enjoyed by 6-7 year olds for the superhero-genre layer.
Our take
Kid-loved laugh machine — preschool storytime dynamite with a gentle teamwork lesson underneath.
What stands out
Each audience's top 3 dimensions. Out of 30 scored per book.
Kids love
- First-chapter grab Strong
The switch-flip villain reveal plus the direct-address aside ('You may already know this, but some vegetables are frozen for a very good reason') creates an immediate, legible hook for pre-readers. Stronger than Eyes That Kiss in the Corners (6, quiet emotional hook) and comparable to Alma and How She Got Her Name (7, bold cover + relatable puzzle opener); the 'Someone was looking for trouble' teaser pays off cleanly in one page-turn.
- Middle momentum Strong
The 32-page arc runs villain-setup, victim-chorus, hero-arrives, hero-captured, team-up, victory with no slack spread. The freezer temperature gauge on the wall acts as a visible ticking clock through the middle, and the mid-book capture on the conveyor belt is a genuine reversal — picture books rarely carry this much structural momentum end to end.
Parents love
- Reading gateway Strong
A strong gateway into picture-book superhero stories. Widely stocked in UK Scholastic Book Fairs and EYFS/KS1 reading lists, classic 'my child who won't sit still for other books will sit for this' profile — the book-fair gateway floor applies. Concrete bridge from board-book habits into early picture-book fluency.
- Creative spark Strong
Children who read this commonly invent their own Superveggies at home — the book practically hands them a template (mask + cape + one specific power per team member). The V-signal mechanic is imitable with any household object. Stronger creative-play trigger than a single-character picture book, and a reliable craft/drawing prompt in nursery settings.
Teachers love
- Read-aloud power Strong
Built-in read-aloud rhythm: performable voices (stutter, beg, scream, deadpan), onomatopoeia (HI-YA!, GASP!, CLICK!, Hmmmmmmmmppfff!), ellipsis-pauses for suspense, and 320 words — the preschool storytime sweet-spot for a 5-8 minute read. Comparable to Islandborn (7, performable voices + refrain) without Islandborn's mid-book structural pivot.
- Reluctant reader rescue Strong
Visual humor + superhero hook + 320-word length lands squarely on the reluctant-reader bullseye at preschool and Reception. A classic 'my child won't sit still for books but brings this one again' title; the book-fair gateway floor applies. Reliable rescue-book across the UK early-years market.
✓ Perfect for
- • Preschoolers who love superheroes
- • Read-aloud storytime groups in nursery and Reception
- • Kids who enjoy visual comedy and sound-effect humor
- • Reluctant readers at the picture-book stage
- • Food-group, healthy-eating, or teamwork topic weeks
Not ideal for
Families seeking a quiet, lyrical, or gently poetic bedtime read — this one is high-energy, loud, and silly by design.
At a glance
- Pages
- 32
- Words
- 0k
- Difficulty
- Easy
- POV
- Third Person Omniscient
- Illustration
- Fully Illustrated
- Published
- 2016
- Publisher
- Simon & Schuster UK
- Illustrator
- Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet
- ISBN
- 9781471121005
Mood & style
You'll know it worked when…
Kids ask for a repeat reading and start quoting 'Veggies Assemble!' and 'I'm a fruit!' within a day or two.
More like this
Same genre, similar age range. Ranked by kid score.
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