Unimaginably rich, invariably swathed in a magnificent purple dressing-gown, Uncle oversees a vast ramshackle castle full of friendly kooks while struggling to fend off the sneak attacks of the incorrigible Badfort Crowd. Each Uncle story introduces a new character from Uncle's madcap world, but for every delightful friend of Uncle, there is a foe who is no less deliriously wicked. Luckily the misbegotten schemes of the Badfort Crowd are no match for Uncle's superior wits. Quentin Blake's quirky illustrations are the perfect complement to J.P. Martin's stories, each one of a perfect length for bedtime reading. Lovers of Roald Dahl and William Steig will rejoice in Uncle's wonderfully bizarre and happy world, where the good guys always come out on top, and once a year, everybody, good and bad, sits down together for an enormous Christmas feast.

About the Author

J. P. Martin (1880-1966) published his Uncle stories at the urging of his children, for whom he created. After the last war, he moved to the village of Timberscombe in Somerset, where he served in the small chapel. Six Uncle books were published in the series, the last in 1973, seven years after his death. Quentin Blake is one of the best-known and best-loved illustrators of our time, and his books with a wide range of authors, including Joan Aiken, Russell Hoban, Michael Rosen and Roald Dahl, have been treasured by generations of children throughout the world. In 1999 he became the first Children's Laureate. In 2005 he was awarded a CBE. To visit Quentin Blake's website click here

Reviews

"Few books are laugh-out-loud funny; fewer still are the children's books that have you stifling titters on the train. "Uncle," first published in 1964 and now reissued in a suitably handsome hardback, is one of these vanishingly rare specimens..."Uncle" is a brilliantly sustained exercise in nonsense, played with the straightest of faces. A further treat is provided by Quentin Blake's illustrations; these also adorn "Uncle Cleans Up," the sequel, which the NYRB is also reprinting." --"Financial Times"
"I've never met a child who didn't love Quentin Blake." --Melanie McDonagh, "Daily Telegraph"
"A reprint of the British children's classic "Uncle" by J.P. Martin, a writer who makes Roald Dahl look restrained, would make a great gift for literary eccentrics of any age." --"The Los Angeles Times," Favorite Children's Books of 2007
"Marvelously screwy" --"The San Francisco Chronicle"
"Those who fall for it may find that many lasting shared jokes spring from J.P.