A loose translation of the Russian children's poem Доктор Айболит - also available in English as Doctor Ouch - this picture-book follows the adventures of the eponymous Doctor Concocter, who is summoned urgently to Africa, to help the animals there. "Doctor Concocter sits under a tree; / He's ever so clever. (He has a Degree!) / All the Hares, and the Bears, and the Snakes, and the Weasels / Are sure of a cure for their headaches and their measles. / Hippo, or Rhino, or Otter, or Setter... / Doctor Concocter will make them all better." And so begins the tale, which sees the good doctor helped on his journey by a wolf, a whale and an eagle, before finding himself on the banks of the Limpopo River, where he works tirelessly doling out his cures...

It's interesting to note that Доктор Айболит was Kornei Chukovsky's Russian adaptation of the Doctor Dolittle stories, just as Doctor Concocter is Richard Coe's English adaptation of Доктор Айболит. Not having read the Doctor Dolittle books, I can't offer any comparison of this English adaptation of a Russian adaptation with the original English work it is based upon, although it would make an interesting project for those concerned with issues of translation and revision in international children's literature. That said, the actual poem presented here was somewhat uneven: some passages worked, and some felt rather clunky. I understand that Chukovsky is something of a Russian Dr. Seuss, known for his rollicking rhymes, so I put that down to the difficulties of translation, particularly as I enjoyed Wash 'Em Clean, the only other of the author's poems that I have read. I may have to track down some other English translations, and see if they are more consistent. ( )