A rhyming and cheeky version of The Emperor's New Clothes (with a play-on words title).

With twentieth century fashions, it's the familiar traditional tale told in rhyme for a new generation of listeners.

There are newspaper headlines starting it off and ending it, with wordplay that older children will understand more, but the story is simple enough and follows the well-known story. This time he's a king, and he has different clothes for every activity - choosing cheeses, cat-stroking, even using his royal toilet.

So of course, the sneaky clothes makers ply their (invisible) wares and trick him and those around him into admiring their goods... to chortlesome effect with a last line little ones will anticipate and giggle over.

Flowing rhymes and fun to read aloud, it's well illustrated with some cheeky drawings and amusing scenes of royal excess, and will bring the old-fashioned tale smartly up-to-date for the current generation.

For ages 3-6.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing a sample reading copy.

Tee-hee! I knew I would like this book! As a child I had a story book called ‘The Emperors new clothes’ and it used to make me giggle a lot! I love this premise of this story, the King who is overwhelmed by wealth and self righteousness that he believes he is wearing a special cloth, and his subjects who are too scared to tell him the truth.

I really enjoyed the rhyming verses and the often cheeky use of worlds such as ‘new’ and ‘loo’. These also got a big giggle from my daughter. I knew we were leading up to the hilarious ending and I really enjoyed the journey.

The illustrations are absolutely amazing, I love that the crowd of people are depicted as coming from all different ethnic groups and from many countries, this was a really great talking point with my daughter.

Indeed the ending is hilarious and we loved it. This book is a real delight, very cheeky and just a whole lot of fun!

The title for this book grabbed my immediate attention. From that alone, I could tell I was in for a treat and I wasn’t disappointed.

This hilarious story is about King Albert-Horatio-Otto the Third and his absurd amount of clothes. He has an outfit for every occasion and with his upcoming birthday celebrations pending, he instructs he needs a new suit, ‘the best there can be’. Designers come in, offering him there new designs but none are good enough, then along come McTavish and Mitch, a cheeky duo that stitch the king right up, resulting in this fabulous book!

This book holds some real comedic value that is sure to get giggles from both children and adults alike. It has a nice rhyming rhyme, that flows well and is easy to read. It uses lots of different action and describing words like ‘scratchy, bright, comfy, stripey’ etc, which introduces its younger readers to a good variety of wording to help expand their growing vocabulary. It’s not the shortest of books but I think the humour throughout the book will keep a hold of younger children’s attention, even as young as 2/3 years old.

I really enjoyed this story, laughing to myself as I read through each page. This book will definitely have its little readers and listeners laughing along as the king tries to find his birthday outfit, particularly it’s ‘cheeky’ ending!

I have already messaged my manager insisting this is a book we NEED at our setting as soon as it is available for us to buy. A must have on any child’s bookshelf!

5 well-earned stars from me!

A wonderful retelling of the classic, The Emperor's New Clothes by Hans Christian Abderson, The Kings Birthday Suit is a brilliant modern interpretation.

The text is cleverly rhyming which my son loved it was fast paced and lots of fun.

The illustrations were gloriously detailed, we had a lot of fun talking about what we could see after we read this.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bloomsbury for a digital ARC.

This is a great re-telling of a classic story. It flows and rhymes beautifully which makes it very easy to read aloud. The colourful illustrations are eye-catching and help keep the young reader engaged.
It has been re-told for today’s generation with a “laugh out loud” ending. An excellent addition to the bedtime story bookcase - I think ideally suited for 4 - 7yrs and rated this 5⭐️.

I just knew I was going to love this one, from the moment I glanced at those wonderful endpapers, and then read Peter’s opening lines.
From the Hans Christian Andersen tale we all know, Peter Bently brings joy, energy and a cheeky sense of humour. His expert hand at rhyme and rhythm is a joy to behold and makes this one an utter delight to read out loud.
I love the asides, (tucked into brackets) which cleverly ensures all little listeners are in on the joke as it develops.
Claire Powell’s illustrations have a wonderful crisp and energetic warmth to them. I loved her expressive characters and – oh my! – those glorious clothes!
With plenty to make you smile and catch your eye, The King’s Birthday Suit is quite the treat.

Oh what a fun read, the end had my daughter in fits of giggles. We just loved it, the illustrations are amazing the book just flows so perfectly for a story of its size, perfect for a bedtime read. or to be honest and anytime read.

A modern revamp of the classic Emperor’s New Clothes tale. My children loved the rhythm and rhyming of the story. This would be a great book from nursery to KS1 to focus on rhyme and sounds. We all loved the colourful illustrations too.

This is a hilarious version of the classic tale of 'The Emperor's new clothes.' The rhyming is brilliant and the detailed illustrations add to the humour of the book. My daughter found this really funny and really enjoyed it. She laughed out loud at the ending. This picture book would definitely become a favourite in an Early Years or KS1 classroom and I would recommend it as a great read for young children. Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for this ARC.

Peter Bentley’s ‘The King’s Birthday Suit’ is a wonderful recreation of the classic story ‘The Emperor Has No Clothes’. With a fantastic rhyming story, accompanied by extravagant illustrations from Claire Powell, this is a tale that is bound to engage both children and parents alike!

We are all familiar with the traditional tale , The Emperor's New Clothes where he is tricked into wearing nothing.
This new take on the traditional will have you giggling as King Albert-Horatio-Otto the Third is tricked....
He has too many clothes and changes for every possible scenario each day. When tasked with making a special birthday suit, two seemingly talented fabric merchants get the job. This lyrical, rhyming tale follows the tricksters as they look busy. When the fabric and suit are presented, everyone is too scared to say what they know to be true....
Except for one girl who speaks her mind and the truth!

A hilarious new version of a traditional tale with the moral....speak up for yourself!
A brilliant book full of colourful and charming illustrations! Will be buying this for the library as well as gifting it to a few young readers!

I really enjoyed this book and it was a great retelling of the Emperor’s New Clothes.

I read the book with my daughter and she giggled and really had fun reading it.

It was easy to follow and understand and the illustrations were great.

It is 5 stars from me for this one, very highly recommended!

I've always liked this classic story by Hans Christian Andersen and rereading it years later made me happy. I love the illustrations; I think they are adorable and very well-made.

The King’s Birthday Suit is a new modern, rhyming take on the fable of the Emperor’s New Clothes. It is funny and sharp with gorgeous, vibrant illustrations to match. Any child will love it whether they are familiar with the fable or not!