Horrid Henry Shows Who’s Boss

Francesca Simon's Horrid Henry Shows Who's Boss is four short, funny stories for 6 year olds about the naughtiest boy on the street.

What happens

Henry is horrid. Everybody says so, even his mum. He pushes and pinches and grabs and throws his food. Even his teddy, Mr Kill, keeps out of his way when he can. His little brother, Perfect Peter, always says please and thank you and actually LOVES vegetables.

In the first story Henry wonders what would happen if he were perfect for a day. He reads a book. He sets the table. He eats his peas! His mum is so suspicious she feels his forehead to see if he's ill. Peter can hardly bear it, and what happens next at dinner is brilliant.

Then Henry is stuck in dance class being a raindrop when he'd much rather be at karate. Next door there's Moody Margaret, who's just as bossy as Henry, and the pair of them dare each other to eat the yuckiest mixture ever made in a kitchen. And finally the family goes camping. Henry was imagining a giant tent with a pool and a TV. What he gets is a patch of rocky ground in the rain.

The stories are short and bouncy, with lots of repeated lines that are great fun to read aloud. Anyone who's got a brother or sister will recognise the squabbles (and the joy of seeing the "good" one get into trouble for once).

Henry is never nasty, just very, very naughty. Your reader gets to enjoy all the things they'd never be allowed to get away with themselves. There's a bit of being sick on a ferry, and a teacher who threatens him in a very dramatic way, but it's all done for laughs.

This is the American edition, so it's Mom rather than Mum and there's talk of vacations and Cub Scouts. It doesn't get in the way, but you might notice it if you're reading aloud.

What to read next

For more of Henry, Peter and Margaret, try Horrid Henry Tricks the Tooth Fairy. Everyone in Henry's class has lost a tooth except him, and he's decided that simply isn't fair.