The 65-Storey Treehouse

Andy Griffiths' The 65-Storey Treehouse is a time-travelling romp for 7 year olds about two friends whose treehouse never had a building permit.

What happens

Terry was supposed to get one. He set off with the money, then swapped it for some see-into-the-future peanuts. Then a horse, a goat that only spoke French, a singing monkey and finally a magic bean. (He ate the bean.)

So when Inspector Bubblewrap turns up, it doesn't go well. He inspects the whole treehouse in rhyme. The shark tank, the quicksand pit, the chainsaw juggling. His verdict? The treehouse must be knocked down by twelve o'clock.

The three wise owls have one piece of advice ("Tick! Tock! Hoo!"), and Terry decides that means time travel. Luckily he's built a time machine. It's a wheelie bin.

They only mean to go back six and a half years. But the inspector falls in on top of them and knocks the dial. Next thing they know they're 650 million years in the past, arguing with pond scum that looks exactly like them!

From there it's a hop through history. A dinosaur with an enormous nose. Cave people who've never heard of drawing until Terry shows them. A pharaoh they accidentally squash and a chariot race in Ancient Rome.

The inspector is the star of this one. He wraps everything in bubble wrap and quotes safety rules at a pharaoh. Then he turns out to be surprisingly brave. Your reader will probably be shouting "Another mystery solved!" along with Terry by the end.

There's a lovely joke underneath it all too. They land in a future where nothing can hurt you and it's SO boring that everyone wants to go home.

The slapstick is quite rough at times, which is worth knowing. Andy keeps trying to strangle Terry when he's cross, their hair catches fire, and there's a pile of dead dinosaurs after a very big explosion. It's cartoon stuff, but it's there.

If your reader is the type who loves weird facts as much as silly ones, this is a brilliant pick.

What to read next

Want to know what Andy and Terry build next? The 78-Storey Treehouse is the next book, and a movie director has turned up wanting to film them.