Storybook characters leapt off the page and into the classroom at Truro High Prep School as pupils celebrated the joy of reading by dressing as their favourite literary characters.

With enchanting outfits ranging from the mouse in the Gruffalo to a gaggle of Gangsta Grannies, girls from the age of four to eleven swapped their usual uniforms for inventive costumes as part of the school’s annual Book Fair week.

The girls were asked to transform into characters from the work of celebrated children’s authors David Walliams and Julia Donaldson. Many were inspired by the school’s recent trip to see Walliams' Awful Auntie spring to life on stage at the Hall for Cornwall and there were plenty of atrocious Aunt Albertas and plucky Stellas among the crowd.

Prep School staff also got in on the fun and treated the girls to several dramatic readings of their favourite passages from these beloved children’s books.

Head of Prep, Annabel Ramsey, said: “There’s nothing better than settling down with a good book and sharing a story with friends so days like this are so important to get the girls excited about heading to the library. We have a very high standard of literacy in the Prep School and we want to get our girls’ imaginations fired up and encourage them to become avid readers.”

The event launched the Prep School’s annual book fair. Every year the school’s library transforms into a bookshop packed with titles that teachers recommend for pupils’ literacy development and literary enjoyment.

The books are supplied by Scholastic and the school earns a commission from every purchase which will be spent on books for the prep library.