You know, until Pokemon Go came out, I didn’t even know that Pokemon was a shortened version of Pocket Monsters. But then again, the phenomenon that swept the world started in 1995 – I was not their target market.

A whole generation has already grown up with them, and there are more born every day. In fact, alongside the popular mobile game, there’s a television series, that I’m sure is still running somewhere, and to date there are thirteen (!) animated features.

Somehow I know what a Pikcahu is, as well as knowing who Ash is… and I don’t mean Bruce Campbell. What I don’t know is where to start with this cultural touchstone if the impulse ever came over me to dive into it.

Happily DK Canada has solved that problem for me with their newly released Pokemon Movie Companion.

Starting with the first film, conveniently named Pokemon: The First Movie and running through to Pokemon The Movie: Volcanion and the Mechanical Marvel (the twelfth film – the thirteenth opened on the fifth of this month) this book lets you catch them all!

From comprehensive breakdowns of the films’ plots, to an indepth exploration of the characters that populate the series, as well as important locations, and of course, the plethora of pokemon that inhabit the films’ worlds.

In fact the pokemon are featured in two ways, they are categorised according to film, and by trainer, so you can find out who has which… Obviously Ash has Pikachu, but there are so many other characters and teams out there, some good, some malicious, and all of them are here.

And you can catch them all, with a variety of pokeballs – honestly I didn’t know that was a thing – or you can just use the handy index at the back of the book.

It’s obvious that Whitehill knows the material, and her passion is on full display as she  delves into each film, highlighting important moments and quotes in each escapade, exploring the environments, the battles, as well as a section called Interesting Items that examines some of the unique items that make appearances in the films, as well as Totally Awesome Technology.

I can just imagine this book being on some youngster’s shelf, and their parent slipping in to take it down, curl up with it and delve into the world that so captivates their child’s imagination.

There are strong moral themes running through these films, friendship, sacrifice, teamwork, and while some parents may not be down for watching these escapades endlessly, this handy book will let them converse knowingly with their kids, and know what they are being exposed to.

Now, I’m not saying this book is aimed at parents, but I do see how they could use it, and of course, younger readers, or Pokefans (is that a thing?) would love this nice edition to their bookshelves.

It’s colourful, informative, and like all DK Books’ good fun.

So whether you know what a Pokeball is (or not), can tell a Meowth from a Scraggy (or not) or can’t tell if Team Rocket are baddies (or not) this book will help solve all those questions, and take you deeper down the Pokehole (totally a thing, right?) than ever before.

Playful, informative and just plain fun, Pokemon Movie Companion… I choose you!