Lion Practice
Emma Carlisle
Macmillan Children’s Books
In this warm-hearted story that celebrates the imagination we meet Laura: she has a penchant for practice, pretty much any kind of practice so long as it involves being big and/or noisy.

So when her mother suggests she should practise being something small and quiet, Laura is having none of it – no way; her sights are set on something rather different.
But what is all this about you might be wondering. Her parents certainly don’t appreciate it.
Well, perhaps Laura just wants to be in the limelight because…

Maybe she’ll settle for being a little lion after all – it does have its compensations

and there’s always tomorrow for this resilient little miss …
Emma Carlisle is an emerging talent. Her free flowing illustrations have the uninhibited spirit of the unselfconscious artist one images Laura herself would be.
I look forward to what comes next…

Another small girl with a large imagination is featured in debut author Jenna Harrington’s:

Katie McGinty Wants a Pet!
Jenna Harrington and Finn Simpson
Little Tiger Press
The great day has finally arrived: Katie McGinty is big enough to have a pet

 

– but this tricky miss doesn’t want a common or garden hamster, cat, or dog. Oh no! What she has set her heart on is something much more exciting  …

And seemingly she’s thought things through pretty carefully as she demonstrates to her perplexed parent on their walk to the pet shop: “Don’t be silly Daddy! … He’ll eat pizza and fish fingers and spaghetti with us at the table … “ is her response to his concerns about the lack of grass in their garden and of course, their bath isn’t large enough. “I’ll have to wash him at the swimming pool!” she informs him.
Dad tries to let her down gently as they reach their destination but he hasn’t quite anticipated the very special bargain on offer …

Finn Simpson’s exuberant scenes show much more than is said in the words. He captures the gentle playful humour of Jenna Harrington’s deliberately straightforward delivery, much of which is dialogue, extending and embellishing it with laugh out loud fantasies.

Use your local bookshop