Author jillrbennett

I Am Going To Jump This Log

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I Am Going To Jump This Log
Stephanie Stansbie and Jack Viant
Little Tiger

Frog has decided that he’s going to jump over the log. It’s going to be easy and he will sail over brilliantly. However, things don’t exactly go to plan. No matter how much he procrastinates, day dreaming, snacking and limbering up, (I love those leg warmers Frog wears) and how frustrated he becomes, he remains on the wrong side of that log until finally he accomplishes his goal, albeit with a little assistance from a passing avian. But then what should await him but … Yes! Another challenge…

This fantastically funny story told from the frog’s viewpoint has so much to offer. I love Jack Viant’s bold, bright, expressive illustrations. Readers will need to peruse the scenes carefully to discover all the hilarious details

and if the book, with Stephanie Stansbie’s aptly minimal text, is shared with a class or group, plenty of time will be needed for visual exploration as well as discussion of the text.

I think it’s one of those books that children will demand is read over and over and over. It would also work well as a book for those beginning to gain confidence as readers, to try for themselves.

The Boy, The Father and the Bear

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The Boy, The Father and the Bear
Per Gustavsson
Greystone Kids

‘Once upon a time, a boy lived with his father where the forest and the blue sea met.’ So begins a mysterious four part tale of loss and transformation.

The first part tells how the boy and his father spend their time collecting berries, fishing or playing soccer close to their home where sea and forest met. However when the boy expresses curiosity about what was in both the forest and the sea, his father tells him of bears living in the forest and sharks swimming in the sea, both of which they need to beware of.

As the years pass, the boy notices that his father is getting older but not so himself. Then one day, despite his son’s pestering and best efforts to facilitate his participation, the father no longer wants to play soccer, insisting that he’s too tired. The days pass with the father sitting in a chair and not wanting to go outside until the boy notices roots growing from his father and burrowing their way through the floor. More time passes and the father has now completely turned into a tree that has grown so tall that its upper branches have cracked the ceiling. Now what? wonders his son. Eventually the house is no more, so large has the tree grown, so the boy climbs up and looks in turn towards the horizon and the sea,

Down comes the rain, causing the water to rise and rise and the boy to climb up and up. At last the tree starts moving through the water like a boat. Come the evening he feels completely alone but manages to fall asleep. It’s then his life changes for ever.
Next morning what should he discover but a bear sitting, absolutely still at the opposite end of the tree trunk looking at the boy. Having tried unsuccessfully to communicate with said bear, the boy decides to swim towards the land in the distance. In he jumps followed by the bear; the latter begins sinking and the boy dives down hoping to rescue it from the ocean floor. Eventually their feet touch what feels like ground and the boy realises what they’re resting on.

Instead of devouring the two, the shark rescues them and together they reach land where the boy falls fast asleep beneath the stars.

In the final part, the boy wakes to find no bear but he’s surrounded by trees, similar to those he’d left, trees that can used to build houses. However from the edge of the forest, the bear stands watching and the boy begins leaving food just in case … Finally he entices the creature right inside his house and so begins an unlikely friendship with his ursine friend doing the things the boy’s father had done once upon a time.
The book concludes with a poem, the final lines of which are: ‘Good new thoughts come every day / And Darkness lets me be’.

The colour of the digitally rendered pencil illustrations changes for each section – from green to purple to blue to brown. Told in a manner that leaves readers free to make their own interpretations, with its themes of life, death and fresh beginnings, this is a book that allows new meanings to emerge if read and discussed over and over.

Poo in the Zoo: Ready Set Poo

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Poo in the Zoo: Ready Set Poo
Steve Smallman and Ada Grey
Little Tiger

We return to the zoo of little Bob McGrew for the latest poo story, or rather, that’s where it begins. But then in dashes Hector Gloop sporting his top hat and tails and excitedly announcing a forthcoming race, of which he is sure to be the winner. He like all the other contestants will have to drive a vehicle powered solely by poop and the prize will be a golden poo. Just as Bob is wondering how such power is even possible up rides one Arabella Slater, aka a Poo Investigator and in her hand she’s holding a flask containing poo-fuel, made from poop. Eagerly she explains how she went about making said fuel and right after, off dashes Hector to start building himself a car. Arabella meanwhile sets about making more poo-poo fuel. Encouraged by Bob, the other zoo animals decide to make race cars too.

Come race day a range of fast-looking poop-powered vehicles are driven to the starting line, including one driven by Ebenezer Gloop, twin brother of Hector who confidently announces to his sibling, “ In any kind of test, I was always second best, / But now, dear Hector, I’ll be first and you’ll be number two!”

The race begins and Ebenezer starts well, from his viewpoint though not that of several of the other drivers as they head into the snowy mountains. Poor Arabella is treated to a small avalanche thanks to a gigantic trump that emanates from Ebenezer’s exhaust. He continues with his cheating ways throughout the jungle where another disaster happens and Ebenezer zooms off to claim his prize, so he says, until he hears just four pleading words. Who has called and what will Ebenezer decide to do thereafter? And who will be the winner of the race?

To find out, readers will need to get a copy of the book for themselves. For sure they’ll find plenty to laugh about both in Steve Smallman’s rhyming text and Ada Grey’s wacky illustrations. It’s a great read aloud.

Deerheart

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Deerheart
Eoin Colfer, illustrated by P.J.Lynch
Walker Books

This is an original Irish fable set long ago in a magical forest under threat from outside forces. Created by earth goddess Danu to protect Creedon, a stone, are three sister witches born from trees who keep Creedon safe from humans. When their brother, warlock Drogool betrays one of the sisters, Deerheart, the youngest witch is born.

Years later, when she’s just eighteen, Deerheart encounters Halvar, a young human who is part of a small Norse army wanting to invade the forest, and before they realise what’s happening, the two have fallen in love.

Could she possibly have fallen in love with the first human she’d ever met, wonders Deerheart, going on to tell him, “I am not like you, Halvar … I can never leave this place. The Wood needs me and I would not survive away from it.” He responds by saying, “I know. … That is why we need a plan.” As the lovers are having this conversation though, they are watched by Drogool and before long darts are thrown, the first at Halvar; the second at Deerheart.‘

All is lost.’ we read, but is it? …

The magic of Eoin Colfer’s story telling draws you in from the opening pages and keeps you reading, totally enchanted right through to the final words, such is its power. Equally powerful are P. J. Lynch’s rather eerie charcoal black and white illustrations.

Medusa Gorgon’s Deadly Side Eye

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Medusa Gorgon’s Deadly Side Eye
Bethany Walker, illustrated by Katie Abey
Scholastic

For me this was even funnier than Medusa Gorgon’s Bad Hair Day: I found myself laughing at almost every turn of the page. Again it’s written in diary form with lots of amusing illustrations by Katie Abey.

After six weeks spent holidaying with her friends it’s early September and Meddy G has returned for a new term at Shadewell Academy where she’s now entering year eight and her intention is to be the best Year 8 she can. She is, she tells us, fully committed to 21st century life and her snake friends Mr Car and Ian have seemingly, disappeared.
Things start pretty well, other than her being chastised by headteacher Ms Williams about her uniform style. However, it’s hardly any time before Meddy’s stress levels start rising. It’s during the first whole school assembly when she’s called up onto the stage by the head and is asked to speak about the final day of the summer term. What she announces is … “I … like … performing … magic tricks.” This satisfies Ms Williams who then proceeds to ask her to perform more magic in assembly the following week.

Before that though, she enjoys a weekend shopping trip to Shadwell Mall. ‘Does shopping count as a hobby in the twenty first century,’ she wonders. I loved her comment re Boots, which she’s bemused to learn does not sell footwear.
Suddenly Meddy’s stress levels start going through the roof, to the extent that she accidentally turns Ms Williams to stone. All this by the end of Act 1.

Highly amusing too is the H.E.A.T (Hermes Express Air Tortoise) correspondence between Hades and Athena interspersed between the diary entries.

I’ll leave readers to discover what unfolds in the 2nd and 3rd acts apart from saying that there’s a sudden new trend in ‘snonnets’

with Meddy becoming a fashionista. Enough said! That and the appearance of new boy Percy who makes Meddy get all hot and bothered when he’s around. (What she isn’t aware of is that Percy is actually none other than Perseus, sent on a mission to take down Meddy G.) Oh and further incidents of turning people to stone.

Medusa Gorgon is based (very loosely) on the Medusa Greek myth, making it a great choice for young Greek mythology enthusiasts especially. However, other readers who enjoy a good laugh should try it too.

African Queens: Incredible Stories of Africa’s Legendary Women Leaders

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African Queens: Incredible Stories of Africa’s Legendary Women Leaders
Onyinye Iwu
Walker Books

It’s great to see a book featuring amazing African queens in an accessible style that will inspire child readers. By means of captivating visual images, immediately engaging captions and factual paragraphs, Onyinye Iwu introduces youngsters to some impressive leaders – thinkers, warriors and protectors (a dozen in all) – from various civilisations that developed over many centuries.

First, we’re taken right back to circa 1504-1459 BCE to meet Queen Hatshepsut who became a pharaoh, ruling alongside her stepson. Her focus was on trading and during the years of her reign, Egypt grew exceedingly rich. Hatshepsut used some of this wealth to build huge temples, the most famous being the Temple of Deir-el-Bahri. After her death, her successors attempted to erase her memory but were not wholly successful.

New to me two women I was particularly drawn to are: Queen Arawelo and Queen Nyabinghi. Queen Arawelo did all she could to ensure that men and women were treated equally in her kingdom; awesome to see a peaceable ruler and one who fought for women’s equality in Somalia circa 15CE. Moving forwards in time, the other is Queen Nyabinghi (circa 1750-1800).

Not only did she give her all, including her life, to the people of Karagwe (she was murdered by her jealous husband), but her wisdom and desire for peace inspired Muhumuza, a wife of the King of Rwanda, some hundred years later who is remembered as a freedom fighter and spiritual leader.

I learned a lot from this absorbing book and think there should be a copy in all primary collections and on the shelves of all children with an interest in world history.

Hogbert

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Hogbert
Briony May Smith
Walker Books

Hogbert is the littlest of six boar piglets who live in a faraway forest with their mother.  One day Mummy Boar tells her offspring that it’s time for their first exploration of the forest but warns them to stay quiet and stay together in case the big bad wolf is about. Hogbert follows his snout along a trail of delicious smells – cherries, berries and acorns – but suddenly realises that he’s by himself. Remembering his mother’s warning about the big, bad wolf, the fearful piglet huddles down to hide. Then he hears rustling sounds getting closer and closer; could it be that lupine character about to gobble him up?

However his fear is soon allayed by the appearance of Little Red, a squirrel on her way to visit her poorly granny. Does that sound familiar? Before long the two are worried, not by the wolf, but a snoring fawn and then two small bunnies, Nettle and Hosel that have also been led by the trail.
Then comes a “HOOOOOOWWWWWWLLLLLLLL!”

The next spread shows a lost looking wolf cub too, above the passage where the other creatures are making their way towards the open air. Eventually Hogbert leads them to the foot of a tall tree where a happy reunion takes place between adult creatures and their young ones. Time for Hogbert to bid farewell to his new friends: I love the “Smell you later!” goodbye to Red.

Indeed there’s so much to love especially Bryony’s mixed media depiction of the sylvan setting of the tale with its tall trees and those foxgloves, anemones and other wild flowers: and definitely not forgetting that tiny frog wearing a crown and sitting a-top a stone in a pond. Equally delightful is the lyrical telling with its fairy tale allusions, descriptions and occasional word play.

A great story to share with KS1 classes and individuals, making sure there’s plenty to time to peruse the pictures.

The Bakery Dragon

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The Bakery Dragon
Devin Elle Kurtz
Walker Books

Like all his fellow dragons, Ember loves gold more than anything else but his small stature prevents him from scaring anybody in the village enough to get it. Come dusk one day as the other dragons fly home with their latest spoils, Ember wanders into the foggy village led by a gold glimmer, only to discover that it’s a streetlamp. Continuing on his meandering he comes upon the window of a bakery and there, blanketed by warm light, falls asleep. During his slumbers a storm blows up and a kindly baker offers him shelter inside. She then proceeds to teach him her trade,

something that suits him very well. Ember can hardly believe his eyes at the product: trays of glowing golden toasty loaves of various shapes and sizes. The baker gives a tray to the little dragon and he flies back home where he lies atop his loaves, absorbing the wonderful aroma but feeling sad about missing the bakery.

This baker’s rich, buttery gold tastes even better than it smells and before long the delicious smell has attracted other dragons and their reactions to its delectable taste, gives Ember an idea. He returns to the bakery and after careful consideration, Ember and the baker establish what proves to be a very successful business arrangement. Finally, Ember has found his true gold and as we read on the final spread: ‘… baking gold is better than taking it. And sharing it is best of all.’

A feast for the eyes assuredly and one can almost smell the wonderful aroma emanating from the latter pages of the book and hear the soft crunching as everyone in the village sinks their teeth into the loaves: a truly tasty book.

Dylan, Daisy and the Disco Ball

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Dylan, Daisy and the Disco Ball
Robert Tregoning and Laura Brenlla
Oxford Children’s Books

Dylan and Daisy are dressed and ready for their first school disco but they’re unsure what they are letting themselves in for. However, no sooner has Dylan walked through the door than he starts feeling the rhythm and lights of all colours form a rainbow all around. Then from above descends a ball of silver light inviting him, so he feels, to move to the music and “Twirl and twirl and twirl like me and sparkle from within”. Almost immediately Dylan is shimmying and shaking like a disco diva. He’s having an amazing time but then he notices that everybody has stopped dancing to look at him. Highly embarrassed, he stops his boogie bopping straight away as he feels his inner sparkle dim, watched from above by the disco ball.

She doesn’t want Dylan’s self-confidence to wane and tries glowing and sparkling very brightly.

However, it’s Daisy’s feet that start tapping and soon she’s dancing with gusto towards Dylan. After a bit of encouragement from his friend, Dylan returns to the floor and so infectious is their boogieing that before long all their friends are joining in and twirling too.

With dramatic scenes by Laura Brenlla (you can almost hear the music emanating from some of her illustrations), this empowering telling by Robert Tregoning about letting go and over-coming one’s self-consciousness, will one hopes, encourage listeners to do likewise.

Wilomina: Land of Dreams and Nightmares

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Wilomina: Land of Dreams and Nightmares
John Chalmers and Sandra Marrs
Scholastic

Wilomina, her father, and baby brother Kes, are on their way to visit Mum in hospital when a creature dashes across the road causing their car to get stuck. They’re in the middle of nowhere but Wilomina insists she’s seen a station, dashes ahead and followed by Dad and baby, jumps aboard a train, destination unknown. While Dad is changing Kes, Wilomina meets a talking cat, who introduces itself as Mephisto. The cat tells her that they must leave the train immediately and Wilomina takes a leap and finds herself separated from her dad and brother, in a weird place called Nocturna, where, so Mephisto says, dreams and nightmares come from. It seems though, as if the nightmares are taking over: can Wilomina trust the shape-shifting cat to help her return to the real world and find her family? Seemingly it’s her only chance so they set off together.

On their travels they encounter snakes, spectres, spider-witches, dragons; they have to cross monster-infected waters on a raft before reaching the Premonition Library where mazes and monsters abound. In the library they encounter the librarian who leads them to a massive book-filled room, the maps and gateways section filled with millions of books. ‘Good luck! And remember: inner calm’ she tells them leaving them to search. Wilomina discovers a book that invites them to ‘solve this puzzle to find your gate to the Waking Hours’ with two small envelopes and the words, ‘choose carefully or perish!’

What next? The worst thing is that Wilomina is slowly but surely transforming into a fierce werepire. Will this nightmare ever end? Can Wilomina overcome her inner monster, find her dad and brother and get to the hospital to see Mum?

With a courageous protagonist, this spooky (but never too scary) magical adventure, vibrantly illustrated in graphic novel format will be devoured by readers who prefer their stories told mainly through visuals. This surreal story continues in book 2 coming next year.

The Waking Wood

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The Waking Wood
Alexi Francis
Big Picture Press

Deep in the woods one warm summer evening, as the moon begins to rise many creatures wake to wander and search for food. In that wood stands an ancient oak tree in the roots of which resides a badger family. As the wood becomes engulfed by night the badgers emerge including a young one that is far smaller than his siblings. Eager to explore, this cub wanders off and before long has been left behind as he follows a path far beyond the badgers’ sett. Attracted by its luminous light, the cub goes to investigate a glow worm and is soon surrounded by many more that glimmer like fallen stars. Then having sniffed the air of the gentle breeze, entranced by the earthy notes of its scent, on goes the little badger to see what might be beyond the glade.

At the wood’s edge he has a scary encounter with a fox

and having run to safety, now all alone in the darkness, he discovers that he’s come to a pine wood, so different from his woodlan§d home, the home he so much wants to return to. No easy task as all the paths look the same but ‘Ooooo! Kewick! Ooooo! Kewick!’ hears the lost cub. He recognises that it’s the owl’s call and recalling a lesson his elders have taught him, he is sure that sound will guide him back home.

Following the sound of the owl’s call, the cub soon starts recognising the sights, sounds and smells of his home and before too long he’s hurrying to greet his family and joining the other young cubs in a final play before bedtime. Lesson learnt, the smallest cub knows that for the near future he should concentrate on learning the ways of the woods and staying fairly close to his sett.

I love the circularity of the narrative that begins and ends with the ‘Choowa, Choowa, Choowa, Chirr, Chirr, Chirr’ sounds of the birds in the trees. There’s so much more to love too – the intricately detailed illustrations that have a textured quality, the die cut cover and intricate die cuts in the pages and Alexi Francis’s poetic telling.
A gorgeous book to keep, to read and re-read and to cherish.

Encyclopedia of Fungi

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Encyclopedia of Fungi
Jules Howard, illustrated by Namasri Niumim
Wide Eyed Editions

‘Fungi are everywhere but they are easy to miss. They are inside you and around you. They sustain you and all that you depend on.’ So says Merlin Sheldrake author of Entangled Life. Jules Howard’s book, covering over three hundred species, provides a just a glimpse into one of life’s kingdoms on earth. There are examples from all over the world including Europe, Africa and Asia, Australia, North America, New Zealand, South and Central America.

Indeed there are so many kinds to marvel over with their awesome variety of shapes, sizes and colours as we see in Namasri Niumin’s illustrations. For instance there’s the Devil’s Fingers found in forests and grasslands,

and various Earthstars – the Arched Earthstar almost resembling a tiny human dancing on the forest floor.

Their intricate designs are astonishing: how does the Red Cage not fall apart one wonders. Also red in colour but beware, is the poisonous Fly Agaric; with its distinctive red cap dappled with white it is often depicted in woodland fairy tale illustrations.

There are also zombie fungi that prey on caterpillars and ants, ‘Gobbler’ moulds that invade other fungi, but on the more positive side are yeasts that can be used in baking and wine-making and for medicinal purposes.

There is so much more that scientists have yet to understand about this amazing branch of the web of life on Earth. Meanwhile there’s a wealth of information for child readers and adults to discover – the mycelium for example – between the covers of this celebratory volume. It’s definitely one to add to home and school collections.

How the Rivermaid Grew Her Tail

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How the Rivermaid Grew Her Tail
Jessica Wilson, illustrated by Sophie Bass
Words & Pictures

This is a wonderful anthology of folktales from the West African and Caribbean traditions. There are thirteen in all, many of which are new to me. Each one is introduced with information about the country of its origin, its people, and traditions. There is also a double spread with a map showing where in the world each story is from and acting like a pictorial index.

One character that is familiar to me is Anansi though in How Anansi Became King Of All Stories, (Ghana, Ivory Coast & Togo) we also meet Asase Yaa, Anansi’s mother the goddess of love, fertility and the Earth, and though traditionally depicted in humanoid form, herein she takes the form of a spider with two other offspring, Tano and Ben.

There are several pourquoi tales including the titular How the Rivermaid Grew Her Tail, from Jamaica. We first encounter her when she’s both tailless and purposeless and feeling very sad about her lack of a tail despite Turtle’s wise words, “Without your tail, you are enough.” However Rivermaid feels as though she’s already experienced having a tail and insists she needs it. Come the morning Rivermaid sees herself reflected in the eyes of a young girl singing a calypso while washing clothes along the river bank and it’s then she realises she is there to protect the waterways. After some while, joy of joys, Rivermaid feels her tail lengthening and sings in sheer delight.

It’s good to see How George Grew Wings, a retelling inspired by African American George Floyd who was murdered in Minneapolis by a white police officer, a shocking event that triggered the Black Lives Matter movement.

I could go on waxing lyrical about the stories Jessica Wilson retells herein, assuredly they are culturally rich, but instead, I will merely say that with Sophie Bass’s vibrant illustrations,

from The Evil Butcher Who Became a Calf

this is a book that deserves a place in every primary school collection, in secondary school libraries and on family bookshelves

Cass and the Beast

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Cass and the Beast
Claire Mabey and Jill Calder
Gecko Press

Something ‘other’ has arrived in town and the townsfolk, not knowing what it is, call it Beast. Their fear causes them to think it is likely to catch anyone who tried hunting it and munch them whole. Young Cass doesn’t believe this however; she’s seldom scared and if ever she is, it’s people who frighten her, not beasts.

One night, she watches through the window and sees the beast moving among the trees; with its rumbling belly she thinks perhaps it’s in desperate need of food. Once everybody else is in bed, she creeps out in her thin coat clutching a piece of bread and calls out “Hello. Are you hungry?” The beast turns and Cass offers the bread, which the beast takes. Suddenly she feels herself being lifted onto the beast’s back.

So begins a magical journey that takes her far from the town and into a meadow. There the beast sates its hunger and the two curl up and sleep till the following morning when they return from whence they came, with the townsfolk watching Cass and the beast bidding one another farewell. The townspeople give Cass a new name and the beast finds its true name, which readers/listeners will learn on the final page, though I suspect many will be ready and waiting to call it out, if the adult reader aloud pauses on the penultimate spread.

Difference and how people react to it is a key theme in Claire Mabey’s somewhat surreal, magical story of a risk-taking child; it’s complemented by Jill Calder’s powerfully atmospheric, detailed scenes of Cass’s journey with the beast. Would the young children you share this with be brave enough to undertake a similar journey?

Board Books are Fun

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Below are 4 recent board books from Little Tiger: thanks to the publisher for sending them for review.

Happy Dog, Sad Dog
Sam Lloyd

Using dogs of various colours in turn, little humans are introduced to a series of opposites: big and little, clean and dirty, happy and sad, hot and cold, hairy and bald, awake and asleep and the final spread has no dog on the verso and lots of dogs on the recto. Bold bright colours and Sam Lloyd’s alluring canine images will help very young children become familiar with simple words.

Little Ghost Little Ghost What Can You See?
Pintachan

Little humans can assist the little ghost to discover what is hidden beneath the flaps on which are depicted in turn a purple witch’s hat, a sturdy-looking wooden door, a pumpkin-shaped basket, a cauldron and finally, a pumpkin patch beside a gate. A friendly-looking spider acts as the little ghost’s interrogator on each double spread.
With its repeat refrain, at every turn of the page, young children will soon be joining in with the text and after several readings aloud some may start reading it for themselves.

Noisy Nursery Rhymes
illustrated by Laura Silveira

Five popular nursery rhymes (one per double spread) are presented herein. They are in order: Incy Wincy Spider, The wheels on the bus, Old Macdonald had a farm, Row, row row your boat, Mary had a little lamb and Twinkle, twinkle, little star. There’s a tactile patch embedded into an image on each spread, which when pressed plays the tune of each rhyme.
A fun way for small children to learn/reinforce the words of the songs as well as develop their fine motor skills.

100 First Words
Hettie Cox and Shutterstock

One of the ‘My First Lift and Look’ series introduces a hundred words. Each double spread has a theme – colours, wild animals from hot and cold places, 2D shapes, ‘things that go’ – modes of transport on land, in the air and through the water, favourite foods – savoury and sweet, clothes for indoors and outside, animals that live on a farm, things to play with, things to see outside come rain or shine and finally, items found in the home.
There’s a flap on each recto with a question and the answer to each is found by lifting the flap.
A playful way to help little ones extend their vocabulary.

Cat School: Odd Cat Out!

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Cat School: Odd Cat Out!
Rose Robbins
Scallywag Press

This is the first in a new graphic novel series featuring kittens Tangle and Eno, and their new neurodivergent friend Pelly.

It’s the day all three start Cat School and whereas Tangle and Eno though a little anxious at the outset quickly overcome their nerves, Pelly, who arrives late, is troubled by many things, one being the scent-vents that emit smells signalling lesson and break times. After lunch she feels the need to find a quiet place and goes off alone into the garden and there she discovers something she really likes – pinecones. This place, Pelly decides can become her ‘private pinecone hideaway.’

Come the end of the first day she tells an empathetic Granmog who has come to meet her that she feels “like there’s some kind of secret rule book everyone knows about except me!” Granmog however, believes she can learn to enjoy school.

Pelly decides that the only way she can enjoy school is to copy the other pupils but finds that very tiring; the alternative – to act like her real self – worries her even more. Then Tangle and Eno resolve to try and help her.

Their first plan fails leaving Pelly so distressed she runs home. Can Tangle and Eno learn to understand her and most important, can Pelly keep going long enough to understand her would-be friends and move towards becoming a confident cat?

Woven into the main story are a number of fun extras such as a map of Cat School, Cat School basics and a list of the school rules, a spread about the game of ‘Paw Ball’, Pelly’s Herbarium and more.

Rose’s graphic novel debut draws on her own experience of growing up as a neurodivergent person and is the first in a trilogy. With its gentle humour and warmth this book is definitely one to add to foundation stage class/KS1 collections and family bookshelves, especially those where there’s a child who might be in a similar position to Pelly.

Red Snake Blue Snake

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Red Snake Blue Snake
Olivier Tallec
Gecko Press

In this story we spend a day with Red Snake and Blue Snake: the pair have been close friends since they were small but they see things very differently. We join the friends as they’re doing their morning yoga and while doing an inversion they look skywards. Blue Snake comments thus, “See that cloud? It looks like a huge pirate hat.” “No it doesn’t. It looks like you when you’ve eaten too much,” comes the response from Red Snake, but wanting the last word, Blue Snake insists that this is nonsense.

Off they slither through the countryside through fields and sand dunes guided by the power lines above. Red Snake then remarks on the blueness of the morning sky, but Red Snake immediately naysays this maintaining that it’s grey and eventually they comprise on blue-grey, or as Blue Snake wants to put it, “ …grey-blue.” (Last word again.)

There’s more to disagree over as they continue their journey – the shape of a particular cactus, the view through a pair of binoculars lying on the ground and after a real spat, the view from atop a power pole. They disagree about the intentions of a human sitting on a rock playing a flute:

this almost ends in them being captured and after beating a hasty retreat, the puddle they quench their thirst from. Come nightfall they lie watching the clouds drifting once again: will either of them comment?

As always Tallec’s brand of comedy engages readers’ minds with its cleverness, this time as he shows how opposing viewpoints can both be equally true. Maybe it’s the lenses through which we see the world that make the difference. There’s much to enjoy and talk about with a class or group of children after sharing this tale of limbless characters slithering and observing the world around them.

The Flying Machine of Dreams

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The Flying Machine of Dreams
Kate Wakeling and Viviane Schwarz
Otter-Barry Books

From The Softest Things to a Shapeshifter and Word Food to a Little Worm, Kate Wakeling finds things to celebrate, things that will amuse readers in her seventeen beautifully crafted poems in her first collection for younger audiences.

A number of the poems celebrate close, careful observation: being a tree lover, one such that I particularly enjoyed is Six Ways of Looking at a Leaf. Here’s number 6: ‘Leaves breathe. / (It’s why we can too.)/ Hold the leaf close. / Breathe in and out. / See how it sways.’ It’s absolutely full of potential if shared in the classroom.

So too is Bubble: ‘ … a million rainbow twinkles, /winking in the sun. //It’d be fun / to dance through / soft, / round as a moon / made of magic glass.’ Bursting with joy, that one for sure.

Perfect for those times when you want nothing more than to relax is Song of the Slow which invites the reader/listener to ‘Feel slow inside, / like the soft green grass / as it grows, // then wave hello / to the things / that sing / the song of the slow.’ I wonder what slow things a group of children might wave to.

With their immediacy and directness, every poem is enormously engaging and will excite and inspire Foundation Stage and KS1 audiences, all the more so with Viviane Schwarz’s gorgeous illustrations.

A treat for all the senses, this is a simply splendid, must have book for both home and class collections.

Jam is for Eating

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Jam is for Eating
Jess Mountfield
Flying Eye Books

Benny is a bat and having achieved his ambition – to make the most perfect jam ever – he cannot wait to share it with his friends. He loads his cart with jars of strawberry jam and sets out to do just that, after all there’s nothing quite like the joy of sharing something homemade with others.

The first friend he meets is Filbert the Frog: Filbert loves the smell of the jam and is happy to receive a jar but Benny isn’t happy with what Filbert does with it. On he goes to find Poppy the Pig, followed by in turn, Gilbert the Goose, Beatrice the Bug, Stew the Shrew and Frankie the Fox, all of whom are pleased to receive a jar but by this time, Benny is exasperated. Every one of his friends appears to have another use for Benny’s jam; however clever these might be, not a single one has chosen to eat it.

Come the end of the day a very sulky Benny sits alone, eats a little jam and decides that his jam-making days are over, declaring this out loud. Then who should appear but Filbert wanting to know what Benny is up to.

He’s amazed at his friend’s reply, as are Benny’s other pals who suddenly appear too. Is Benny big-hearted enough to share that final jar with them all, as well as accepting that his confection could have multiple uses?

Be they divergent thinkers or just plain ignorant, Benny’s friends may just be instrumental in changing the bat’s mind about making more jam.

A sweet story with themes of friendship and acceptance illustrated for the most part in somewhat sombre hues. I love the details in every spread – the more you look the more you find – and I wonder what that worm thinks about Benny’s jam.

Bison Rule, OK!

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Bison Rule, OK!
Sarah Ziman, illustrated by Mia Havilliard
Otter-Barry Books

Wordplay, riddles and much more are to be found in Welsh poet Sarah Ziman’s wide-ranging collection of poems. The book is divided into six sections which are in order: School, Family, Astonishing Animals, Word Play and Riddles, Short Stories and Tall Tales, and Special Days. Most are light-hearted but there are some more serious ones too including Small Sadnesses, the final verse of which is: ‘Nan’s house. / The new owners / have got scaffolding up. / Where the old cherry tree once was, / two cars.’
One that particularly amused me from the Family section is Elegy about a poorly Dad. It begins thus: ‘He shuffles slowly room to room / Expression of the deepest gloom / The smell of Vicks is his perfume – // Yes, Dad’s got the man flu.’ It continues in similar vein to the final verse: ‘A prone position he’ll assume / And if he sees you, groans resume / There’s no one sicker, you’d presume?//
Well, Mum’s got a cold too.’ Mia Havilliard has certainly made him look appropriately sorry for himself.

On a more positive note from the Family section is Things I learned From Nana Jean, things such as ‘The names of wild flowers. And butterflies too. / Knitting is NOT something all Nanas do. … It’s actions that matter, not how people look . / You’ll never be bored if you carry a book./ ‘

My favourite from the School section is Forest School, the opening verse of which is: ‘No stale class air, but cooling breeze / No bells, but birdsong in the trees / no whiteboard, just the changing leaves – / Here in forest school.’ And it closes thus: ‘Out here, I walk the trails deer roam / I know where badgers built their home / Out here, I never feel alone – Here in forest school.’ Would that every child could have the opportunity to have such experiences regularly.

Would that every primary age child could also have the opportunity to enjoy the poems in this book either at home or in class.

Let’s Be Earthlings

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Let’s Be Earthlings
Mary Murphy
Otter-Barry Books

Narrated by what starts out as a yellow blob heading towards Earth, we see this ‘thing’ using its transformer to make it into an earthling with eyes, a nose, a mouth and legs. These enable it to see,, smell, talk, hear, touch and walk. Off goes the new Earthling to explore what it means to be alive on what it calls ‘ the best planet, ever’ be that as a mango-munching bat, a nectar nuzzling bee, a snail carrying its home on its back or a panda in a bamboo forest.

Our new Earthling learns that gravity enables Earthlings to stay close to the planet, going on to explore various kinds of movement including leaping, swooping and soaring; then discovers the loving care given to their young offspring be they bears, trees or humans, as well as how these young beings play together and even follow their dreams.

No matter where you open the book there will be more wonders to behold; it’s hardly surprising that the alien wants its friend, Batu to come to experience and delight in these wonders.

With Mary Murphy’s rhyming text, wordplays and energetic illustrations, this book is ideal for reading aloud to individuals, a group or Foundation Stage/ early KS1 class.

Ask Me About Bedtime / Ask Me About Busy Wheels/ Where Do They Sleep?

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Ask Me About Bedtime
Ask Me About Busy Wheels
Rebecca Atkinson and Susie Hammer
Happy Yak

It’s almost Bedtime in the first book, the opening scene of which is the bathroom where a little blue creature is enjoying a bubble bath. Also in the bath – or almost – is what introduces itself as a ‘Quizzy Bean. On this first spread the Bean asks how many boats little humans can find. The little human must then count and move the slider mechanism found on the right hand side to the appropriate number.

Once dry it’s time to put on pyjamas and the little human is tasked with finding the pattern on the pair in the cupboard tucked behind a flap: do they have stripes, spots or squiggles and again the slider is moved to select. A vital pre bedtime task is tooth cleaning and the favourite toothpaste is almost hidden behind the mug: opening the flap reveals the choice, which is then indicated by moving the slider. Every bedtime routine needs a pre-slumber story.The question is ‘What is Quizzy Bean reading about? The final spread sends the little human back to count the total number of Quizzy Beans and last of all, to answer a question.

Ask Me About Busy Wheels presents five vehicles – a digger, a fire engine, a rubbish truck, a tractor and a snack van and works in a similar way to the previous title, with its ‘decider slider’ mechanism and flaps to lift. Both have Susie Hammer’s bold, amusing illustrations and together with Rebecca Atkinson’s texts offer entertainment as well as developing Early Years concepts such as colour, and shape, plus furthering the development of manipulative skills, counting and vocabulary.

Also about bedtime is:

Where Do They Sleep?
Adam Thompson and Erica Harrison
Messy Press

This very simple look at where and how some animals like to sleep uses creatures large and small as exemplars. For instance flamingos sleep standing on one leg in lakes; bats snooze in caves, mice snuggle in nests and dogs sleep in dog beds (rather a different shape from those humans use as we see in the bright illustrations). I wonder where elephant sleep? Find out by getting a copy of this board book to share with your small human just before they snuggle down for the night.

Jake Takes Charge

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Jake Takes Charge
Michael Catchpool, illustrated by Shanarama
Otter-Barry Books

This is the second book about Jake, his family and friends who live in Maple Street. After an introduction to the characters there are four short stories: The Surprise Party, The Christmas Performance, A Great Adventure and That was Lucky!

The first story sees Jake and his brother heading to the park early one morning with Grandpa who lives in a flat below the home of Jake, younger brother Sam and elder sister Ellie and their parents. This is so Mum and Dad can make preparations for the party they are going to have as a surprise celebration for Grandpa’s birthday. When the three arrive at the park they find a sign saying that the play area is closed for repairs; Grandpa wants to go straight home but Jake hastily invents a delaying tactic, but will it give those at home sufficient time to get the party plans completed? Happily yes and a great time ensues.

In the second story, Jake is disappointed at being chosen as a shepherd rather than being allocated a star part in his school Christmas nativity play. Having accepted the role, thanks in no small way to Grandpa, Jake practises his lines and come the day of the performance, Jake’s little brother Sam mistakes the toy lamb for his own almost identical one and that causes an interesting diversion. How will the audience react?

A Great Adventure introduces readers to Algie, the bear that members of Jake’s class take turns to look after for the weekend. When it’s Jake’s turn, he wants to do something exciting but everybody seems too busy. Again Sam gets involved in the events that follow but so too does a very lively dog. Will it perhaps turn out to be an exciting adventure after all?

Jayden is Jake’s buddy from school and when he comes over the two play in Jake’s bedroom. The boys get rather excited; can the visit end without serious damage being done enabling them do decide That Was Lucky…

With Shanarama’s black and white illustrations on every spread, this is an ideal early chapter book for new solo readers, but equally the stories are great for reading aloud at home or in a Foundation Stage setting.

Bessie’s Bees

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Bessie’s Bees
George Kirk and Ana Gómez
Templar Books

Bessie has a head full of buzzing bees and she’s perfectly comfortable with them so long as the bees are kept busy which works well all the time she’s at home. However when her Granny takes her to nursery for the first time Bessie (who has autism and ADHD) does her upmost to act like the other children and keep her bees hidden. Unsurprisingly this strategy does not work and results in brick towers tumbling down ,

a spoiled story time and a little girl who is left alone and upset.

When Granny comes to collect Bessie at the end of the day she sees that the child is sad and fortunately she knows how to help. She explains that those bees are a part of Bessie and rather than hiding them she could try sharing them. In response to Bessie’s how do I do that, Granny says, “Now THAT is up to you,” With encouragement and support from Granny (who also has bees), can Bessie find a way for her and her bees to be themselves and for all those at nursery to enjoy themselves together?
Definitely written from the heart by George Kirk who uses the bee metaphor with great effect, to deliver a vital message, not only to young neurodivergent children but to everyone; and with Ana Gómez’s illustrations complementing the text perfectly, this is an empowering book to share at home or in an education setting.

Elfie’s Spellbook

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Elfie’s Spellbook
Christophe Arleston, Audrey Alwett, Mini Ludvin
Puffin

This bind up contains two stories in a graphic novel series: Elfie’s Spellbook and The Song of the Cicadas.

At the start of the first, Ellie introduces herself telling readers that she and her teenage sister have been living near Paris with their curmudgeonly Aunt Delphine since their mother died almost a year ago. But then their older sister, Louette turns up, driving her London bus-cum travelling bookshop, announcing that she has won custody of her younger siblings. Free at last, off they head with Louette at the wheel, first stop a place called Kermalo. Elfie is thrilled that all the sisters are together, particularly when Louette announces that they’ve each been left a special gift by their mother. Elfie’s gift is a notebook with gems on the cover. This is no ordinary notebook however; it’s a grimoire – a witch’s spellbook.

That night Elfie makes a start with her writing and then before falling asleep she tears a page from the book and makes an origami frog that she names Salicorne. Magically the frog comes to life but in the morning it has disappeared, only temporarily so it turns out. It reappears later on and speaks to Elfie telling her that only witches can hear it speak. It transpires that when Elfie writes a story in her special book, magic comes to life. Can she though, discover how to use her magic for good, help solve the mystery that has torn apart a small French village and bring the whole community together again?
Bursting with witchy magic, this story is certain to enchant readers who will eagerly continue to The Song of the Cicadas.

It opens with the book-bus moving on to new pastures – a sun drenched village in Provence called Gonerbes where they hope to meet writer Alistair Kinloch a friend of their mother’s; it was she who had been instrumental in making him become a best-selling author. When they start asking him about his new book, he’s reluctant to say much about it other than that it’s complicated.

Later, they discover that Alastair is being threatened. His cherished vintage typewriter, a gift from their Maman, has been stolen and now he is suffering from writer’s block.

Who though would want to harm Alastair and why? Time for Elfie to turn detective and find out, perhaps with the aid of some tiny, new magical friends. Can they discover what has happened to Alastair’s typewriter and will he find his muse again?

Captivating, joyful and magical with friendship and family at its heart.

Your Planet Needs You

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Your Planet Needs You
Elizabeth Laird & Will McDowall, illustrated by Paul Boston
Walker Books

After an exceptionally hot summer like the one we’ve been experiencing in the UK, few can deny our climate is changing. News about extreme weather conditions and temperatures that have reached highs like never before sound alarming. This we read, is largely due to the increase of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere thanks to the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation throughout the world.

However, despite the huge challenges we humans face, people the world over are inventing real-world solutions to help deal with the problems and children can find out about many of these from this book that presents a broad range of green careers.
Several of these involve the use of wind power, which is clean as carbon is not released into the air. If you are specially interested in engineering you could perhaps become a wind turbine engineer or a turbine service engineer; you’ll need a head for heights to undertake the latter as to repair a wind turbine entails being dropped from a helicopter on top of the turbine in question and then climbing down inside to fix the problem. Alternatively, a driving expert could be employed to transport the massive turbine blades to hilltops. There are even roles such as captaining a ship taking turbines out to set them up in the sea.

Other areas offer roles in looking after nature, including marine conservation, creative fashion design,

sustainable farming and more.

I suspect there will be jobs nobody’s ever thought of as yet, but this inspiring book offers an engaging, accessible way to open up discussions around climate change and how anyone and everyone can help. It’s pitch perfect for KS2 classes, especially to support the area of environmental education.

Unicornia: Camping in the Clouds / Cosmic Cadets and the Bubblegum Bots

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Unicornia: Camping in the Clouds
Ana Punset, illustrated by Diana Vicedo
Walker Books

This is a charming adventure with a mystery to solve, puzzles and the discovery of secrets hidden way up in the sky. Its narrator Claudia, is sitting in the classroom with her best friends Sara and Pippa when their teacher announces that they are going on a class camping trip. Two nights in the sky, something about which Sara is not enthusiastic and it takes a lot of convincing from her friends to persuade her to join them.

The following morning off they set on their unicorns destination the Campsite in the Clouds where on arrival they are greeted by sky guides Valentina and Tim, identical twins. Having off loaded their rucksacks in a tent, the three go to join the other campers for some activities, after which they have dinner and then it’s time for bed. They don’t sleep straightaway but spend some time talking and Sara admits that she she doesn’t like the dark. Her friends reassure her but can they help her to overcome this fear, let herself go and enjoy the adventure?

With themes of anxiety and fear of the dark, Ana Punset’s story with its likeable characters, questions, fun lists and Diana Vicedo’s illustrations in soft green hues will enchant young newly independent readers and it would also work as a bedtime story.

More action in the sky but for slightly older readers:

Cosmic Cadets and the Bubblegum Bots
Ryan Crawford, illustrated by Rochelle Falconer
Oxford Children’s Books

In this new adventure, intergalactic duo and best friends Gloria and Razz, the Cosmic Cadets are off on a new mission. They are absolutely determined to finish it at the top of the unofficial leaderboard as well as remaining super glam. Their mission is to locate and rescue a missing lynx and return it to the owner, not exactly the glamorous mission they were hoping for but the one they must undertake.

As they approach Bubbly Blasters Universal Facilitation Factory Inc. and prepare to dock, Gloria’s confidence wanes and on arrival they are met by a fluffy pink Bubbly named Nimbulon. Before long the friends have forgotten about their mission, become careless, even disregarding a huge display notice stating “For our safety and yours, never chew gum inside the factory”. What happens some time later is that the two friends start a robot-apocalypse unleashing bubble-gum wielding bot replicas on their unwary teachers and friends.

Can the quick-thinking best pals restore order and do so before Gloria’s mum returns.

This addition to the action-packed sci-fi series will be loved by established followers and is likely to gain the Cosmic Cadets some new fans too. Watch out for Cosmic Cadets and the Wormhole Witch coming in September.

Scaredy Cat

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Scaredy Cat
Alex Falase-Koya and Ken Wilson-Max
Oxford Children’s Books

Gabe is extremely shy, especially at school where he frequently struggles to speak up, so imagine how he feels when his teachers says that the following week will be his turn to talk to the class about a book he has enjoyed.
Then his parents adopt a rescue cat from the animal shelter that is very timid and wants to hide itself away. Art hides in such places as a cardboard box and the clothes basket, inside a lampshade and even under Dad’s hat. Gabe understands just how Art feels so without telling his parents he decides on a plan.

He sits quietly in the living room reading his favourite comic book and little by little, day by day Art emerges from his hiding places, each time coming closer to Gabe and by the end of the week, he hops on the sofa and sits on Gabe’s knee.

Gradually a bond forms between them and on the following Monday, so involved with the cat has Gabe been that he’s forgotten about his book report until his mum says something. In the classroom Gabe still feels like hiding but he thinks how Art faced his fears and recalls some words of Captain Whisperfoot: ‘It’s okay to be scared. Bravery is doing things even though you’re scared.’ And so he speaks, gradually gaining confidence until he hears a round of applause at the end.

This is such a thoughtful, gentle, reassuring story showing how everybody gains self confidence in their own time. Ken Wilson-Max’s illustrations exude warmth and despite being allergic to cats I was able to feel the empathy between Gabe and Art. A reassuring book to share with Foundation Stage and KS1 children at home or in the classroom.

Snuggle Up / Make Some Noise

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Snuggle Up
Make Some Noise
Emma Dodd
Templar Books

These are two board books in a First Stories for Baby series. In Snuggle Up the youngest humans are introduced to Little Bear cub with her soft fur and ‘sniffly, snuffly’ nose; then goes Little Dolphin who loves to splash in the shallows of the sea using her shiny flippers and swishy tail to help her swim, leaving as she moves a ‘shimmery bubble trail.’ Little Owl is awake in the moonlight, his big round eyes peeping from a hole in the tree until the sun rises and Big Owl tucks him under her wing. Finally comes stripy Little Tiger that loves to leap and pounce under the watchful eye of Big Tiger till, come nightfall they snuggle close ‘in a tangled tiger heap’ and fall asleep.

Told through a gentle rhyming text and black and white illustrations that will immediately endear their subjects to humans both tiny and adult sharers.

Make Some Noise has the same characters and tiny children are introduced to sounds the little creatures (and sometimes their parents) make. Little Bear giggles “GRR! GRR! GRR!” as she’s tickled by Big Bear and following a playful time jumping and climbing together, Little Bear snuggles up to Big Bear with a contented “SNORE” Little Dolphin spends her time splashing splashing ‘SPLOSH’ and sometimes she jumps up from the water with a ‘PLOP!’, all the while under the watchful eye of Big Dolphin as they ‘SPLASH’ together through the waves. Little Owl waits, hidden in the RUSTLY leaves of his tree home and sometimes calls softly “TU-WHIT TU-WHIT TU-WHOO!” to Big Owl and as Big Owl flies back to her little one, gives a similar reply. Finally we join Little Tiger at dawn as he wakes with a YAWN before spending time playfully pouncing, prowling and chasing his tail with a “ROAR” and a “GROWL”. Then along comes Big Tiger with tongue at the ready to wash his fur, which makes him happy so he “purrs and purrs and PURRS”. Adult sharers can encourage their little humans to make some of the animal sounds as the book is read aloud to them – I suspect, over and over.

It’s as well they are sturdily built: both books are delightful.

Fish Are Friends

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Fish Are Friends
Jules Howard and Gosia Herba
Wide Eyed

Ready to take the plunge? It will be well worth it as you’ll meet all manner of underwater creatures including the ‘really smart’ fish that got together to write and narrate this book. Chief among the latter is a White-Spotted Pufferfish. Between them they will provide a wealth of information that is divided into an introduction, an explanation about what fish are – did you know they have been around for 500 millions years? – followed by five main chapters, the first of which is called Big-Brained Buddies wherein four fish including that Pufferfish describe the various ways in which they are clever creatures.

That Pufferfish then has a spread where it shows some of the beautiful patterns he and fellow puffers create in the sand – ‘works of art’ so some scientists call these designs on the sea floor.
I love the alliterative titles of some of the spreads, one such is ‘Nifty Navigators’ where we learn how sharks find their way using Earth’s magnetic field. Clever stuff, particularly the journey made by a whale shark named Anne that scientists tagged and found she swam 19,300 kilometres. Wow!

Chapter 2 explains why Pufferfish and others call themselves Loving and Loyal and looks at parenting and friendship by fish. Clownfish exhibit something called ‘sequential hermaphroditism’ (youngsters can impress their own friends by using that term) where the babies all start life as male but later in life change and begin to produce eggs instead, sometimes thousands. Female Humpback Anglerfish are also prolific egg producers and may fill their large bodies with around 1,000,000 tiny eggs before releasing them.

The third chapter, We’ve Got You Covered, introduces and explores the fact that fish perform all kinds of jobs that help ecosystems thrive and is full of hopeful medical possibilities that fish chemicals offer.

The two final chapters are Join The Party about fish social habits and Friends Through Time! The latter explores the evolutionary journey fish have been on over millions of years, even preceding dinosaurs.

A vital spread at the end presents how human readers could ‘Become A Friend To Fish’ and as you’d expect plastic pollution and overfishing are key problems for our fishy friends.

Zoologist, Jules Howard’s writing style is gently humorous as are Gosia Herba’s illustrations making the book very approachable for young readers to absorb a wealth of fascinating information almost without noticing.

Thoroughly recommended for primary class collections, secondary school libraries and home bookshelves.

Michael Rosen’s NICE! Poems

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Michael Rosen’s NICE! Poems
Michael Rosen, illustrated by Hannah Robinson
Walker Books

You can’t go wrong with a poetry book by Michael Rosen: this one is a new edition of a collection then named The Hypnotiser, I read to pieces in my classroom back in the late 1980s. Now it has a different illustrator whose line drawings are suitably hilarious. Here’s the one for a favourite of mine, The Car Trip that recounts the kind of journey many parents who have driven a car with fidgety children in the back seat will know all too well.

Young listeners will love Fast Food wherein a hamburger decides it’s not going to be eaten and starts a chase down the street following in the footsteps of the Gingerbread Man. Imagine your class full of six year olds all chanting, the repeat refrain “Eating me is cruel; / eating me is murder. / You can’t catch me / I’m the speedy hamburger.” at the top of their voices.

Also on the topic of food (indeed there are several poems about food) is Hot Food, so much fun that it has earned itself a solo picture book edition – Hot Food: Nice! and has become a meme in China and the USA. This one like many others you can catch Michael reciting on You Tube.

Much briefer and not actually having food related words in the title is My Mum:
‘My mum said to me and my brother; / “Don’t crumble your bread or roll in the soup.” / I said: / “I don’t want to roll in my soup.” // Then she said: “Eat up Michael.” / And my brother said: / “I don’t want to eat up Michael.”

Although the majority of poems herein are humorous there are some more serious including Deep Down about a sad place inside. I suspect we all have one of those that we visit from time to time.

It would be easy to go on enthusing about this book but instead I will finish by saying, just buy a copy; you won’t regret it.

Pog and Pickle’s Great Escape

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Pog and Pickle’s Great Escape
Ross Montgomery and Sarah Warburton
Walker Books

Guinea pig couple Pog and Pickle reside in a humans’ home with several other pets and the two are absolutely devoted to one another. There’s a big difference between them though: Pog ‘wanted more than to live in a hutch. There’s a massive world out there – I haven’t seen much,” she says to Pickle. However Pickle is scared of adventures such as the one Pog wants to undertake – to go and visit Peru and see the guinea pigs living there.

That night however, the family pack to go exploring Peru for a fortnight and unsurprisingly Pog decides to go too. Out of the hutch she squeezes and into a zipper bag where she hides in the socks. Off go the family with a stowaway guinea pig.
The following morning when Pickle finds the note Pog has left he’s devastated. Suppose she never returns? “I’ll have to go with her … I can’t be alone!” he groans. Off he sets to to the airport to find the plane to Peru but just misses it. Fortunately though there’s another flight almost immediately and he stows away on board.

Having arrived, the visitors have a long drive to the jungle and Pickle follows clinging tight to a lorry, eventually reaching a tropical paradise. But of Pog there is no sign. Suddenly he hears a familiar voice and can hardly believe it. There is Pog waiting and eager to introduce some of her new friends.
Thereafter the two visitors spend a summer full of fun

and Pickle reveals that she now understands Pog’s adventurous spirit and the allure of being brave and stepping out of one’s comfort zone.

When the family return home a surprise awaits …
Ross Montgomery’s rhyming narrative is a joy to read aloud and complemented by Sarah Warburton’s alluring, brightly coloured, detailed digital illustrations, brilliantly captures the adventure especially the initiative shown by Pog and Pickle to be together.

Indie in Disguise: Stylist-ing and Other Jobs

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Indie in Disguise: Stylist-ing and Other Jobs
Katie Clapham illustrated by Emma Farrarons
Walker Books

This contains fun four short stories about Indie, an highly imaginative little girl with a large personality and a knack for theatrics. She loves dressing up, both herself and others, and role-play.

In this first book in what I believe is to be a series, she takes on four different roles starting with that of a stylist. First off she has to dress herself appropriately with lots of necklaces, her star-shaped sun glasses and funky un-matching socks, a jacket, dress and top. But how much style is too much: she starts by adding bracelets to her Mum’s outfit, plus Dad’s over-large sun glasses, a large floppy hat and fur-trimmed gloves and persuading her to put on her silvery high heels. In the end some of these are removed as Indie considered she’d given Mum ‘too much style’ and anyhow, she had another use for a couple of the items.


The second story sees Indie at the grandparents’ trying her hand at being a cleaner. For this job she ‘borrows’ an apron with the words My Kitchen! My Rules! emblazoned across the front. But can cleaning up during the time her gran is baking buns really be a good idea?

In story three Indie is at her friend Sydney’s house and there ‘Doctor Indie the Dentist’ extracts a tooth belonging to Sydney’s little brother, Teddy. This is a tricky task as it involves some balancing of the chair legs.

Finally, Indie acts out the role of a librarian. Successful or not? That depends on whose viewpoint you take and you’ll need to get a copy of the book to discover how successful Indie is. It’s ideal for new solo readers or for sharing with an adult either at home or in a KS1 classroom.

Neighbour’s Cat

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Neighbour’s Cat
Michael Rosen and Alex Willmore
Walker Books

This hilarious picture book is narrated by a small child whose home a feline intruder frequents.

The moggy named Neighbour’s Cat is an entitled creature complaining about such things as the lack of a blanket on a chair and the loudness of the TV. He’s also demanding and insists on using the narrator’s bed for a sleep. It’s a long sleep and during his slumber time, the narrator starts imaging what the moggy might be getting up to: maybe he’s constructing a huge marble run;

maybe he’s enjoying a bath or trying on Mum’s clothes. Could he perhaps be in the attic planning a trip into space aided and abetted by a horde of robot cats. Alex Willmore’s dramatic illustrations are as imaginative as the child narrator’s notions concerning the moggy’s shenanigans.

It turns out however that the mention of food is sufficient to entice the visitor to return to his house, albeit with a parting request to the child narrator who is left with rather a lot of work to do.

A great read aloud that will delight not only moggy lovers of all ages but anyone who likes to see children giving full rein to their imagination.

Bridget’s Bright / Slippery Cyril

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These are two new Tiny Tree books – thanks to the publisher for sending them for review.

Bridget’s Bright
Shelley Corcoran and Sam McGarry

Unlike many young children, it’s not the dark that Bridget is frightened of, it’s the light or as she calls it, the bright. The dark is her comfort time, and she spends a lot of it under her bedclothes and keeps the curtains closed at all times. In school she protects herself from the bright by means of a blanket atop an umbrella. Despite being fond of art when her imagination can run wild, she never gets to see the paintings of her classmates. She also lets her imagination run wild while playing in her wigwam in the garden, dreaming of dresses fashioned from fireflies or daisies. but all her clothes are bought by her mum in bright shops that she refuses to venture into. Moreover she misses out on watching the monkeys when on a trip to the zoo and on visits to the swimming pool she remains sitting on the water’s edge dipping her feet in.

Then one day on her walk to school Bridget trips and her brolly and blanket fall off so she can see the brilliant blue sky causing her to surprise herself by saying ‘Oh how beautiful!’ Back home later on she has a talk with her mum about why she might be afraid of the bright and the following day at the park, Bridget tries something different … Has she finally overcome her fear?
An empowering story to share and talk about with young children.

Also for young listeners is

Slippery Cyril
Jax King and Samantha LeDuc

Cyril the accident prone bear returns in a new story which begins with him setting out to find something to sate his appetite. Grabbing his rod and fishing line he walks through the pines till he reaches a suitable ledge near the water’s edge. Reluctant to go lower, he stops and stares at the water rushing by, but while so doing he slips and slides all the way down and is forced to take an accidental dip. This, he is convinced, will make him shrink.

Fortunately that’s not what happens; instead some friends come together and rescue Cyril. This adventure changes the way in which Cyril finds his tea in the future.

A tale of teamwork and friendship, and taking special care near water.

The Diary of Wiska Wildflower: The Crystal Cave

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The Diary of Wiska Wildflower: The Crystal Cave
Harriet Muncaster
Oxford Children’s Books

This second story of the totally adorable Wiska Wildflower sees her on her first school expedition. The three day trip is part of their Nature Studies and they will, as the letter informs carers, be learning about the rich variety of flora and fauna on Wiskling Mountain. During this time the students will have to read a map, make their own camp and find and cook their own food.
Wiska is paired with Citrine who is passionate about baking and hopes to be a famous baker one day. She thinks the Wiskling Mountain field trip offers the ideal opportunity to find a starflower, a rare plant with petals that only open at night (the time the students are meant to be asleep in their tents not going off to the reputedly dangerous Rocky Ledge). As readers can guess Citrine wants Wiska to go with her and reluctantly she agrees.

Some time after 11pm the two set off on their blooms towards Rocky Ledge but there’s a rainstorm and they land really close to the edge. Straightway Wiska wants to return to camp but lightning strikes make her feel even more scared and with Citrine refusing to go, her friend has no choice but to stay, follow her to the Starflower and get the sugar crystals from its petals for Citrine’s baking.

Disaster strikes; Citrine trips and hurts her ankle. Two hours away from the camp in a raging storm, Wiska realises she must get help. Eventually she finds her way to the Crystal Cave where a bearded wiskling named Albert is enlisted to help. They find Citrine after considerable difficulty and take her back to the warmth of the cave. After a while Wiska and Citrine have a serious talk; then Albert takes them to see more of the cave’s interior.

An amazing night ensues but what happens and whether Wiska and Citrine remain friends, readers must discover by getting their own copy of this gorgeously illustrated, magical book.

Barney the Barnacle

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Barney the Barnacle
Christian Foley and André Carrilho
Flying Eye Books

Living on a rock in the middle of the ocean is Barney, a barnacle; he’s totally unbothered and seemingly unmovable. To look at he’s merely a pair of googly eyes with red feathery protuberances coming through the hole in his shell. He ignores the invitations from birds and fish to leave his rock and explore; indeed he refuses to budge.

One day a fierce storm blows up and despite Barney’s rock getting bumped it stays firm, as does Barney. Suddenly however, a ship carrying a group of musicians is shattered and the musicians plus their instruments are shipwrecked on Barney’s rock.

Clutching their instruments they call out for help but are ignored by the Sea and the Sky. Barney hears their conversations and following this their music. Both Sky and Sea are soothed by the smooth music and it causes them to follow the beat of the tune together. Barney meanwhile feels something wake up in his heart as the music washes over him. Now at last, Barney the Barnacle is moved by the sounds of his ‘first rock concert’. – love that! – and up he gets to dance.

Finally rescue arrives both from the air and the ocean but as for the fate of Barney, that is left to the reader to decide.

This story celebrating the power of music, is rhythmically told by Christian Foley and with André Carrilho’s vibrant scenes awash with shades of blue, immerses readers and listeners within its swirls. You can almost hear the beat of the bongos and the booming of the double bass emanating from the pages of the book.

And Now We Run

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And Now We Run
Nicola Penfold
Little Tiger

During a Year 7 outward bound school residential trip to a woodland area of West Yorkshire two children, Jelly, who is not at all keen on being on the trip and the much more enthusiastic Lincoln, who has visited the region before with his brothers, find themselves separated from the rest of the group. It is from their viewpoints that the story is told. Interwoven with their narratives is the occasional voice of a red kite that circles above them watching the disaster unfold.

Extreme weather conditions result in a reservoir bursting its banks and the dam in danger of collapse. The subsequent flooding leaves the pair stranded; but the power of nature and their own safety isn’t the only issue they have to contend with.

As always, Nicola Penfold’s descriptions of the natural world – its awesomeness and its dangers – are superb in this latest fast-paced story. With themes of global warming, friendship, courageousness it’s one that will have readers gripped from the outset: I read it in a single sitting.

A must have for upper primary class collections and individual readers from lower KS3 and would make an excellent book to share with a year 5 or year 6 class. It’s sure to generate lots of discussion.

If ever there was a timely reminder of why we should all do out upmost to protect our natural world, this is it.

Pincho Nothing IS Possible

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Pincho Nothing IS Possible
Ben Sanders
Little Tiger

Pincho is a capybara (in case you’ve never met one, they look very similar to over-sized guinea pigs and come from South America). These creatures spend most of their time doing absolutely nothing and they are always happy.

This story, so we’re told by the bird narrator, is about ‘the chill-est, happiest capybara ever and his name is Pincho. However, the bird believes that to be happy Pincho’s never worries, never hurries lifestyle needs changing; he should be busy from first thing in the morning and to that end has made him a list of things to do.

Today though is destined to be a seize the day kind of day full of exciting action such as kicking goals of the winning sort, climbing the highest heights and swallowing his fear.

What about escaping from the jaws of danger though – possible or not? I wonder.

Make sure you read the title of this book carefully; it’s key to the crucial lesson that Pincho is about to teach not only the yellow bird, but all of us, that rest and relaxation need to be vital elements in everyone’s life, ie Nothing IS possible.

Ben Sanders’ modern parable is splendidly illustrated and told in a wonderfully droll, slightly tongue-in-cheek style. A book to share, talk about and act upon (or not) with KS1 children.


The Line

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The Line
Swapna Haddow and Farah Shah
Scholastic

The Partition of India that was drawn up by the British almost eighty years ago remains a contentious issue. Yes the country became free from imperialism but political tension and rivalry continues between India and Pakistan to this day. The battle for the disputed Kashmir, the violent formation of Bangladesh and Islamic radicalism’s roots are indicative that the 1947 legacy is not truly over.

Sadly, as a frequent visitor to India I see first hand that the lines that divide still exist. I have Hindu, Sikh, Muslim and Jain friends but almost everywhere different communities live separately – a legacy of the British divide and rule policy. Would that a child such as the girl protagonist in Swapna’s story – The Line – been in charge rather than a politician. This girl was familiar with various kinds of lines from early in her life but then one day on her return from school she found that a new line had appeared, one that cut her father’s farm in half, tore her village in two and took her friends from her. Seemingly unnecessary fighting and having to join this new line meant that she and her family had to walk for many days, becoming progressively hungry, exhausted and afraid.

As she walked so the narrator tells us, she imagined what she would do, had she been in charge of a line with so much power. Any line of hers would be full of beauty and gentleness, drawing people together, feeling safe

and wanting to learn more about one another. her line was all embracing and made everyone friends.

Farah Shah’s vibrant colours immediately catch the eye and draw you in to the wealth of details in her illustrations of this powerful and ultimately hopeful story about Partition that everybody – young and not so young – should read and discuss.

They Sent a Cat to Saturn

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They Sent a Cat to Saturn
Valerie Bloom, illustrated by Ken Wilson-Max
Otter-Barry Books

‘They sent a cat to Saturn / on a spaceship called Hooray / they put him in his cat spacesuit / and sent him on his way.’ So begins the title poem in this exciting collection that’s bursting with playfulness, wordplays and empathy. You will find in the six sections of the book haikus including a couple of Jamaican ones, poems about pets such as Spotty, which is about a destructive watch dog, another admonishing a dog that drinks the water from the loo

and even one about wanting a dinosaur more than any other creature.

The shortest section Glorious Food has Just Because that made me laugh realising as a youngster I would also have been turned out from the Kids Vegan Society for eating such things as ‘A head of cabbage’ … ‘a bowl of ladies fingers … kidney beans and artichoke hearts.’

Several of the poems in the final section Brawta are of a more serious nature. One such is the extremely moving Refuge which couldn’t be more timely; it’s concluding two verses are these:
‘No babies crying for a scrap of food / To ease the hunger pains, / None gasping for a drop of water / To quench the fire in their brains. // No hungry flames consume the town, No one lives in fear, There’s no war in this country, Can we find refuge here?’
Thought-provoking too are One, Two, Three, Four, Five and Choose.

I love Valerie Bloom’s poetry and strongly recommend you get copies of this accessible treasure of a book with black and white drawings by Ken Wilson-Max that capture the poems’ main moments: it’s ideal for KS2 class sharing and to enjoy at home.

123 Counting Tree! / ABC Learn With Me! / Family

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Here are some new board books from Little Tiger – thanks to the publisher for sending them for review.

123 Counting Tree!
ABC Learn With Me!
Lauren Crisp and Laura Silveira

These are both titles in the My First Touch and Trace series. The counting one follows a pattern: on the verso is a numeral beside which is an arrow to show the direction in which the child’s finger should move to make the symbol and beneath the numeral is a simple two word caption such as eight bees, together with the appropriate amount to dots. There are two counting practice pages the first from 1 to 5, the second from 6 to 10 and the final spread invites little ones to count the brightly coloured butterflies depicted.

The ABC book allocates a single page to each letter of the alphabet showing how to write both the capital and lower case letters and there’s a fun illustration by Laura Silveira, the subject of which begins with the relevant letter for example, B b is for bus.
Gentle, playful learning for very young children.

Family
Patricia Hegarty and Britta Teckentrup

From gorillas grooming to magnificent manatees and diving dolphins, little humans can find out about the unusual habits of creature parents and their families.
Patricia Hegarty’s lyrical rhyming text evokes calm and Britta Teckentrup’s gorgeous scenes of the creatures in their natural habitats bring to life the multitude of ways that animals nurture, support and protect one another.

There are die-cuts that allow young humans to peep through the board pages, and each turn of the page reveals a different landscape be it snowy, watery, forest or savanna, somewhere in the world.

If you’ve ever wondered what ‘family’ means to polar bears, this board book is for you and your young child. With Patricia’s gentle narrative this is ideal to share at bedtime.

Goat: Greatest of All Time / The Floofs: Bring the Magic

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Goat: The Greatest of All Time!
Karelle Tobias, illustrated by Harry Briggs
Little Tiger

When Goat arrives at Harmony Farm calling himself the Greatest of All Time, it’s not long before his supreme self-confidence has ruffled the feathers of Rooster, and offended Horse, the best dancer in the district. There follows an epic dance battle with P-I-G controlling the music and this brings Goat’s extravagant claims under pressure; perhaps he’s not the greatest dancer after all. Maybe he’s G.O.A.T at sheep herding or acting as security G.O.A.T. Perhaps not. What about Egg Hatcher then? Soon some serious squabbling breaks out and Goat’s assistance is called for. But can harmony ever be restored at Harmony Farm? I wonder …

A crazy graphic novel that is ideal for lower KS2 class collections.

The Floofs: Bring the Magic
Penelope O’Neill
Frances Lincoln Children’s Books

The Floofs return with three further adventures. The first finds Wizard’s house digging a hole in the sand. why might that be? Turns out that it’s nesting and suddenly the house stands over the hole and lays an egg. The egg cracks open to reveal a tiny house out of which pops a tiny wizard . Wizard is delighted at the prospect of an apprentice of his own. New he might be, but Tiny Wizard can already do spells including conjuring up an awesome sand castle. Several spells later, Wizard no longer feels that he’s the best wizard there is. Is there a way they can work together and will Wizard’s friends still love him despite his not being THE best?

The second story starts with the Floofs disappointed at the constant rain. However they decide to brave the elements, so they grab their umbrellas and sally forth to visit Teazle. Soon, sans their umbrellas snatched away by the wind, and sheltering beneath a tree, they are soaked through and on the point of going home when a door appears out of nowhere. Dill recognises it and the three enter. Wizard finds a button, presses it and a face appears calling itself The Void Support. The voice asks them what a perfect day would be like and each one tells it something completely different. Things get complicated, the room increasingly chaotic and eventually The Void is really fed up. Can those Floofs turn things round so the day ends happily for all concerned? Maybe, with some chocolate cake to help things along …

In the third adventure Leaf and Clementine set off to Fungus Forest where Leaf hopes his friend will help collect mushrooms. They enter a cave and Clementine is about to start plucking when a voice cries, “I’m Felicity the Fairy Floof and those mushrooms belong to us!” The fairy tells them that only their queen can give out mushrooms and offers to take her to see her majesty. The Queen offers Clementine a deal but should she accept? If so what would be the outcome?
Clementine learns a valuable life lesson from this experience.

What will those Floofs get up to next, their many fans will be wondering.

When You Meet My Friend

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When You Meet My Friend
Mark Sperring and Marisa Morea
Little Tiger

This is a story about being a new member of a school community and a kind narrator who does their utmost to ensure the newcomer feels at home.

First off that newcomer needs to know where to hang their coat and having done that, find a place to sit with the other children for a carpet time learning session. Come snack time it could feel uncomfortable to sit with strangers: a friend is what’s needed – somebody to encourage that new special friend to feel part of things such as art, music, the lunch session and the playground games that follow. Maybe by the afternoon that new friend is ready to demonstrate their prowess at some PE skills.

They are sure to appreciate the budding friendship you are nurturing and after enjoying story-time just prior to going home, your brand-new pal would like to hear how much they will be missed as they run through the school gates to meet the waiting parent who is accompanied by a four-legged friend.

With its amusing final twist, Mark Sperring’s text reads aloud well and together with Marisa Morea’s playful scenes showing the ripple effect of friendship on that first day, this book is sure to make young children in a similar situation feel reassured about what’s to come.

The Secrets of Wild Hill: A Pony’s Promise

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The Secrets of Wild Hill: A Pony’s Promise
Olivia Tuffin
Nosy Crow

This second book in the series begins in late July when the summer holidays have started. Lottie is lying on her back in a field near her home mulling over what has led to her relationship with her beloved Patch being damaged as well as that between herself and her friend Felix. The boy, so she’s discovered, has been reporting to his grandfather, the thoroughly malicious Ralph McCavendish, on her family’s plans for Wild Hill. But then Felix sends her a message requesting that the two of them meet for a talk. She agrees and when he tells her of a strange happening involving his grandfather, she decides to forgive him.

The two then focus their thoughts on training their respective ponies for the forthcoming events. However Felix continues talking about family matters to Lottie as well, and it’s evident to her that their families have in the past been more closely intertwined than either Felix or Lottie knew previously and that Lottie’s grandmother, Annie, may well know what happened.
Add to this, her worries about re-building her bond with Patch, plus the concern that her parents appear determined to sell Wild Hill: Lottie has a lot to contend with.

Fortunately for her though, Annie is always ready to offer her support and encouragement and this means that Lottie is determined to fight tooth and nail for what she has set her sights on. Can big brother Harry do anything to rescue Wild Hill?
What about the entrance exam that her Dad is eager Lottie retakes? And what is going on with Issy, another member of the riding team?

An intriguing story that immediately grips the reader, keeps you involved, rooting for Lottie and her beloved Wild Hill to the final page. I can’t wait for the next book The Lost Horse coming soon.

Come to the Park

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Come To The Park
Margaret Bateson-Hill and Suhayla Ibrahim
Alanna Max

This is essentially an ode to a park, a wonderful place to spend the day. A place that is absolutely bursting with things to do and things too see. Visitors might decide to spend some time on wheels be they cycle wheels, scooter wheels skateboard wheels, roller skaters, or in a wheeled buggy.

The park makes a great outdoor gym, a place to have fun and games with bats and balls or flying a kite. There’s the playground equipment for swinging, climbing and sliding.
It matters not the kind of weather, so long as you’re dressed appropriately. Said park is a dog walkers’ haven, a place to picnic, or to relax and meet friends, a place to watch wildlife and just resting a while. It offers sensory delights for eyes, ears and noses and yes. there’s always a time to bid farewell to friends you’ve met safe in the knowledge that tomorrow your favourite park will be there to offer fresh opportunities for fun and games.

Margaret Bateson-Hill’s upbeat rhyming text together with Suhayla Ibrahim’s inclusive scenes of park visitors of all ages enjoying themselves make for a book that cries out to be shared with young children at home in a playschool, nursery or any EYFS setting.


Beach School

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Beach School
Georgina Maw
GMC Publications

Many readers will be familiar with forest school but this book is something different and particularly timely with the summer break fast approaching. It’s a comprehensive and informative guide that is written by the Head of Education at The Final Straw, a charity dedicated to the health of the UK coastlines and hence covers pretty much everything about outdoor learning by the sea.

The book starts with explaining what beach school is, followed by the benefits of beach play, how to stay safe, how to behave responsibly and respectfully. Next comes a section entitled Beach Skills and covers tides and how to measure them, the wind, clouds, knots, building shelters, campfires and navigation, each subsection including one or more activities.
The second main section is Beach Discovery and it’s great to see that its opening spread is mindfulness. Two activities that particularly appealed to me are making journey sticks and building a crab structure.

There are also lots of games to play and a section is devoted to these.

With colour photographs and illustrations on every spread, this is a truly creative, inspiring book that highlights the benefits of being in the great outdoors, using a play-based approach to the wealth of learning opportunities it suggests, including the development of such skills as communication, concentration and problem solving as well as discovering information about the natural world.

Anybody working with primary age children should get themselves a copy of this book.

Wimbledon: From Tennis Action to Courtside Fashion

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This is written by guest reviewer, Emmanuelle Bramwell who loves to read about tennis.

Wimbledon: From Tennis Action to Courtside Fashion
Jessica Bumpus
Studio Press

This new book by journalist Jessica Bumpus is, in my opinion, an essential for Wimbledon fans. The title really does sum it up: a guide on everything you need to know.

The book starts off with a history of the sporting action, describing the tournament from its early days to today, with the fiercest rivalries to the longest match ever played, to the youngest and oldest winners. Then, it moves on to one of the most crowd-anticipated topics of The Championships: who is in the Royal Box? It covers the biggest icons that have been seen over the years, what they wore, and who they sat next to. After that, there is a history of the outfits worn by players at Wimbledon, providing information on the boldest looks there have been.

Next, the section titled ‘Remember When?’ sums up the most iconic moments from The Championships over time, such as the time when Steffi Graf received a wedding proposal! Finally, there are a few pages that explain what happens to the courts at the end of the tournament.

Complete with interesting facts and pictures on every page, the book did not disappoint and I would definitely recommend!

Squid Bits! That’s A Nice Hat!

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Squid Bits! That’s A Nice Hat!
Jess Bradley
David Fickling Books

It’s great to see a new graphic novel series emerging, this being the first book. Herein readers will find brief, bizarre comic strip tales featuring all manner of creatures named the ‘Doodles’ ie Dog, Cat, Lizard, Rabbit, Mouse and Goat – a motley crew if ever there was one. This crazy lot decide that to please the Squid they should make it a hat, but what kind and will one ever be completed?

One story that particularly ticked my fancy was The Magic Narwhal wherein said narwhal is eager to play tennis but every time a potential opponent appears it ends up impaled on the narwhal’s horn. The title of this is something of a misnomer I have to say. ’Why doesn’t anyone like me or want to play tennis?’the unicorn of the sea wants to know.

There are astonishing sections such as Squid Bits Horoscopes, The Red Panda: Nature’s Jerk, The Adventurer’s Guide #51: Jobs! and Stick Insect Romance. Readers never know what’s coming next and that’s all part of the fun. At the end, Jess Bradley gives some lessons on ‘How to draw the Squid Bits Way’ so everyone can have a go at making their own crazy comic strip.

This book is especially brilliant for visual readers and I imagine if you put a copy into a KS2 classroom there will be a queue of readers waiting for their turn to read it. What more can an educator ask?

Bim Blakes’s Hot Takes: My Pencil Case Doesn’t Define Me

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Bim Blakes’s Hot Takes: My Pencil Case Doesn’t Define Me
Tolá Okogwu
Puffin

Written in diary style, this book is ideal for readers in upper KS2 into KS3. It’s narrative voice – Bim’s – is one they’ll relate to immediately as she talks of such topics as getting that first bra, a skirt that’s way too long, on-going struggles with maths, having a first crush and friendship dramas aplenty.

Bim lives with her dad who does his best but often seems preoccupied and is a hopeless cook, her three brothers – Dami who is away at university most of the time and twin brothers Temi and Tayo who love to tease their sister. Their mum died three years ago from cancer, something that Bim especially hasn’t really got over (this is handled with sensitively); she does have two aunts who are very loving but their strong opinions sometimes drive Bim crazy.

Key themes – self-esteem, identity and peer pressure are explored mainly through humour whereas the grief is handled more gently.

With to-do list items concluding every day, humorous line drawings by Ariyana Taylor, occasional affirmations and the ‘Besties That Slay Group Chat’ as part of the narrative, there is so much to enjoy about this one and I strongly recommend it both as an independent read or a year six class reader. The next instalment is coming in January 2027 – I can hardly wait.