Author jillrbennett

Playing the Game

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The Very Cold, Freezing, No-Number Day
Ashley N. Sorenson and David Miles
Familius
Talking numbers are certainly an innovative device for reader engagement, particularly when they send out a desperate-sounding cry across what looks like a snowy landscape. Who can resist that plaintive H -E-E-E-E–L-L-L-P-P-P-P–! plea as the numbers fall from the clocks and are scattered across the ground?

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“We’re NUMB. B-B-B-BRRRRR!” they continue from the blocks of ice surrounding them … “Unless we warm up, time stops.” With such things as birthdays at stake, young children are unlikely to ignore the warning. Fuelled by their motivation to participate in the rescue, children free the numerals and with the thaw, the colours change from chilly blues and purples to warmer hues: greens, yellows, oranges …

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and tiger striped. Here they’re hiding among thick foliage, so counting, tracing and even soft blowing are required to further warm them up …

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until finally success – 20 is reached and it’s time to celebrate …

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David Miles’ clever use of colour transports readers from chilly climes to ferociously hot ones, as they’re swept along by their textually-driven actions.

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Let’s Play!
Hervé Tullet
Chronicle Books
Readers will find it hard to resist the invitation issued by the sunny yellow dot – a dot that enjoys exercise moreover – to join it on a journey filled with fun, feelings and a sense of freedom as it leaps, loops, lurches, hides, …

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hops and hurtles its way through, and on one occasion off – the book’s pages, encountering thrills, hazards and horrors in so doing.

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What makes this one work is the tacit pact made at the outset between painter Tullet and player, the reader, whose head even becomes a landing place for the errant dot at one point. Crazy but lots of fun nevertheless and a wonderful demonstration of creativity unbound.

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A Moose on the Loose & Some Monsters

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There’s a Moose on the Loose
Lucy Feather and Stephan Lomp
Nosy Crow
When Moose leaves his rural residence and heads for the big city, it’s not long before everyone therein knows there’s a MOOSE ON THE LOOSE. First port of call is the fire station through which he dashes, catching a fireman’s bucket on his antler as he goes. From there he visits a department store full of shoppers where he adds a wellie boot to the bucket on his antler and a shop assistant joins the fireman in the chase.
Imagine the mayhem a loose moose in a busy library can cause, especially when there are several book-filled floors but our moose isn’t hanging about here, particularly as he’s somehow managed to add a dictionary to the items attached to his antlers and now the librarian too is in hot pursuit. There’s no stopping our moose though as he dashes on, galloping madly through the museum, speeding through the supermarket, hurtling through the hospital, careering through the castle, sploshing through the swimming pool …

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sprinting through the school collecting all manner of objects upon those antlers and increasing the number of pursuers at each location. Then, he goes bounding through an apartment block …

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and up onto its roof where it seems his presence, though not that of all his pursuers, is awaited. Oh NO! Now it looks as if our rampaging moose has forgotten something; he certainly doesn’t seem full of the party spirit …

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Uh-oh – there he goes again …

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My readers were immediately sucked in to the action and eagerly dashed through the book following the footsteps of moose and then immediately turned back to the beginning and spent a considerable time exploring each detailed, action-packed spread. It’s absolutely full of comic scenarios such as the elephant having a hair do, the music lover in the library …

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and the impending trolley disaster on the supermarket ramp and if you are looking for a book that generates interactive talk between young children, then this one is definitely a good bet.
It has all kinds of potential in the classroom; for mapping, counting, positional vocabulary and more but most important, it’s enormously entertaining. I had to beg my copy back out of the hands of a group of enthusiastic children, and that surely speaks for itself.

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Monster & Son
David Larochelle and Joey Chou
Chronicle Books
We share in fun and games monster style as all manner of dads and their offspring engage in such activities as throw and catch …

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chase and tag, tickling, fishing, making music …

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building a hideout, telling jokes, piggy back riding and occasionally pausing for a snack.
These are the daytime activities of the mock-scary creatures –ghosts, ghouls, yetis, werewolves, dragons and the like – that inhabit this book. When the night comes and the moon shines bright, it’s no surprise to discover that their bedtime rituals are pretty much the same as those of humans – filled with love and gentleness – ahhhh!
In addition to the innocent-sounding rhyming narrative running through the book, there are stories aplenty to be found in Joey Chou’s digital illustrations rendered in suitably subdued hues. Indeed, it’s the mismatch between what is said and what is seen that is key here: The dragon laughter is such that it sets a castle blazing; the snack being gorged on is a car, the occupants of which look on helplessly …

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and the sea serpents’ ball game is causing boats to founder and capsize.

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A Brave Bear

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A Brave Bear
Sean Taylor and Emily Hughes
Walker Books
From the instant I set eyes on the cover of this one I knew I was going to love it: those two bears are adorable; and then to see that Sean Taylor has dedicated the book to Tove Jansson (writer of the Moomins stories) was indicative of a possible influence. So I came to this with high hopes and I was beyond enchanted.
“I think a pair of hot bears is probably the hottest thing in the world,” says dad bear as father and son are attempting to shade themselves beneath a tree on a scorcher of a day. The cub (who acts as narrator) suggests going to the river for a splashy cool down; Dad agrees and off they go. The journey is quite a long one and little bear, determined to impress his Dad, goes for being “the jumpiest thing in all the world!” as they cross the rocks, ignoring the paternal advice to “Be careful. Just do small jumps.” Inevitably, this is what happens …

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but Dad is there to attend to the hurt knee, the wounded pride and the reluctance to complete the journey, even offering to carry the cub.

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Anxious to prove himself, Little Bear however is having none of it – “… I decided to go on my own.” he informs readers and resolutely, he does, all the way there …

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The concise narration concludes thus: ‘On the way home, the sun was glowing. The air was glowing … Even tomorrow was glowing.’ I’m pretty certain both father and cub were glowing too – glowing with pride: the narrator at his achievements, and Dad bear at his offspring for overcoming his trepidations and seeing things through to the end and one suspects, learning from his own mistakes.
This is one of those books that leaves you with a warm inner glow. The parent-child relation (attentive adult allowing the offspring to be a risk-taker) is beautifully portrayed both verbally and in Emily Hughes glowing, superbly textured scenes into which she places the shaggy-coated characters.

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A truly felicitous author/illustrator partnership if ever there was one and a picture book to be read over and over and …

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Super Stan & Steven Seagull – Action Heroes

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Super Stan
Matt Robertson
Orchard Books
Meet two very different brothers, Jack and Stan. The latter always seemed to be the centre of attention, which is hardly surprising as he excelled in everything; moreover he had an AMAZING superpower enabling him to …

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You can imagine how this made Jack feel on the 364 days of the year when it wasn’t his birthday; but surely young Stan wouldn’t do anything to spoil his big bro’s special day would he? He’s certainly very excited and that’s before he starts …

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Not to mention wrestling with a lion and engaging in a game of soccer with the giraffes …

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Jack is not happy.
Suddenly though, a scream pierces the air, a scream the significance of which only Jack knows.

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At last it’s his turn to do something that puts him in the limelight for a change; something that proves to be a turning point in the relationship between Jack and Stan …
Choosing a suitably limited colour palette in keeping with the superhero theme, Matt Robertson delivers spread after spread full of comic humour. Don’t you love the way Jack deftly snatches Stan’s teddy from the clutches of the bear, for instance…

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Altogether a super debut picture book.

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Steven Seagull Action Hero
Elys Dolan
Oxford University Press
Steven is a seagull – a retired cop so we are told. Now there’s a crazy scenario if ever there was one. But it seems his retired status is about to change: his ex-partner Mac, needs his assistance and he needs it right away to assist in the search for Beach City’s sand thief. The two consult …

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and then head off to the scene of the crime in search of likely suspects.
First stop Harry’s ice-cream van but Harry has an alibi so it can’t be him. Nor is it Lola the lifeguard – her day’s been spent saving not digging but what about Rick? Looks like he’s a reformed character although his volleyball skills need a bit of polishing. Steven is at a loss but who is the builder of this magnificent edifice?

 

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Bingo! It’s the handiwork or rather claw-work of Claude Von Crab and he has weapons of destruction up on those ramparts.
Can Steven pull out all the stops and save the day? Perhaps, with a little female assistance …

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Totally off the wall but this one did appeal to my sense of the ridiculous – particularly this throwaway comment of Mac’s …

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Party Time with Teeny-Weeny Queenie & Nina

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Teeny-Weeny Queenie
Claire Freedman & Ali Pye
Scholastic Children’s Books
I was sent a very early proof of this and it was read to destruction in no time by the group of enthusiastic under 6s that I shared it with. The book’s narrator is would-be monarch, young Queenie who, in her opening speech announces herself as having a very BIG plan – to be Queen when she grows up. Her parents try their best to dispel this notion but young Queenie’s having none of it and we discover that she has already started her queenly practices.
There’s that treasure-filled Royal Handbag …

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a Lady-in-Waiting to be brought up to scratch …

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and a royal tea party to organise – with or without little sis.

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This involves a great deal of baking, not to mention the appointment of a Special Royal Footman and then finally the big p-day arrives. What ensues isn’t quite what her royal majesty intends but that said, young Queenie makes a vital regal decision that is entirely appropriate in the event and learns a very important royal lesson to boot.

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Both words and pictures are an absolute delight from cover to cover – and back again!

 

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An After Bedtime Story
Shoham Smith and Einat Tsarfati
Abrams Books for Young Readers
It’s bedtime for young Nina – well that’s the plan but no sooner have her parents tucked her up and crept away than she’s up and demanding hugs and kisses and worse. Refusing to take no for an answer, the young miss is bounding out of her room to join the adult party where she very quickly becomes the centre of attraction as she samples the tasty treats …

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tinkers with the tumblers …

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and even baths her doll in the bowl of punch.

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The noisy goings on wake her younger sibling and before long there’s not one but two tinies on the scene, ignoring their parents’ “Go to bed” instructions, directing the fun and games, and eventually, leaving their exhausted Mum and Dad collapsed on the sofa. At least they join in the clearing up though.

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Tsarfati’s droll illustrations, executed in a limited colour palette are absolutely full of humorous details showing so much more than is said in Smith’s rhyming couplets. Nina is one bundle of mischief and, the fact that at the start she’s shown in bed sporting necklace and tiara, rather give one the impression that she’s planned the whole thing all along.
It’s probably best not to share this one with youngsters just before bedtime: let them enjoy the fun earlier on in the day or it might just give them ideas of the Nina kind.

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Chimpanzees for Tea!

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Chimpanzees for Tea!
Jo Empson
Puffin Books
With a nod to Pat Hutchins (Don’t Forget the Bacon) and a wink to John Burningham (The Shopping Basket) , Jo Empson conjours up a delicious story of a shopping trip undertaken by young Vincent at his mother’s behest. Concerned at the emptiness of the kitchen shelves, she sends him off to the shops, with the instruction to buy …

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and hurry home for tea!”
Off zooms the boy in his super go-cart, dashing past Mr Singh …

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but as he does so, the shopping list is whisked up in the air and far away leaving Vincent desperately trying to recall the items requested. Thus begins a frantic dash over hill and dale with him becoming increasingly muddled as he is distracted by what he sees on his journey – a big top,

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the zoo and a pet shop …

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his repeated chantings reflecting the places he passes.
By the time he gets back home, Vincent has managed to acquire a whole menagerie of guests, large and small and then there is nothing for it but to invite them all inside for …

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Wonderful Chinese whispers style rhyming word play combine with pacey illustrations that are full of vim and vigour. Observant listeners will notice the presence of a certain pigeon with the lost list chasing after Vincent throughout the whole farcical foray and delight in the opportunities to join in with chanting the list litany.
To be sure, another tasty treat from Jo Empson.

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Clothes and Countryside ABCs

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D is for Dress-Up
Maria Carluccio
Chronicle Books
Wonderfully playful: every page in this delightful alphabet book is a starting point for discussion or storying. What is being made by the cook wearing that apron on the A page?

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Who are the children sporting the bow and bow tie illustrated for B? Where are they going?
On what occasion will the ensemble be worn?

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Indeed Maria Carluccio’s digitally rendered scenes celebrate the world of clothing and fabrics for a whole variety of occasions from costumes to be worn for Hallowe’en to glasses and underwear for every day use.
There are also activity-related items such as leotards and yoga pants …

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and I like the way fabric-related words such as quilted, and polka dots & pinstripes

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are included in addition to articles of clothing.
An unusual choice of theme for an alphabet book but it’s one that works, although one might want to quibble about ‘neckties’ for instance (I guess this is in use in the USA) and none of the clothes featured on the overalls page equates to the UK definition of the word. All in all though, this is certainly worth adding to any early years book collection; and it could be a good starting point for children to collaborate on their own ‘Dress-Up” alphabet.

For a slightly younger audience is:

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ABC A Walk in the Countryside
Rosalind Beardshaw
Nosy Crow
In this charming alphabet book, published in conjunction with the National Trust, we accompany two small children on a gentle stroll in the country. There are frequent pauses to observe …

 

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to play,

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and sometimes to be observed too.

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Every spread has plenty to engage and to discuss with youngsters around the same age as the two walkers; and the sturdy board book format should stand up to the enthusiastic handling it’s likely to receive.

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Tidy

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Tidy
Emily Gravett
Two Hoots
Meet Pete – an unlikely name for one of his kind. This forest dweller is a tidiness fanatic: he detangles fox’s fur, grooms all the birds, sweeps, vacuums …

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and even polishes the rocks. Autumn is a particularly trying time for our badger friend.

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But our zealous leaf sweeper-upper hits upon what looks like the perfect solution to the ‘bare and scrappy’ trees he’s left with.

 

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But then, down comes the rain which becomes a flood with its inevitable aftermath …

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I don’t think those particular tools are going to cut it Pete!
No matter: here comes another of those practically perfect solutions …

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How though is Pete to satisfy his longing for a well-deserved treat, let alone get into his sett? …

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Time for a spot of hunger-induced thinking I suggest, and come morning operation restoration is in full force …

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With its gift-to-the-reader-aloud, rhyming text and an abundance of visual humour, Emily Gravett’s latest offering is an example par excellence of how such vital themes as the importance of forests and the dangers of deforestation can be delivered without the tiniest bit of preachiness creeping in. What we have here is a wonderfully funny cautionary tale of the environmental kind, that is bound to delight young listeners and those who share it with them equally.
There is so much to discuss, and to see in the details of the scenes …

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(including the gorgeous panoramic cover and lovely endpapers) you’ll need several readings to begin to do justice to this one.

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There’s a Tiger in the Garden

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There’s a Tiger in the Garden
Lizzy Stewart
Frances Lincoln Children’s Books
What would your reaction be if somebody told you there was a tiger in the garden? Dismissive – pretty much the same as young Nora’s, I expect.
When Nora complains of boredom on a visit to her Grandma’s house, her Gran. suggests she go and play in the garden: “I thought I saw a tiger there earlier.” she tells her … “And dragonflies the size of birds and plants that can …” Reluctantly, accompanied by her pal Jeff the Giraffe, off goes Nora outside muttering to herself when Whoosh! something whizzes right past her nose …

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Slightly impressed by what she discovers but still dismissive of the whole nonsensical suggestion of cannibalistic plants, polar bears and tigers, our young heroine urges Jeff to go home but seemingly one of the plants has designs on a Jeff snack …

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Having duly rescued Jeff, Nora remains unconvinced about the polar bear and tiger until that is, she hears a rather gruff voice and sees …

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Nora’s grumpiness is by now almost equal to the polar bear’s (she’s had to accept him too of course) as she asserts “there is absolutely, definitely one hundred per cent no … “

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That is only a part of this terrific tale; for the rest you’ll need to get hold of a copy of your own: it’s a delight from cover to cover. The dialogue is absolutely spot on: “Um … Tigers don’t live in gardens,” says Nora. “Are you real?” “I don’t know,” says the tiger. “Are you?” …

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“I have an idea,” says the tiger. ”If you believe in me, then maybe I’ll be real.” “And if you believe in me,” says Nora, “then maybe I’ll be real too!” … helping to make this a wonderful read aloud. And, it’s also a great book for those teachers who use ‘Community of Enquiry’ approaches in their primary classrooms.
I love the way the lush vegetation of Grandma’s garden takes on an increasingly jungly appearance the more Nora forays among the plants – seemingly Nora’s imagination is taking over despite her scepticism; and the animals in those gorgeous paintings would surely convince the most ardent of disbelievers. Oh! And there’s a delicious final twist in the tale too.
With a debut picture book as good as this one, I can’t wait to see what Lizzy Stewart does next.

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Magical Journeys of the Night

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Before I Wake Up …
Britta Teckentrup
Prestel Publishing
As she sails away on a flying bed, a little girl narrator takes readers on her dream journey into the glowing moonlit world and, pausing first to take on board her lion friend, into her imaginary ‘world without end’. Cares and worries are left far behind as – child enfolded in Lion’s strong arms – they weather storms …

 

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then rock gently on calmer waters. Leaving Lion aboard the boat, the little girl swims with whales and other marine animals …

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and then the two are transported into a wood dark and deep – a wood full of wild creatures that wander free …

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creatures that present no danger to the narrator. For with her protective lion always close at hand, she feels fearless and longs to remain in the murky world on the shadowy forest. But as morning light begins to show, it’s time to flee from dark and move into the bright of day’s dawn; time to bid a fond farewell to her furry nocturnal friend, safe in the knowledge that after another day, his arms will always be there waiting to welcome her once more.

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I’ve long been a fan of Britta Teckentrup’s work but this one might just be my favourite. Imagined worlds are conjured into being in her wondrous dreamy scenes rendered in a glowing collage style that is densely layered and alternates between rich earthy hues …

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and more subdued ones.
Share this one at bedtime, morning time, any time, but share it you must, it’s a real beauty.

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Goodnight Spaceman
Michelle Robinson and Nick East
Puffin Books
It’s bedtime and we join two small child narrators as they bid goodnight to the various items in their small world space set,

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putting them carefully into the toy box at the end of the day. Then having also bid goodnight to their father’s rocket ship deep in space, the children embark on an imaginary flight far out into the darkest world of outer space. There, they rendezvous with the space station –

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meet the crew …

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and with their dad, enjoy a space walk addressing the extra terrestrial sights as they go. ‘Goodnight Neptune. Goodnight Venus. Goodnight light years in between us. Rocket ships and shooting stars. Saturn, Mercury and Mars.’
All too soon though, it’s time to return to earth and snuggle down in their cosy beds with thoughts of their spaceman dad ever in their minds.
Inspired by the mission of British astronaut Tim Peake, who himself has two young sons, this lyrical space odyssey will delight young listeners around the age of the two protagonists who will revel in the adventure at bedtime or anytime. In all my years of teaching young children I’ve not come across many who do not take delight in space stories and play with small world space theme toys. Let’s hope that this book will, as Tim Peake suggests in his introductory letter to readers, ‘inspire a new generation of boys and girls to look up at the stars and not just ask questions but to go there and seek answers of their own.’ Nick East’s dramatic illustrations should certainly go some way to fuelling that inspiration and their imaginations.

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Tufty/The Grumpy Pets

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Tufty
Michael Foreman
Andersen Press
Subtitled ‘The Little Lost Duck who Found Love’ this story starts in the grounds of Buckingham Palace where we meet a family of ducks and in particular the youngest, Tufty who we are told ‘always struggled to keep up.’

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The Royal residents of the palace – the Royal Duck and Duckess – (looking decidedly like the feathered residents) feed the duck family when they take their lakeside perambulations and keep them entertained with grand parties in the palace ballroom.

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With winter fast approaching, it’s time for the ducks to fly south to warmer climes Father Duck announces, and very soon, they’re on their way. Unable to keep up, Tufty is left behind and flies down to a subway on a traffic island where he discovers a kindly homeless man. The man takes Tufty back to his makeshift shelter in a hollow tree and there he looks after him …

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right through the long winter months.
Come spring, Tufty is much bigger and stronger and one day he sees his family overhead flying back to their lake in the palace grounds. Tufty joins them and as the number of ducks on the palace lake increases day by day, he notices one particular little duck that takes his fancy. Soon after, the two of them return to the lake in the woods where the kindly man warmly welcomes them.

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Foreman’s glowing watercolours are unfailingly wonderful, particularly in their portrayal of the contrasting scenes of the lush green palace grounds and the high-rise blocks of the city skyline; and the rainy urban roundabout and the peaceful hollow chestnut tree abode of the man beside the small lake.
Readers and listeners will warm to the plight of left-behind Tufty and the kindness of the man who gives him shelter and food, despite having very little of his own.

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The Grumpy Pets
Kristine A. Lombardi
Abrams
When a mother takes Billy and big sister Sara to Perfect Pets, the animal rescue shelter, it’s in the hope that it will give her somewhat disagreeable son something to smile about. Seemingly everyone else, including Sara, has managed to find their ideal pet …

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but young Billy remains decidedly sombre.

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Off he goes to look around the place, a place that seems full of happy animals, not his thing at all. But then he hears ’BARK!’, ‘GROWL!’, ‘Hisssss!’ which leads him to …

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and in particular one that’s ready to give as good as it gets and more …

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resulting in an “I’ll take him!” from Billy who knows when he’s met his match. Thus begins, one suspects, as we see boy and dog heading home, a wonderful friendship that will bring a whole lot more smiles where Billy is concerned.
Populated by endearing characters human and animal, this is a warm-hearted story of mutual rescue that is most likely to appeal to pooch lovers and those who sympathise with small, sometimes grouchy boys.

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Nibbles The Book Monster

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Nibbles The Book Monster
Emma Yarlett
Little Tiger Press
Emma Yarlett creates metafictive magic and mayhem with her latest character – a certain munching, crunching book monster, aka Nibbles, no less. He inhabits – or is supposed to inhabit – the book of the title but because of his particular penchant for all things literary …

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he’s chomped his way out and is already starting to invade …

 

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You can imagine the reaction of that bear trio when they arrive back from their walk to discover …

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But the little blighter has hastily removed himself from the scene and is visiting another cottage having first procured a cloak of a telltale hue.

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Seems he’s managed to make rather a hit with one of the characters there and totally transformed another. But oh dearie me, somebody in that book isn’t at all impressed with our show-stealing invader so he’s done another runner – in a vertical direction this time… and there made his mark in rather an indelicate spot (or should that be ‘bot’?) before hot footing it, or actually being escorted (thanks to that golden goose) right back where he started …

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Err …

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Well you can’t keep a good nibbler down – or in, can you? A cracking book through and through … and through… and …
Emma Yarlett’s best yet methinks.

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Some book monsters imagined by listeners before we shared the story.

 

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The Journey

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The Journey
Francesca Sanna
Flying Eye Books
Having worked in several London schools where asylum seekers and refugee families are part and parcel of the school community, I was privileged to hear some of their moving stories first hand. The author of this book has also heard and indeed collected such stories from people who have, for one reason or another, been forced to flee their homes and undertake long and dangerous journeys in search of safety. Her book is the result of that collection of personal stories and its author/illustrator has done the tellers proud. It focuses on one particular family of four that very quickly becomes three as the narrator’s father is killed in the war, leaving a frightened mother and her two children. It is their story  we share as they prepare to leave their home and undertake a perilous journey – the mother calls it a ‘great adventure’ – towards a ‘safe place’ where they can live free from fear and from constant danger.
Leaving at night so as not to draw attention to themselves, the family is on the move for days, gradually shedding material things as they go …

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and eventually reach the border. Here though, surrounded by forest and blocked by an enormous wall, they are stopped and told they cannot proceed.

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Sleep overtakes them and next morning having eluded the guards, they are approached by a man whom they pay to get them across and on to the next stage of the journey.
After a perilous boat voyage during which stories of monsters give way to stories of magic and kindness …

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finally land is reached once more and the three board a train, a train that crosses borders, heading they hope for a new place – a safe haven – where, like the birds that they watch from the train, they can start afresh  where a new story can begin.
It’s impossible to read this without having tears in your eyes, it’s so beautifully told; part of its power being in the simplicity of the telling; but it is the outstanding illustrations that hold such potence. There is that border guard towering menacingly over them and the trafficker shown as only an enormous silhouette …

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both in stark contrast to the loving mother enfolding her children within her protective arms in the border forest –

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such eloquence.
This truly is a story of our time and one that deserves a place on the shelves of every family, every educational establishment, every library, every place where people come together to talk and to share stories, Beautifully produced though one has now come to expect that from Flying Eye Books; however this one doesn’t shout quality, it embodies quality.

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Puzzling Pictures, Puzzling Words

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Now You See Me, Now You Don’t
Near, Far
Silvia Borando
Walker Books
Two more brilliantly playful titles in the minibombo series:
In the first we start with a line up of animals, large and small –

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after which two at a time they disappear into the coloured background leaving just their eyes and a tiny clue visible. Then comes the fun of trying to work out which ones are the ‘vanishers’ each time. The good news is, the animals don’t swap places so if you’ve a good visual memory, you’re pretty much ahead of the game until the final …

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no cheating now!
Near, Far is all about zooming in and zooming out. Seven animals are featured and each has three double spreads, the final one revealing the whole creature and I have to admit I only got two right the first time around. What would you say, this is?

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Or this?

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The amount of language these two unassuming little gems can generate is amazing; they’re ideal for sharing in early years settings or one to one with a child, especially those who need a bit of encouragement to talk.

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Guess Who, Haiku
Deanna Caswell and Bob Shea
Abrams Appleseed
An outdoor setting with a concatenation of riddles for young readers/listeners to solve is offered in this lovely, cleverly constructed introduction to haiku beginning with :
   new day on the farm
muffled mooing announces
   a fresh pail of milk.
Can you guess who from this haiku?
This question then recurs throughout the book for the other nine animal portraits …

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each animal posing another haiku …

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thus continuing the chain: riddling haiku, guess who? and turn the page discovery.
Bob Shea offers visual clues too – one for each riddle, and these as much as the verbal posers are likely to have youngsters delightedly calling out their guesses ahead of the vibrant pictorial revelations on the following page.
A final page gives a brief introduction to the haiku form – its structure and intentions.
All in all a thoroughly enjoyable and worthwhile addition to the poetry bookshelf.

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RESCUED! Hello Little Egg!/Hannah and Sugar

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Hello Little Egg!
Puffin Books
Come with me to Puffin Rock and meet some of its residents, in particular, Oona, her small brother, Baba and Mossy (he’s Oona’s best friend). One day while having a game of chase they come upon an unusual-looking rock …

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They speculate but it’s not a berry; an egg of some kind? Yes, but not one they recognise and thus begins their quest to find its parents. Could it perhaps belong to some seagulls – there are certainly a lot of them around? Off go the three to return the egg to the seagulls’ nest on the cliff edge, which proves to be quite an exciting undertaking.

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On arriving at their destination however, a discovery is made – it’s the wrong nest: seagull eggs are brown. As the friends ponder their next move, the egg itself moves, …
hatches and immediately adopts Oona as its mother. Time to get going; but what’s that Karr! Karr! sound?

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Seemingly the new chick is eager to find out … Hurray! It’s the chick’s parents way down below and there’s only one way to travel that large distance – here goes …

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Then, mission accomplished, it’s smiles all round, a thank you fish from two happy parents, goodbye hugs from the little chick and off go Oona, Baba and Mossy all the way back home.
Satisfying and fun, this story has its origins in an animated TV series and the transition to book form works well. There’s plenty to discuss and a fair sprinkling of natural history information embedded within the delightful narrative.

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Hannah and Sugar
Kate Berube
Abrams Books for Young Readers
Hannah, the chief protagonist of this story has my sympathies; she’s afraid of dogs, even well behaved ones like Sugar who belongs to her pal, Violet P. This is somewhat unsettling as every day, come rain or shine, Sugar waits for Violet P. after school at the same bus stop Hannah’s dad waits for her. Her other school friends eagerly pet Sugar but Hannah is steadfast in her refusals as she clutches her dad’s hand proffering her polite “No, thank you,” each time.

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One day, Violet P. announces that Sugar’s gone missing and a neighbourhood search ensues but come nightfall there’s still no sign of Sugar. After dinner as Hannah sits outside pondering what it might feel like to be lost and alone,

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she hears a strange whimpering sound in the dark and on investigation, she discovers …

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Hannah’s instinct is to retreat but then she closes her eyes, she draws on her inner strength and courage, reaches out her hand and …
Needless to say everyone involved is delighted, as will readers be at the happy ending.
Illustrated in ink and paints, this debut picture book is a delight. Kate Berube’s scenes have an almost child-like quality about them, making the story all the more authentic and her use of empty space –

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is particularly effective in moving the concise narrative forward.

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Isaac and his Amazing Asperger Superpowers!

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Isaac and his Amazing Asperger Superpowers!
Melanie Walsh
Walker Books
Isaac is one cool character – a superhero no less. However, on account of his superpowers he’s not quite like his brother or fellow pupils, some of whom call him names from time to time. Isaac has ASD sometimes called Asperger’s Syndrome. Isaac’s brain is truly awesome – it’s able to remember fascinating facts and he loves to share these with others though not everyone is eager to hear them.

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He’s full of energy but prefers solo indoor activities rather than outdoor, muddy ones. Social interaction isn’t one of Isaac’s strongest points though he loves to spend time with his pets.

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In class, Isaac has his special toy to help him stay calm and focused. He takes what people say literally; he just doesn’t get figurative language but his ears are hypersensitive and this can upset him.

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So can looking into people’s eyes but his dad has taught him a special coping strategy for face to face encounters.
Isaac’s straightforward first person narrative allows him to tell young readers just how it is for him in a way that is accessible to young children, many of whom are likely to encounter someone with an ASD in their own school. His upbeat voice keeps the tone light and the focus is on the positive aspects of his condition though it doesn’t avoid its challenges. Melanie Walsh beautifully portrays the various aspects of Asperger’s that Isaac talks about in her bold, uncluttered illustrations.
This book is a must for all early years settings and younger primary classes and all power to Walker Books for publishing it on their picture book list.

Girls with Asperger’s Syndrome tend to present the condition very differently from boys and can often slip through the net when it comes to an ASD diagnosis. However, they too have unique strengths and their differences should also be discussed and celebrated. Here’s a very useful little book that does just that:

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I am an Aspie Girl
Danuta Bulhak-Paterson and Teresa Ferguson
Jessica Kingsley Publishers
Here we meet Lizzie. In a first person narrative, she explains ASD from her own perspective and talks about how Aspie girls are different from boys with AS and are good at blending in with other girls though this is tiring to keep up all day at school. “It’s like being an actress, I guess where school is the stage,” she says.
Lizzie also discusses her special creative interests, her worries about making mistakes, her acute sensitivity to her own feelings. Sensory sensitivities are another challenge be they to tastes, sounds, things that touch such as particular scratchy clothes or as in Lizzie’s case, smells.

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Lizzie has a special animal friend, her dog, with whom she finds sharing her feelings easy. (This is something she has in common with many boy Aspies, as are reading people’s facial expressions and playing in a group and encountering changes.)
In addition to Lizzie’s straightforward account, sympathetically illustrated by Teresa Ferguson,  there are several very helpful pages aimed at adults who might be sharing the book with an Aspie girl. Let’s end with Lizzie’s own very positive parting words though: ‘My teacher tells me that I have a great future ahead of me, with many wonderful talents to show the world!’

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Potties and Pyjamas

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Skip to the Loo, My Darling!
Sally Lloyd-Jones and Anita Jeram
Walker Books
If you’re looking for a ‘potty’ book then look no further; this one’s a cracker.
I have to admit though, I thought the agitated-looking bunny pressing his paws down hard on the balloon on that first spread was attempting to change its shape so he could wee into it. But how wrong was I; he just picks up the string and leads the line of small – and not so small – animals skipping to the loo.

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Close behind come drumming pup, bouncy Kangaroo (he’s hitching a lift in mum’s pouch), a dodo – yes really, a friendly frog,

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piglets, an elephant, and a whole host of others …
And seemingly the whole lot of them are in urgent need by the time they reach the venue

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but it looks like they’ve all made it – just in time, PHEW! Now there’s just one guest missing at that potty party …

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An inset mirror invites readers – the toddler variety I hasten to add – to participate and do as the text suggests, ‘Come on, /come, my darling!/ You come, too! ‘
Anita Jeram’s delectably exuberant watercolour illustrations perfectly capture the upbeat mood of the rhyming text making the whole potty experience something everyone wants a part of.

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Elephant’s Pyjamas
Michelle Robinson and Emily Fox
Harper Collins Children’s Books
When Elephant receives an email inviting him to a pyjama party he’s delighted but then he discovers that his pals all have seemingly perfect pjs,

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whereas his night attire looks decidedly past its best. Taking Llama’s “Just go shopping!” advice, Elephant heads into town but no matter how hard he tries, it seems nothing is quite right for such a large animal.
There’s only one thing for it, our pachyderm must turn down the invitation after all – and, he does.
His friends however, won’t take no for an answer and straightaway operation pyjamas is put into action and come Saturday night when Elephant sits sadly at home,

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there’s a ring on his doorbell …
With Elephant and his friends communicating on line via ZOOGLE, this amusing book is definitely a 21st century story. I love the way Elephant becomes a divergent thinker when he ‘shops around’ for suitable party wear.

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That spread in particular appealed to this reviewer and the audience I shared it with.

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Take Off with Mango & Bambang and Claude

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Mango & Bambang: Tapir All at Sea
Polly Faber and Clara Vulliamy
Walker Books
Calamitous at cake making and disastrous at dancing – ballet and free dance certainly,

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it seems Bambang is never going to find the right hobby to occupy him while Mango concentrates on her chess moves. But who is this and what can he possibly want?

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Seemingly there’s a lack of male partners in Sênor Churro’s Flamenco class and Bambang’s stomping, thumping trotters are just the thing when it comes to that particular Spanish dance. All that in the first story but there are three more in this cracking sequel to Mango & Bambang The Not-a-Pig.
There follows a crazy tale of misadventures that include Bambang crash landing onto a romantic picnic and accidentally becoming entangled in a marriage proposal

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resulting in an accusation of causing ‘Havoc and being a Public Nuisance’ and his removal to the local dog pound. All ends magnificently though with Mango being granted this:

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and Bambang making a new friend of the canine kind.
An old enemy making a reappearance in the third tale which sees Bambang beguiled into becoming the chief exhibit in her new venture …

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with astounding consequences; and in the final adventure, as a result of his actions in the museum, Bambang is now headline news and something of a celebrity dancer of the flamenco. The trouble is he lets fame got to his head and finds himself setting sail on board a luxury liner leaving Mango and all things familiar far behind. Will they ever be reunited?

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I won’t be a story spoiler but suffice it to say, Bambang’s new doggy friend Rocket reappears and Bambang is no mean swimmer.
If you know any youngsters just taking off as confident solo readers, then this is the book: funny – indeed wonderfully eccentric with a superb narrative full of delicious dialogue – ‘Mango stopped long enough to say, “He has the beautiful feet of a tapir, NOT a mammoth, and they’re not stampeding. It’s your silly dance that’s all wrong!”, then she ran after Bambang.’; a perfect balance between text and pictures with Clara’s distinctive retro style illustrations bringing delight at every turn of the page. She’s brilliant at capturing ‘the moment’ and every single picture, large or small, oozes charm and vitality.

Another corker of a book for that taking off stage is

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Claude Going for Gold
Alex T.Smith
Hodder Children’s Books
Our beret-wearing pooch is back for yet another adventure along with best friend Sir Bobbysock of course. On this particular day Claude has woken up full of joie de vivre and having created havoc with the breakfast cereal, heads off with his pal to the great outdoors. Before long though they conclude that there’s a decided lack of adventure around; then all of a sudden Claude trips over his own shoelaces and cascades into a marching band that is accompanying these characters

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on their way to participate in the STONKING BIG SPORTS DAY at the local stadium. Finally, something to get excited about and all the more so when Claude himself is given a pair of sports knickers …

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and invited to participate. His shot put skills however leave more than a little to be desired, his sprinting ends in disaster, he misses the swimming competition altogether and his efforts at gymnastics are catastrophic. But then the trophy is seized by a pair of dastardly crooks and there’s only one person – or rather animal – that can possibly save the day …

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Glorious!

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Little Red

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Little Red
Bethan Woollvin
Two Hoots
Ever since seeing the publisher’s press notices about this one last year I’ve been eagerly awaiting its arrival and boy was it worth the wait. That wolf is a wolf to beat all wolves,

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but not Little Red Riding Hood: wait I’m getting ahead of myself here. First off, let’s meet, clad as one would expect, the young miss, as she’s about to set off in the usual way through the woods to visit her poorly Grandma.

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Pretty soon, she’s accosted by this nosy creature demanding to know where she’s going; but is she bothered by the fearsome beast? No way! She replies politely and proceeds on her journey leaving wolfie behind with a plan in his tricky mind …

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Behind initially, but the cunning beast knows a shortcut so he hot foots it to Grandma’s making short work of her before Little Red arrives, donning her night attire and adopting what he hopes is a suitably Grandmotherly pose in her bed. ‘Which might have scared some little girls. But not this little girl.’
There’s no fooling our young heroine though; she immediately sees through his disguise and she too makes a plan. Then, playing along with all the usual “Oh Grandma! What big ears you have” etc. chat,

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and armed with a certain sharp implement she just happens to have picked up along the way, she calmly executes her own plan and off she goes back home to mum.

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I simply love the way the young heroine grabs hold of the story and subverts it to her own ends in Bethan Woollvin’s stonkingly brilliant debut picture book. The comic timing is spot on in this black comedy recreation of the nursery favourite making it one that will appeal to anyone familiar with the traditional story. Those arresting visuals will remain in the mind long, long after the book has been closed. Bethan’s narrative voice is pitch perfect and her title choice perfectly summarises her judicious use of colour in this otherwise black and white delight. Little Red will, I suspect, be much read.

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SWAP! or Shop?

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SWAP!
Steve Light
Walker Books
An encounter between a tiny pirate and an impoverished sea captain with a dilapidated ship is the starting point for this wonderful tale. The small swashbuckler is quick thinking and doesn’t miss an opportunity, so when he rescues a button that pops off the captain’s coat, it leads to an amazing chain of bartering as one button becomes two teacups,

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which become three coils of rope, two of which become half a dozen oars. Then, through a whole lot more mathematical manoeuvring, swapping and trading, our young hero manages to obtain flags,

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anchors, sails …

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a ship’s wheel and a figurehead. All this and not a single coin has changed hands; but what’s even more important, the whole ship is now absolutely ship-shape and the diminutive pirate has made himself a new friend for life.
Genius storytelling. Steve Light’s signature style intricately detailed black and white pictures with just a splash of colour here and there, and a brief text of judiciously chosen words combine to make a fun-filled book for sharing and for early reading, with ‘SWAP! ‘providing the opportunity for audience participation at every transaction and helping to build tension towards the entirely satisfying finale …

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It’s buying not bartering in:

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I Went to the Supermarket
Paul Howard
Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Most parents and teachers of young children will be familiar with the memory game on which this book is based. However, the two small players of the game herein have boundless imaginations and so their ‘purchases’ range from …

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and a cute baby elephant, through to …

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And then of course, there are more mundane items such as jelly – oh – make that a mountain of the stuff, not your average small packet. Remember that one though: it proves to be somebody’s undoing so to speak. Whoops! Nearly forgot those bubbles – they’re quite important too.
A totally ridiculous flight of fancy that’s sure to be lapped up by young audiences who will delight in the craziness of the whole thing so wonderfully visualised by Paul Howard, particularly I suspect, those super hero pants; they end up in the most unlikely of places. And, then there’s the fun of trying to recall all those purchases – no peeping allowed. For sheer ebullience, this one takes some beating.

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Life is Magic

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Life is Magic
Meg McClaren
Andersen Press
Meg McClaren and her bunny band weave a very special form of magic in this utterly enchanting book. Right from the start we’re in the hands of not one but two magicians, Meg and Monsieur Lapin. The latter is in need of a new assistant and to this end holds an audition, which in itself is something of a challenge. But then onto the stage steps Houdini and it seems the master magician has found the assistant of his dreams. This particular rabbit is ace at making his fellow bunnies feel part of the team …

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looking after their interests both before and after the show; nothing can possibly go wrong

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or can it? …

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Having taken up the wand so to speak, Houdini gets, shall we say, just a little carried away by his show stealing trick and pretty soon he’s become lord of misrule and mayhem. No matter, the crowds love him and come pouring in; the trickiness of the tricks escalates …

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and it seems Houdini is unstoppable.
But then the magic begins to fade so far as our star bun. is concerned: time to pull out all the stops for a final show-stopping trick to beat all tricks and …

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Let’s leave our brilliant cast of friends here with this wonderful life-affirming announcement …

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This magical show will hold readers spellbound throughout the amazingly accomplished performance. You really do need to get your hands on a copy to discover just how truly terrific this is: even the dust jacket is part and parcel of the magnificent production;

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Portion of the ‘Make your own Thaumatrope’ poster

and throughout the entire book are scattered wonderful posters and other theatrical ephemera. Chock full of captivating creatures of the rabbit kind, the whole thing exudes charm, wit and utter brilliance. For Meg McLaren, this will surely be a hard act to follow.

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Mood Musings

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Smile Cry
Tania McCartney and Jess Racklyeft
EK Books
This ‘Beginner’s book of feelings’ is really two books in one. We share reasons to smile courtesy of three pals – a cat, a piglet and a rabbit who have many things that bring on an upbeat, break into a smile feeling. There’s that ‘cosy under blanket smile’ – we all know that kind; the rather embarrassed ‘what to do now smile?’ – adults will be very familiar with this one; and the totally satisfied ‘ate all the pies smile’

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I think my favourites though are the ‘walking in the forest smile’

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and the ‘quiet with the nightlight smile’

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Turn the page and you’ll find the final ‘wrapped in a cuddle smile’ … and that’s the time to flip the book

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and share some tear-jerking moments with our friends.
Who doesn’t feel a bit tearful at the ‘ice-cream plopping down’

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and we all empathise with rabbit’s ‘Perhaps it’s lost cry’ and that ‘Goodbye cry”; and what about this one …

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It probably all depends, (though the gorgeous illustration almost brings tears to the eyes.) Jess Racklyeft has done a brilliant job imagining and illustrating Tania McCartney’s situations. Every single page brought a big smile to the face of this reviewer but then who could resist smiling over the tickle treatment or that totally satisfied, just stuffed my face smile of the three pals (not forgetting monkey).
Perfect for sharing with young children at home or in an early years setting. It’s certain to generate a great deal of discussion and is bound to bring on a whole lot of smiles; not too many tears though, I hope.

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The Very Grumpy Day
Alison Edgson and Stella J Jones
Little Tiger Press
What begins as a ‘perfect day’ for Mouse at least, soon becomes anything but as the kind-hearted creature goes off to deliver a yummy looking cake to his pal Bear. Bear meanwhile has grumped off in a foul temper upsetting every animal unfortunate enough to cross his path as he stomps on his way creating a chain of havoc in his wake.

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Eventually everyone in the clearing is in a mood as bad as Bear’s and to make things worse, the rain starts to fall.

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Thank goodness then, for Mouse’s offering, which Bear discovers on his return home; it sets off a second chain of action and reaction. This time though, everyone ends up with a big smile

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and the day concludes happily with sunshine and a story …
A gently humorous tale that demonstrates how easy it is to infect others with your bad mood and how much better to spread happiness instead; it’s just a matter of looking on the bright side. Alison Edgson captures those changing moods beautifully in scenes large and small.

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Patterns, Colours & Cars

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Pattern-Tastic Treasure Hunt
Technicolour Treasure Hunt
illustrated by Nan Na Hvass and Sophie Hannibal
Wide Eyed Editions
If you want to get young children observing, talking and thinking, then these two large format board books are superb. Cleverly designed with tabs down the side and chock-full of exciting things from the natural world, they’re certain to generate discussion and excitement. Pattern-Tastic focuses on flora and fauna that are spotty…

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stripy, spiky, speckled, have a spiral design or are wavy in some way …

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All superb examples of Mother Nature, designer.
Strikingly illustrated and full of counting opportunities too, there’s an invitation on every spread to find the odd one out –whose design breaks the theme.
Technicolour Treasure Hunt gives a spread to each of the primary colours plus pink, green, orange and purple. Each asks youngsters to find the ten named items of the particular colour,

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listing them opposite the question, ‘Can you find all of these eg. red things

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All Kinds of Cars
Carl Johanson
Flying Eye Books
Swedish artist Johanson take an every day item, the car, and puts a whole new spin on it in what is essentially a visual vehicular catalogue. Letting his imagination run riot, Johanson’ s opening spreads are entirely crazy offerings ranging from a ‘marmalade’ car to a blubbery looking ‘obese’ car on the first; then turn the page and we have these beauties:

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I’m not sure what the raison d’être for including the ‘English bus’ here was but assuredly there are some odd passengers aboard.
Next is a spread of fire-related rescue vehicles – real not imagined this time and they’re put into an action setting as are those on the next spread – a building site in this instance.

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This pattern is repeated through the book: two spreads of imagined cars – anyone for a ‘bed’ car?

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I just love the ‘toy’ car …

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but suggest steering clear of that ‘poo’ car – imagine sitting in that PHOAW! …

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I think my very favourite has to be the ‘book’ car but that ‘Mondrian’ car rather appealed to my sense of the ridiculous.

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And so we go on: there’s a farming vehicle spread, a building site, an airport page and a city street scene complete with dog poo collecting bike! As well as further flights of fancy of the car kind. There’s also an alphabetic index and end papers that positively cry out to be coloured in.
I had to use strong persuasive tactics to get this one out of the clutches of a group of 4s to 8s (mainly boys) who got their hands on my copy. I’m sure it will generate a whole lot of creative endeavours from readers. Think of the, dare I say it, FUN you could have with this one in a primary classroom.

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Forever Friends and Families

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When I First Met You, Blue Kangaroo
Emma Chichester Clark
Harper Collins Children’s Books
This is a new edition of I think, the 8th in the Blue Kangaroo series and here Lily, who has recently become a big sister to baby Jack, tells her beloved kangaroo friend how they’d both come into her life. First baby Jack to whom Lily, difficult at the outset though it proved, did her very best to be a good big sis. and then, courtesy of Grandma, Blue Kangaroo himself.

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Full of love, with its inherent themes of families, change and friendship. this book positively glows with colour and overflows with tenderness. If, like me you missed this gorgeous book the first time around, then do get a copy now; no family bookshelf is complete without it (and the other titles in the series). Also reissued along with this one are Where Are You, Blue Kangaroo? and Happy Birthday, Blue Kangaroo!

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Talking of kangaroos, new in paperback is

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Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother, Too?
Eric Carle
Harper Collins Children’s Books
In response to the narrator’s initial question, Carle replies, ‘Yes, a kangaroo has a mother./ Just like me and you.’ And so begins a chain of questions and answers, identical except for the name of the animal be it lion, giraffe, penguin, swan, bear, elephant or monkey, The repeat patterned, slightly singsong narrative makes this appealing to the very young and it might also serve as a book for beginning readers to try for themselves. Both will enjoy the characteristic Carle collage illustrations with their bright colours and distinctively textured animal images.

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A final question breaks out of the repeat patterned mould asking, ‘And do animal mothers love their babies?’ To which a satisfying albeit predictable ‘Yes! Yes! Of course they do. Animal mothers love their babies,/ just as yours loves you.’ response follows.
The final page offers a list of the specific names of the animal babies featured as well as the collective noun(s) for each animal group.

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Bunnies & Eggs

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Warning! This Book May Contain Rabbits!
Tim Warnes
Little Tiger Press
We first met the main characters of this book in Tim Warnes’ wonderful Dangerous! Now Mole (with his obsession for labelling things) and best pal and fellow labeller, Lumpy-Bumpy Thing, are back in a new story and still busy with those labels it seems.

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One day in the course of their ‘work’ Mole notices an unusual phenomenon – a snow bunny. Rather than be labelled, said bunny bounds away with the L-BT in hot pursuit. He duly returns some time later looking like this …

 

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But when he ignores the warning label on the titfer he unleashes rather more magic than he’d bargained for. Certainly he might have been in ‘Bunny heaven’ but Mole’s attempts to number the buns. so they could enjoy a game of Bunny Bingo were thwarted at every turn and still those bunnies just kept on coming – “97, 98, 99, 100!” And what’s more there was no getting rid of them. The bunnies burrowed everywhere and what was worse, started leaving their calling cards all over the place. That was before they, or rather, one of their number, 54 to be precise, spied Mole’s vegetable patch, in particular this …

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A tussle ensues with Mole emerging victorious and that leads to a mass stampede of the bunny kind

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and the eventual re-capture of the bunnies, albeit with a whole lot of carrot coercion followed by some nifty replacing of the troublesome topper, a spot of hasty labelling and …

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Oh no! Here we go again …
Like the label on one of the bunnies in the story, this book is likely to prove ‘irresistible’ to young listeners who will, if my experience is anything to go by, demand immediate re-readings of this bouncing tale of friendship, misadventure, labels (of course) and the dangers of not paying heed to some of them; and then of course, there are the bunnies … Hilarity abounds.

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We’re Going on an Egg Hunt
Laura Hughes
Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Unashamedly based on the traditional “We’re going on a bear/lion hunt’, Laura Hughes has created a picture book Easter egg hunt involving a family of rabbits. In their search for the ten eggs hidden in various locations in and around the farmyard they encounter some tricky things to deal with. There’s the field full of noisy lambs, an enclosure of cheeping chicks and then comes that field with the beehives.

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The search therein proves pretty fruitful and there’s a prickly pal to meet; but oh no! The bunnies have disturbed the bees and there’s nothing for it but ‘to go through them’ and keep on going down to the river and …

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Now they’ve found a whopper of an egg but …

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Time to make a dash for it, bunnies.
With all those lift-the-flap surprises to enjoy, ten eggs to discover and keep count of, a somewhat alarming encounter of the hairy kind and a whole host of small details for added interest, this will surely be a winner over the Easter season; and the enjoyment will last a lot longer than one of the objects of that search.

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Little Red Writing

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Little Red Writing
Joan Holub and Melissa Sweet
Chronicle Books
It’s Write On! Day at Pencilvania School, and all the little pencils, encouraged by their teacher, Ms. 2, are about to take the story path. There’s a buzz of excitement in the classroom as the pencils start thinking about their story ideas.

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Little Red decides her story should be about bravery and Ms 2 hands her a basket of red (noun) words telling her not to stray too far from the path and off goes the heroine on her writerly way. Before long though she decides that walking isn’t exciting enough for her narrative so she goes into the gym where a host of verbs help liven things up.

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But then she cartwheels clean off the page and into ‘a deep, dark, descriptive forest thick with adjectives.

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Feeling entangled by the adjectival foliage, she cuts her way out (thank you basket word) only to become stuck in a seemingly endless sentence.
Just in time though a truckload of adverbial assistance appears on the scene; assistance that quickly turns overwhelmingly exciting, causing our heroine to lose the plot and start scattering the contents of her basket all over the page, completely filling it.
Now what’s this tail doing on the next page? Surely a tail should be tailed, decides Little Red and off she goes on its trail all the way to …

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But that growly voice belongs not to Principal Granny but this lupine character,

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so it’s just as well that there’s one red noun left in Little Red’s basket and she puts it to use very effectively indeed…

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and just in time to save Principal Granny from complete oblivion …

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With its plethora of word play, Joan Holub’s text bubbles over with humour and Melissa Sweet’s collage, pencil and watercolour illustrations – an amalgam of classroom ephemera, calligraphy, and images of Little Red engaging in her storying adventure, are whimsical wonders.
An ingenious play on the Little Red Riding Hood tale, the whole thing is full to the brim with helpful advice for young (and not so young) writers. What better way to demonstrate ‘read before you write’. Every primary classroom should have a copy.

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Professor Astro Cat’s Atomic Adventure

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Professor Astro Cat’s Atomic Adventure
Dr Dominic Walliman and Ben Newman
Flying Eye Books
Professor Astro Cat is one cool guy; if only he’d been around when I was learning physics. His “join me” invitation is one not to be ignored as he takes his readers on an amazing journey of discovery.
First stop, Gravity. Very important – if it weren’t for that invisible force, we wouldn’t be on planet earth at all, we’d all be floating around in space.

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It’s also the reason the Earth and the Sun – this exerts a massive gravitational force keeping the planets in orbit – were created. Awesome!
Next is an explanation of the Scientific Method; key here is making a hypothesis. Plug for the imagination for without it, no hypothesis; and as we know, the biggest fueller of the imagination is literature. Of course one needs to test that hypothesis (scientific guess), observe, record results and compare hypothesis and results. A vital element of experimentation is Measurement be it of length/distance, time, temperature, weight and mass. Our Prof. sums it all up here …

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Next tricky question: What is everything made of? Atoms – yes but those break down into …

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Moreover, they exist in three forms (at room temperature that is) solid, liquid and gas and the different kinds of atoms are called elements; they’re what are organised on that chart you’re likely to find in a school science lab. the Periodic Table. Professor Astro Cat explains the significance of this nifty piece of documentation and much more in A World of Atoms before going on to discuss Metals, which is what most elements in that periodic table are, the others being mostly gases. Don’t you just love the playful juxtapositioning here:

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But then playfulness is the essence of this whole mind-boggling book. It would be impossible in a short review to mention all the exciting areas the Prof. explores but crucially he makes the world of physics so accessible and understandable. Of course, the explanations themselves are only one half of the equation. Ben Newman’s busy, retro style illustrations are bounties of graphic genius and it’s the amalgam of words and pictures that really makes this one such a cracker.
(One small mistake I noticed is that we’re told ‘A clover has 3 petals … ‘ It has 5; 3 is the number of leaves, strictly speaking, leaflets.) All in all though, a real blast, you might say.
But let’s give the Prof. himself the final say:

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Twinkle Tames a Dragon/Mamasaurus

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Twinkle Tames a Dragon
Katharine Holabird and Sarah Warburton
Hodder Children’s Books
In this, the third story of friendship, fun, frolics and all things fairy, young Twinkle has a yearning for a pet as do her pals Pippa and Lulu. Her wishing song is heard by the Fairy Godmother who duly grants each one a wish. Pippa’s pet is a butterfly; Lulu gets a ladybird and Twinkle? The ‘sweet little pet’ she’d anticipated turns out to be anything but cute and fluffy, rather it’s scaly, decidedly boisterous …

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and in need of a rather drastic training regime – Dragon Obedience Class no less. But can she tame him in time for that Fairy Pet Day her godmother had mentioned?
The day of the show dawns and Scruffy has certainly scrubbed up well; in fact he looks pretty darn cute, but winning a prize?

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He definitely isn’t the prettiest pet: Pippa’s butterfly wins that award and Lulu’s ladybird is the cleverest trickster but what about the best-trained pet? No chance surely; or maybe, just maybe …

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I know quite a few under sixes who will love this book though I have to admit they’re all female. Sarah Warburton’s illustrations are just quirky enough to be cute but not sugary sweet; they’re full of zany details that will delight adult readers aloud as well as young children – look at the expressions on the faces of those animals here …

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Don’t forget to have a good look at the endpapers too; you’ll find all the animal characters there.

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Mamasaurus
Stephan Lomp,
Chronicle Books
When Babysaurus accidentally loses his grip on Mamasaurus’s spine he’s launched into space

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and then finds himself in a heap of leaves but with no sign of his parent. So there’s nothing for it but to wander about in the jungle asking its other inhabitants if they’ve seen her. However, each one he asks only sees Mamasaurus with characteristics of their own parent. But she can’t run like the wind, doesn’t have a long horn, nor wings to fly as high as the sun,

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she’s much larger than tiny Hespero’s mama and she definitely doesn’t have the sharp teeth that Rexy’s mama has.

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Where, oh where is Babysaurus’s mama? I wonder what that loud noise might be …
The luminous colours of the various prehistoric creatures set against the black background really make the images stand out in Lomp’s striking brush pen and photoshop illustrations. The storyline reminds me somewhat of P.D.Eastman’s’ classic Are You My Mother but the visuals are altogether different.

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Tiger in a Tutu

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Tiger in a Tutu
Fabi Santiago
Orchard Books
Not so very long ago in Paris, so we are told, there lived a tiger by the name of Max. Now what on earth was a tiger doing in Paris you might well be wondering, but this particular tiger was not like your average wild cat; he was a much more cultured beast. Indeed he was a pupil at Ballet School, which he attended daily in the hope of furthering his dream of becoming a ballet dancer. Max however, didn’t have the usual garb – ballet shoes and tutu; all he had was ‘music in his heart’ and the determination to follow that dream. A dream that takes him pirouetting and prancing, leaping and twirling right to the very top of the tallest building in the city …

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Fantastic – definitely; but without an audience to see this great toe-teetering tiger, what chance does he have for fame and fortune? Hang on though; seems there’s one little dancer, Celeste who hasn’t disappeared and what’s more, she has a plan …

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Will his pliés and pirouettes be appreciated when he comes under the spotlight

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or are Max’s dancing days over before they’ve ever really begun? That would be telling …
A dazzlingly and uplifting tale of holding on to your dreams against the odds. With a background of Parisian splendour, Fabi Santiago’s retro style spreads are cracking scenes filled with tigery treats and (mostly) comical characters. A debut picture book par excellence for Fabi Santiago.

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Mabrook! A World of Muslim Weddings

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Mabrook! A World of Muslim Weddings
Na’ima B Robert and Shirin Adi
Frances Lincoln Children’s Books
Mahbrook, the title of this fascinating book means ‘congratulations’ (or I think, ‘you are blessed’) in Arabic, certainly a sentiment one would want to pass on to a couple who have just got married: ‘Muslims from around the world share the same religious rites, but they celebrate in different ways in the four corners of the world.’ We then visit various countries to get a glimpse of the particular celebration that might take place when Muslims living there get married.
First stop is Pakistan where there’s a pre wedding henna party in full swing:

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the bride’s hands and feet are being adorned with beautiful, intricate henna designs while family and friends enjoy some dancing. The following day, the groom rides in on a white horse, the bride, bedecked with gold, hides beneath her silks awaiting her husband to be. There’s a huge feast awaiting everyone once the baraat arrives and other formalities have taken place.
Morocco is the next wedding venue. There, weddings are community affairs when all the neighbours spend days cooking delicious food: couscous, roast lamb with olives and pickled lemons sufficient to feed the huge number of guests expected. The bride changes her dress seven times at the waleemah (feast for the community) into which she is carried by the crowds. There is much joy as the bride dances in a circle of song.

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Traditional Somali dance to drums music and song is part and parcel of a wedding in Somalia …

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In Britain the bride might wear a white hijab and have guests from many different faiths and backgrounds. Here’s one happy celebration:

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Those are just some of the ways Muslim weddings are celebrated but in addition to having the same rites there are formalities that will be common no matter where the celebration takes place: important family meetings and discussions, a marriage contract, conditions that must be respected, guidance is sought for a blessed union and the groom pledges the mahr be it gold, a home, a ring or whatever she wishes – a dowry for his bride to be, the ceremony, in front of witnesses, is performed by the imam.

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A new journey awaits the happy couple …
With its beautiful mendhi designs adorning the inside covers, glowing illustrations on every spread, and fascinating facts about aspects of wedding celebrations, this is a book to inform, to delight, to draw on for RE discussions and most of all, to further the celebration not only of the particular topic herein, but of the rich cultural diversity that is part of what makes our world such an exciting place.

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Could a Monkey Waterski? Could a Tiger Walk a Tightrope?

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Could a Monkey Waterski?
Could a Tiger Walk a Tightrope?
Camilla de la Bédoyère and Aleksei Bitskoff
QED
The title questions and a whole host of other unlikely possibilities are considered in the latest additions to this series, a double spread being devoted to the explorations of each ‘What if …’, ‘Could a tiger… ?’ or ‘Would a monkey… ?’ put forward.
These books aren’t all crazy imaginings though; lots of fascinating information about the animals is provided as each scenario is focused upon. So, yes a capuchin monkey could waterski – both right way up and upside down; that’s on account of having big toes that work like thumbs …

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Said monkey would enjoy a visit to a noodle bar too – those opposable thumbs again; but there would have to be some garnishing of the noodles for real capuchin contentment in this instance.
And the tiger? Well, we all know the one who came to tea so why not dinner, just as long as you have one hundred tins of cat food stashed away in your cupboards. That would be sufficient to keep your visitor going for three days; and don’t expect anyone/anything else to get a look in – tigers hate sharing food.
A tightrope walking tiger? Seems, like all cats, tigers are ace balancers,

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assisted by their tails which contribute towards super steadiness.
In addition to all this fun stuff, there are in each book, a straightforward “More about …’ fact file double spread and a final postcard from their respective South American/Asian habitats.
If you like information mixed with entertainment (and I know a fair number of children who do) then these are worth seeking out for the lower primary classroom.

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Warthog / Ten Little Monsters

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Warthog
Birdie Black and Rosalind Beardshaw
Nosy Crow
This rhyming tale of young warthog’s wanderings incorporates counting to ten as our forgetful little chap savours a scoop of honey – one (that’s breakfast taken care of) encountering two angry bees in so doing; his wanders then take him to a pool wherein he splashes, finds three pebbles

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which are actually …

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Off goes warthog swishing through the long grass wherein he finds five flowers behind which flutter six butterflies. By now our brave little wanderer is far from home and his mum – a little hungry perhaps? But those seven berries he spies have all been claimed by hungry birds – can you see which of the eight is going without a meal?

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Enjoying the birds’ song, warthog keeps on wandering quite oblivious to the fact it’s now sundown; he’s more interested in the nine monkeys and ten footprints which of course our curious fellow cannot resist following.
No they don’t lead him back home – not quite, although it’s not long before there IS one little warthog hot -footing it right back where he came from and he arrives …

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If you’re wondering why he returned so suddenly and so hastily, then turn back to the first spread and look carefully. And then get hold of this wonderfully interactive, playful counting book and see the rest of the action. Observant youngsters will most likely notice the wily watcher on some of the other spreads as you enjoy the story together.

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Ten Little Monsters
Mike Brownlow and Simon Rickerty
Orchard Books
We’ve had pirates, princesses and dinosaurs; now it’s the turn of monsters to invade the pages of Brownlow and Rickerty’s latest counting extravaganza.
It’s night time but that’s the time for little monsters to wake up and go about their spooking of a castle and its environs. (Not sure why they’ve chosen now to publish a book wherein the characters go trick or treating but never mind): off go the ten on their spooking way until that werewolf lets out his howl …

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and thus begins the one by one decrease in their numbers as those would-be scarifiers encounter a headless knight, a ravenous raven, a large arachnid …

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a raucous, zapping robot, a zombie gang …

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some skeletons (hilarious demolition details on this spread), cackling witches, a grotesque green ghost and then we’re down to just one terrified monster and he alone must summon up all his courage to open the door and …
Well, that would be telling.
So many counting opportunities, so many story telling opportunities, so many visual jokes but most important of all – so much romping, stomping fun.

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Fantastical Journeys

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Are We There Yet?
Nina Laden and Adam McCauley
Chronicle Books
A small boy and his mother set off to drive to Grandma’s and they’ve barely started the journey when the boy pipes up with the words most parents are all too familiar with, “Are we there yet?” It’s a question that is repeated over and over together with mum’s “No.” response as the trip takes them onto the motorway, across a suspension bridge …

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through farming countryside and a desert landscape, each of which includes increasingly surreal happenings …

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They then leave the road and go first beneath the sea …

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And then deep into outer space …

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before finally emerging at their destination to be greeted by Gran whose garden is filled with topiaries of various things observant readers will have noticed along the way. And what does the boy have to say about the journey? He certainly doesn’t seem to number among the observant ones. His, to my mind, enigmatic final response seems at odds with what I had all along been taking (and celebrating as such) to be a series of glorious flights of fancy. Was it or was it not all in the child’s head?
McCauley’s mixed media illustrations are deliciously playful: look carefully at the opening living room scene and there, mainly scattered around the floor and sofa, are objects whose significance emerges during the drive.
A great book for developing visual literacy and developing talk most certainly; and those just starting to read too will get enormous pleasure in being able to read the minimal text themselves. There is so much to discover in every spread; this is one to revisit time and again when new insights and meanings will emerge.

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My Family is a Zoo
K.A.Gerrard and Emma Dodd
Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Courtesy of a boy narrator we learn what happens when he and his dad start out on a journey (destination unknown to the younger of the two at least) together with one or two additional passengers.

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On route they stop to pick up other family members together with their special friends

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Seems the car has an every increasing capacity to take on all those extra passengers …
but where are they all going?

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This is ‘not so much a family – More a family zoo!’
Finally they reach their destination where a wonderful surprise awaits …

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There’s so much to enjoy in this story told through Kelly Gerrard’s gently humorous rhyming text that reads aloud well and Emma Dodd’s cute and cuddlesome character-filled scenes.

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Are You Sitting Comfortably?

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Are You Sitting Comfortably?
Leigh Hodgkinson
Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Where do you like to read? Do you have a special place? Most of us do although for me, any place will do so long as I have a book I want to read.
The child narrator of Leigh Hodgkinson’s latest offering shares his thoughts through a jaunty, rhyming text about good places to sit and read and he’s pretty specific about what he wants or rather, what he doesn’t want. It must be comfy – agree, and not buzz-buzzy – definitely not;

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fuzzy’s out too, as is anywhere dark and noisy, so definitely none of these …

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Cleanliness is important too and it mustn’t feel ‘slippy, slimy, soggy’ …

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Distance is another consideration – somewhere quite close is on the must have list, as is a comfortable temperature – not too hot or too cold and heights are problematic too …

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Will our book-loving little chap ever find that comfortable spot? Hold on – seems he’s having one of those light bulb moments here …
But what conclusion does he come to? That would be telling, wouldn’t it but I have to admit I agree wholeheartedly with his final words … what bibliophile wouldn’t.
Another cracker in which the author’s skill at capturing a young child’s vivid imagination simply spills right across every spread: those chairs all look so inviting;

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on second thoughts, perhaps I’d steer clear of the toothy one for long reads.
Added enjoyment comes from the print itself – it’s exuberant, playful and an encouragement to children to have fun and be creative in the presentation of their own writing.

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Artists At Work and Play

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Alphonse, That is Not OK to Do!
Daisy Hurst
Walker Books
Natalie and Alphonse are sibling monsters, Natalie being the elder. Big sis. is generally very tolerant and accommodating and the two have a lot in common …

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Sometimes though Alphonse would cross the line, such as when he adds his own marks to his sister’s creations or worse …

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Then one day, he does something much, much worse: he starts consuming Natalie’s very favourite book (perhaps it was the uninspiring lunch that prompted it) and you can imagine her response is far from favourable, resulting in the title exposition, an artistic outpouring…

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and a retreat to the bathroom.
Eager to make amends Alphonse suggests a spot of nifty repair work, which is ignored by Natalie and so replaced by more drastic action that sounds like …

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and looks like ..

 

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An Alphonse style explanation follows along with apologies for his book eating and the revealing of some finishing touches that he’s added to big sis’s picture.
Daisy Hirst’s narrative voice is spot on, her monsters are adorable and I love the chucklesome humour in her illustrations, which are a perfect complement to that deliciously droll text of hers. Alphonse and Natalie could run and run …

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Lion & Tiger & Bear
Ethan Long
Abrams Books for Young Readers
We meet the trio of friends one sunny morning in Green Hills Hollow. There’s Lion doing a spot of painting in his ‘Alone Spot’ when he’s suddenly tagged by Bear, who is eager for a game. Lion however is having none of it and so off goes Bear to try his luck with Tiger. No prizes for guessing who she in turn tags; but still Lion is determined to continue working on his picture and to that end he’s willing to go to a great deal of trouble to ward off would-be taggers.

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Meanwhile the game has become anything but exciting and so the taggers decide to hot up the action somewhat. But even this doesn’t deter our artist and so he moves again … and again until finally he finds the perfect hiding place.

 

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Not quite though. Things finally come to a head, followed by a deal being struck which leaves Lion free to complete his masterpiece and an impressive one it is too –

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though that’s not quite the end of the story …
This is I think, the start of a series featuring the three pals and as such it does the job well; we get an impression of the different personalities of the characters as well as being shown the importance of negotiation and of having some ‘me’ time.
Long’s digital cartoon style illustrations tell most of the story with the action being helped along by speech bubbles and a minimal narrative that holds the whole thing together, making it a good bet for early readers as well as for sharing with young listeners.

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This is NOT a Bedtime Story

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This is NOT a Bedtime Story
Will Mabbit and Fred Blunt
Puffin Books
If you like your bedtime stories to be of the calming, wind-down variety then you might find yourself in agreement with the title of this book – it’s certainly not one of those, thanks to the determined efforts of young Sophie. This lively miss has just persuaded her dad to share one more story before she beds down for the night and Dad has her chosen book ready for a short one. That’s his plan; but from the outset, his daughter is unimpressed and ready to jazz up what appears to be one of those cutesie pink narratives: here she goes …

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Pretty soon – the fifth spread to be precise –things look a whole lot more exciting with Pink Kitten wielding a lightsabre, a ‘real lion’ on the scene (introduced earlier),

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a dinosaur on the loose and Barney in grave danger.
By now Sophie has completely subverted the plot and everyone including Dad and the household have been sucked in to the excitement –

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Tension builds as Pink Kitten has to rev up her helicopter; with built-in rocket launcher it’s crucial if they want to save Barney, now in the clutches of The Robot Dinosaur.

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Looks as though they’re heading for annihilation ,which is where we’ll leave them and cut to

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where we see once again the various toys that have fuelled Sophie’s runaway imagination in this humdinger of a metafiction.
Like Sophie (or should that be author, Will Mabbit?), illustrator, Fred Blunt has given full rein to his imagination (not to mention placing his first picture book, Captain Falsebeard strategically on Sophie’s bedroom floor in the opening scene.)
Particularly effective is the contrast between the artistic style he uses for the saccharine Pink Kitten story at the outset, and the zany ‘real’ characters in ‘our’ story. That, and the way the Pink Kitten story morphs into anarchy with the unfolding adventure that Sophie (and Dad) become engulfed in. Maybe not a bedtime story, but certainly one not to be missed.

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Flipping and Sliding

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Peekaboo A to Z
Peekaboo 123
Gareth Lucas
Little Tiger Press
We meet all kinds of animals large and small between the covers of these two lift-the-flap board books; and there’s one particular creature that makes multiple appearances in both; more of him later.
The alphabet book has an animal introducing each letter on the flap; lift this to reveal an alliterative sentence …

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Did you spot the intruder?
Some double spreads manage to feature three animals, or should that be four? We seem to have a persistent ‘other’ here too.
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And he’s getting rather impatient …

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When we finally reach the relevant page for the grand appearance – guess what, all our friend can do is …

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There’s alliteration too in the counting book. The whole thing takes the form of a race, the Animal Antics that has a line-up which includes ‘Two turkeys on a tandem’, ‘Three gorillas in a gondola’ … ‘ten seals on a surfboard’ and look who else has found himself a special commentator’s role …

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After 20 the numbers per vehicle increases in tens until 50 and then there’s a victorious leap by …

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For me, these books are really all about having fun and enjoying the playful language; the educational alphabet and counting aspects very much take second place to the excitement generated as young children investigate what’s hidden beneath each of the flaps (it’s a good job they are fairly sturdy as I envisage heavy use by enthusiastic little hands).

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Safari
Surya Pinto
QED
In this ‘slide and play’ book four wild animals introduce themselves through three statements relating to their particular characteristics and then ask, ‘Who am I?’ The answer being found or confirmed by manipulating the three sliding parts on each spread …

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to complete the picture of the animal in question – elephant, lion, giraffe or rhino.
With the exception of occasional touches of a single bright orange colour, the whole experience is in bold black and white graphics.
Finger fun for pre-schoolers and an inspiration for older siblings to try creating sliders for themselves.

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Alex and the Scary Things

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Alex and the Scary Things
Melissa Moses and Alison MacEachern
Jessica Kingsley Publishers
Young Alex has experienced traumatic times in his life but he does his best not to think about them. Sometimes however, he feels overwhelmed by memories and this has an effect on his emotions. He might feel frightened but then he becomes ‘Spacey’ and, protected by his space suit, Alex mind travels far into the sky leaving his fears behind. He has another strategy too, which he calls the 5-4-3-2-1 game. This involves naming five things he can see in his classroom, four things he can feel, three he can hear, two he can smell and finally, one good thing about himself.
At other times Alex might feel anger and it’s fortunate that he’s learned a breathing technique that restores him to his more relaxed self again …

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and his teacher has also taught his class some calming yoga poses.

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When sadness overwhelms him, Alex cannot help but cry; he calls himself Puddles on such occasions and takes himself off to sit in his super-secret safe place surrounded by soft snuggly blankets.

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There are even times at school when our narrator says that for him it feels as though scary things are happening even when they aren’t: his tummy feels ‘a little tumbly’ and his brain ‘a little bumbly’. That’s the time when his Jumbles persona takes over Alex and he needs to use his wiggly dance to untumble and unbumble himself.
Scribbles – another part of Alex – takes over when he doesn’t want to talk. Instead he uses art activities to help him cope on such occasions. Most of the time though, Alex is calm, capable, curious, creative and kind; that’s when he feels truly himself, in control of all his parts but safe in the knowledge that all his different parts are there to be called upon whenever he needs them.
Alison MacEachern’s offbeat illustrations orchestrate Melissa Moses’ first person narrative keeping the overall mood light despite the serious nature of the topic.
This little book is, the publishers tell us’ ‘A Story to Help Children Who Have Experienced Something Scary’ and most of us who work with children will have dealings with some of those, sometimes perhaps unknowingly in the first instance. Indeed several of the techniques such as the breathing and yoga are appropriate for all youngsters and in fact, all children are likely to need coping strategies to draw on at one time or another; so I’d suggest all schools and children’s centres would do well to invest in a copy.

Order from JKP

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Terrific Truck Tales

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Old MacDonald Had a Truck
Steve Goetz and Eda Kaban
Chronicle Books
What on earth is going on down on Old MacDonald’s farm? Certainly the animals are there but what are they up to? We join them and the farming couple as they start the day, the latter in a truck loaded with a what looks like metal, and are greeted by the livestock: all looks pretty normal …

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but turn the page and an excavator confronts us with a ‘DIG DIG here and a DIG DIG ‘there … ‘
Thence follows a whole lot of scooping, pushing and shoving,

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scraping and raking, dumping and thumping, squishing and smashing, spinning and whirling as the noisy narrative takes readers through the book page by page and Mrs M gets on with the job of reconstructing the truck’s engine, adding new tyres (huge ones) and giving the whole thing a respray.

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Mr M. meanwhile has been in charge of the digging, building –

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and generally directing the construction of an arena.
With the day’s work finally complete, Mr and Mrs Macdonald don goggles and safety helmets, jump into their reconstructed vehicle and she drives them off into the night with a wave to their co-constructers.
Exuberant pencil and gouache illustrations, digitally composited, coupled with a jaunty, onomatopoeic text are just the thing for a lively story session be it with an early years audience or an individual vehicle-loving youngster. Whatever your audience, make sure you allow plenty of time to explore the humorous details on every spread –much of the story is told in the visuals.

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Little Blue Truck
Alice Schertle and Jill McElmurry
Nosy Crow
The little blue truck trundles merrily on its way greeting the animals as it passes them: ‘Sheep said, “Baaa!”/Cow said, “Moo!”/”Oink!” said a piggy./”Beep!” said Blue.’ On it goes over hill and dale

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until a large and very rude dump truck hurtles past, swerves and ends up stuck in a whole load of muck. His honks for help go unanswered by the animals. However, being the kind-hearted vehicle that he is, Little Blue attempts a rescue but he too ends up stuck fast in the mire. That’s when all that friendliness of his pays dividends: the animals rally together, ‘Head to head/and rump to rump, /they all pushed Blue -/ who pushed the Dump.’
But even that doesn’t quite do it; then up pops one more creature – that tiny green toad

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and it’s he whose added power finally frees both Dump and Blue. Paying it forward certainly works and even Dump drives off having learned an important lesson about being a good friend and the rewards of neighbourliness.
I’m not surprised this story is already a best seller in the USA. It’s full of opportunities for listeners to join in with the animal (and vehicle) sounds that are part and parcel of the rollicking rhyming text.
I love those rural scenes with their nostalgic feel and dusky palette.

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We’re in the Wrong Book

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We’re in the Wrong Book!
Richard Byrne
Oxford University Press
Ben and Bella (plus her dog) from This Book Just Ate My Dog return for another crazy adventure, or rather, a whole host of adventures as their jump-in-a sack game results in them – Ben and Bella that is – being unceremoniously bumped right off the page …

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and into …

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They don’t stop there though: another jump takes them to a comic book housed in a library where a very helpful librarian, having heard the description of their book, sends them off to one that matches their criteria – tall buildings and an enormous dog but …

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And even the puzzling mazes don’t lead to ‘their’ book; in fact a dinner invitation is issued at their next port of call …

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Fortunately we readers are able to come to their rescue here and the friends undertake a nifty bit of paper folding , not to mention a spot of creative colouring to get themselves to safety

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– almost anyway  …

 

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But let’s give the final word to that dog of Bella’s …

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Totally engaging and full of diversions that are best kept to a second or third reading. If not, their plea will go unanswered and the two pals will be forever stuck between the pages of ‘the WRONG BOOK’ …

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Better Together

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Good Knight, Bad Knight
Tom Knight
Templar Publishing
Summer is over and Bad Knight is about to return to school. Up until now the young knight has hated school  but things look set to change for two reasons. Bad Knight is building a special secret weapon and, his cousin is coming to stay …

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That was the plan; but when said cousin arrives, Bad Knight is in for a surprise; his cousin is GOOD! Indeed much more than good – he’s star pupil in every respect. Disaster! Especially as bad Knight’s status as worst knight in the school is made official and the two are to meet face to face in the end-of-term jousting contest.

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You’ll only need one guess as to the winner of the match, but perhaps what appears overhead as the victor is announced will give Bad Knight another chance to prove himself …

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and put that invention of his to good use.
And perhaps, the two young knights aren’t quite so different: two heads are often better than one after all…

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A crazy tale of folly, fighting, friendship and the odd stink bomb too. Tom Knight’s debut solo picture book will surely find friends among young would-be knights and catapult creators in particular.

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Cool Cat Versus Top Dog
Mike Yamada
Frances Lincoln Children’s Books
Cool Cat and Top Dog are sworn enemies, which is somewhat problematic as they live under the same roof. Top of their list of reasons to fight is Pet Quest, the annual round the town race and nobody has won the trophy other than our two adversaries CC and TD with Top Dog being the cup’s current holder.

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Now the race night is upon them and both parties are determined to win, no matter what. But there’s another contestant – Buck Thumper – who has set his sights on claiming the trophy this year.

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Cool Cat has a plan up her sleeve and pretty soon Top Dog has fallen for it but he’s quick to resort to some tricky doings of his own.

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The race continues with the rivals neck and neck until eventually both parties’ vehicles are totally out of control and Buck Thumper zooms into the lead.
Can that be the end for TD and CC; or is there perhaps a chance that some clever teamwork might just save the day?
This final shot gives a hint but you’ll have to get your paws on a copy of this breakneck riot of a book to discover all that happened along the way. PHEW!

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Cloth Lullaby

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Cloth Lullaby
Amy Novesky and Isabelle Arsenault
Abrams Books for Young Readers
Subtitled ‘The Woven Life of Louise Bourgeois’, this poetic book give details of the life of the world famous artist, best known for her sculptures. Louise spent the early part of her life living beside a river in a big family house. Her family were tapestry restorers and when she was just twelve, Louise began to learn the trade.

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Her mother taught her about form, colour and the various styles of textiles. As she learned about the warp and the weft, about the tools of the trade and how to dye, the relationship between mother and daughter became increasingly intense, ‘ … patient, soothing … subtle, indispensible … and as useful as an araignée (spider) while that with her father (not a weaver but a buyer of cloth) was more dramatic. She once threw herself into a river, so angry was she at her father’s frequent departures on buying trips.
When Louise’s mother died, deeply affected she abandoned her mathematical studies at university and turned to art. ‘She drew, she painted, she wove, She missed her mother so much, she sculpted giant spiders made of bronze, steel and marble she named maman.’

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Then later she began focusing on fabrics – the fabric of her life -, sewing, stitching, weaving and sculpting smaller, more delicate spiders …

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and other objects in particular cloth books and a cloth lullaby.
Louise Bourgeois worked in bronze, steel, wood, stone and cast rubber and in textiles. Her life story here is rendered in ink, pastel, pencil, watercolour and photoshop by Isabelle Arsenhault whose wonderful mixed media collages, predominantly in shades of red and blue, feature spiders, web designs, water and textiles, music even. These powerfully evoke the rivers and threads that were a constant running through her life, and are a superb demonstration of how we all weave memories into our own lives in one way or another.
It’s difficult to know who would most enjoy this book, adults interested in the artist and her work, those generally interested in shape and form and creativity, or younger readers coming upon this poetic homage to Louise Bourgeois either as part of a topic or simply being attracted to it by the wonderful cover.

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Line, Shape, Form & Colour

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Do You See What I See?
Helen Borten
Flying Eye Books
Not so much a question, more an invitation to readers from Helen Borten, to look carefully at the world around them, to look at everything in terms of line, shape and form, and colour.
She also shows, through her poetic verbal imagery the way in which what and how we see influences how we feel: ‘Lines that bend in a zigzag way seem to crackle with excitement. They make me think of thunderstorms and jagged mountain peaks. I see huge jaws of a crocodile, wide open and bristling with jagged teeth, ready to snap shut.’

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There are also curves – swirls and twirls full of grace and beauty; and often adding texture …

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Lines are everywhere, in abundance – skinny or fat, timid or bold, wiggly or straight, hard or soft, shaggy or smooth, fast or slow – ‘Wherever I look I see lines making patterns of beauty. Can you see them too?’

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Moreover, lines can become shapes – circles, squares, rectangles, triangles and more; these too are all around us.

 

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Moving on to colours: are they hot like a fire, cold as a mountain stream, warm like the rays of the sun, or cool as a crispy lettuce leaf?

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What about this for wonderful visual/verbal evocation: ‘Colours can be pale and timid as a mouse – or dark and mysterious as the night.’

 

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Seeing and feeling are inextricably bound when it comes to art appreciation and understanding, and this book is an excellent starting point for discussion and then doing as the author urges, ‘… see the world as a great big painting, full of lines and shapes and colours to look at and enjoy.’
A modern classic in the 1960s, it’s great to see it back in print with Flying Eye: a real little treasure.

Line, shape and colour are also key elements of

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Apples and Robins
Lucie Félix
Chronicle Books
Here, every turn of the page changes one thing to another: circles to apples at summer’s end, out of reach apples that require a ladder for picking. For this rectangles are needed –short and long,
Triangles, ovals, parallelograms, squares both as blocks of colour or die-cuts are used to conjure up the robin,

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bird-house,

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the elements, and much more as we move through this cleverly conceived book from autumn through winter to the coming of spring to a garden in which stands the apple tree.
With something to surprise and delight readers on every new spread encountered,

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this is definitely one to revisit time and again, to listen to the author’s commentary as she takes us through the changing seasons and shows us how the scenes are constructed.

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Welcome Spring

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Spring
David A. Carter
Abrams Appleseed
Spring quite simply explodes into life in this small, vibrantly coloured pop-up book.
As the rain falls pitter-pat rippling the surface of the pond, tadpoles emerge to take their chance as the koi carp swim around and a dragonfly hovers.

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Away from the pond a cherry tree bursts into bloom and tree frogs croak to acknowledge the rain as it waters the blossoms that give food for the bees.

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The flowers are alive with visitors and an adult bird feeds its young.
Half a dozen spreads, each one a visual treat, with a brief accompanying text and lots of labels, some of which are indicative of the book’s US origins, there’s plenty to enjoy and discuss with young children herein.

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Abracadabra, It’s Spring
Anne Sibley O’Brien and Susan Gai
Abrams Appleseed
‘Sun warms a patch of snow.
Hocus-pocus!
Where did it go?’
Thus begins a simply gorgeous evocation of the arrival of spring as we watch bulbs popping up …

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and opening …

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pussy willows bursting out, leaves unfurling, birds arriving and nesting, eggs …

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hatching,

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butterflies emerging and blossoms opening to adorn the trees. It’s time to shed those heavy winter boots and embrace all that’s bright and new now that winter’s gone.
Both words and pictures are uplifting. The text is a mix of the gentle poetic and contrasting lively effervescent magical invocation orchestrating the change: take for instance:
‘Grey cocoons/hide a surprise. Abba zaba!/ (open gatefold)/Butterflies!’

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There is so much to see in the illustrations each of which has a gatefold opening. Every spread unfolds to reveal an aspect of spring’s new life in dazzling layered collages alive with colour and creatures.
In addition to being a delight to share, this will surely inspire children to get creating themselves.

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Board Book Roundup

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Hugless Douglas First Words
David Melling
Hodder Children’s Books
Our favourite hugging bear certainly has his priorities right in this six-word board book. Having safely deposited his Teddy, Douglas relaxes – well that was his intention – in a Bath

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and indulges himself with his favourite preserve, then dons his Pyjamas and dressing gown ready for a spot of Book sharing …

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followed by a Hug (of course) and then everyone snuggles down in and around the Bed.
That, in a nutshell is it; but there’s so much going on in the illustrations that there’s at least one story on every spread.
There’s also a session of book sharing in:

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I Love My Mummy
Fhiona Galloway and Jonathan LittonLittle Tiger Kids,
Little Tiger Kids
Bright, cheery art work, die cuts and an assortment of humanised animals (other than the final one) are the key elements of this little rhyming ‘thank you to mum’ book published just in time for Mother’s Day. A calf, a little frog, a kitten, a bear,

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a young croc. a lamb and a bee all have their own ways of delivering the message and each has a floral offering for their very special mother, little bee’s being the most spectacular in my view.

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Animal mothers also feature in

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Baby Tiger
Baby Bear
illustrated by Yu-Hsuan Huang
Chronicle Books
A pair of tiny chunky board books each with a cute finger puppet, present some basic information about the respective baby animals and how they spend their days from early morning through to bedtime, and at the same time encourage playful interaction between the adult and infant sharing them. Book sharing is one of the very best experiences you can give your very young child to nurture his or her language and general cognition. When you read as if you’re having a conversation with your child it’s supplying brilliant brain food in addition to helping to develop that very special bond between you.

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Listen to the Music
Marion Billet
Nosy Crow
Half a dozen different animals strut their stuff as musicians herein: there’s recorder-playing Pig, Elephant the pianist, violinist Cat,

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a pair of guitar strumming Zebras, a couple of Bear drummers and finally Mouse tinkles on the xylophone. When you press the button on each instrument (once you’ve activated the switch inside the back cover, that is) the musician in question starts playing.
I have a suspicion this jolly little book will be played to destruction: it’s a fun way to introduce some musical instrument names to tinies and you could perhaps play a memory game: What did Elephant play? etc. Or turn it around: Which animal played the piano. No peeping on the final page though.

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The Three Ninja Pigs & Cat’s Colours

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The Three Ninja Pigs
David Bedford and Becka Moor
Simon & Schuster
Meet the Three Ninja Pigs, always twirling and crashing their way into trouble until Mrs Pig has had enough. ‘Off you go to Granny’s. AND NO MORE TROUBLE!’ she cries in exasperation

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and off trot the three through the woods to Granny’s cottage. But guess who’s got there ahead of them …

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Next stop Uncle Sam’s building yard to deliver his lunch but whom do the Ninja Pigs discover when they get there and he’s threatening total destruction.

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Less than impressed at the ensuing mess he duly dispatches the threesome to a high street destination with a plank for Cindy and the ‘AND NO MORE TROUBLE.’ instruction.
Needless to say a certain hairy character has beaten them to it once more …
but is he about to meet his cum-uppance? Certainly those Ninja Piggies have had enough of his repeated interference and are having a secret meeting …

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Totally crazy! This high energy fractured fairy tale romp has delighted all those 5s to 8s I’ve shared it with, several of whom had great fun with the numerous visual jokes in Becka Moor’s detailed scenes of mischief and mayhem.

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Cat’s Colours
Airlie Anderson
Child’s Play
Cats make me sneezy and wheezy so I am more than a little cat phobic; but the white moggie in this book quickly endeared herself to me as she wandered around, exploring her environment on a grey day. Grey the day may have been, but Cat’s decision to collect some colours – one for each new experience – soon has an uplifting effect. She pauses beneath a tree enjoying the look of the green leafy ceiling, breathes in the scent of some red roses …

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and reflects on the blue pond for instance and at each location she collects a colour. At the end of her walk she has added four more colours purple for a fluttery butterfly, orange for the light of the setting sun, black for the sparkling cosmos and finally, yellow for the moon under which she’ll stop to sleep.

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Before this though, white cat has a delightful surprise finale to share…
How often do we give young children opportunities to pause and truly ‘be in the moment’? Probably not often enough, so cat’s story can serve as a gentle reminder to adults that it (being, not doing) should be part and parcel of every day.

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Solomon and Mortimer

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Solomon and Mortimer
Catherine Rayner
Macmillan Children’s Books
Solomon crocodile is back and he’s as mischievous as ever, especially now he’s teamed up with pal Mortimer and the two of them are feeling bored and in need of some fun.
Tree climbing proves pretty disastrous …

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Lizard chasing upsets the lizards and as for flying – best forgotten straightaway. So on go the little crocs. still searching for that illusive fun. Then Solomon comes up with a hippo-teasing plan. But can the mischief makers carry it through or will the interfering pelicans, the nosy butterflies or the grumpy toad …

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give the game away and sabotage their seemingly perfect plot?

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Let’s just say, it’s a smashingly splashing finale and every one of the animals ends up with a huge grin …
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Spot on for early years story time sessions. Mischievous lead characters (those toothy grins are just delicious), wonderfully detailed watery scenes, a build-up of suspense as the big push opportunity draws closer and a satisfying conclusion – albeit not the intended one.
All in all, a read aloud treat that will be asked for over and over.

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Where My Feet Go & Lucky Ducky

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Where My Feet Go
Birgitta Sif
Andersen Press
Where do your feet go? Probably nowhere near such exciting places as those belonging to the young panda narrator of this delightfully offbeat book. Panda’s feet, once they’re duly clad in socks – one green, the other purple – and inserted into moon boots, take him to wonderful places – one way

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or another …

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And that’s just in the morning.
Next comes a spot of foot resting and dinosaur feeding …

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After which the tootsies take to the skies, do a vanishing act – temporarily …

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and tramp through the desert.
Come night time and there’s underwater exploration, a couple of space sorties, and probably, more magical destinations are in the offing too …
Fuelled by that rich imagination of his, Panda, like many young children, makes everything an adventure and who better to visually document those adventures than Birgitta Sif.
Every one of her scenes is a gem. I love the overall quirkiness of her illustrations. I love the somewhat subdued colour palette and the glorious mismatch between what is said and what is shown. I love the way Panda’s internal imaginings are, on several occasions, allowed to wander expansively across an entire double spread. If only all young children, like this young panda were allowed such space/time to give free rein to their imaginations, rather than being made to do pointless tasks to ‘further their learning’; if only … there I go like Panda imagining …

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Lucky Ducky
Doreen Mulryan
Abrams Books for Young Readers
Ducky is one of those characters for whom nothing seems to go right …

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so, determined to change things for himself, he sets off to the park in search of a four-leaf clover. But his search is soon interrupted, first by Pup offering a game of Frisbee, then by Piggy who invites him for a swim. No sooner has he restarted his hunt however, than he spies Bunny suggesting a picnic. By the time the sun is starting to go down, Ducky still hasn’t found that lucky 4-leaf clover but he does now appreciate just how lucky he really is. He’s discovered something much more important: the true value of good friends to share experiences with, no matter what …

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Suitably spirited, comic style illustrations document Ducky’s transition from unlucky to lucky Ducky.

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Ways Home

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Little Home Bird
Jo Empson
Child’s Play
Little Bird’s home is all he could wish for so when, as the days grow colder and his big brother tells him it’s time to fly south to warmer climes, Little Bird feels more than a little sad. Without his favourite branch, his favourite food, his favourite music and that favourite view of his, the idea of two homes just doesn’t appeal to him. But then Little Bird has an idea: why not take all those favourite things along too, then no matter where he was, it would always feel like home.
Off fly the other birds leaving Little Bird to follow behind; but as the others get ever further ahead, a journey with so much baggage proves too difficult.

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Little Bird has no choice but to start to let go, and, one by one his favourite things find new homes.

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Delighting some of the recipients …

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After a long journey of many days and nights all the birds are safely at their winter home – Little Bird, sans favourite things – but it doesn’t take many days before he starts to discover exciting new things, some of which will become NEW favourite things.

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With those gorgeous illustrations, this is a smashing book to share, especially with youngsters who, for whatever reason, have more than one home.

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Nelly & Nora: The Windy Way Home
Walker Entertainment
The two young characters in this charming book, which is based on Emma Hogan’s CBeebies TV script, are an endearing pair. When the story opens the sisters have been playing down on the sand when suddenly as they lie down side-by-side, they notice the clouds moving fast above them and a bird seeming to fly backwards. “Toooooo windy!” announces Nora. “We should go home,” Nelly replies and off they set up the steps. At the top however the wind is so strong that it’s very difficult to walk and so begins a journey back to the camp that involves observations and experimentation on the girls’ part  …

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not to mention a whole lot of bunching up.

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With a ‘Make your own paper windmills’ activity included, this is just the thing to encourage young children to observe and find out about the world around them.

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Lionheart

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Lionheart
Richard Collingridge
David Fickling Books
We join small boy, Richard hugging his toy lion and attempting to convince himself “There’s no such thing as monsters.” So what is that sound that sends him dashing from his bedroom, running through the streets, over the hills, through the forest into the fields hotly pursued by something – of that he’s convinced himself. The landscape grows more menacing …

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so on he goes, leaving behind his dropped toy,

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until he emerges in a magical jungle where he finds himself surrounded by animals of all kinds …

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But that monster’s still in hot pursuit so Richard keeps running … and running … and then what’s this? Can it be Lionheart, a toy no longer?

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Protective, he certainly is and Richard climbs on his back and clutching his mane, the two set out fearlessly on an amazing journey, but the monster still lurks; Lionheart feels it and sees it looming large … coming … closer until a final confrontation occurs …
Massive in impact, there are faint echoes of Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are in this dramatic tale about finding your inner courage – your inner roar. Collingridge’s cinematic paintings are alternately scarily tension filled and reassuringly comforting. A tremendous follow-up to When It Snows and well worth the long wait.

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