Category Picture Books

Starbird

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Starbird
Sharon King-Chai
Two Hoots

When the Moon King has a daughter, he determines to give her the most wonderful gift in the world, the beautiful Starbird whose singing weaves magical dreams.

He captures the creature and puts it in a cage so the girl can hear its enchanting song.

For the princess though, the joy of hearing Starbird’s sweet evening song is short- lived for she soon sees how captivity is affecting the creature. She opens the cage and lets it fly away thus incurring the wrath of her father.

He sets off in search of the bird that is only on the wing by day while the Moon King sleeps.

Starbird’s travels to find home once more take him to the jungle,

the ocean, desert lands and the mountains; but although the creatures of each are kind and caring, none of their homes is home to Starbird. The mountain creatures though tell of a faraway place that just sounds right for him.

But the Moon King grabs Starbird as he takes flight before the stars are hidden, and once more he is put in the cage; this time with terrible consequences.

Happily though it isn’t too late to save the prisoner, for the Moon King’s daughter finally makes her father understand.

Told in rich language, this lyrical fable of love and freedom has a timeless quality that will enthral and delight readers and listeners of all ages. Sharon King-Chai’s illustrations play with light using shadows, silhouette and reflection as well as colour to stunning effect.

Exquisite and powerful as they are though, they never detract from her telling; rather the entire work becomes one seamless magical enriching experience that is woven together rather like the Songbird’s song itself.

Totally FAB-U-LOUS!

Kindness Grows / Get Up, Stand Up

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Kindness Grows
Britta Teckentrup
Caterpillar Books

Within her signature style collage scenes, Britta Teckentrup cleverly uses the growing die-cut image to represent on the verso spreads an ever widening crack or rift caused by bad feelings towards others or unkindness of some sort, while on the recto the same shape grows to become something positive – a beautiful tree nurtured by acts of loving kindness towards others be they words spoken or actions such as sharing, forging a new friendship, working or playing together.

Little by little though, as the rhyming narrative says, from a small beginning – a simple seed of kindness like a smile or reaching out …

even a seemingly enormous rift can be repaired.
If only …

Get Up, Stand Up
Cedella Marley and John Jay Cabuay
Chronicle Books

The daughter of reggae artist and social activist Bob Marley has taken one of her father’s most popular songs and used it to create a powerful picture book message for young readers and listeners.

That message is clear and unequivocal – don’t let anyone bully you or other people – and we’re witness, thanks to Cabuay’s bold, bright scenes rendered in pencil and digitally, to a school day wherein when such bullying happens, the other children don’t just stand by and watch. Instead, they stand up and rally round be it in the playground,

at the bus stop, on the school bus, in the street or the park.

The final spreads show the youngsters hoisting a huge flag depicting Bob Marley and his anthem One Love above the stage whereon they then dance and sing for all they’re worth.

This is a book to have in primary classrooms to open up discussion on themes such as standing up for yourself and others in the face of injustice, no matter what that may be. Certainly in the UK right now, it’s a message that needs saying over and over. Of course it isn’t always easy to do but it’s never too early to start learning the appropriate ways to respond to discrimination, abuse, inequality, prejudice or any kind of wrong doing.

Two for Me, One for You / Otto Goes North / Cornelia and the Jungle Machine

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Here are three recent picture books from Gecko Press each of which has friendship at its heart

Two for Me, One for You
Jörg Mühle
Gecko Press

In this fable-like tale two hungry friends, Bear and Weasel find themselves disagreeing over how to share the three mushrooms the former discovers on her way home through the forest.

Weasel cooks them for dinner

but at the table, Bear lays claim to the extra one on account of her bulk; Weasel counters that with a demand for mushroom number three saying, “I’m small, and I still have to grow”

From that small beginning grows a fully-blown fight: Bear found the mushrooms, Weasel cooked them perfectly; it was Bear’s recipe but Weasel’s favourite food and his tummy is rumbling; Bear’s stomach is bigger and with it her hunger; Weasel mentioned a rumbly tummy first; Bear wanted the extra mushroom first, she says and insults start flying. This prompts Weasel to procure mushroom number three and wave it aloft just as a fox happens to be passing by with its eye on the tasty tidbit.

Shared shock horror on the part of Bear and Weasel after which the two wish one another ‘bon appetit’ and tuck in.
Then comes dessert – uh-oh!

Comic timing combined with droll mixed media scenes of the escalating situation (I love the forest setting with the kitchen set-up) make for a fun way to introduce youngsters to the notion of sharing: how might they solve the ‘afters’ issue?

Otto Goes North
Ulrika Kestere
Gecko Press

Otto is a lemur friend of Lisa the lynx and Nils, a little bear. He has cycled many months, years perhaps, to visit the two northerners and to paint the famous northern lights to hang on his wall back home in the south.

But when he sallies forth with paints and brushes he quickly discovers that it’s so freezing cold that painting anything but zigzags is well nigh impossible. His friends are surprised since he like them is covered with fur, but they take him to the sauna along with a bowl of warming soup, instructing him to spend the night there.

Lisa and Nils consult their books – all two of them – and as luck would have it one is about wool. Even more fortunate is that the book is illustrated, for Lisa has forgotten how to read. The two make use of the pictures, together with initiative and set about combing their own fur, spinning it into wool, using vegetable leftovers to dye it and knitting a wonderful sweater – a true work of art. (Followers of a certain Scandi detective series will know of the Scandinavian predilection for fancy sweaters).

When Otto eventually emerges, somewhat recovered, from the sauna, they present him with the splendid gift.

Then, snugly clad in same, he is able to spend several hours painting outside.

The three then pass many contented days together before their visitor sets off home with happy memories and a wonderful item to add to the arty pieces already hanging on his wall.

A wonderfully heart warming story portraying the spirit of friendship that goes the extra mile, some amusing banter between the main characters and whimsical illustrations of the chilly Nordic setting (love the green roof) make for a satisfying book to share.

Cornelia and the Jungle Machine
Nora Brech
Gecko Press

Cornelia dislikes the large, gloomy home she’s moved into. There’s nobody to play with and since it’s clear she’s not going to help unpack, her parents send her outside to look around.

She sallies forth into the surrounding forest accompanied by her scruffy-looking dog and thus begins an incredible adventure.
Up, up, up a ladder that descends from one of the trees she climbs and encounters a boy named Fredrik who invites her into his treetop abode to view his many inventions, in particular his jungle machine.

Wheels are turned and buttons pressed whereupon tropical plants appear from what look like vintage gramophone horns and morph into a fully-fledged tropical jungle wherein lush fruits abound. A huge bird descends to take the children flying before dropping them beside a winding river where a sailing boat awaits.

After an incredible adventure, Cornelia bids her new friend farewell, knowing that henceforward, she’ll have any number of further rendezvous to look forward to.

This gothic style fantasy unfolds in little over a hundred words of dialogue and intricately detailed sequences of Edward Gorey-like illustrated spreads showing Cornelia’s magical mystery experiences that will draw in readers, helping to ensure that like the girl, they will be eager to immerse themselves in the make believe world of the imagination. The vertical orientation of the pages heightens the aerial nature of the tree top story.

Pick a Pumpkin

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Pick a Pumpkin
Patricia Toht and Jarvis
Walker Books

Bursting with mellow fruitfulness is this second offering from Patricia Toht and Jarvis.

We join a family as they go to the pumpkin patch to take their pick from the plethora of orange, white and speckled green fruits of the vine.

Then after a pause for some seasonal treats en route they return home with a loaded van ready to start carving.

And so they do, amassing the appropriate tools just in time for the arrival of a whole ‘pumpkin carving crew’ who are ready and willing to join in the fun.

It truly is a hands on, tactile experience as, once the tops are removed, hands are plunged inside to grab the innards as they pull at ‘Lumpy chunks. Sticky strings. Clumpy seeds. Guts and things.’

Then comes the really artful part; carving the faces for a wonderful array of creations with their frowns, grins, smirks and snarls, eerie, or angry or forming a kiss.

After that it’s time for decorations, donning costumes, taking those carved faces outside and with adult help lighting the lights that transform mere pumpkins to grinning, glowing jack-o-lanterns ready to stand guard as you venture forth to join in the fun.

With its easy on the ear, rhyming narrative and Jarvis’ scenes all a-glow with rich autumnal colours, what better way to kick off those Halloween celebrations than with a reading of this magical book with youngsters?

I Am Love / The Golden Rule

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I Am Love
Susan Verde and Peter H. Reynolds
Abrams Books for Young Readers

Showing love and compassion towards others is one of the most powerful things we can do for our fellow human beings.

What’s more it doesn’t cost us anything; we just need open hearts and the willingness to give some of our time.

That is what the child narrator in Susan Verde and Peter Reynold’s latest ‘I Am … ‘ book demonstrates.

When we discover somebody is going through a tough time, perhaps something has happened to make them feel hurt, sad or angry, something unfair maybe; if a person is fearful and it seems as though darkness is all around, a listening ear may be all that is required … or a loving hug and some softly spoken, reassuring words like “Everything will be alright.”

Love is also gratitude: being thankful for what we have; it’s taking care of our minds and bodies.

Understanding is key and on occasion love is expressed creatively and takes effort.

Remembering is another way of showing love – remembering those who have died or are no longer with us for other reasons, perhaps a friend has moved away but they still need our love.

Small gestures can mean so much; they’re a way of demonstrating our connectedness to every living thing in the world, no matter what life brings.

The book concludes with an author’s note, a few heart-opening yoga poses and a final heart meditation.

Add this to your foundation stage PSHE class collection.

The Golden Rule
Ilene Cooper and Gabi Swiatkowska
Abrams Books for Young Readers

In a city street a boy and his grandfather stand together looking at a sign that says, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’ The boy asks what it says. Grandpa reads and explains that the world over it’s called the Golden Rule.

As they walk further they talk about its meaning and for whom it’s applicable. Grandpa says it’s for “Everyone, everywhere”.

No matter the religion, the same basic tenet – essentially the cross cultural, universal reciprocity principle – is found in the holy book of the six examples he cites – Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and the Shawnee tribe.

On a park bench the discussion turns both more realistic and philosophical, as the old man asks the boy to imagine himself in certain situations and asking how he would react. It then moves on to embrace countries as well as individuals – … “maybe there wouldn’t be wars,” comments the lad

before coming right back to the notion that, as Grandpa states in conclusion, you can’t make others practice the Golden Rule, … “It begins with you.”

Somewhat didactic yes, but the message also holds good for those of no religious faith such as this reviewer and Ilene Cooper’s text offers a good starting point for discussion with primary school children.

Incorporating both traditional religious symbolism and floral, avian and animal imagery Gabi Swiatkowska’s richly pattered, painterly illustrations, have an old fashioned look about them that feels just right for the book.

Reading Beauty

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Reading Beauty
Deborah Underwood and Meg Hunt
Chronicle Books

If, like this reviewer, you enjoy fractured fairy tales of the feminist kind, then this latest one from the Interstellar Cinderella team, Deborah Underwood, who supplies the pacey rhyming narrative and Meg Hunt, the illustrator, will surely appeal.

Princess Lex, along with the majority of inhabitants of the planetoid, is a bibliophile. Lex’s room is bursting with books and she reads at every hour of the day and night. She’s even trained Prince her puppy to acquire reading material for her.

On her fifteenth birthday however, she wakes to discover all her books have disappeared.

Her parents explain that when she was born there was a birthday celebration but one fairy was convinced she’d not been invited. Furious: she’d uttered a curse to take effect on Lex’s fifteenth birthday;

the princess would get a paper cut causing her to fall into a death-like sleep.

A life without books? It doesn’t bear thinking about so Lex resolves to find the fairy and make her lift the curse.

With the assistance of Prince and a bot, she acquires and reads appropriate books to help her find the fairy’s lair, and another to be able to land. But that fairy isn’t finished yet: she’s determined to have one more try.

Happily though Lex outsmarts the fairy but the plot takes a surprise twist or two before reaching its satisfying ’happily ever after’ that will especially please book lovers. So too will Meg Hunt’s lively, futuristic, patterned, mixed media illustrations – love those end papers.

A good one to add to any primary class fairy tale collection.

The Pirate Tree

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The Pirate Tree
Brigita Orel and Jennie Poh
Lantana Publishing

Inspired by a weathered tree in which she sits, young captain Sam sails the high seas on her pirate ship.
Suddenly though, she’s approached by another ‘sailor’ who asks to play.

“I don’t know you. You’re not from my street” comes her reply and she carries on sailing her ship solo and talking of plundering ships;

she mentions ‘diamonds from Nigeria’. At this Agu feels bound to correct her, for it’s his home country and he tells her so, talking of sailing on a ship too.

Sam then invites the newcomer aboard, albeit somewhat hesitantly but she discovers that her co-sailor knows a fair bit about how to sail and together they voyage to a deserted island and defeat pirates from a rival boat.

When Sam’s Dad calls ‘dinner time!’

it’s a rather more reluctant buccaneer who leaves her companion, having first asked his name and invited him to become her fellow crew member again.

Agu’s longing for a friend is palpable in this story and I have to say that Sam’s initial treatment of the newcomer shocked me. Happily though, the time spent together has shown Sam that friendship is the way to go, just as Agu had hoped.

Jennie Poh’s mixed media and natural textures were digitally combined and her illustrations seem to have a deliberate static feel until such time as Sam invites Agu aboard her ship, after which there’s a satisfying flow about them.

Brigita Orel’s story shows children how it’s important to be open to new friendships that can be mutually rewarding, enriching our own life and those of others.

The Last Tiger

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The Last Tiger
Petr Horáček
Otter-Barry Books

Animal freedom and conservation are the themes underlying Petr Horáček’s stunningly illustrated, ominously titled new book that begins in the jungle where there dwells a fearless tiger, the strongest, most powerful creature of all.

When a group of hunters come to the jungle, the other animals are alarmed and flee into hiding, urging the tiger to do likewise.

Undaunted the tiger ignores their warning and he’s spotted by the men who are determined to capture the beautiful creature.

Back to the city they go only to return with more men and a plan.
Luring the tiger into a net, they catch him, and he’s taken away and put in a cage for all to see.

In captivity, the unhappy tiger dreams only of running free in the jungle and gradually wastes away. The humans lose interest in him

and one night he’s able to slip between the bars of his cage.

Free once more, the tiger regains his strength and stature while always remembering that what he values most is being free.

Very much a modern fable, this thought provoking book with its vibrant, richly patterned art invites readers of all ages to consider the fragility of freedom itself.

Waiting for Wolf

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Waiting for Wolf
Sandra Dieckmann
Hodder Children’s

Have a box of tissues at the ready when you read this new Sandra Dieckmann picture book.

Good friends Fox and Wolf pass their time happily by the lake, talking, laughing and sometimes taking a dip.

One day as they sit together, Wolf entreats his friend “promise you’ll always remember this perfect day.”

As night falls, Wolf tenderly embraces Fox telling him quietly, “Tomorrow I will be starlight.” Content, but unsure what he means, Fox lets it be.

The following morning she goes out in the hope of finding her friend sparkling like a star but of Wolf there is no sign.

That evening Fox goes to their favourite lakeside place, still waiting and hoping to see Wolf. Could he be up in the sky, wonders Fox as she gazes at the twinkling stars.

She decides to climb up the mountain towards the brightest star in the firmament and on reaching the top calls out her friend’s name but all around is silence.

Reaching up Fox takes hold of the blanket of stars and enfolds herself within. Once more, in a soft whisper now, she asks, “Wolf are you there?”

Now deep inside knowing that her friend has gone, she lets her tears flow;

but then she sees something amazing in the darkness and she recalls Wolf’s words on their final day together. Back comes a stream of happy memories and as Fox replaces the star blanket, a feeling of peace takes its place, and with it an understanding of her friend’s talk of starlight.

Sandra Diekmann’s deeply affecting story of love and loss is stunningly illustrated. With exquisite details of the flora and fauna, every spread is breath-takingly beautiful. The sight of Fox enveloping herself in the starry blanket left me with a lump in my throat; her sense of loss is truly palpable.

What better book than this to open discussion about bereavement and coming to terms with it?

On Sleepy Hill / I Love You Brighter than the Stars

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On Sleepy Hill
Patricia Hegarty and Xuan Le
Caterpillar Books

Layered scenes of the natural world as the day draws to a close and accompanying rhyming couplets give sleepy humans the opportunity to view and bid goodnight to the inhabitants of first a woodland where baby rabbits return to their burrows and a little wolf peers from a hollow. Then, the bank of a mountain stream whereon a black bear watches his cubs while otters take a last look at the evening and a mother duck gathers up her ducklings.

Further up, in a mountain clearing, deer and foxes make for home and the geese fly back to their nest, and even higher while caribou and boars are almost ready for sleep,

the owl swoops, watching and waiting.

The soporific narrative and cutaway pages of the fauna and flora of Sleepy Hill should work their magic on little humans when they too are almost ready for their slumbers.

I Love You Brighter than the Stars
Owen Hart and Sean Julian
Little Tiger

Books that celebrate the forever love between parent and child seem, like the sentiment they express, never ending. Indeed this is the second from Owen Hart and Sean Julian and rather than polar bears this one features a brown bear and its cub.

While they walk together as the evening sun gives way to moonlight and stars, the adult’s gentle heartfelt words to the cub promise lifelong guidance, companionship, support and the kind of love that is there no matter what, no matter where.

As they climb the hill, the two pause to gaze at the wonders of the natural world and at the star-filled sky

before taking a moonlit dip in the mountain stream.

Then it’s time to head home and sleep, the cub safe in the knowledge that as the wind sings a gentle lullaby it is loved ‘more than all the stars that sparkle through the night.’ Who could wish for more than that?

Soft spoken, rhyming reassurance and beautiful land- and sky-scapes make for a book that is ideal bedtime sharing for adults and their little ones.

Mr Gumpy’s Rhino

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My Gumpy’s Rhino
John Burningham
Jonathan Cape

John Burningham died at the beginning of this year and the subject of this final book was one that deeply concerned him. There’s the old Burningham humour in the story but underlying it is a serious message about animal conservation, in particular the plight of the rhinos in Africa.

Last seen driving his motor car in the early 1970s Mr Gumpy is on his travels in Africa when he finds something distressing: a baby rhinoceros that has been left parentless on account of poachers taking their horns.

Knowing the young animal needs milk the kindly protagonist gives it what he has

and buys what he can from the Bedouins but it’s not sufficient for the growing rhino that he calls Charlie.

There’s plenty of milk available once they board a boat, as well as greenery

but once on dry land back home, Mr Gumpy struggles to get sufficient food for the rapidly growing Charlie.

Children at the local primary school suggest the animal might work for the council, keeping the grass and wayside verges under control, an idea that Mr Gumpy wholeheartedly endorses.
Consequently Charlie is given a high vis vest and special road sign, both of which please him considerably.

To show his appreciation, when the children’s school trip is threatened Charlie charges over land and even into the sea to enable them to catch the already departed boat. Hurrah!

This, with its mix of wonderful grainy coloured images and line drawings is vintage Burningham brilliance. Only he could make the baby rhino so appealing a character: who wouldn’t be moved by the sight of him shedding tears over the loss of his parents.

Destined to join the other Mr Gumpy stories as a modern classic, this is a wonderful way to introduce the very young to the topics of endangered creatures and animal conservation.

Three Cheers for Kid McGear! / Crane Truck’s Opposites

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Three Cheers for Kid McGear!
Sherri Duskey Rinker and AG Ford
Chronicle Books

There’s a new addition to the ‘Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site’ crew; she’s small and a lot younger than the other five trucks, clean and shiny in fact and sporting ‘cool attachments’.

The rest of the trucks are concerned about her lack of size but she’s willing to learn and ready and eager to prove her worth as a team member.

First though, at their suggestion, she waits and watches as the big trucks work on clearing the ground. Suddenly however, she receives a call for help as Excavator and Bulldozer find themselves trapped at the bottom of a steep hill.

Now it’s the time for the fast moving little Kid McGear to act

and so she does, masterminding a solution and directing operations so that the rescue becomes a team effort facilitated in no small way by her quick-thinking and agility.

Toot! Toot! Hurrah! A female truck in the team and already she’s shown her worth, demonstrating that, in this rhyming rendition with its golden glowing AG Ford illustrations of the familiar construction yard inhabitants, size doesn’t matter that much.

Crane Truck’s Opposites
Sherri Duskey and Ethan Long
Chronicle Books

Crane Truck is hard at work at the construction site and with Excavator’s help he not only spends a busy day lifting and shifting, but in so doing introduces little humans to a host of opposites. In/out, fast/slow, above/below, near/far, lifts/lowers, heavy/light, dull/bright, big/small, tall/short, clean/dirty, day/night and finally open/closed are all woven into the short narrative that takes us through from sunrise to darkness.

Gently educational rhyming fun made all the more so by Ethan Long’s friendly vehicles from Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site.

The Child of Dreams

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The Child of Dreams
Irena Brignull and Richard Jones
Walker Studio

A little girl lives happily with her mother until she realises that unlike the other creatures she observes, she doesn’t have a father.

The answer her mother supplies doesn’t satisfy her and so the girl resolves to find out for herself about her origins.

Her quest takes her into the woods where she encounters first a stork and then squirrels, a salmon

and a fox.

Each one provides a part of her story, which eventually leads her to the source – the place where fox had found her.

There she comes upon a boy sitting alone staring at the road behind which is a tall building. He tells her that he’s waiting for someone to come for him.

As they talk together, the girl realises that what is truly important to her is what she already has.

Unlike the boy who is still waiting to discover where he’s going, that is something which, thanks to her mother’s love; a love ‘stronger than the rocks on the mountain peak, softer than the petals of the meadow flowers, fuller than the harvest moon’, she already knows.

There’s a fairy tale feel to this magical story that is essentially one celebrating the love between a parent and child – that sense of belonging that everyone yearns for.

Richard Jones’s awesome mixed media illustrations add to the power of this story of growing up and finding how you fit into the world.

Tiny and Teeny

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Tiny and Teeny
Chris Judge
Walker Books

On the outskirts of the bustling buzzing Glengadget, in a shiny red apple lives Tiny with her pet Teeny.

Tiny spends the weekdays helping others

and by this particular Friday evening, she’s so tired that before she even gets indoors she falls fast asleep dreaming of flying through space.

As she slumbers disaster strikes her home, squishing it absolutely flat.

Despite being given a room in the Grand Hotel, Tiny misses her old home.

Now though it’s payback time: the following week all Tiny’s friends rally round and come Friday a truly wonderful surprise awaits …

which all goes to show that by working together a small community can make a big difference.

Simply bursting with love, is this itty-bitty story, with its enchanting spreads packed with quirky details and antennaed characters doesn’t bring a huge smile to your face then I’ll eat a whole watermelon (and they’re one of my most unfavourite fruits).

Grown-ups Never Do That / What’s Going On Here?

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Grown-ups Never Do That
Davide Cali and Benjamin Chaud
Chronicle Books

‘Adults never misbehave.’ So says the opening line of well-known collaborators Cali and Chaud’s latest offering.
But there’s a team of young sleuths at work who might just disprove the veracity of that statement and we then accompany them through the book.

Of course, they’re absolute paragons of virtue these mature people. So much so that following Cali’s tongue-in-cheek ‘Adults are always good’ on the penultimate spread he concludes with the sound advice, ‘So you really should be just like them.’

However those youngsters who have been spying on the yelling, bad temperedness, cheating, sulking, messiness, lateness,

bad manners, time wasting and the other grown-up behaviours they’ve witnessed, may well think otherwise.

The brevity of Cali’s ironic narrative is countered by Chaud’s detailed comical visuals

making for a diverting book that will please readers young and not so young.

What’s Going On Here?
Olivier Tallec
Chronicle Books

This is a mix-and-match book wherein Tallec, in his typical skittish manner, invites readers to engage in storying with a weird and wonderful cast of characters – animal and a couple of human ones – all of which are sporting rather ridiculous headwear.
You can smile at the attire of each, as you read the related plot piece and ponder the question posed before flipping to and fro to try the plethora of possible permutations that the split pages offer.

I’ve used similarly designed books (three-way split pages) with under-confident readers of all ages needing a morale boost, and I’d do the same with this somewhat more sophisticated one.

Bedtime for Albie / What Will You Dream of Tonight?

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Bedtime for Albie
Sophie Ambrose
Walker Books

Little Albie warthog is one of those annoying creatures that are still full of surplus energy when it’s time for bed.
To delay the inevitable he bounds off in search of other animals to join him in some further frolicking before he succumbs to snuggle time. But the cheetahs,

elephants, and meercats have already begun their sleep-time routines and have no immediate interest in the racing, splish-splashing and digging Albie suggests, so play by himself. he must.

Dusk falls bringing with it all sorts of unfamiliar sounds and then as the stars begin to twinkle, Albie accepts Owl’s “Shouldn’t you be in bed?’ and it’s his ‘mummy’ not playmates that he wants.
Happily the hippos are ready to assist him home just in time for the best part of his bedtime ritual; and suddenly all the others want to join in the fun.

Sophie Ambrose’s wide-eyed animals are absolutely adorable: this is a bedtime book that could easily become part of a fair few little humans’ pre-sleep rituals so I suggest you emulate Albie and ‘skippety trot trit trot’ off to get hold of a copy to share.

What Will You Dream of Tonight?
Frances Stickley and Anuska Allepuz
Nosy Crow

A lilting, almost hypnotic rhyming narrative that talks straight to the young child at bedtime offers all kinds of wondrous dream possibilities.

An ocean dream might have you sailing atop a whale’s tail; on the beach there’s a wrecked ship to explore. Or what about a rocket trip to outer space and the chance to catch your very own star.

Maybe the chance to visit the jungle; take a ride on a polar bear’s back under the sparkling Arctic lights or fly your very own plane above the desert plains would be more fun.

You’d need to be brave and very quiet to enter the lair where a sleeping dragon guards his treasure so perhaps the opportunity to float gently down a woodland stream would be more appealing.

No matter what or where, there’s nothing to fear when you’re tucked safely in bed – so says the mother as she kisses goodnight her daughter.

With gorgeous spreads of each scenario by Anuska Allepuz, this is just right for sending little ones off into the land of nod. Sweet dreams!

Taxi Ride with Victor

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Red Reading Hub is excited to participate in the blog tour for this wacky book:

Taxi Ride With Victor
Sara Trofa and Elsa Klever
Prestel

Victor’s main aim in life was always to be a taxi driver, the greatest the galaxy has ever had. He’s already achieved the first part of his wish but as for the second, there’s a slight snag: Victor has a dreadful sense of direction; he doesn’t even seem to know his left from his right.

So, should you ask him, as does Monday’s passenger, to take you to the hairdressers you may well find yourself like the old lady, whizzing to the lunar park instead.

That is the desired destination of his Tuesday ride (who happens to be the old lady’s grandson) but instead he ends up being dropped off at the library.

As chief librarian, Wednesday’s passenger actually wants to go to the library. He has the odd doubt about hiring Victor but doesn’t want to be late so off they go to …

which by the look of him, isn’t such a bad idea.

And so it goes on throughout the week with Victor whizzing left, right, straight ahead, even up and down, visiting all manner of unexpected locations with a weird and wonderful bunch of characters until come Sunday he picks up our little alien narrator.

This creature appears not to have a clue where he wants to go; but then, having taken a very circuitous route, delivers the biggest surprise ever. Victor’s internal satnav may not be the best but when it comes to bringing happiness to others by taking them to exactly the wrong place at the right time, he certainly comes out tops and now it’s his turn to be in exactly the right place at exactly the right time.

This crazy cosmic adventure that takes place over a week is well and truly out of this world. Its cleverly constructed narrative will surely fire up the imaginations of young listeners while Elsa Klever’s unearthly scenes are wacky in the extreme.
In a classroom setting, or perhaps at home, Victor’s misadventures could prove inspirational for children’s own creativity.

Just think what they might do if provided with some malleable modelling materials and a plethora of unusual junk items – pots, packets, paper and card, plus plenty of pens and pencils. Who knows what new galaxies await to satisfy Victor’s final enquiry ‘Where to?’ …

 

 

Noodle Bear

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Noodle Bear
Mark Gravas
Walker Books

When spring arrives the animals celebrate with a party but there’s a notable absentee, Bear. Fox, the party organiser goes off in search of her friend, taking with her an offering of snacks only to find Bear asleep having spent all winter bingeing on his favourite noodles and watching Noodle Knockout on TV.

So obsessed with noodles is he that instead of consuming the treat he’s been left, all he can think of is yet more noodles.
None of his friends can supply the necessary

and eventually Bear decides to travel to the big city and take part in his favourite game show.

Unsurprisingly, he has no trouble securing the Grand Noodle Champion’s crown

and quickly becomes a celebrity with his own show.

Satisfying though all this fame and unlimited noodles might be, before long, Bear realises that there are other more important things in life – his friends and all the fun things they did together. Only these can really fill the emptiness he feels deep inside. So it’s a long journey back to the forest where awaits a celebratory party thrown by his best pal, Fox; guess who supplies the noodles.

There’s a comic, cartoony feel to this cautionary tale of having too much of a good thing that will surely lure screen-obsessed little humans away from their digital devices for a while.

A Gallery of Cats

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A Gallery of Cats
Ruth Brown
Scallywag Press

Tom who is visiting an art gallery with his granny wanders off into a side room where something quite amazing happens.

As he stands reading a label beside the Jackson exhibit, out of the painting leaps a cat. Tom follows it.

Seemingly there’s been a feline invasion for from almost a dozen works of art that closely resemble famous masterpieces, there appear in turn as Tom pauses to read the labels to his guide Jackson, cats named Gustav, Piet, Frida, René, Vincent, Maukie & Cornelis, Kats,

Henri, Edvard,

William and Samuel.

Eventually with a bevy of assorted cats at his feet Tom turns a corner and there before him is the famous Rousseau-like tiger.

At the sight of this the other felines turn tail and dash back to their own paintings; not Jackson though; he at least waits to bid farewell to the boy while his gran looks at the notice announcing a new exhibition; no prizes for guessing what the topic is.

Cleverly conceived and superbly executed in her own painterly style, Ruth Brown presents a playful introduction to the work of thirteen world famous artists. Cat lovers and primary teachers in particular will love this novel way of bringing their work to life for children who have yet to see the real pictures.

Give Me Back My Bones!

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Give Me Back My Bones!
Kim Norman and Bob Kolar
Walker Books

‘A stormy night has passed here /and toppled every mast here./The ocean flowing fast here,/has scattered all my bones!’ But from who or what is this making this claim on the opening spread, readers will wonder.

A page turn reveals a skull and thereafter Kim Norman’s spirited rhyming narrative cleverly introduces each vertebra from the skeleton using both the scientific name and an everyday one: ‘Give me back my breastbone,/ the centre of my chest bone, / the hold-my-ribs-the-best bone – / return my sturdy sternum.’

As the story progresses we realise  it’s a pirate skeleton that, with our help, is putting himself back together piece by piece from among the marine flora and fauna Bob Kolar has scattered collage-style on the ocean bed.

Love the generous sprinkling of alliteration – ‘I claim my clavicle

… that armpit-of-alarm bone – I hanker for my humerus’ , … I miss my metatarsals’, as well as the other playful language that’s part and parcel of this bone-rattling reclamation, which finally sees the reconstructed skeleton proudly standing before all that have helped complete him …

Don’t miss the endpapers – the front shows all the disparate skeleton components, the end ones display the cutlass waving salt.

Anatomy with a mock scary twist:  Avast me hearties, go grab yourselves a copy of this rattling good book. ARRRR!

Fiddle Dee Dee!

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Fiddle Dee Dee!
Dianne Hofmeyr and Piet Grobler
Otter-Barry Books

This trickster tale featuring a clever monkey had its origins in a collection of South African folktales but for her retelling, Dianne Hofmeyr has changed the villainous wolf for a hyena.

Monkey comes upon a strange-looking object while digging around beneath a tree. As he plucks it out comes a sound, “Fiddle dee dee! Look what I see! / A musical bow. / Lucky monkey! Lucky me! / Luckiest monkey in the whole country,” he sings.

Along comes Hyena claiming the bow to be his and threateningly accusing Monkey of stealing it.

To solve their dispute,Tortoise advises them to consult Lion and off they go to find him.

Lion however, is not the fair and just creature he’s reputed to be and demands the bow for himself.

Monkey begs to be given a final chance to play the instrument and Lion accedes.

The music he plays enchants the other animals, including Lion and they start to dance. Monkey plays faster, the creatures dance faster and faster

and eventually as night falls, they’re all completely exhausted.

Taking advantage of the situation Monkey makes another request and finally secures the bow once and for all.

In her usual animated fashion with plenty of dialogue, Dianne Hofmeyr has refashioned this folk tale from the African continent that is a lively read aloud. Grobler’s scratchy characters are a mix of endearing humour and downright scariness. They certainly snare the attention and whether one is alarmed or amused, each scene offers a wealth of quirky detail to pore over.

Love You Always / Mama’s Work Shoes

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Love You Always
Frances Stickley and Migy Blanco
Nosy Crow

There’s a definite autumnal feel to this book portraying the loving bond between a mother hedgehog and her son Hoglet but despite the little hedgehog’s occasional shivers as the two creatures wander home through the woods, this is a warm-hearted tale.

Hoglet notices the season changing and his mother explains that … change makes nature lovlier with every passing day.’ Hoglet then asks, “Mummy … / would you love me more…if I changed?”

As they encounter other mother-child animals – dashing squirrels, fluttering dragonflies, bouncing frogs, fluffy rabbits,

Hoglet asks his question again and on each occasion gets the same response ’I couldn’t love you more’.

Just before they reach home, Hoglet raises the all important “But, Mummy… will love always last forever, / even if I change just like the seasons or the weather?” And as little humans will be eagerly anticipating, her “Always” promise of unchanging love acts as sufficient reassurance to allow her offspring to curl up and having repeated her final ‘Always’ to fall fast asleep.

With its combination of Frances Stickley’s soft-spoken, pleasingly constructed rhyming narrative that mostly works, and Migy Blanco’s richly hued scenes of the autumnal countryside, this is a lovely bedtime story for parent humans and their little ones to snuggle up together with and share just before bedtime.

Mama’s Work Shoes
Caron Lewis and Vanessa Brantley-Newton
Abrams Books for Young Readers

Little Perry’s mum has a plethora of shoes, a pair for every occasion and Perry knows them well: the ‘swish-swush’ ones for indoors, the ‘zip-zup’ ones for running and skipping, ‘flip-flop’ ones for sunny days and those that go ‘pat put’ in puddles.

One morning Mum puts on a new pair of shoes that go ‘click-clack, click-clack’. They sound interesting but what could they be for, wonders Perry.
When she discovers they signal the start of a new routine that means she and her Mum are to spend time away from one another, Perry is not happy.

Left with her Nan, the child lets her feelings out with a tantrum.

Eventually of course, Mum comes to collect her and back home they go where eventually Mum’s explanation finally reassures her little one that yes those clickity-clack shoe sounds will take her to work but they’ll always bring her back as fast as ever she can.

With Vanessa Brantley-Newton’s bright mixed media illustrations capturing Perry’s changing emotions, Caron Levis’ story will reassure the very young who like little Perry are faced with a parent returning to work.

Campsite Revelations: Fergal in a Fix! / Koala is Not a Bear

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Fergal in a Fix!
Robert Starling
Andersen Press

Fergal (with fiery temper pretty well under control now) returns in a new story.

He’s off to Dragon Day-Camp for the first time and despite assurances from his parents, he’s feeling anxious about it.

Eager to be popular he decides to try and outshine the other dragons at all the activities on offer. But his ‘being the best’ involves behaviour that doesn’t please his fellow campers; he even resorts to cheating.

By lunchtime Fergal is shunned by the other young dragons.
Fortunately the camp leader notices he’s alone and has some wise words to offer, words about being his best self rather than the best at things.

Come the evening Fergal is a much happier little dragon with a lot of new dragon friends.

With a gentle lesson about being yourself and the best version of yourself you can, this second Fergal tale should win the little dragon plenty of new little human friends too.

Koala is Not a Bear
Kristin L. Gray and Rachel McAlister
Sterling

Koala has been eagerly anticipating camp but as it’s her first time away from family and home, she pops a few reminders into her backpack – just in case she feels homesick.

On arrival she searches for her cabin but there seems to be a problem. Just as Grizzly is welcoming her to Bear Cabin, there comes a protest from Kangaroo. “A bit of a know-it-all” is how Grizzly describes the naysayer.

Eager to find a place to rest, Koala tries to prove her ‘bearness’ but Kangaroo is having none of it. Yes she does have sharp teeth and claws but so do crocodiles; lemurs share her ability to climb trees; tigers too can growl. She might be able to perform a reasonable bear crawl but she lacks a tail.

Despite Grizzly’s continued support, Kangaroo continues his assertions when the animals sit down to eat until at last Koala thinks Bear Cabin and even perhaps the entire camp is not for her.

Seeking comfort, out of her pouch comes a photo of a relation – a creature that Kangaroo recognises as his great aunt too.

A few questions from Kangaroo are all that’s needed: it turns out that Koala and Kangaroo are cousins. Hurrah!

The author raises important points about inclusion, similarities and differences during the course of her amusing narrative while at the same time providing a fair sprinkling of marsupial-related facts along the way. Rachel McAlister’s expressive, digitally rendered wide-eyed animal characters will appeal to little ones as they follow Koala’s search for a place to belong.

Oh No, Bear!

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Oh No, Bear!
Joanna Partis
Little Tiger

One autumnal morning a hungry bear wakes knowing he has an important task ahead. But as he walks through the forest his hunger distracts him causing him to follow the delicious smell that assails his nostrils. It leads him to a vegetable bed where Rabbit and friends have dug up a huge pile of carrots. Bear accepts Rabbit’s offer to try one and before you can say ‘chomp’ Bear has consumed the entire barrowful.

But then he smells another delicious aroma and instead of making amends to the rabbits, nose in the air, he’s off on the trail,

which leads him to a group of squirrels engaged in picking acorns. A similar thing happens: it’s Bear’s tummy not the baskets that he fills with acorns.  After a brief apology Bear’s off again hot on the trail of another tempting smell. And oops!

Soon, Beaver’s freshly caught fish ends up in the same place as the previous items he was supposed to taste and unsurprisingly by now, Bear’s tummy is rather larger that it was at the start of the day. As he sits ruminating upon his greed he starts to feel concerned that his friends might have to go hungry all winter.

Back to his cave he heads intent on thinking of a way to put things right. But when he reaches his door another problem awaits.

Is he to remain in that sorry state all winter? Happily not, thanks to his friends, not to mention his inadvertent clumsiness during his pre-hibernation perambulations.

Funny, thought-provoking and engagingly illustrated, with its ‘OH NO BEAR!’ refrain this is an enjoyable autumn term read for foundation stage audiences especially.

Binky’s Time to Fly!

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Binky’s Time to Fly!
Sharmila Collins and Carolina Rabei
Otter-Barry Books

Binky has always wanted to be a beautiful butterfly but when his big day finally comes, he discovers to his dismay that instead of powerful wings, despite their shape, his are fragile, holey things, so wispy they won’t lift him up. Dreams in tatters, he creeps away to hide.

Some time later, two other butterflies that had emerged at the same time discover him and offer to help.

Seeking the assistance of the silkworms, the spiders and the bees, the team work away until at last Binky’s wings are transformed.

They look amazing but will they allow him to take off ?

Acknowledging his inherent difference but thankful and full of hope, Binky watches as his friends flutter above and then responding to their call, “It’s time to fly!’ he carefully unfurls his wings and at last …

Incorporating themes of inclusion and empathy, this movingly told and illustrated story demonstrates the power of co-operation and determination.

As Sharmila, the author says in a final note, this is a book about hope and freedom. Her eldest daughter, the inspiration for the story, has the fragile skin condition epidermis bullosa and to aid the finding of a cure, Sharmila founded the charity Cure EB to which her royalties will be donated.

Rich in pattern and texture Carolina Rabei’s expressive mixed media illustrations are reflective of the softly spoken, uplifting narrative.

Small in the City

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Small in the City
Sydney Smith
Walker Books

I’ve loved Sydney Smith’s work ever since I saw his illustrations for Footpath Flowers so was super-excited to learn of his first picture book as both author and illustrator. It’s a stunner.

The story begins with two wordless spreads showing a child on a tram, the first four blurred views through the tram’s misted window from the boy’s seat,

the second looking into and within the vehicle.

Then, warmly wrapped against the cold, the lad (our narrator) rings the bell, gets off the tram and starts walking. ‘I know what it’s like to be small in the city,” he comments as he crosses the road, continuing to talk of the hustle and bustle around.

As he negotiates crowds and traffic we sense that it’s not the reader he’s addressing, rather it’s a special someone known to him; and instead of being scared, he begins to give advice, …’don’t go down this alley. It’s too dark.’ … ‘There are lots of good places to hide, like under this mulberry bush. Or up the black walnut tree.’

Gradually, even before the boy begins to put up posters, readers understand that he isn’t talking to a human at all. As he enters the park, snow swirling all around, he stops to put up another of his posters; then we see …

and in the dwindling daylight we fully appreciate his, ‘Your bowl is full and your blanket is warm. If you want you could just come back.’

There’s a final twist in the narrative that leaves readers with fast beating hearts, awed by Smith’s brilliance in capturing emotions, and by his use of light, shadows and reflections; and with new knowledge, a desire to turn back to the beginning and start the story over again.

Nibbles: The Monster Hunt

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Nibbles: The Monster Hunt
Emma Yarlett
Little Tiger Press

Uh-oh! Emma Yarlett’s Nibbles, the monster is on the loose again and he’s managed to find his way into a little boy’s bedroom where quite clearly, he’s been indulging himself with the furnishings and his favourite fodder, books. Not just any books however but the boy’s very favourite information book.

Time to get on his trail before he destroys the whole thing completely and creates mayhem in so doing.

What follows is a breathless chase that has boy and monster hurtling through space,

dashing past dogs and cats, gallivanting into the realms of artistry, cascading into colour mixing,

diving into a counting book, where thanks to some quick thinking on Nibbles’ part, the boy and the monster narrowly escape the flaming jaws of the dragon that has been in hot pursuit since Nibbles inadvertently set him free in the art section.

So much for preventing hayhem!

Full of fascinating snippets of information, jokes, speech bubbles, flaps and holes – of course, holes – readers will relish this latest adventure of the monster with a wicked grin and voracious appetite. There’s surely something to satisfy all tastes and a wide age range in this one.

The Wonder Machine

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The Wonder Machine
Barry Timms and Laura Brenlla
Little Tiger

Something of a reclusive character, Wolf is an inventor, the world’s greatest so we’re told.

One day she decides to make a machine that will be a world changer and with that in mind she consults a large nameless book wherein she finds these words, ‘The wonder machine! / The wonder machine! / A gadget like nothing that / you’ve ever seen! From mittens to music, / from cushions to cakes, / The thing you most need / is the thing that it makes!’
Her search for the components required to construct such a marvel take her for the first time ever, away from her home and across onto the mainland.

Once there, she encounters, and helps in turn Squirrel,

Owl and a family of foxes. For each kind deed she receives a gift of thanks. First a garden rake, then a fishing reel and finally, a silver spoon: the very items she needs to complete her Wonder Machine.

Back at home she sets to work next morning, toiling all day until her creation is ready. Although from it there comes wonderful music, Wolf doesn’t feel the satisfaction she’d eagerly anticipated. But then as she sits downheartedly

there comes a realisation and a wonderful surprise …

All of which shows that stepping outside your comfort zone, paying it forward and sharing your talent are enormously rewarding.

Barry Timms’ tipping, tapping text flows along nicely sweeping readers along with it, eager to find out everything about Wolf’s invention, while on the way they’ll enjoy her exchanges with the other characters and empathise with her highs and lows as the story builds to its satisfying musical finale. All this is appealingly shown in Laura Brenlla’s rural scenes with their peepholes, flaps and foldouts.

Rabbit and the Motorbike

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Rabbit and the Motorbike
Kate Hoefler and Sarah Jacoby
Chronicle Books

Rabbit lives in a field and dreams of leaving his safe haven one day, but this home-lover gets his adventures vicariously thanks to his friend Dog, an erstwhile motorcycle enthusiast who has spent much of his life riding his cycle all over the countryside.

One day though, Dog is gone and with it Rabbit’s daily adventure.

Dog has bequeathed his vehicle to his friend and it lies for many days abandoned in the field.

Then one night Rabbit decides to bring the bike inside and in the absence of a story, they listen to the sounds of the highway.

Summer comes bringing with it not only new blooms but also for rabbit, a newfound courage that allows him to admit to his fears and to suggest to the bike, “Just down the road.” But as we know, and Rabbit discovers, roads have a way of going on and on and …

It’s an independent, greatly enriched Rabbit that eventually returns to his field, with his head full of memories and stories, ready for new friends and with a feel for the pull of the open road.

Lyrically told by Kate Hoefler and gorgeously illustrated in pastels and watercolour by Sarah Jacoby, whose delicate scenes bring out Rabbit’s changing emotions while also capturing the power of the profound silences surrounding his loss, and the contrasting roar of the bike when he finally takes to the road.

An exhilarating tale of friendship, loss and finding the courage to step outside your comfort zone.

Strange Happenings with Winnie and Wilbur: The Bug Safari / Ghoulia and the Mysterious Visitor

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Winnie and Wilbur: The Bug Safari
Valerie Thomas and Korky Paul
Oxford Children’s Books

As Winnie and Wilbur picnic in the garden their dropped crumbs are collected by ants.

Winnie is fascinated and wants a closer look. Out comes her wand and with a wave and a shout, witch and cat are transformed into tiny, tiny beings. Wilbur is not impressed, especially when a bird lands in the grass in search of some lunch and even less so when the postman’s boots nearly squash both him and Winnie flat.

The obvious thing would be to make an enlarging spell but Winnie’s wand is stuck in a bush out of reach and anyway it’s now far too big for her to wave.

Are the two of them destined to stay forever tiny?

The countless fans of this series will be fascinated by the scaled down world in which its star characters find themselves and especially enjoy the garish-looking minibeasts that appear to dwarf Winnie and Wilbur.

Ghoulia and the Mysterious Visitor
Barbara Cantini
Amulet

If you’ve not yet encountered Ghoulia, let me introduce her: she’s a zombie girl who lives in Crumbling Manor along with Auntie Departed, Tragedy (dog) and other rather weird residents.

One rainy evening when the young zombie is feeling particularly bored, partly because her aunt has been totally absorbed with gardening and in particular tending her Chatterbox Ivy, an unexpected visitor arrives. He announces himself as Cousin Dilbert, (a cousin Ghoulia didn’t know existed) invited by her aunt to come on a visit.

But why invite such a fault-finding, demanding character? Off goes Ghoulia to find her aunt and ask the reason, but she is nowhere to be found.

Meanwhile another visitor arrives – one of Ghoulia’s friends thanking her for his invitation, also penned by her aunt.
More and more of her friends arrive, each holding similar invitations.

Things get ever more strange though and at one point the piano seems to be playing without a pianist and then Theresa (another of Ghoulia’s friends) disappears too.

After a search, the mystery is finally solved, thanks in no small part to her cousin and for once, everyone – even Dilbert – seems happy.

Out of this world zany, but just the right length for new solo readers who will especially enjoy Cantini’s detailed, mock-scary colour illustrations and the idea of a seemingly harmless plant turning carnivorous.

Jazz Dog

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Jazz Dog
Marie Voigt
Oxford Children’s Books

Segregation rules in a world populated by dogs and cats. Dogs play only dog music; cats only play cat music.

However there’s one dog that isn’t happy with this separatist regime; his music is different.

One night he hears a beautiful sound coming through an open window and he’s mesmerised. He’s determined to learn to play like the Jazz Cats, but the cats won’t help so he decides that he must teach himself cat music.

Borrowing instruments and books he sets about learning cat jazz and it feels right.

As he passes the theatre a sign announcing a jazz contest catches his attention. What an opportunity to show his talent; but a dog performing in a cat contest?

Shock horror.

The theatre is packed to capacity with growling dogs and hissing cats. The jazz dog has a crisis of confidence but thanks to some feline encouragement, he decides to stay and play.

Who would have believed that the actions of one determined little dog could have such amazing consequences …

Marie Voigt’s uplifting rendition gets right to the heart of individuality and is a reminder that every one of us is entitled to follow our own path, and to find the inner courage and confidence to stand up for what we know is right, for ourselves and also for others.

A must for families, and for classroom sharing and discussion.

Elmer’s Birthday

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Elmer’s Birthday
David McKee
Andersen Press

After three decades it’s safe to say that Elmer the elephant has become an institution in nurseries, primary schools and families.

This story celebrates his birthday or does it?

The group of elephants he passes on his regular morning walk certainly think he has a birthday the following day and decide to play a joke on him. ‘… let’s act as if we’ve forgotten it …’ they decide intending to produce a celebratory cake at the end of the afternoon.

Off they go to inform his friends and family of their intentions.
The trouble is those elephants don’t pay heed to the responses they receive, dismissing all their ‘buts’ as insignificant.

Indeed not a single animal they speak to is impressed with their trick, but the mention of cake keeps them quiet.

Next morning when he takes his walk, Elmer’s slightly puzzled at the way his friends greet him. Throughout the day the other animals seem to be avoiding him until the end of the afternoon when he’s suddenly confronted by all his friends and family.

Yes, the trick backfires but who can resist the enormous patchwork confection that his fellow pachyderms have baked for all to share, birthday or no birthday.

“ … the cake is a winner,” concludes Elmer before they all tuck in; and a winner is what little ones will think about this shared joke of a tale. I’m pretty sure they’ll ask for second helpings too.

Be More Bernard

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Be More Bernard
Simon Philip and Kate Hindley
Simon & Schuster

Bernard is a bunny; he does bunny things like nose twitching and ear pricking and he digs lots of deep holes. In fact whatever his fellow bunnies do, Bernard does likewise.

In his dreams though things are rather different; he dreams of decidedly un-rabbity things. But how long can he keep up his pretence of being just like the other bunnies?

One day he decides to eschew the bunny poo baps his fellow rabbits are eating. ‘I can’t do this any more’ he decides.

Little by little Bernard starts to do his own thing, largely ignored by the others until that is, the day of the annual bunny ball when, shock horror, a divergent bunny rolls up!

Ignoring cries of “You can’t wear that!” and “We’re all the same!’ Bernard struts his stuff with joyful abandon, disco dancing like there’s no tomorrow.

Amid the cries of consternation, there’s one little bunny, Betsy, who loves his daring to be different and it isn’t long before Bernard isn’t the only risk taker on the dance floor.

Then comes the big reveal …

which all goes to show that the best possible choice is to be true to yourself whatever that may be.

Long live individuality and difference: that is what is so splendidly conveyed in Simon Philip’s cracking story narrated with such delicious humour by Bernard himself.

Kate Hindley brings out that humour with her splendiferous scenes of the protagonist’s transition from rule adherent to rule breaker, from follower to leader, from ordinary bunny to bunny extraordinaire. Make sure you peruse every spread carefully or you’ll miss the wealth of captivating detail in every one.

Blooming brilliant!

Tibble and Grandpa

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Tibble and Grandpa
Wendy Meddour and Daniel Egnéus
Oxford Children’s Book

The relationship between a child and a grandparent is often very special and uncomplicated, and so it is here.

Tibble’s Grandpa is grieving. He seems to be always in the garden: Mum explains that what he needs is time.

Full of loving concern, Tibble wants the old Grandpa back: he barely recognises this silent, withdrawn person. Little by little he gets Grandpa to open up as they spend time together talking of favourite things.

Next morning Grandpa actually seeks out Tibble’s company and they spend the day doing the boy’s favourite things – his ‘Top Three Days Out’ all in one.

That evening they get out the telescope Granny had given to Tibble and they watch the stars together. Tibble opens up a discussion about favourite (Top Three) Grannies, ‘Mine are granny who is dead. Granny Agnes who lives on top of the shoe shop. And the Granny in Little Red Riding Hood,’ he says and this acts as a release for Grandpa.

Wendy Meddour has created an enormously affecting tale of loss, grief and love. Her repeated use of ‘Top Threes’ throughout the narrative is genius, injecting just the right degree of gentle humour into her telling.

Daniel Egnéus reflects so well both the humour and poignancy of the story in his outstanding mixed media illustrations making you feel as though you want to hug both Tibble and Grandpa.

Yes it’s a book about coping with the death of a loved one but it’s also an outstandingly beautiful story about intergenerational love and its power to heal.

Hungry Jim

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Hungry Jim
Laurel Snyder and Chuck Groenink
Chronicle Books

This is a tribute to Maurice Sendak with a delectably dry deadpan delivery by both author and artist.

When Jim wakes up one Tuesday morning he feels at odds with himself – beastly in fact –and definitely doesn’t feel like breakfasting on the pancakes his mother is busy downstairs cooking.

Instead he devours her, but still feeling hungry he leaves home and consumes everyone who crosses his path. There’s no getting away from it – the more he rampages, the more he wants to eat. He wants to cry too though.

Finally he can run no further. As he stands contemplating his conflicting emotions he hears a growl that isn’t emanating from his stomach. There before him stands a larger, even more ferocious looking creature …

but Jim’s ferocity grows too …

Hunger sated at last, he heads home, burping and ‘braap’-ing along the way,

and there ‘It was a huge relief to find things mostly as he’d left them.’

Back in his own room another transformation takes place and finally the only hunger he’s left with is ‘For pancakes’.

After all that beastliness, it’s breakfast in this case, not supper that is waiting, but of course, it IS still hot.

This deliciously wicked tale demonstrating the power of the imagination will make you uneasy, it will make you gasp, and it will make you aware of the hidden wildness that lies within. What young listeners will make of it, I’m yet to discover. They will however definitely appreciate Groenink’s masterful pencil and Photoshop illustrations that are the perfect complement for Laurel Snyder’s pithy prose.

Once Upon a Wild Wood

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Once Upon a Wild Wood
Chris Riddell
Macmillan Children’s Books

Former Children’s Laureate, Chris Riddell has woven a wonderful fairy tale extravaganza if ever there was one.

Its main protagonist is Little Green Rain Cape whom we meet as she sets off through the woods heading for Tall Tower wherein Rapunzel is throwing a birthday party.

En route, Green meets and rejects the assistance of several well known fairytale characters including a wolf, a ‘kindly’ old lady, a ‘friendly’ troll, the Beast sans Beauty who has gone missing; a talking harp whose aid she comes to and in so doing happens upon the Three Bears.

All this walking however is hard on the feet so it’s fortunate that another encounter is with Thumbelina who gives her some ointment to salve their soreness; and eventually along with a host of others including a prince,

pigs and dwarves, she reaches the venue where they all gain admittance.

A great night is had by everyone

particularly Beauty and the Beast who are reunited at last; and the following morning Green continues on her way through the Wild Wood.

Most assuredly this is a book for everyone, although with his dramatic irony and witty lines – ‘ ”Princesses!” he exclaimed. “Did someone say princesses? Exhausting! Either falling asleep for a hundred years, losing their shoes or going out every night dancing. …” ‘, – Riddell does assume some prior knowledge on the readers part. Perhaps it’s a case of the more you know the more you’ll get from it.

A Life Made by Hand: The story of Ruth Asawa

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A Life Made by Hand: The story of Ruth Asawa
Andrea D’Aquino
Princeton Architectural Press

I have to admit that despite my interest in art the name of this book’s subject is new to me.

Brought up on her family farm in California, Japanese-American artist Ruth Asawa was from an early age, mesmerised by the flora and fauna she saw around her.

Her close observation of such things as insects she saw led her to make representations of them from wire or folded paper, and she also loved to draw in the dirt with her feet.

At weekends, instead of working on the farm, Ruth studied Japanese calligraphy and later she went to art school where she gained further inspiration from dance choreography, and her teachers, in particular Buckminster Fuller and Josef Albers.

Travelling to Mexico she learned wire weaving from local craftsmen who twisted the metal to make baskets.

Back home Ruth experimented with this medium and finally knew what was THE medium for her.

Her sculptures are enormously complex, beautiful graceful pieces that are now to be found in art museums mostly in the US

where they inspire others to look closely, imagine and create for themselves.

This short interesting introductory biography for youngsters with an interest in both art and the natural world omits the darker events in the life of Asawa and her family, but the author provides factual notes on these, as well as an explanation for her own inspiration in creating the book, and instructions for making a paper dragonfly.

D’Aquino’s collage style illustrations – a combination of charcoal and colour pencil drawings with hand-printed and monoprinted paper are quirky and arresting, and may well inspire readers to experiment with collage too.

Handa’s Noisy Night

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Handa’s Noisy Night
Eileen Browne
Walker Books

Yippee! A new Handa story. Handa’s Surprise was one of THE most loved, most read picture books when I taught under sevens, so I was super excited to get my hands on a copy of this.

Handa goes to spend the night with her friend Akeyo and the girls are to sleep alone in the hut.

Having bid goodnight to the rest of Akeyo’s family, off they go but almost before the door is closed Handa hears a snorting sound outside. Akeyo insists it’s just her dad laughing.

During the night there are more sounds – chattering, rattling,

squeaking, slurping, crying and finally a thud. Rather than the grown-ups talking, Mum making music, Grandpa’s rusty bike, Nan having her bedtime drink and Akeyo’s baby that her friend claims are the cause,

readers see what is actually happening outside.

In the morning a tapping wakes Handa and when her friend opens the door, nobody’s there.

Mum’s “Did you sleep well?’ receives an accusation that the noises from other family members meant a wakeful night, which is quickly countered with, “We were as quiet as mice”.

The glowing Kenyan landscape and stunningly patterned clothes of the characters are signature Handa story elements, but here we’re treated to the delights of some of the resident fauna of the area- a bushpig, bat-eared foxes, an African porcupine, yellow-winged bats, a tree pangolin, lesser bush-babies, the magnificent spotted eagle-owl and a Nubian woodpecker, each one in its full glory (all are named in the author’s notes at the front).

It’s hard to believe the original Handa story is now 25 years old; I still have a treasured copy of the first edition and she’s lost none of her magic. Happily now though there are more BAME books available: this one is a ‘must have’ addition to any family bookshelf or nursery/KS1 class library.

Fair Shares

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Fair Shares
Pippa Goodhart and Anna Doherty
Tiny Owl

Both Hare and Bear have designs on the juicy-looking pears they see high up in the tree but neither can reach them.

Hare suggests climbing on chairs but there are only three …

“That’s not fair!’ exclaims Bear so one is discarded. Now Bear can reach the yummy pears – SCRUNCH MUNCH – but Hare isn’t happy.

Suddenly a tiny voice pipes up. Beetle puts forward the notion that giving everybody the same thing isn’t always fair and with a visual aid, goes on to explain.

Everyone appears happy but only briefly;

wait for the surprise ending …

Pippa Goodhart’s funny, seemingly simple story will set youngsters’ brains a- buzzing as they contemplate the vexed question of fair shares and fairness.

Before that though, they’ll relish the entire telling wonderfully visualised in Anna Doherty’s lively, splendidly expressive illustrations of the animal participants in this thought-provoking book. Look out for all the minibeasts watching the action and sometimes enjoying the spoils thereof.

When A Tree Grows

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When A Tree Grows
Cathy Ballou Mealey and Kasia Nowowiejska
Sterling Children’s Books

Cause and effect meet choose your own adventure in this amusing book set in a forest.

‘When a tree grows … two things could happen. It becomes a scratching post for Moose’s itchy antlers and the tree sways gently side to side.’ Or … he pushes too hard and crash!-boom! Down comes the tree onto a cave waking up a bear. Bear too can do one of two things … and so it goes on with the possibility of an ordinary or an extraordinary happening.

The possibilities get more and more outlandish, even the ordinary ones, until the adventure brings all three characters (and a host more) together for a Welcome Home party for their small bushy-tailed friend …

after which there is a satisfying completion of the circular tale that readers may, or may not, have seen coming.

There’s plenty to amuse as each scenario is presented in this cleverly constructed story wherein text and digital illustrations work well in tandem providing a fun storytime read aloud with a good sprinkling of omomatopoeia that gives young listeners an opportunity to let rip.

The book also offers a model for older audiences to use as a starting point for writing their own similarly constructed adventures.

Baz & Benz / Mannie and the Long Brave Day

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Baz & Benz
Heidi McKinnon
Allen & Unwin

Owls Baz and Benz are best friends: Baz is small and blue; Benz is big and green.

One day while sitting together Baz decides to check if their friendship really is for ever and ever.

He puts forward a series of possibilities – a colour change; a colour change with a spotty pattern? So far so good.

Constant ‘Meeping’? – not at all a good idea.

A scary bat with sharp claws? Err! Rather frightening, but the friendship bond would remain intact … no matter what.

Little humans will delight in Baz’s ability to annoy, and to push the boundaries but remain loved, and they’ll especially relish the way he gets the last “Meep!’

Comforting and reassuring; Heidi McKinnon gets right to the heart of true friendship in this simple, enormously enjoyable story for the very young. The bold, bright illustrations are captivating and the characters with their matching coloured lines immediately endearing.

A book I envisage being demanded over and over.

An altogether different celebration of friendship is:

Mannie and the Long Brave Day
Martine Murray and Sally Rippin
Allen & Unwin

This is a sweet story about a little girl Mannie, her toy elephant, Lilliput and her doll, Strawberry Luca.

Together with a special box of useful things, Mannie takes her friends on an exciting adventure … down the rocky road, through the tall, tall trees, across the winding river

and up the high hill for a picnic.

Suddenly the sun disappears, the sky darkens, thunder starts to rumble and Mannie feels scared.

Now it’s Lilliput’s turn to say the words, “What’s in the box?’

and before long all is well once more.

A truly magical book  that celebrates the boundless imagination of young children. Both author and artist capture the way in which the very young can transform almost anything and everything into the ingredients for their fantasy play.
Sally Rippin’s gorgeous illustrations took me right into the nursery classroom where I taught for a number of years, as did the ‘special box’ in the narrative. We too had a similar item not pink but battered and brown with a hole cut in the top, into which I’d put various items and we’d all sit around it and sing, “What’s in the box, what’s in the box, let’s think, let’s see … what’s in the box” before somebody would put in their hand and extract an item as the starting point for storying.

This is a Dog

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This is a Dog
Ross Collins
Nosy Crow

There’s no getting away from it, Ross Collins’ intended My First Animal Book’ has been infiltrated, indeed taken over, by a mischievous canine that has no intention of doing anything but ensuring he’s the only animal that matters herein. He’s even had the audacity to substitute his name for Ross’s on the title page.

Make no bones about it, his actions are anything but well received by the other animals – note their expressions. And having annoyed the monkey, astonished the rabbit and alarmed the squirrel, he’s somehow managed to get his paws on a black crayon to edit (actually mess around with) the text.

Children will absolutely love what he does beside the giraffe and giggle at his attempts at emulating a pachyderm in front of the elephant.

He almost gets his cum uppance with bear but then comes gorilla where he definitely over steps the mark by way too much and they all give chase.

It’s fortunate that his trusty crayon is still close at paw as it enables him to have the last laugh, not to mention the final word (or two).

I love everything about this cracker of a book. It’s so clever, such a ingenious mix of seeming simplicity and sophistication, and likely to appeal to a wide readership from beginner readers to those who will notice and delight in Ross’s dedication to his own dog Hugo ‘Who taught me the meaning of irony by destroying some of the artwork from this book.’

Brilliant!

Polly and the New Baby

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Polly and the New Baby
Rachel Quarry
Oxford University Press

Little Polly’s imaginary friend Bunny goes everywhere with her. She takes him in the pushchair she had as a tiny baby.

Every time her Mum or Dad try to persuade her to do without said pushchair, she insists it’s an absolute necessity. Bunny and chair go to the supermarket, the park and even to her Gran’s house.

There’s a problem though: Mum is soon to have a new baby and needs the chair for her own purposes. Several replacement modes of transport for Bunny are offered but none satisfy Polly

and all the while Mum’s due date draws ever closer.

Even when it’s imminent, and Polly and Bunny go to stay at Gran’s, you’ve guessed, the pushchair goes too.

However, when Mum introduces Polly to her new little sister Lily, the now big sis. makes a special announcement concerning her friend: “Bunny can walk!”

Definitely now’s the time to pass on that old pushchair surely; or is it? … It would appear that Polly isn’t the only one with a new sibling.

Happily Polly’s imagination stretches to making a compromise that might just work for everyone.

The understated humour in both words and illustrations makes this story of a family with a super-cute creative thinking protagonist, a delight to share with little ones around Polly’s age whether or not a new arrival is in the offing.

Old Man of the Sea

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Old Man of the Sea
Stella Elia and Weberson Santiago
Lantana Publishing

Grandpa and the boy narrator of the story share a special relationship: sometimes they just sit in silence and on other days Grandpa wants to talk.

On one such day he starts the conversation thus: “Every line on my skin tells the story of my life.”

He then begins to recount his life story to the lad beginning each tale with “All aboard!”

Driven by Elia’s wondrous telling, Santiago’s impressive illustrations executed in a vibrant palette, show Grandpa’s travels from his days as a young sailor when he visited first Europe where he ‘wandered through fairy tale castles and ate picnics in groves of olives’, and then to Africa where he ‘danced to the rhythm of drums’.

Later his wanderlust took him to Asia where he ate tongue burning spices and visited ancient temples before travelling to Oceana

and finally, after a stormy voyage, to America.

It was there that he fell in love, married, settled and raised a family. No longer was the call of the sea pulling him to the oceans where earlier it was the only place he felt truly happy and at peace, at one with the world, able to watch the stars as he slept under a moonlit sky.

Grandpa’s love for the places he visited is palpable, radiating from the spreads of the continents mentioned in the narrative.

Are all the stories true, wonders his grandson at the end; so too probably, will readers; but no matter what, they’ll be absorbed in the telling and that’s what really counts in this beautiful book.

Mum’s Jumper

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Mum’s Jumper
Jayde Perkin
Book Island

This is a book that explores the nature of grief.

A mother dies but for the child narrator and her dad, life must go on.
Her mother’s absence feels like a dark cloud that is always hovering close by, and makes concentration at school difficult. No matter how kind other people are, the overwhelming feeling is of being alone, angry even, at times.

Her father explains that the constant ache she feels is the way grief engulfs a person who has lost someone very dear to them; he too feels it.

While sorting out her mother’s belongings the girl comes upon a much-loved jumper. Along with her father’s words of solace, it’s adopting that snuggly warm garment that helps her begin to find a way through those dark days.

Grief, Dad says, ‘is like Mum’s jumper. The jumper stays the same size, but I will eventually grow into it.’

After some time, her world does enlarge around her grief and she feels able to put her treasured possession out of sight, safe in the knowledge that it, like her mother, will always be there; for she’s a part of everything and everywhere, and most important she’s there inside forever.

Grief is a very personal thing and Jayde Perkins’ illustrations for this book are heartfelt. (Her own mother died of cancer) and here she puts into her art (and words) some of the feelings that a young grieving child might have.

I’d like to see this ultimately uplifting book in every primary classroom; and I’d definitely offer it to anybody who has, or knows, a young child coping with the loss of a parent or close family member.

A Stone Sat Still

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A Stone Sat Still
Brendan Wenzel
Chronicle Kids

As with They All Saw a Cat, Brendan Wenzel explores perspective, this time playfully using a stone as the focal point.

‘A stone sat still/ with the water, grass, and dirt,/ and it was as it was/ where it was in the world.’

A series of spreads, shows the stone as it is experienced by all manner of wild creatures: a snail crawls over it, a chipmunk stops on it to nibble a nut; for an owl it’s a bright place upon which to perch, while a gull cracking a clam shell finds it ‘loud’,

in contrast to the snake for which it was a quiet spot upon which to bask in the sun.

The stone’s texture to a slug is ‘rough’ whereas to a racoon’s paws it’s smooth.

The meditation on the inanimate object continues through the seasons when it takes on a variety of hues – green, red, purple and blue as witnessed by four different animals.

Its size can seem as a mere pebble to a large moose but to a bug, it’s an enormous hill; while in the dark, its sensory qualities are picked up as a feel to investigative racoons, whereas it’s a smell to a sniffing coyote on the hunt.

Readers too experience the stone’s sensory qualities, thanks to Wenzel’s text and his superb mixed-media illustrations, large and small.

As they move through the book, readers will, so long as they are observant, see that around the stone, the water is on the rise

as little by little it is engulfed, becoming a tiny island and then a wave, a memory, ‘and the stone was always.’ Submerged beneath the waves ‘with water, grass, and dirt a stone sits still in the world.’

Assuredly this is a book that invites us to celebrate the changing and the unchanging, and encourages us to look closely and ever closer, not only at the illustrations, but also at the natural world around.

It’s one to have on hand if you are thinking about wildlife, about perception and perspective, even perhaps about existence itself; it’s deep and gently powerful, and has much to offer across a wide age range.

Lulu’s First Day / Butterflies on the First Day of School

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Lulu’s First Day
Anna McQuinn and Rosalind Beardshaw
Alanna Max

Lulu is starting pre-school and she’s already been well prepared. There have been lots of story time sessions at the library, a visit to the school, and special gifts from Nana and Tayo that she’ll use regularly for school.

She’s even chosen her clothes for the next day and packed extras in her new bag – just in case.

The big day dawns, everybody is up early and with a pause for a quick photo, off she goes with her mum.

There’s a warm welcome from her teacher and Lulu is soon enjoying all that nursery has to offer.

Almost before you can say, ‘circle time’, there she is on the carpet with all her friends and the grown-ups are waiting outside eager to hear of those new experiences.

Yes, its’ been a tiring day, but Lulu can’t wait for tomorrow …

With all the reassurance that little ones need, Anna McQuinn and Ros. Beardshaw present the pitch perfect book for those who, like Lulu, are about to take those next steps into pre-school.

Butterflies on the First Day of School
Annie Silvestro and Dream Chen
Sterling Children’s Books

An enchanting fanciful take on a well-known figure of speech is presented in this story of first day nerves.

Rosie has been eagerly anticipating starting school for a whole month but on the night before her big day, doubts creep in and next morning she announces that she doesn’t feel well.

Her mum tells her it’s just butterflies in her tummy and when she sits chatting rather nervously on the school bus to another new girl, butterflies (seen only by Rosie) flutter from her mouth. Now she understands her mum’s puzzling comment.

More butterflies are released, also seen only by Rosie, every time she opens her mouth in the classroom during that first session,

until by playtime her tummy is less rumbly and she can barely feel any more butterflies.

Out go the children to play, Rosie feeling pretty confident now. Then she notices another little girl standing alone under a tree, hands on her tummy. Rosie introduces herself and when the forlorn-looking girl speaks, a cloud of butterflies come fluttering from her mouth.

With its bold bright butterfly images this is a lovely warm story that will reassure little ones who like Rosie are starting school imminently, along with adults who may well share that first day feeling.

The Little Mermaid

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The Little Mermaid
Geraldine McCaughrean and Laura Barrett
Orchard Books

Storyteller extraordinaire Geraldine McCaughrean retells the Hans Christian Andersen classic tale as only she can, making it a real joy to read aloud.

Delphine the youngest of six mermaid sisters hears from her siblings of the wonders of the world above the sea’s surface and can hardly wait for her special coming of age birthday when she too will be allowed to venture up.

When the great day arrives it’s a joyful Delphine who swims to the surface and begins to sing in her wonderful voice.
As she does so another celebration is taking place aboard a great ship anchored close by. The sight of the prince’s face sends her heart spinning but suddenly, seemingly from nowhere, there comes a huge storm engulfing the ship entirely beneath the waves.

Delphine manages to rescue the prince taking him to a safe place on land not far from what she thinks must be his palace home, and there she leaves him knowing she must never be seen by human eyes.

As her songs grow ever sadder fuelled by her nightly swims to the cove near the palace, it becomes clear to her sisters that she has fallen in love with the prince.

Determined to become his wife, Delphine visits the sea witch and a deal is struck – a potion to render her human in exchange for her beautiful voice.

But that is just part of the enormous price Delphine has to pay. It’s not she who marries the prince but another beauty.

The tragedy doesn’t end there, as those familiar with the original will know

and others must learn from this utterly enchanting rendition that is made all the more magical by Laura Barrett’s silhouette style illustrations.

Assuredly a book for lovers of fairy tales, young and not so young; buy it to keep and buy it to give; buy it for home and buy it for school.

Don’t Mess with a Princess!

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Don’t Mess with a Princess!
Rachel Valentine and Rebecca Bagley
Puffin Books

Far away in a beautiful and usually very happy kingdom atop a hill lives King Juno. Also residing in the palace are his three granddaughters Princess Thea, Princess Leaf and Princess Juno.

Now these three aren’t the type of princess who sits around waiting for a handsome prince to show up and sweep them off their feet, far from it.

So when having heard news of a mayhem creating Ogre, the King warns them to remain in their tower and absolutely not, on any account to mess with the Ogre, they quickly conceive a plan.

The sisters are thoroughly resourceful females and it isn’t long before they’re off towards the forest – an enchanted forest. But, unlike the knights sent to capture the Ogre, the three princesses know just how to get themselves safely through the angry trees and come out with, as Juno says, ‘fabulous hair’.

But can they cope with the webbed pit alive with large squirming spiders?

Fortunately Theo knows how to deal with the creatures and then all they need to do is cross the ravine with the broken bridge.

This time it’s Leaf who comes up trumps with some deft knots.

The important thing about all three princesses is that while not totally fearless, they’re always up for a challenge.

Once across and in Neatville they’re greeted with the sight of the Ogre charging off to trash yet another village. Off go the princesses in hot pursuit and finally they have the Ogre trussed up.

It’s then that they discover the reason their captive has been causing so much devastation; and being kind-hearted as well as clever, Thea, Leaf and Juno are ready and able to assist the Ogre in his search for his lost item.

If, like me you enjoy neo fairy tales then you’re certain to relish Rachel Valentine’s action-packed story of using your talents and not allowing others to make decisions for you.

Debut picture book illustrator Rebecca Valentine’s droll scenes of the three creative adventurers highlight the contrast between them and the supposedly brave knights of the kingdom. Make sure you spend time enjoying all the wonderful details on every spread.

Button & Popper

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Button & Popper
Oili Tanninen
Thames & Hudson

This is a retro charmer from the 1960s created by award wining Finish author and illustrator Oili Tanninen.

It tells of a family of pixies, a mother and father and their twelve children, who with winter fast approaching, decide that their apple tree home isn’t suitable accommodation for the cold and rain. It’s a worrying, sad time as they consume the pie made from the last apples that evening. Two of the children, twins Button and Popper resolve that the following morning they will go and find a new home.

Out they sneak, very early towards town making inquiries, but all those they ask say the same thing ”Twelve children” and kindly explain there’s nowhere large enough for so many people.

The twins feel more than a little dispirited, but then by mistake the only person in the market they haven’t asked, an absent minded fellow named Professor Prilli, accidentally picks up the basket they’d climbed into, mistaking it for his own and takes it back, leaving it in his cellar.

Realising they’ve left their father’s umbrella at the market the two pixies manage to escape. They retrieve the umbrella and the professor’s own basket and take it back to him.

The thankful professor asks the pixies what they were doing in the market and when he learns their reason, he offers them temporary use of his home till he returns from his South Pole research trip the following spring.

There’s great jubilation all round when the twins give the exciting news to the rest of their family back at the apple tree.

With its orange, yellow and black illustrations adorned with lines and geometric shapes, this delightful tale of serendipity will appeal especially to those who enjoy a touch of whimsy in their stories.