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I Can Only Draw Worms

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I Can Only Draw Worms
Will Mabbitt
Puffin Books
Bonkers! A book that can reduce two adults to fits of helpless laughter on a dull day has got to be worth something: it’s what Will Mabbit’s foray into picture books did to one reviewer and her partner. It’s billed as ‘an unconventional counting book’ and it surely is that, and a whole lot more. In truth I suspect pretty much anybody can draw worms, but only Will Mabbitt could make quite such a ridiculously and gloriously silly book as this one with its day-glo pink and yellow annelids wriggling all over it. Yes we’ve had wormy books before: Janet Ahlberg’s The Worm Book, Superworm from Julia Donaldson and Leo Lionni’s Inch by Inch to name but three; but nobody (to my knowledge) has given the reason, as the title proclaims, for devoting their entire picture book to them. In fact there is absolutely nothing else between the covers other than words of course. Other characters do crop up though; Worm SIX, is said to be ‘riding on a flying unicorn!’ Of course, no unicorn appears (you just have to imagine); instead, guess what? Mabbitt has drawn worm FIVE again. Hmm …

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and then has the audacity to go on to relate that worm SIX actually rides this unicorn off to meet the seventh worm who lives um, in outer space.
This Mabbitt guy clearly doesn’t know his cardinal numbers from his ordinal ones though, at least where worms are concerned (and as for whole and half numbers, let’s not even go there. If you doubt what I say then listen to this bit: ‘THERE’s BEEN A DREADFUL ACCIDENT.’ That whole thing about cutting a worm in half and getting two worms has just been disproved OUCH!: instead, all you get is two half worms … like this …

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Moreover, worm NINE has gone AWOL to the concern of the others (won’t even try counting them as I’ll get bogged down in the halves and wholes thingy.) Next, more craziness in the way of an identity mix-up and then along comes number 10 worm. And he (actually Will, take note, worms are hermaphrodite) is accompanied by the missing number NINE (back from that urgent loo break). Now let the counting proper – or rather, almost proper – begin …

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That’s it.
Sunglasses out and off you wiggle, and giggle! I’m off out to dig worms; but that’s another story …

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When an Elephant Falls in Love / I Love You

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When an Elephant Falls in Love
Davide Cali and Alice Lotti
Chronicle Books
Davide Cali of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to School and The Truth About My Unbelievable Summer fame brings his sardonic wit to an exploration of falling in love, elephant style.
In his straightforward text, he offers, one by one, eight symptoms of this state of being. Alice Lotti portrays each of these ‘foolish things’ with equal wit in her stark, mixed media illustrations. Elephant is the perfect purveyor of the condition as his huge bulk serves to emphasise the daftness of each action …

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He hides whenever he sees her.

And, there’s a tiny yellow bird that pops up as an observer of each scene, further adding to the overall impact of the whole crazy scenario …

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Look by the bowl …

Both young readers and adults will find plenty to make them smile in this, whether or not they recognise the symptoms from personal experience or observations of others, for it’s plain to see that when an elephant falls in love …

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his actions are pretty much those of a besotted human.

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I Love You
Clemency Pearce and Rosalind Beardshaw
Nosy Crow
The all important title message is delivered through Clemency Pearce’s warm-hearted, rhyming text and super-cute, patterned illustrations. With its textual pattern that begins, ‘ When you feel so very small, / when no one seems to care at all, / what can make you ten feet tall? // Three little words …
(turn over) … ‘I love you!’ …

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this cries out to the very young to join in with those three words after each verse is read aloud.
But those recipients of love can also help make others feel better …

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Ideal to share with your toddler, this board book is a delight.
Another board book with the same title is

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I Love You
Dawn Sirett
DK
This is the latest addition to DK’s Baby Touch and Feel series.
Colour photographs of animals, toys and humans …

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each with a finger-sized tactile feature are the ingredients of this chunky little book. Just right for the very youngest to explore.

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Hilda and the Runaway Baby

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Hilda and the Runaway Baby
Daisy Hurst
Walker Books
This gloriously ridiculous story centres on the unlikely bond formed between Hilda, a pot-bellied pig who lives peacefully and she thinks, happily, at the foot of a hill and a chubby-faced baby who lives at the top of the hill and has a habit of being in unexpected places; hence the name – Runaway Baby. Now this baby is an observant little chap and so on his walks with mum and dad, he would notice interesting things such as a bird that is flying away. Almost inevitably (this was the top of the hill remember) his reaching towards said bird results in this happening –

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Realising the baby’s plight, Hilda gives chase and eventually the two find themselves face to face on the ground. “I think we’d better get you home,” says Hilda after introductions: “Hello, Baby … My name is Hilda” responded to by a “Da” from the infant.
Pushing the pram and its load proves exhausting for Hilda though it is rewarded with milk and part of a broken biscuit by the Runaway Baby who then comes up with an idea, an idea which is much better suited to a pig’s four-footed manner of walking …

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Eventually the two arrive safe and sound at the Baby’s home, after which, Hilda returns to her own home that now feels somewhat cold and lonely.
Job done then: story over? Not quite, for during the night a certain baby wakes, remembers a certain pig and  howls piteously which results in some moonlit perambulations on the pig’s part …

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and – ultimately – in something rather surprising, at least for Hilda. As for the Runaway Baby, well there are still plenty of surprising places just waiting for a visit …
Daisy Hurst goes from strength to strength. Her wonderfully whimsical  illustrations bring sheer delight at every turn of the page and she has such a talent for delivering marvellously maverick and memorable tales.

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My Bunny’s Chocolate Factory

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Mr Bunny’s Chocolate Factory
Elys Dolan
Oxford University Press
Elys Dolan follows her wonderful Doughnut of Doom with another confection-related picture book.
Imagine being force fed chocolate; that’s the fate of the chickens that work in Mr Bunny’s chocolate-egg making factory pressing the chocolate into bars, eating the chocolate bars, squeezing out chocolate eggs, wrapping and packing same. Mr Bunny has his own special secret recipe and to ensure perfection he also employs a quality control unicorn named Edgar.
Like many successful entrepreneurs Mr B. is greedy …

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hence the force-feeding, to ‘crank up egg production to the max’ – no breaks, cancelled holidays even, the latter as a result of a plethora of bad eggs being discovered by Edgar.

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Finally the chickens revolt. They down tools: a strike is declared.

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Can Mr Bunny and Edgar run the factory by themselves? What has happened to missing worker, Debbie? And, can change happen, or will the boss remain a ‘bad egg’ evermore?
Elys Dolan has, yet again, created a picture book full of comic scenarios that are absolutely brimming over with rib-tickling detail. There is just SO much to giggle over and explore on every spread, not least the wonderful speech bubbles emanating from her superb cast of characters.
All in all, a stonkingly good picture book upon which to feast your eyes and ears.

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Thank You, Mr Panda

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Thank You, Mr Panda
Steve Antony
Hodder Children’s Books
Mr Panda’s back in story number three – hurray! This might just be my favourite to date; the final spread certainly had me laughing out loud in delight; and I absolutely love the return of those doughnuts.
Mr P. has five beautifully wrapped parcels and as he sets out to deliver them, lemur is eager to know who the recipients will be. ’My friends’ comes the response.
Mouse’s hole is the first stop:

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a beautiful sweater is duly unwrapped – it’s somewhat on the generous size though. ‘It’s the thought that counts’ lemur tells him. Next comes Octopus; he seems pleased but there is a slight snag …

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Elephant seems altogether disinterested in his gift – little does he know what he’s missing. The next venue requires a balloon ride for it’s Mountain Goat. The sight of him teetering atop his mountain weighed down by his gift is wonderful and of course, lemur chips in with “it’s the thought …’ once more.
That leaves just one present; who will be its lucky recipient? Lemur is thrilled to find it’s him and he’s effusive in his thanks. That’s before he’s opened it though; and now it’s Mr Panda’s turn to toss in the ‘…it’s the thought that counts’ reminder.
Delicious endpapers show, at the front – the five parcels ready and waiting for delivery; and at the back,

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Mr Panda’s five friends sporting (or clutching – almost – in the case of Elephant) their gifts.

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Me and Mister P

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Me and Mister P
Maria Farrer illustrated by Daniel Rieley
Oxford UniversityPress
Arthur is less than happy with his lot: he longs for a normal family wherein he can have his fair share of parental attention. Instead he has to contend with a brother on the autism spectrum towards whom much of his parents’ attention is directed.
Now, sent to his room instead of being able to watch the much anticipated football match on TV, Arthur – with lucky crystal in one pocket and survival tin in t’other – decides to leave home,, for good! But what, or whom should he encounter on the doorstep but an enormous polar bear, Mister P. The bear doesn’t speak but Arthur gleans this from the name on his old brown suitcase, which has a distinct fishy aroma about it and has a label with Arthur’s family address on. Could it be that the creature intends to stay?
He does; and Arthur’s life starts to get a whole lot better– not to mention that of brother Liam and the rest of their family.
Full of warmth and humour, this story is a delight to read, either aloud to a class, or as an individual. Listeners will revel in such scenarios as that when Mister P. endeavours to fit his huge bulk into Mum’s car (hilariously illustrated by Daniel Rieley) …

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or that of Mr Craddock’s class endeavouring to discover interesting facts about polar bears while Mister P. reclines on beanbags in a corner of their classroom.

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There’s another character who needs a mention too, and that’s Rosie. She doesn’t put in an appearance until about half way through the book but she’s certainly pretty persuasive: “Anyway, our scores are going to improve because now Mister P is going to be our lucky mascot, isn’t he? “ ‘She put her hands together in the praying position.’ “PLEASE.“; and contributes some extremely apposite insights and comments: “See … Mister P knows how to get things sorted.”
And a sorter of things is most definitely what Mister P. is – in more ways than one – shades of Nurse Matilda aka Nanny McPhee here.
I’ll say no more other than to urge you to get hold of Maria Farrer’s superbly empathetic book, made all the more so by Daniel Rieley’s wonderfully droll illustrations.

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This is a Serious Book

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This is a Serious Book
Jodie Parachini and Daniel Rieley
Faber & Faber
Make no bones about it, this is a serious book; we’re told so at the outset: ‘Nothing silly is allowed.’ Errrm – what’s that donkey doing popping up right on the first spread and almost immediately proceeding to sabotage everything our solemn narrator is trying to tell us? Moreover, he’s got the audacity to emit a bottom parp, then proceed to don ridiculous ducky pjs. and do some showy-offy balancing on a unicycle …

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Oh and then, while wearing that ridiculous multi-coloured titfa, he has the cheek to introduce us to a zebra – yes he is appropriately coloured in accordance with the narrator’s ‘a serious book must be in black and white’, but serious? Hmmm! Their efforts at ‘pretending’ don’t look as though they’d fit the serious bill at all.

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And what the heck is a snake doing slithering onto the scene? Not to mention the penguin and that troupe of monkeys …
Eventually our long-suffering narrator yields control of the whole book to the invaders …

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And guess who – with a few deft strokes – has the last word(s) …
At once, silly and sophisticated, this book puts me in mind somewhat of Bingham and Zelinsky’s Z is for Moose and Circle, Square, Moose and can certainly be appreciated at lots of different levels. Youngsters will revel in the comic portrayal of donkey’s rule-breaking in particular and older readers will appreciate the meta-book style of the whole anarchic thing.

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There’s a Pig Up My Nose!

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There’s a Pig Up My Nose!
John Dougherty and Laura Hughes
Egmont Publishing
Can you imagine anything less likely than having a pig up your nose? Probably not, but that’s, seemingly at least, the problem troubling young Natalie when she wakes one morning, bounds down to breakfast and emits an OINK! from her nostrils. The doctor confirms it is indeed so …

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a note requesting she’s let off games is penned by her parents and duly delivered to a very sceptical Mrs Daffodil, her teacher.
Morning lessons proceed rather badly with a lot of oinking disturbing her classmates; playtime hide-and-seek is a disaster and story-time’s totally ruined.

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After lunch (sans ham rolls of course), Mrs Daffodil sets the class a spot of problem solving: ‘inventing a way of getting a pig out of Natalie’s nose’, is the task and it’s one received with enthusiasm by her fellow pupils, some of whom, it has to be said, appear to have a slightly sadistic bent …

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Mark and Joseph’s solution works a treat though, and a new pet is duly added to the gerbil enclosure.
That however, is not quite the end of things where nasal passages and noises are concerned, but hey! Who wants to be a story-spoiler? Let’s just say, the finale will certainly set your nostrils twitching.
Totally, delightfully bonkers but Dougherty’s tale certainly held my audience and the finale received snorts of approval, a round of applause, and a ‘read it again’ request. Laura Hughes’ illustrations are full of fun and I’ve developed a special soft spot for those smiley twins – the problem solvers.

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Don’t forget 14th February

I’m in Charge!

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I’m In Charge!
Jeanne Willis and Jarvis
Nosy Crow
It’s patently obvious who rules the roost in the rhino family, not daddy rhino, nor mummy rhino; it’s little rhino and he surely knows exactly how to make his presence felt as he goes around doing such dastardly deeds as scattering the meerkats, startling Giraffe and squashing Baboon’s banana – well the meanie refused to share; he even has the audacity to barge Elephant in the bottom. “I’m in charge!” is definitely the order of the day.

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But who has executive control of the mango tree and its delicious fruit? That is the all important question and it’s one that feisty little Rhino has the answer to, at least he thinks he does and it’s certainly what he assures Pygmy Mouse despite what the little creature has to say.

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Could it be that the belligerent beast is about to change his mind however …

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… a hundred beefy wildebeest … came charging down the hill.

Jeanne Willis and Jarvis deliver the message about learning to share superbly well. Jeanne Willis’ lively rhyming text bounces along beautifully and Jarvis’ savannah-glow illustrations of the bossy beast and his challengers holds up a mirror to infant behaviour with panache and humour.
So cleverly titled, this is perfect for sharing be it at home or in an early years setting.

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I Don’t Know What to Call My Cat

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I Don’t Know What to Call My Cat
Simon Philip and Ella Bailey
Simon & Schuster
The title of this book is a dilemma that I suspect faces a good many new moggy owners; every cat needs a name after all. Being allergic to cats, it’s not something I’ve had to worry about however though surely this vital task can’t be too problematic, or can it?
The little girl narrator of this tale opens her door one morning to discover an unexpected arrival of the feline kind. She decides to offer him something tasty to eat and when the creature takes up residence, a name becomes a necessity; so what about Kitty? Perfect, thinks out narrator but … it wasn’t.

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So what about Princess High and Mighty? The newcomer is certainly not easy to please; or maybe Pat, or Lorraine, Tricia or Tracey? All good names but err …

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She’s a boy!

So what about Mr Maestro?

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Oops! That could have been the one but suddenly the puss ups and goes as cats often do from what I know of them.
A search proves fruitless though there is a new kind of pet to take his place and this one doesn’t pose quite the same problem. And Steve’s certainly a whole lot of fun, even if he does attract a fair bit of attention – not always of the desirable kind though…

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Could there be  another creature waiting in the wings perhaps?
Simon Philip’s witty tale is just right for rising star, Ella Bailey’s illustrative talent to work on. Her scenes are chock full of delicious details and playful images of feline and human characters, not to mention the marvellous Steve.
This laugh-out-loud book is purr-fect for sharing. Cat lover I’m not, but I really loved this twisting, turning tale.

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Dave’s Rock

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Dave’s Rock
Frann Preston-Gannon
Nosy Crow
The delightful troglodyte from Dave’s Cave is back with another troublesome scenario; on this occasion it’s rock related rivalry.
Dave love rock, Jon too.
Bigger rock Dave’s; Jon’s rock faster …

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Dave find pretty new rock, err …

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Cavemen fall out. Dave has idea. Dave busy. Jon busy too. New rocks, nice and round:just right for – new game …

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Dave and Jon both happy; friends happy too.

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… friends happy too.

Delivered in similar clipped caveman speak to its predecessor, this is a terrific tale of friendship, falling out and fun from the fabulous Frann Preston-Gannon. The inclusion of the Mark Twain quote, ‘Name the greatest of all inventors: accident’ sets the scene so perfectly.
The deliciously droll visuals are just SO eloquent. Her hirsute humans and their animal audience are simply splendid. The animals’ doodlings in the sand outlined my own thoughts as to the likely use of Dave’s and Jon’s new rocks but seemingly, the era of Homo ludens had a much earlier origin than the twentieth century advent of computer games, right back in the Tertiary period no less.
Perfect for storytime sharing (watch out for a spate of caveman speak thereafter); and equally perfect for beginning readers. A real cracker this!

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There’s Broccoli in my Ice Cream!

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There’s Broccoli in my Ice Cream!
Emily MacKenzie
Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Now here’s a mouth-watering treat and a deliciously funny one, to tickle the taste buds of fussy eaters and foodies young and not so young, from author/illustrator, Emily MacKenzie.
Young dalmation, Granville’s loathing of all things green and crunchy, yellow and mushy and red and squashy hugely disappoints his family of greengrocers and gardeners. So much so that they’re determined to find a foolproof ploy to turn his predilection for puddings, pastry and ‘chocky wocky gooey things’ to a passion for parsnips and broccoli. A plan is hatched …

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Action stations … and it seems to be working.

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Granville however, has a plan of his own and it’s one that – ultimately – yields some surprising, and satisfying, results …
Emily Mackenzie’s characters are always of the delightfully wacky and decidedly distinctive kind. There was book burglar Ralfy Rabbit, Stanley, the amazing knitting cat and now in veggie-hating Granville, we have another who is equally appealing; his Grandpa Reggie is a delight too.

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Further servings are certain to be the order of the day after an initial sampling of this delectable offering. My audience certainly relished it.

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Who Ate the Cake?

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Ellena engrossed in the story

Who Ate the Cake?
Kate Leake
Alison Green Books
Bob the dog is a mischievous creature, always in trouble, mostly for consuming the wrong things. Freddie is a boy – Bob’s boy – and equally likely to be in trouble, not for eating but on account of his passion for collecting things. Every week his collection grows due mainly to his purchases from Collectors’ Weekly catalogue. This pleases Bob too as it means a constant supply of delightfully chewable items.
Eventually Freddie’s parents seek to put a stop to all this collecting: “No more things!” they decree but barely have they spoken when another delivery arrives unexpectedly. Even more unexpected is what emerges when the lid is removed …

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Freddie swears Bob to secrecy.
Now the one thing about pelicans is they’re big and flappy, another is the capacity of their beaks; Bob is anything but happy especially when things start to disappear – Mum’s knitting, Dad’s daffs. Gran’s best china not to mention some French pastries, but the final straw is the loss of every one of his very own favourite chewy toys. “Pesky pelican!” he cries. Worst of all though is that poor Bob is blamed for the whole sorry disaster.
Things go from bad to terrible. Next day it’s Freddie’s birthday and there’s a very special birthday cake just out of the oven and smelling absolutely yummy. Bob rather fancies a slice for himself so he’s determined to be on his best behaviour, even if that includes having a pre teatime sniff of the confection. What he finds though when he tiptoes to the kitchen is that someone’s got there before him.

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Surely poor Bob won’t get the blame for this disaster too?
He does, but then is quickly reprieved when Mum suddenly spies a certain big-beaked bird perching on the fridge; and he’s given a delicious treat too.

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That’s not quite the end of this crazy saga of mischief and mayhem though. There’s a wonderful final twist to the tale …
Katie Leake provides plenty to explore and giggle over in her busy illustrations.
Bob is undoubtedly the star of the show here but that pesky pelican certainly gives him a run for his money.

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Frog and Beaver

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Frog and Beaver
Simon James
Walker Books
Frog and his friends the duck family and the vole family live together sharing the river and life’s pretty peachy. Then one day what should come swimming down the river but a beaver, a beaver in search of a place to build his very first dam.

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Frog’s enthusiastic welcome sells the place to him and straightway Beaver sets his chompers to work.
Next morning though, much to the consternation of Vole and Duck, there’s a decided lack of water in their stretch of river.

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Frog sets off to have a word with Beaver but the creature’s too wrapped up in his endeavour to heed Frog’s anxious words and after several attempts to get him to see their point of view, Frog is forced to pass on the Beaver’s suggestion, “Why don’t you all move up here?” to his friends.
Less than happy, the water voles and ducks shift upstream and set about making new homes. Beaver meanwhile continues building enthusiastically, paying no heed to repeated warnings about the volume of water building up, and is finally ready to show off his completed construction. But then …

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Has Beaver finally learned his lesson about doing things in moderation and can Frog truly become friends with someone so different and so wrapped up in his own concerns?
Simon James’ gentle humour pervades the riverside scenes executed in his signature style pen and watercolours.

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The small close-ups of Frog enthusiastically leaping up and down on Beaver’s back to expel all the excess water he’d swallowed are a hoot.

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Also an Octopus

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Also an Octopus
Maggie Tokuda-Hall and Benji Davies
Walker Books
This collaboration between debut author, Maggie Tokuda-Hall and award-winning illustrator, Benji Davies (The Storm Whale, The Storm Whale in Winter and Grandad’s Island) is essentially a witty metanarrative about how to write a story. It’s littered with wonderfully whimsical characters – obviously characters are one of the must haves for a successful storyteller: herein we have a main character in the form of a ukulele-playing octopus.
But lets go right back to the author’s opening line, ‘every story starts the same way … with nothing.‘ Now anybody who writes or indeed works on the writing process with children, knows the truth of that. Back to our octopus.; ‘… in order for it to be a story and not just an octopus, that octopus needs to want something.’ What about a ‘totally awesome shining purple spaceship capable of intergalactic travel’? Now that does sound exciting. But of course such things cannot be easily got hold of, they have to be earned; or, put another way, built from drinks cans, string, glitter, glue, umbrellas and err, waffles.

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No easy task: enter another character in the form of a truly adorable bunny – certainly no rocket scientist, so maybe that rocket isn’t about to become airborne any time soon. Did I hear the word “DESPONDENT” – surely not.

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Time for a spot of music perhaps …
It might prove just the thing to start a resolution (note that ‘r’ word, would-be story writers) forming in the mind …

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Tokuda-Hall’s deadpan humour, wherein she demonstrates the ups and downs of the writing process with the interplay between her cast of characters and the narrator), is superbly orchestrated by Davies’ fantastic images that appear to simply pop onto the pages as if at the author’s behest. Illustrators know that simply isn’t true, which makes Benji Davies’ seemingly effortless digital visuals all the more brilliant. And I love the circularity of the whole thing.
A must have for anyone working on developing the process of writing with children. It will surely get their imaginative juices flowing.

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I’m BIG Now!

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I’m Big Now!
Anthea Simmons and Georgie Birkett
Andersen Press
Being a big sister can be tough especially when a certain baby brother seems to be getting more than his fair share of adult attention. Here, a big sister tells what happens when she attempts to regain the limelight by playing ‘the baby big girl game’.

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After several attempts at different aspects of ‘baby biggirliness’, our young narrator comes to an important realisation: being a big girl and doing what big girls do, brings her far more satisfaction – even if it involves a fair bit of new learning.

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Moreover, it’s certainly a whole lot more fun …

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and sometimes you can get the best of both worlds …

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The combination of Anthea Simmons’ gently humorous rhyming words and Georgie Birkett’s adorable scenes of family life big-sis style, is a total delight.
This is the perfect book for family sharing when a new sibling arrives although it can most certainly be enjoyed with early years audiences at any time.

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Pants, Birthdays and Robo-Snot

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The Prince of Pants
Alan MacDonald and Sarah McIntyre
Scholastic Children’s Books
Prepare to be dazzled by Sarah McIntyre’s illustrations for this crazy pants-centric tale of little Prince Pip and his nearly calamitous birthday. The young lad leaps from bed on the morning of his special day and his first task is to choose which of his many pairs of underpants are best suited for the occasion.

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But when he opens the drawer marked ‘Pants’, disaster has struck; it’s completely empty.
Thus begins a search all over the castle …

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and its grounds, a search that yields nothing to the birthday boy, though listeners will enjoy spotting the whereabouts of the various patterned articles; mine certainly did.
But just when it seems as though this is to be a birthday sans pants, Pip opens a door and receives not one, but two, pantalicious surprises.

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This is one more to add to the collection of underpants picture books for which many youngsters have a seemingly insatiable appetite.

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If a T.Rex Crashes Your Birthday Party
Jill Esbaum and Dasha Tolstikova
Sterling
Now there’s a thought – a T.Rex at your birthday party; but that’s exactly what happens to the small boy narrator of this book when he opens the door and discovers a Tyrannosaurus standing on the threshold holding a birthday present.
Seems there’s only one thing to do, though perhaps the birthday boy should have thought twice before allowing this particular guest an entry.
Those T-Rex toenails are not good for the bouncy castle; he gets more than a tad angry when he isn’t allowed to blow out the birthday candles or open the presents, and games are a total no go area.

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In short the whole party turns into a roaring disaster. What’s more, the interloper refuses to help clear up; he flatly refuses to leave when asked, gives his host a funny look and …

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Hmm.
There’s a surprising final twist to this whole silly scenario to add to the fun, humorously captured in Dasha Tolstikova’s concluding spread.

Another favourite topic with early years listeners is featured in:

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Robo-Snot
Amy Sparkes and Paul Cherrill
Scholastic Children’s Books
Robots and snot: surely not? Perhaps never before, but when Little Robot’s nose starts to feel uncontrollably itchy and a vast amount of gooey green stuff shoots from his nostrils, that’s what he decides to call this strange nasal emanation.
Pretty soon his siblings have designs on the sticky stuff – seemingly it can be put to all manner of uses – but Little Robot isn’t prepared to share; he has his sights set on the big time …

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Everything goes swimmingly for a while but then disaster strikes in the form of an unexpected sneeze; Little Robot is left alone and well and truly up to his knees in the now-infamous, green goo of his own making.

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Time for some snot-blotting but what can he use …
Told in jaunty rhyme and through brighter than bright, action-packed illustrations, this is a laugh aloud tale that I suspect will become a ‘read it again’ story time choice.

 

Horrible Bear!

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Horrible Bear!
Ame Dyckman and Zachariah OHora
Andersen Press
From the team that delighted us with Wolfie the Bunny comes another winner that begins on the title page with a little girl’s snapped kite string and is followed by a straightforward accident when a large sleeping bear rolls over and snaps the kite that has strayed into his cave. Instantly the girl deems him “Horrible Bear”

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and stomps off home repeating the condemnation all the way.

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Said Bear meanwhile, is thoroughly chagrined and plans a spot of retaliation for the intrusion and the insult – a ‘Horrible bear’ idea no less –

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and sets off to pay a visit to the insult-hurler.
Meanwhile back in her room, the little girl is giving further vent to her rage when another accident occurs and what happens thereafter is not the anticipated face-off but an apology, after which, ‘…all the horrible went right out of Bear’.
Let the reparations begin …

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No moralising but a wonderful conflict resolution delivered as only this duo could, with wonderful wit and tenderness. A whole gamut of emotions are brilliantly portrayed both through Ame Dyckman’s spare text and OHora’s bold, acrylic illustrations: the dynamic between words and pictures is superb and even the front endpaper in which the girl’s bright red curls fill the space, in itself speaks volumes and sets the scene for the whole tale.
A cracking picture book to share just for the sheer joy of it, although of course, there are emotional literacy lessons aplenty embedded herein.

Danny McGee Drinks the Sea

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Danny McGee Drinks the Sea
Andy Stanton and Neal Layton
Hodder Children’s Books
Authors often talk about getting inside a character’s head but I’ve never heard of one getting inside a character’s stomach before. Andy Stanton did just that though: he wrote, so he’d have us believe, this entire book from within one, Danny McGee; and it certainly didn’t have an adverse effect on his wicked sense of humour.
How did he get therein, you might well be wondering so let’s start at the beginning and meet young Danny and his sister Frannie McGee as they head towards the beach in their little red car.

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Once there, Danny, for some reason known only to himself, announces that he can drink the sea – all of it – and within ten minutes, he has. This however is not enough for the lad who turns his attention to a tree …

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followed by pretty much everything you can think of and some you can’t.
Before long, young Danny has gleefully consumed virtually the whole of humankind (hence the author),

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not to mention the whole Roman alphabet and goodness knows how much of our number system.
And he just keeps going until there’s nothing left but himself, or so he thinks …
The denouement to Stanton’s wonderfully anarchic rhyming tale is something of a jaw dropper and one young listeners will relish.
The combination of Stanton’s supreme verbal silliness and Neal Layton’s brilliantly bizarre visuals,

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combining comic cartoon and photo-collage, is an unforgettable nonsense tale that will be requested over and over.

Sproutzilla vs.Christmas / Santa Claude

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Sproutzilla vs. Christmas
Tom Jamieson and Mike Byrne
Macmillan Children’s Books
Young Jack’s abhorrence of Brussels sprouts is about to result in the ruination of Christmas and not just for the lad himself when his parents come back from a shopping expedition with the most enormous one of the green veggies he’s ever set eyes on. He’s called Sproutzilla and he’s the meanest, greenest Christmas ruining vegetable ever. What’s more, he (and his army of Sproutlings) have their sights set on Santa; and Sproutzilla is exceedingly hungry.

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Seemingly, if the mums and dads, the angry dinner ladies and the furious chefs can’t save Christmas, there’s only one person who can and there’s only one way he can do it. Jack will have to EAT SPROUTS!

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This is a totally ridiculous story over which you cannot help but have a good giggle, as will young children, especially at the final PAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRP-powered delivery, not to mention the tasty final twist.
Sprout lover or not, I suspect you’ll never look at your Christmas veggies in quite the same way again.
More bonkers fun in:

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Santa Claude

Alex T.Smith
Hodder Children’s Books
It’s Christmas Eve night and Mr and Mrs Shinyshoes have left Claude and best pal Sir Bobblysock alone in the house while they go out partying. A super-excited Claude has tucked himself up in bed and is just settling down to read his new Cops and Robbers book when he hears a loud THUD! followed by what sound like a series of heavy footsteps. Convinced whoever has whooshed down the chimney is a burglar, and already anticipating catching same red-handed, off he goes armed with his handcuffs to apprehend the intruder.
Having secured the ‘burglar’ to the arm of a chair in the pitch-dark living room, Claude switches on the light to find himself face to face with none other than Santa. Easy enough to release the handcuffs you might think but oh dear me, no! The key is nowhere to be found.
With Santa out of action there’s only one thing to be done; Claude and Sir Bobblysock will have to make the rest of the deliveries instead. But can they – even with Claude decked out in Santa’s seasonal costume –

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make it round all those hundreds of homes, delivering an absolutely enormous sack of presents and be safely back by midnight when the Shinyshoes return?
Needless to say, things won’t be plain sailing no matter what: let the festivities begin …
With Claude and Sir Bobblysock you’re guaranteed a whole load of gigglesome delight and this fast-paced festive romp is no different. It’s perfect to tuck into a Christmas stocking, or for an excited youngster to hide away with for a pre-Christmas chortle.

The Mouse that Cancelled Christmas

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The Mouse That Cancelled Christmas
Madeleine Cook and Samara Hardy
Oxford University Press
This is certainly a Christmas story with a difference: the story of Mouse for whom Christmas means danger, danger because, as a baby, he’d been biffed on the head by a flying bauble. Now, he seems to have assumed the role of health and safety officer with a vengeance. Donning fluorescent jacket and hard hat Mouse dashes around the clearing in Jingle Bell Forest inspecting the animals’ preparations and finding fault with everything. The pine needles are far too sharp, the lights too dazzling and the star way too pointy.

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The Rabbit Chorus seems to be breaking every rule in the book – Mouse’s book that is. In fact nothing passes muster where he is concerned: he wants the entire celebration called off …

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But then Mole and Owl quietly mention the ‘p’ word and suddenly events take a turn for the better. Maybe, just maybe, that cancellation of Mouse’s might be reversed after all …
There are so many things to love about this book, not least the delightfully unexpected grand finale. Then there’s that tiny robin who offers his own mini narrative at almost every turn of the page …

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and the thoughtful placing of certain elements of the text; all that’s in addition to the wonderful fanaticism of health-and-safety ‘jobsworth’ Mouse and the growing concern of the other forest animals as they hear him passing judgement on their various activities All are brilliantly portrayed in Samara Hardy’s splendidly funny illustrations for this amusing (for adults, tongue-in-cheek) tale. I bet there’s not one reader aloud out there who hasn’t been on the receiving end of a human version of Mouse on occasion; it’s certainly so in schools and usually the ‘mouse’ person has no idea of the ridiculousness of their pronouncements. Madeleine Cook and Samara Hardy will assuredly make many youngsters and adults laugh this festive season.

Festive Fun and Frolics

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Nuddy Ned’s Christmas
Kes Gray and Garry Parsons
Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Nuddy Ned likes nothing better than to dash around in the altogether and yes, he’s super excited it being Christmas Eve; but dashing outside into the snowy evening chill is nothing short of crackers. There’s no stopping the little fellow though; he’s on a mission to meet Santa and he’s perfectly prepared to charge down the street and around the town completely starkers, parents in hot pursuit, in order to do so. Only some strategically placed flaps and other judiciously positioned items including a bird, a glove …

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and a bauble preserve his modesty.
Does this madcap streak finally get Ned what he wants – that Santa encounter, you’ll probably be wondering. Yes he does and Santa’s none too impressed at Ned’s lack of clothing but in the end it seems like a question of beat’em or join’em: what will Santa do? That would be telling wouldn’t it!
Kes Gray’s cracking rhyming text combined with equally giggle-inducing illustrations from Garry Parsons makes for some delightfully silly festive fun.

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The Queen’s Present
Steve Antony
Hodder Children’s Books
Imagine being able to call on Father Christmas himself for a spot of last minute emergency present buying, but that is exactly what the Queen does in her desire to find the perfect gift for her great grandchildren. Down he comes and off they go on a whistle stop flight with a whole host of hangers-on in the form of Santa’s little helpers who have much work to do in the way of festooning the various landmarks – the Eiffel Tower, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Great Pyramids of Egypt, the Great Wall of China, Himeji Castle, Sydney Opera House …

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and the Statue of Liberty over which they fly before finally landing in the North Pole. Even there though, Her Majesty is unable to find the perfect present. With Christmas Day almost upon them, there seems to be only one thing to do …

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This whole crazy romp is executed using an appropriately seasonal colour palette. It’s not my favourite Steve Antony but it’s full of things to make you smile; and those elves really do earn their keep as well as having a terrific time adorning all those iconic landmarks.

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Winnie and Wilbur Meet Santa
Valerie Thomas and Korky Paul
Oxford University Press
The excitement is palpable in Winnie and Wilbur’s house as they bake, write cards and festoon the place with decorations. Then it’s time for writing those all important letters to Santa …

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Christmas Eve comes at last and just as the pair drop off to sleep, they hear a cry for help: something has gone drastically wrong with Santa’s chimney descent. It’s fortunate that Winnie just happens to have her wand right there on the bedside table and with a quick wave and a magical utterance, she soon has their visitor back on his feet and they’re off on an amazing adventure.

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Full of seasonal magic and excitement, this is sure to delight, especially that final pop-out surprise …

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For the very youngest:

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We Wish You a Merry Christmas
illustrated by Yu-hsuan Huang
Nosy Crow
This song on which this chunky board book is based is probably one of the most frequently sung in primary schools and nurseries in the run up to Christmas.
Here we join a host of warmly clad, cute animal friends celebrating the seasonal joys together as they sleigh, skate, ski and deliver presents before gathering together in a warm cosy room to share some gifts.

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In addition to the moving parts, you can further add to toddlers’ enjoyment by scanning the QR code inside the front cover and getting an audio version to sing along with.

Cracking Seasonal Reads

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Stinkbomb & Ketchup-Face and the Great Kerfuffle Christmas Kidnap
John Dougherty and David Tazzyman
Oxford University Press
It’s Christmas Eve and all’s right with the world. Right? Well not quite.
When Stinkbomb and Ketchup-Face wake up it’s after midnight (so technically they can call it Christmas Day) with cries of “He’s been! He’s been!”, it takes but a few seconds for them to discover that this is not the case: Father Christmas has definitely not visited their abode, and that’s despite the pair having been extra good that year. All they see where those presents should have been is a great big pile of nothing, absolutely zilch.
Obviously Father Christmas must be in some kind of trouble – think dastardly badgers – and it’s up to Stinkbomb and Ketchup-Face to come to the rescue, find Santa and save Christmas for all the inhabitants on the little island of Great Kerfuffle.
As with previous books in the series, this one is full of wonderfully off-the-wall characters, bonkers jokes, evil-sounding laughter, magic and mayhem, crazy dialogue and perfect comic timing to boot. What’s more it’s illustrated by the brilliant David Tazzyman whose seemingly scribble illustrations are the perfect accompaniment to John Dougherty’s clever and deliciously silly writing style.
A seasonal cracker if ever there was one.

Altogether different but equally worth seeking out is:

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There May Be a Castle
Piers Torday
Quercus Children’s Books
It’s Christmas Eve: a family – mum, two sisters and a brother – are on the way to visit the grandparents. Violet the eldest is dressed as a pirate, toddler Esme has a passion for chocolate and Mouse, a smaller than average, highly imaginative eleven year old is still in his robot pyjamas; Mum is at the wheel. Snow is falling fast, the visibility is bad, but the journey across the moors should be fairly short.
As it often does on such occasions, bickering begins and Mum loses control of the car and it spins off the road. Mouse is thrown from the car by the crash but everyone else is trapped inside.
When he comes to, Mouse finds himself in a magical landscape with no snow and no car, just a peculiar sheep named Bar, a talking one-eyed horse called Nonky, a garrulous minstrel, a size-changing dinosaur; oh, and there may be a castle. Thus begins Mouse’s quest to find that castle despite not knowing quite why.
Back at the scene of the accident, Violet is on a mission to save her mother who is unconscious and bleeding, and little Esme, who keeps demanding chocolate. To do this she has to use her knowledge of a very fierce pirate woman, which, harnessed with her own imagination, gives her the strength she needs to cope.
Without giving away what happens let’s leave those two wonderful, very brave characters in their spellbinding wintry tale of hope, courage, the power of the imagination and the stories we tell ourselves.
Brilliantly imaginative and totally immersive it’s a beautifully written book; read it and you’ll be hooked, but be warned, you’re on something of an emotional rollercoaster.

Hooray for Independent Thinkers: Little Monkey & Larry Lemming

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Little Monkey
Marta Altés
Macmillan Children’s Books
Size, or rather lack of it, is a big issue for one particular little Monkey, so much so that one day, she comes to a decision – a BIG decision. She won’t be left out any longer; “I will climb to the top of the tallest tree,” she announces and off she goes through the jungle to prove herself.

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What she’s blissfully unaware of as she navigates the deep dangerous river and the tricky path is that although she notices lots of little things doing lots of amazing things …

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she’s not the only one undertaking this journey …
Eventually Monkey reaches her destination: that tallest tree in the jungle and up she goes, higher and higher, until finally she can see the world stretching out below her. By now you’ll have your audience wriggling on their bums crying out to the gallant little creature and even more so, as she stands atop that palm viewing all that’s before her.

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Without being a total story-spoiler I won’t reveal what happens thereafter, but suffice it to say a certain small Monkey feels very proud of herself, after all, ‘ … the smaller you are, the larger your adventures can be.’
It’s definitely a case of showing, not telling being the essence of this deliciously funny tale. Altés comic choreography means that every turn of the page brings something new to giggle over; and the synergy between words and illustrations is terrific.

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Leaping Lemmings!
John Briggs and Nicola Slater
Sterling Children’s Books
‘Can you tell these lemmings apart?’ Readers are drawn in from the start by Briggs’ opening question to this story. He continues, ‘No? That’s because all lemmings look alike, sound alike, and act alike.’ Not one hundred per cent accurate: meet the wonderfully divergent Larry. Larry is a thinker: he knows he doesn’t fit in with the lemmings crowd …

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and he certainly has no intention of following his fellow lemmings off the edge of a cliff.
Can he avert disaster though, when after abortive attempts to live with the seals, the puffins and the polar bears, he returns home to find the lemmings about to make that fateful leap? Fortunately yes, and as for becoming independent thinkers … job done!

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Wonderfully whimsical and with important themes of thinking for yourself and daring to be different, this book deserves to be shared widely; it certainly offers teachers a great opportunity for discussion, as well as food for thought, not only among the children.
Nicola Slater’s deliciously witty, minimalist artwork is a terrific complement to Briggs’ gently humorous text. As a divergent thinker myself, I whole-heartedly applaud the independently-minded Larry, and of course, his creators.

Stone Underpants / The Great Sock Secret

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Stone Underpants
Rebecca Lisle and Richard Watson
Maverick Arts Publishing
Stone underpants? Have you ever heard of anything more preposterous? Back in the Stone Age though, when young Pod lived there wasn’t an awful lot around to make bottom warmers from when your rear end felt decidedly chilly, so a pair of stone underpants is what he makes himself. Needless to say however, they’re not the best things for running around in, and as for swimming, well …

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Pod decides to try another material, but wood proves equally unsuitable …

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as do several others he tries. Is he destined to have a chilly rump for ever or is there something else he could try…

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The very mention of underpants and bottoms frequently reduces young listeners to fits of giggles and I suspect this one will do just that. The whole scenario is totally crazy: beetles demolishing his wooden underpants overnight for instance; and what was wrong with using an animal skin, there are certainly wild beasts evident in some of the scenes; but this madcap romp requires total suspension of disbelief so, why worry. It’s assuredly something youngsters will raise anyhow and they’ll also more than likely ask about the material used for that football too, and perhaps question why Pod didn’t just try making leafy underpants But all this could lead very nicely into some investigative work on materials if you happen to work with young children. Alternatively you might just enjoy the ridiculous story as told by the aptly named Rebecca Lisle, and have a good giggle over the equally crazy pictorial rendition of same from Richard Wilson.

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The Great Sock Secret
Susan Whelan and Gwynneth Jones
EK Books
My alternative uses for socks have been restricted to a resource for making puppets in the classroom; and when teaching yoga, as props for those needing a little bit of help in certain stretches.
In Sarah’s house though, the socks are put to all manner of imaginative uses by the fairies who share her home. When Sarah’s mum initiates a hunt for the socks that have mysteriously gone missing from the laundry basket,

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the little girl has to stay one jump ahead as they search all over the house. She knows who the culprits are; but can she manage to stop her mum from discovering those borrowers?
This foray into the fanciful is most likely to appeal to imaginative listeners around the age of the young protagonist.

This is Not a Cat! / Later, Gator!

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This is NOT a Cat!
David Larochelle and Mike Wohnoutka
Sterling Children’s Books
Using only the words from the title, Larochelle has created a book that is absolutely perfect for beginning readers and it’s lots of fun.
We join three little mice as they arrive at school; three little mice each with a chunk of cheese for lunch. Their first lesson is already displayed as they sit down already looking more than a tad bored …

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Now this is an old fashioned school with transmission style teaching – desks facing front so one can perhaps excuse the lack of a security system (but that’s getting ahead of the action). One pupil at least is paying attention as the teacher continues: “This is not a cat.” the assumption being he’s writing notes on the lesson; the other two are already distracted and playing around. No one notices what’s already appearing outside the window, not even the grinning goldfish.
“This is not a cat.” … “This is not a cat.” continues the teacher oblivious to the fact that a certain intruder is on the verge of entering …

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Suddenly the whole atmosphere in the room changes as the presence of the visitor is noticed, first by the teacher and then as realisation dawns …

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The pupils flee leaving the intruder to enjoy the spoils left behind, but just who IS that greedy guzzler.
Clever as the text is and it’s undoubtedly so, without the illustrations the book wouldn’t be anything like as funny as it is. Wohnoutka’s cartoon style scenes are full of comic detail: the changing expressions of the goldfish, the antics of the pupils – note the cleverly aimed paper aeroplane, the cheesy shapes chart to mention a few; and of course, there’s the grand finale.
Also fun for those in the early stages of reading is:

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Later, Gator!
Erik Brooks
Sterling Children’s Books
It’s hard moving to a new home especially having to say farewell to all your friends. That’s just what young Gator discovers having moved to a distant neighbourhood with his parents where there isn’t a soul he knows. He decides to write to his old friends telling them how he misses them and eventually back come some letters. Yes, his pals are missing him too but their communications are also encouraging …

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And made him feel a little bit bolder, bold enough to start making a whole new set of friends …

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The text is minimal but the amusing illustrations speak volumes.

Can I Tell You a Secret?

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Can I Tell You a Secret?
Anna Kang and Christopher Weyant
Hodder Children’s Books
I loved both You Are (Not) Small and That’s (Not) Mine; now the same husband and wife team have created an entirely new character, Monty, a green frog. Immediately endearing, this little fellow introduces himself with a “PSSST!” directed straight at readers. What follows is a confession dialogue conducted between young Monty and his audience, for Monty has a secret: “I can’t swim. Not even a little bit. And … I’m afraid of water.” he says looking somewhat abashed.
Some questions and responses clarify the whole sorry cover-up situation …

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“What’s that? You think I should tell someone? Like my parents? Are you sure? POSITIVE?”
Suggestion taken, but it takes Monty three attempts so sum up the courage to do it …

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and the “We know sweetie …” parental response sets the scene for a grand aquatic finale …

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Weyant’s portrayal of Monty is splendidly expressive: that fearful frog says so much with his eyes; and Anna Kang’s amusing direct speech narrative gets listeners on board straight away, keeping them thoroughly involved until his final “Can you come back tomorrow?” and is likely to encourage the fearful among the young frog’s audience to confront their own fears too. Great fun.

How To Be a Hero / Mary Had a Little Glam

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How to be a Hero
Florence Parry Heide and Chuck Groenink
Chronicle Books
Anyone who has read The Shrinking of Treehorn will be familiar with the author’s wry humour: that same humour is inherent in this posthumously published picture book. Meet Gideon, a nice boy who lives with his parents in a nice house and has, seemingly, everything a boy could want. What young Gideon really wants though is to be a hero but he’s not quite sure how to go about it. He has some ideas though: You have to be strong, brave and clever like this surely?

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After further foraging into fairytales such as this one ‘the story where a witch gives a girl a poisoned apple and when she takes a bite she goes into a deep sleep which is sort of being dead but not really and nothing will get her awake except a kiss and someone does see her sleeping there and he kisses her and he’s a hero, just like that.’ however, he comes to the conclusion that really, all this heroism takes is just being in the right place at the right time. QED! Well that and err… keeping your eyes open. This does entail actually noticing what’s going on around you though – something of which Gideon appears unaware, as heroic act opportunities present themselves to left and right as he heads, eventually, to the supermarket to spend his pocket money.

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There, a heroic act is, assuredly performed but by whom? Yes, Gideon is the recipient of a whole lot of media attention but for what? Wish fulfilled, he’s certainly front-page news – a hero. Err? He certainly thinks so.
Groenink brings out the subtle humour of the telling beautifully; it’s there all the way through if you look closely – very closely in some places; and in others, such as the shop sign with its reference to Propp (Vladimir – Morphology of the Folk Tale) and (Bruno) Bettelheim above the butchers it’s likely to go over the heads of young children. I love the way he switches from the dreary reality of Gideon’s home and locality to the more colourful fantasy world of the fairy tale world he visits in his imagination.
Certainly with this book, it’s a case of what you bring to the story making a big difference to what you get out of it.

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Mary Had a Little Glam
Tammi Sauer and Vanessa Brantley-Newton
Sterling
A funky take on the nursery rhyme wherein fashion fanatic “I must accessorize” Mary starts school determined to make her mark. Seemingly her classmates at Mother Goose school are happy to merge into their surroundings though …

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Mary however, is set on bringing a whole lot more glitz and glamour to her pals. She gets to work adding accessories and generally jazzing up not just the pupils, but everyone and everything in her school.

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Playtime comes and with it a realisation that Mary and her decked-out pals are way too over-dressed for energetic outdoor romping and rampaging. No matter – Mary can turn her hand to un-accessorising too …

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and she’s certainly queen of messy play – hurray for Mary.
With its bouncy rhyme and suitably flamboyant illustrations of Mary and her supporting cast, this is lots of fun to share with those around Mary’s age.

One Hundred Sausages

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One Hundred Sausages
Yuval Zommer
Templar Publishing
As a vegetarian, sausages are NOT my thing at all, I’ll cross the road to avoid walking past a butcher’s and I’m certainly no dog lover. That said I was more than happy to see the return of Scruff, mischievous mongrel of One Hundred Bones fame. This funny story revolves around sausages, Scruff’s favourite food in the whole world and he certainly has a nose for them; sausages even fill his dreams every single night. Imagine his devastation then when he learns that his daily sausage sniff has been thwarted by a robbery.

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Even worse, the number one criminal suspect is none other than Scruff himself.
What’s to be done? Either he faces a stint behind bars or he tracks down the real culprit. Straightaway, Scruff goes off to enlist the help of his doggy pals …

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But it’s not until the s word is mentioned that the other dogs show any inclination to join the search.
Finally, the hunt is on: a sniffing party hits the city and eventually Scruff’s nostrils catch a whiff. Time to put those paws into action …

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A chase ensues and the thief is finally apprehended …

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after which it’s time to celebrate. You don’t need me to tell you what was on the menu for Scruff and his fellow pooches.
Zommer’s canines are a real laugh, not only Scruff, but Ada the Afghan, Pixie the Poodle, Percy the Pug and Sidney the Sausage Dog too, are real characters with their own idiosyncrasies. Pixie for example likes to file her nails and Percy considers himself a bit of a charmer.
Dog lovers especially will be delighted: the rest of us will have a good giggle over the crazy shenanigans shown in this daft detective tale.

Where’s the Baboon?

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Where’s the Baboon?
Michaël Escoffier and Kris Di Giacomo
Andersen Press
Is it a book or is it a game? Actually the mouse on the cover hits it on the nail ‘It’s a Super Bookgame!’ he asserts and it might be time to get out those plastic letters for a visit to the crazy animal school herein, as we respond to this invitation … ‘Let’s search for hidden words!‘

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Question one is ‘Who is the headmaster?’, the answer being … got it? Next comes ‘Who brought the apple?’ That’s it: the red letters highlight the answers, each one being an animal of some kind, the tricky creature itself appearing in part …

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or wholly somewhere on the scene, while the mischievous mouse trio makes an appearance on every spread.

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These little creatures seem about to launch a glue missile at two unsuspecting readers in one of the scenes.
The final birthday surprise bursts – literally – onto the scene proclaiming as he makes his presence felt in no uncertain terms …

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Exploding with fun – and not just from the penultimate spread – this is absolutely perfect for sharing and for having a good giggle over the crazy shenanigans of the pupils, before trying to invent some animal capers of your own; or even re-making those featured with coloured letter shapes. Totally engaging in every respect. Teachers, don’t miss this one: it’s packed with potential such as ‘Think of an appropriate sentence, write it and then create a scene around it.’ Of course the spelling will need checking though.

The Listzs

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The Liszts
Kyo Maclear and Júlia Sardà
Andersen Press
Are you a list maker? There’s something satisfying about lists, especially lists of things to do, and in particular, the crossing off part. That was the part my favourite literary list-maker, Toad in Arnold Lobel’s Frog and Toad Together liked most too. In fact he couldn’t function properly without his ‘list of things to do today’.
A whole family of list makers populates this wryly whimsical book and they’re called, unsurprisingly, the Listzs. There’s Mum and Dad who make lists all year round, Sundays excluded; on such days they’re um, listless. Youngest child Frederick is a ‘list of fun things to do’ maker whereas big sister Winifred’s lists feature top tens and middle child Edward is a nocturnal list maker. Not wishing to be left out, Grandpa too makes lists – ‘his greatest admirers and most fearsome enemies’; even the cat’s a list maker.
Then one day a visitor arrives; nobody wants to engage with him – he’s not on their lists –

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until he comes upon Edward. He has a list of questions and what’s more, he’s the one who’d left the door open and is ready to admit it too. “The door was open,” says the visitor. “I know. I left it open. …” comes the reply. “For me?” – that’s the visitor. Edward thinks so. The two exchange questions, which leads to more exciting outcomes …

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Hurray for spontaneity and the possibility of something unexpected turning up.
With a quirky gothic feel to it, this near nonsensical tale is likely to appeal to adults as much as children. Visual humour abounds in the suitably dreary-hued illustrations: look at this scene with the family spending a restful Sunday.

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This is illustrator Júlia Saradà’s debut picture book: her illustrations herein reminded me very much of the work of Edward Gorey’s witty style. I look forward with interest to seeing what comes next.

Boo!

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Boo!
Ben Newman
Flying Eye Books
“No one is as brave as me and nothing scares me … you’ll see!” That’s the claim of the tiny stick-wielding character on the first spread of Ben Newman’s latest offering. (If you’re familiar with the awesome Professor Astro Cat books you’ll recognise him as their illustrator.)

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Turn the page and you’ll immediately see this is far from true …

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and then it’s a case of a series of claims to be the wearer of the ‘bravest’ mantle as an owl, a mischievous monkey, a toothsome, jaw -snapping croc, a leaping tiger …

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and finally, a stampeding elephant all BOO! the previous pretender clean off the page.
“Abolutely no one is as brave as me and nothing scares me!” asserts the latter super-confidently. Make no mistake about it; he does NOT have the final word …
Such a satisfying circularity herein and part of the fun is in the anticipation of the next BOO and the hooting, giggling, growling, snorting opportunities presented as each animal introduces itself. Oh, and that ‘nothing scares me … you’ll see!’ is repeated by each claimant, making it ideal for beginning readers to join in with on subsequent sharings of which, I foresee, there will be many.
Stylish and oodles of fun!

Penguin Problems

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Penguin Problems
Jory John and Lane Smith
Walker Books
Being a penguin isn’t a barrel of laughs as we quickly discover in the first Jory John/Lane Smith collaboration, certainly it isn’t for the penguin narrator of this book anyway; we learn that right away when he’s woken from his slumbers by squawking from his fellow penguins. Nothing it seems is to this little fellow’s liking: he hates snow, the sun’s too bright and he’s extremely hungry. If the land’s not to his liking, the ocean’s even worse – too salty, distinctly lacking in fish, dark and decidedly chilly.

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“Oh great. An orca. Oh great. A leopard seal. Oh great. A shark. What is it with this place?” he mutters as he becomes hunted rather than hunter …

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This fellow also has body issues; his buoyancy is faulty, his flippers tire too fast, his waddle is more of a wibble …

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and of course, he can’t fly. Then there’s the issue of look alikes …

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Enter stage right a walrus. His words of wisdom should go some way to changing Penguin’s attitude to ‘half full’ at the very least – some of the time anyway …

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This book exudes humour both verbal and visual but put together the result is sheer gigglesome comedic delight at every turn of the page. Actually, make that before you start turning the pages; the perversity of the cover and penguin’s litany of negativity on the front inside flap, set the scene for what’s to come.

Samson the Mighty Flea

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Samson the Mighty Flea
Angela McAllister and Nathan Reed
Andersen Press
Samson the Mighty Flea is top of the bill at Fleabag’s Circus, which is no surprise: he can lift a match, a pea and, the lovely Amelie – all at once. Despite this, he’s not satisfied; Samson longs for the big time so he bids farewell to fellow Fleabag performers and off he goes determined to be “the biggest star in the world“.

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But the world is a very big place and he’s such a small flea: “Go back where you belong,” a bug tells him. There’s no going back for Samson though, not until he’s performed before a huge audience. That does eventually happen …

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but so does something else: Samson realises that however much he’d longed for fame, it’s worth nothing without his old friends and one in particular.
Meanwhile back at Fleabag’s that particular friend is about to give the performance of her life too …

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Thought provoking and funny, this circus romp moves in and out of rhyme and so requires careful perusal by an adult reader aloud before public performance. I loved the offbeat nature of the whole thing: its unlikely characters are portrayed with finesse by Nathan Reed, who provides visual delight at every turn of the page.

This Book is Out of Control / Happy Hooves Yuk!

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These two picture books welcome back some old friends:

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This Book is Out of Control
Richard Byrne
Oxford University Press
The perils of the remote control are explored in this third comic romp starring Ben and Bella, not forgetting Bella’s dog of course. It all starts when Ben turns up clutching his new favourite toy – a remote controlled fire engine. Eager to show off his control skills he begins by demonstrating the UP button but a press yields no response or rather the ladder stays fixed: Bella’s dog doesn’t as we readers can see. Ben and Bella however are oblivious to the action taking place inside the house behind the door, which nestles in the gutter of the book and Bella has firmly closed.
With their eyes fixed firmly on the ladder Ben tries another button, which results in this …

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I’ll leave you to imagine the results of pressing the siren button. Ben tries VOICE, which yields an utterance from the dog who opens the door revealing his predicament to the children. Things go from bad to worse despite Ben’s frantic button pushing and it’s then a case of over to you “Dear reader” especially as the expert remote controller has started to turn a delicate shade of green. Things are getting pretty desperate up top when readers are addressed once again …

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Does this work, you might be wondering – it certainly appears that one of the characters is in control …

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but we’re still left with one button none of them has tried …
With some rather crazy interactive opportunities, this is somewhat more sophisticated than the previous stories in the series. For me, the dog is undoubtedly the star of the show here.

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Happy Hooves Yuk!
A.Bogie and Rebecca Elliott
Fat Fox
The third Happy Hooves story sees Pig deciding to treat his pals to a culinary feast. But even after his careful preparations things don’t go quite as he’s planned. Cow turns her nose up at the first dish; Foal frowns at the second;

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Donkey is decidedly disturbed at the third and Sheep shudders at the thought of what she’s offered. Poor Pig: it seems none of his favourite dishes tempt his friends. He has one final course though: could this be the one? It certainly looks pretty scrumptious … let the party begin!

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I envisage a whole lot of ‘eughs’ and ‘yucks’ when you share this engaging rhyming tale; and as a veggie, I found myself in total sympathy with Pig’s friends about his offerings – definitely disgusting! Let’s celebrate friendship and chocolate cake instead. Let’s also celebrate Rebecca Elliott’s patterned scenes: I love the retro style and the occasional bordered spreads.

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Focus on those frogs …

Four Silly Skeletons / Boo! Haiku

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Four Silly Skeletons
Mark Sperring and Sue Hendra
Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Meet the silly skeleton quartet: there’s Fred, Sid, Belle an Bill, residents of a hill-top house, while down below at the foot of the same hill lives their sweet-natured Auntie June with Skellybones, her cat. The four young’uns get up to all manner of shenanigans and it’s down to their aunt to set their wrongs to right.
One dark night when the sky is full of stars and the young skellies full of energy, off they shimmy down the hill,

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only to be halted in their tracks by Auntie June clutching a large bag full of lamps and other lights and warning of the darkness on the hill. But do those four sillies pay heed to her concerns? Oh dearie me, no: what’s the need for extra light when the moon’s big and bright, they say. But that’s before they come upon this …

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which results in a hurtling, spinning, screaming drop that ends in bone-scattering disaster. So it’s just as well that Auntie June has heard their wails and come to their aid, and just happens to have a large pot of sticky stuff with her; sticky stuff that is just the thing for some hasty repairs.

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Now let that be a lesson to those full-moon frolickers.
Told in rowdy, bone rattling rhyme and illuminated by Sue Hendra’s super skeleton scenes of mischief and mayhem, this is just the thing for a Hallowe’en romp.

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Boo! Haiku
Deanna Caswell and Bob Shea
Abrams Appleseed
In this follow up to the Guess Who, Haiku are a host of mock-scary frights to delight! Starting with ‘broom across the moon/ pointed hat at the window/ hair-raising cackle’ children are asked to guess who. There’s a small visual clue below the text in addition to the haiku and the answer is revealed when the page is turned.

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The subject then presents another haiku to listeners and so on through traditional Hallowe’en-associated items – a bat, a skeleton, a pumpkin (jack-o’lantern), a ghost and so on and finally –

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The last page provides information about the haiku form and syllabification; and I particularly like the reference to ‘an element of play’.
This cries out for audience participation and is great to share with preschool children who will be honing their listening skills while having fun.

Duck Gets A Job

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Duck Gets a Job
Sonny Ross
Templar Publishing
How many people end up doing jobs in city offices, jobs that perhaps pay well but are not fulfilling and certainly not the kind of thing they’d dreamed of? I suspect an awful lot, but they haven’t the courage to do anything about it and may even claim to love what they’re doing. Perhaps that’s also the case with some of Duck’s friends …

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in this droll, super stylish debut picture book from Sonny Ross. First let’s meet job seeker, Duck as he peruses the situations vacant columns in search of a job, a job like his pals.

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In spite of not sounding totally his thing, Duck applies for one and succeeds in getting himself an interview. Now more decisions have to be made – appropriate gear and mode of travel. Both prove somewhat problematic …

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but eventually Duck arrives at the office where he lands himself a job.
Pretty soon however, he realises facts and figures are never going to float his boat; a city job is not the life for him so he walks out and decides to follow his heart and dreams.

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Using an uber cool colour palette that is perfect for the job, Sonny Ross puts a brand new spin on joining or rather, not joining the rat race: and he ought to know – there’s an element of autobiography herein.

Little Owl’s Egg

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Little Owl’s Egg
Debi Gliori and Alison Brown
Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Baby Owl’s response to Mummy Owl’s announcement that the egg she’s just laid will become a new baby owl is anything but positive. “I’m your baby owl. You don’t need a new one,” he insists.
As they take a walk together wise Mummy Owl plays a ‘suppose that’ game with Little Owl, suggesting the egg might hatch into a worm,

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a penguin, a crocodile even; or could it perhaps be made of chocolate.

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Little Owl ponders all these possibilities rejecting each: he, although definitely not his  mother – is more in favour of a dragon egg.

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In fact though, it seems he’s becoming rather fond of the egg; something special must be inside he decides, something like a baby “Princess Wormy Choco-Penguin Crocophant Dragowl.” – something that will need a very strange diet.
On the other hand it might after all be better, if what emerged from that egg of theirs should turn out to be a brand new Little Owl, because that would make the present one something even more special – a new Big Owl and that could never change, no matter what.
Tenderly told, this gently humorous story goes to the heart of what many young children fear when a new sibling is on the horizon: that their mother’s love will be transferred away from them to the new arrival. Mummy Owl and Little Owl as portrayed by Alison Brown are totally endearing characters and she captures the inherent humour of Debi Gliori’s narrative beautifully in every scene.
This is just the thing to have on hand when a new sibling is imminent but it’s too much fun to restrict just to such an occasion. I’d share it with a nursery group or class no matter what.

I Broke My Trunk / Let’s Go for a Drive

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I Broke My Trunk!
Mo Willems
Walker Books
I love Mo Willems’ Elephant and Piggie stories; they’re ideal for beginning readers and totally crazy. In the first one poor Gerald has a damaged trunk and just when Piggie is wondering why his friend hasn’t put in an appearance, along comes Gerald looking just a tad sorry for himself. “What happened to your trunk?” asks Piggie and thus begins a protracted and rather convoluted tale of misadventure and madness. Imagine trying to balance a hippo on your trunk; that’s what Gerald did, and a rhino, followed by Hippo’s big sis who just happens to have a piano with her.


Well of course Gerald’s trunk would break under all that weight wouldn’t it? Actually no; there’s more to this bonkers story because Gerald’s trunk managed to stand up to all that mis-use; but then in classic Willems/ Gerald fashion comes the embarrassing part …

and a final whoops:

let’s leave Piggie to have the last word – or rather words.
Hilarious nonsense, but utterly irresistible and delivered all in dialogue and through Mo’s minimalist chucklesome pictures. Make sure you peruse the final endpapers – seemingly Piggie has found another old friend to share his tale with.
More delicious Gerald and Piggie nonsense in
Let’s Go For a Drive
Mo Willems
Walker Books
“Let’s go for a drive!” suggests Gerald; “That sounds fun!” agrees Piggie. “Drive! Drive! Drivey-drive-drive!” they shout together gleefully. Gerald then announces the need for a map – he’s just a little bit of a fusspot (a pedant) and continues listing a whole lot more items crucial for the enterprise while poor Piggie dashes around collecting sunglasses, umbrellas, bags, …

“We have so much to pack,” interjects Gerald; but that’s not all … “There will be a lot of driving on our drive,” he continues. Really? Haven’t they forgotten about one fundamental item for this drive.

What should they do now? Luckily for Gerald, PIggie has an answer and, a plan.
Another winner in this early reading series –young readers don’t need a plan either – all they need is right there in this satisfying little book.

Toto’s Apple

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Toto’s Apple
Mathieu Lavoie
Phaidon
Toto is a little worm (you might at first glance mistake him for a sock) and he’s set his heart – and his eyes – on a rosy red apple. The trouble is Toto’s on the ground and the apple? Dangling tantalisingly way too high out of his reach. What’s he to do?

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Along comes a bird and an idea too. Toto seizes a paintbrush – don’t ask me how or from where; it matters not. He gets to work …

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and then waits. Bingo! His trick works and Toto hitches a ride but now look where he is …

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Does he give up? Oh no he doesn’t. Out comes that paintbrush again and here we go once more, courtesy of a squirrel. Another miss and another dab of that brush and he’s ready for another try– wheee!

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Oh no! He’s right back where he started. Game over? Definitely not – even when a little girl, Didi, has her teeth sunk into his prized apple – and Toto? Seems he’s still in with a chance …
A tasty ending? Sure!
Uber silly but totally brilliant is this super-satisfying Lavoie treat. Love, love, love Toto’s creativity and persistence. His tale is certain to become a much requested storytime favourite wherever it’s shared – home, early years setting or classroom.
And with its spare narrative, it is – yes all 64 pages of it – a cracking book for those in the early stages of reading to sink their teeth into. So much more satisfying than most of the rubbish fodder learner readers are fed; but you’ve got to consume it in a single sitting and THAT, takes time.

I Saw Anaconda

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I Saw Anaconda
Jane Clarke and Emma Dodd
Nosy Crow
Most of us are familiar with the nursery favourite, ‘There was an old woman who swallowed a fly’. What Jane Clarke provides herein is a riotous reworking of the rhyme featuring a little boy – the narrator – and a gigantic, guzzling anaconda intent on devouring everything from the tiniest tick …

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to an alligator.

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And even that’s not enough; she goes on to consume the boy – binoculars and all – too. Story over then? Not quite.
We all know the outcome of over indulgence and here it is …

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Young children relish the build-up as they wait for Anaconda’s comeuppance and if my experience is anything to go by, will demand an immediate regurgitation of the whole yucky tale. The description on the cover pretty much sums up the snakey shenanigans herein: it’s great fun to share. Clever use of foldout pages,

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multi-flaps …

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and pop-ups give extra room for Emma Dodd’s deliciously gigglesome artistry, and to display the hapless victims within their devourer.

We Found A Hat

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We Found a Hat
Jon Klassen
Walker Books
This, the concluding book in Klassen’s “Hat’ trilogy is delivered in the artist’s dead pan style. Longer than the previous two at 56 pages, and divided into three chapters, it features two turtles and just one hat – an exceedingly large one – for turtle heads, that is. Each in turn tries it on and reach one conclusion: It looks good on both of them.

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Rather than have a bust-up, the two walk away to watch the sunset from a nearby rock – together.

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One starts thinking about the sunset – so we’re told; the other starts thinking about you know what …
Night falls and the two prepare to sleep. One turtle starts moving downwards in the direction of a certain article of headwear … The second dreams – of stars and identical hats, one for each of them. Hmm: now what?

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Seemingly that’s for readers to decide as they relish the subtleties in this Klassen finale. With its spare text and slow-moving visual action – it’s entirely a case of showing, not telling here –
and they are turtles after all. What’s going on behind those eyes? That is the key.
Rendered in sombre hues with a gradual fading out of the soft orange as the sun finally sinks, this is desert dryness in more senses than one.

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Nothing Can Frighten a Bear

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Nothing Can Frighten a Bear
Elizabeth Dale and Paula Metcalf
Nosy Crow
The title claim may hold true for most bears but Baby Bear in this rhyming tale is more than a little alarmed when he’s woken by an enormous roar. It’s a monster, he decides, and calls for help. His parents do their best to reassure him but Baby Bear insists on an exploratory search to rule out any possibilities. Off stride the family – Daddy, Mum and three cubs marching through the trees with Dad in the lead confidently stating, “there’s no monster there. And anyway, nothing can frighten a bear.”

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But as the journey continues and the group encounter various creatures – none of them monsters – the number in their party starts to diminish. First Mum gets tangled in a tree, then Ben falls in the stream,

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young Grace is stuck in some oozy mud leaving just two – Daddy and Baby. Suddenly they realise they’re alone. Could the others have gone back home or has a monster got them?
Youngsters delight in being in the know while Dad and Baby panic, first at that possibility, and then at the sight of what is right there in the moonlight …

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Dad’s not looking quite so fearless now … and it’s left to Baby Bear to do the reassuring. Then it’s a case of back to bed but is that the end of those noises in the night?
Elizabeth Dale’s narrative bounces along nicely and Paula Metcalf catches the humour and mock scariness so well in her nocturnal scenes of the alternately fearless and fearful bear family: it’s all in the eyes and the body language.

I Am a Very Clever Cat / Two Can

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I am a Very Clever Cat
Kasia Matyjaszek
Templar Publishing
With such an arresting cover, this book will be hard to resist. Its narrator, Stockon, is certainly not short on self-esteem: “I am a very clever cat,” he tells us by way of introduction and goes on to demonstrate some of his skills. His greatest claim to fame is his wizardry with a pair of knitting needles: here he is as he sets about creating the ‘fanciest scarf for the fanciest soirée.’

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Naturally being such a wiz with those needles though, Stockton has no need for a pattern: he just makes it up as he goes along. So super-confident is our wool worker that he is completely oblivious to what’s happening while he talks until …

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Seems his chances of strutting his stuff at that soirée have just taken a tumble.
How fortunate it is that all the while, his antics have been watched by a pair of mice; can they perhaps save the day?

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Stockton may have dropped a whole lot of stitches but he’s certainly picked up a couple of pals, very clever ones at that, in the course of his knitting capers.
I’m sure those capers will win him a whole lot more friends among young listeners (and adult cat lovers) who will delight in the interplay between words and pictures in Kasia Matyjaszek’s funny debut picture book.

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Two Can
Smriti Prasadam-Halls and Ben Javens
Frances Lincoln Children’s Books
What a cracking little book! Using just 29 words, its creators explore a whole range of emotions. Small children at play in a park demonstrate playing solo, playing apart and playing together, occasionally falling out …

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sometimes co-operating, sometimes empowering …

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or encouraging and concluding (almost) …

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SO simple, so clever and SO effective. Perfect to share with one, with two or with a few …
It’s equally perfect though, for beginning readers to try for themselves: what an ideal opportunity to say, “I can” therafter.

Mix-Ups & Disguises

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The Hippopandamouse
Jools Bentley
Macmillan Children’s Books
Things are all of a tizz at Fluffey’s Fine Toys as the workers prepare for a royal visit: the princess is coming and everything has to be perfect. Any toys that don’t pass muster are consigned to the dreaded unstitcher…

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In all the panic, one hippopotamus is put on the wrong table and ends up looking thus:

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The resulting mistake goes un-noticed by the fussy Miss Fluffey who is eager to usher in Princess Flo and show her all the wonderful toys. The young lady show polite interest but is unimpressed until she spies the mistake. Miss Fluffey orders its instant withdrawal and off it’s sent to the dreaded unstitcher. Much to the displeasure of one small royal miss who is determined to spend her pocket money on just one very special item. But can that machine be stopped in time to save that very special item from destruction …
Mistake he might be, but the Hippopandamouse is a winner with youngsters be they or be they not princesses.

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Jools Bentley’s creation demonstrates beautifully that we don’t need to be perfect to be lovable; that and the fact that everybody needs a break from time to time, no matter how important the job being worked on.

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How to Hide a Lion at School
Helen Stephens
Alison Green Books
What do you do when your best pal and companion isn’t allowed to go with you to the place you spend a great deal of time in – school? At first, Iris does nothing – there’s no need: her lion follows her there every single day, sneaks in and does his best to merge in but unsurprisingly Iris’s teacher, Miss Holland (like most teachers) has eyes in the back of her head and sends him packing. That works when the children are staying put in school but there comes a day when the class is off on a school trip. Moreover, their mode of transport just happens to be the very bus upon which Iris’s lion languishes to watch the goings on in the playground. So, with class aboard off speeds said bus, lion atop – to the museum.
What a splendid hiding place this turns out to be with all those fascinating exhibits.

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Nobody, not even Iris notices him until, they reach the ancient Egyptian room. Here, Iris has to do some quick thinking, and a whole lot of loo roll snitching, in order to attempt a disguise.

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It’s pretty effective until one of the museum visitors has a touch of the tickly noses … and that’s when the plan starts to unravel …
What happens thereafter really puts the lion’s thinking skills to the test but suffice it to say that a certain large-maned creature ends up as hero of the hour …

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and earns himself a new job to boot.
As with previous adventures of the duo, this one is lots of fun. If you’ve not met Iris and her friendly lion previously you can start here, after which I suspect you’ll want to go back and get hold of the two books How to Hide a Lion and How to Hide a Lion from Grandma.

The Wolf Who Cried Boy!

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The Wolf Who Cried Boy!
James O’Neill and Russell Ayto
Picture Corgi
I doubt there are many readers who aren’t familiar with the classic The Boy Who Cried Wolf story but what happens when someone turns the tale clean upside down? Well, in this instance, it’s something utterly delightful and funny to boot.
On opposite sides of a river live two communities – one human, the other, the forest dwelling wolves. Now these particular wolves, despite what the human elders have told their children …

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are soft, fun-loving friendly creatures. However, they do live in fear of those across the water. Hmm!
Let’s focus now on one of their number, a very small wolf cub who has some very big ideas (and very mistaken) about himself for indeed he is an extremely fearful little fellow, not brave at all and given to crying “Boy” at the slightest shadow shape, rustle of a bush or hint of a breeze. So frequent were his cries that soon nobody took the slightest scrap of notice.
Now one particular sunny morning this cub decides to take a cooling dip in the river and what should he spy but a scruffily clad, sticky faced …

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This particular little lad had much in common with the cub in that he was wont to cry out at the slightest rattle of a bin lid, moo from a cow or waft of the wind. Naturally nobody took heed – well you know that part of old.
Their face-to-face encounter results in a torrent of outpourings …

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all rather protracted and exhausting too. And totally ignored by both humans and wolves thus leaving the two infants to frolic the afternoon away together until …

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It looked as if their fun was over.

So hereafter, is it to be a case of never the twain shall meet or could there be other possibilities?
James O’Neill’s background in comic drama is evident in his droll telling of this head-on collision between two worlds; and combined with Russell Ayto’s priceless comic-strip style rendering of same, the result is picture book theatre of the first order. Read into it what you will …

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Mango & Bambang Tiny Tapir Trouble / Pugly Solves a Crime

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Mango & Bambang Tiny Tapir Trouble
Polly Faber and Clara Vulliamy
Walker Books
The tiny tapir referred to in the title of this, the third delicious Mango And Bambang collaboration between Polly Faber and Clara Vulliamy doesn’t crash onto the scene until the third story and when he does, my goodness he certainly makes his presence felt.
Before that though, Bambang and Mango visit the seaside to spend a special carefree, fun-filled day together before Mango’s new school term starts. At least that’s the plan, but it turns out to be a day packed with unexpected incidents culminating in the rescue of a toddler swept out to sea and an exciting parachute flight.
In the second story Bambang is feeling off-colour, his snout is blocked and he takes to his bed. Doctor Blossom the tapir specialist is at a loss to know how to make him better …

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so it’s left to Mango, ably assisted by their pal George, to find a cure.
Even after his recovery, Bambang hasn’t regained his full bounce and so he and Mango do quiet things at home. But then a large parcel is delivered addressed to Bambang and any chance of peace and quiet immediately go out the window, for what should be inside but his small cousin Gunter – a cousin he didn’t even know existed. Small he might be, but he’s a force to be reckoned with and pretty soon, it becomes evident that two tapirs in one apartment is one too many. The trouble is Gunter has announced his intention to stay put and Mango appears to be enjoying his company rather too much. So much so that Bambang starts to think that perhaps he should be the one to go …
The final story sees Mango participating in the City Chess Tournament and one of the other competitors is the boy who’s been champ for the past three years. Seemingly though – at least to Bambang – something strange is afoot.

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By the end of the book, Bambang has come to a very important understanding about family – it’s not about who you look like or where you started; true family are those you belong with – those who make you feel most completely yourself, no matter what.
Full of warmth and humour, these stories are perfect for those readers just starting to go solo.
Another favourite character returns in a brand new adventure:

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Pugly Solves a Crime
Pamela Butchart and Gemma Correll
Nosy Crow
When Pugly learns that Big Sal the guinea pig has been ‘GUINEA PIG-NAPPED he dons his detective hat and turns PUG-DETECTIVE. But who’s responsible for this dastardly crime? Perhaps it’s Glitterball the Poodle who has come to live next door – Pugly doesn’t trust poodles. Or could it be someone else? Time to enlist the help of super smart cat, Clem. Off go the two of them in search of clues …
With plenty of wonderful illustrations from Gemma Correll …

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this crazy tale is sure to bring plenty of smiles to the faces of young readers; in fact, there’s not a spread that didn’t make me giggle to myself.

Mr Mustachio / George Pearce and His Huge Massive Ears

jillrbennett 2 Comments

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Mr Mustachio
Yasmin Finch and Abigail Tompkins
Maverick Arts Publishing
I’ve never seen a moustache quite like that of the star of the show in this funny story. He’s very, very tall and thin, sports a maxi camel hair coat and pointy black boots; and on the day we meet him, is off for a picnic in the park …

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This he enjoys but then his eyes light on one of those roundabout things and that’s when the trouble starts- well it would, wouldn’t it? Before long the hirsute Mr M. is in a bit of a fix …

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Various children attempt to release him by pulling and soaping and a granny trio try tooling a rescue but to no avail: even the gang of builders can’t do the trick …

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so it looks at though it’s down to one of the teachers to snip him out (not sure what they’re doing walking in the park wielding scissors but no matter). Mr M is finally released but there’s something about his appearance that’s not quite as it used to be … Can our resourceful Mr Mustachio find a replacement for his missing facial filaments: perhaps he could choose from those wonderful endpaper ideas.
A crazy tale for sure, but it’s one that will elicit giggles from young audiences: Abigail Tompkins’ subtle-toned scenes of the moustachioed Mr M are a hoot.

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George Pearce and His Huge Massive Ears
Felix Massie
Frances Lincoln Children’s Books
George Pearce is an ordinary sort of boy except for one thing, or rather two – his ears. They are enormous and protrude – wing-like – from either side of his otherwise ordinary head. George doesn’t use them for flight though, for him, they’re secret sound catchers. The only trouble being that pretty soon, George’s head is stuffed full of words – some good, others decidedly not …

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So much so that his head is so muddled, he just doesn’t know how to sort right from wrong, or what to think at all. Opinions seem to be crowding in on George everywhere he goes and it’s impossible to please everyone.

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There’s only one thing to do and George does it. He puts a finger in each ear, pushing them in hard to block out everyone else’s ideas and words.
Suddenly there comes a very tiny voice from deep within George’s own skull; this voice doesn’t tell him anything, rather it provides a thinking space for George’s own thoughts to form and at last, there’s no need for pretence. The real boy can finally emerge and yes, his ears still stick right out, but now there’s only one person who can make up George’s mind and that is George himself …

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Sad, funny and insightful, this is a cautionary tale to share with those who are easily swayed by what others say and think, especially, though I suspect it will bring a smile to the faces of most youngsters particularly if they enjoy a bit of quirkiness.

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How to Find a Friend / Flying Lemurs

jillrbennett 1 Comment

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How To Find a Friend
Maria S. Costa
Oxford University Press
I love the double narrative style of this, Maria Costa’s debut picture book. Herein we follow the search for friendship of Squirrel and Rabbit, both of whom have just moved into new abodes. The trouble is (despite the  stage whispers from a pair of bit-part players) the two animals are just not looking in the right places. Listeners will delight in the manner in which we’re shown the unfolding dramas of the two main characters, one in full colour, the other in outline, highlighting their invisibility to one another: It’s all very hit and miss – or rather hit …

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and hit …

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Children will love the mismatch between words and pictures as well as the fact they can use the story maps at the front and back of the book to track the action and the crossed paths of the main characters.
Maria Costa’s linocut illustrations are terrific fun: her use of a limited colour palette is particularly effective in highlighting this small drama of flipsides, folly and friendship – eventually. And I particularly love that when the going gets tough, Squirrel finds solace in his books …

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That, and the gentle irony of the whole thing.

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Flying Lemurs
Zehra Hicks
Two Hoots
The lemurs are a talented jumping family: Mum on the trapeze, Dad the trampoline and Granny is an ace cannon jumper. There’s one little lemur however, who just cannot jump at all. Other family members encourage …

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and demonstrate …

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but the result is DISASTER  – always …

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Fortunately, her family is sympathetic and even more encouraging …

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so can their little one finally cut it as a rocket jumper?
This funny story is just the thing for those who strive but find things challenging; it demonstrates beautifully how it is possible to overcome your fears, unlock your personal aptitudes and find your own forte.
Zehra Hicks’s illustrations, be they in strip format, whole page or full spread, are wonderfully chucklesome and I love her choice of colour palette; it’s absolutely right for the circus setting.

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Odd Dog Out

jillrbennett 1 Comment

Odd Dog Out
Rob Biddulph
Harper Collins Children’s Books
Here’s a splendiferous book about being yourself, happy in your own skin and most important, being an individual unafraid of being different. I was blown right away by Rob Biddulph’s debut picture book, growled in delight at his second offering and this is every bit as good, and better.
As a divergent thinker who refuses to conform I was totally hooked by the time I reached here …

That this small dog just doesn’t quite sing from the same song sheet as all the other dogs …

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causes her such sadness she decides to up and leave her home town and strike out alone …

which she does, travelling until she reaches Doggywood. But is this the right place for our canine pal? There certainly seem to be a lot of others looking just like her …

But it’s not being like those same-looking others that convince Odd Dog she’s perfectly fine just as she is; it’s an encounter with another who is totally at home with her own difference that convinces her that her heart and home are right back where she came from. Being happy with who and what you are, is the important thing: let the rest of the world accommodate you and perhaps even celebrate yours and everyone’s uniqueness …

Super-brilliant stuff, Rob Biddulph: you’ve hit the nail squarely on the head with this one. ‘ … blaze a trail. Be who you are.’ What better message to give children, and indeed adults, than this. Cracking rhyming text and illustrations: a MUST have for every family and classroom.

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