Tag Samara Hardy

Molly, Olive and Dexter: You Can’t Catch Me! / Dance with Oti: The Turtle Tango

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These are both new titles featuring popular characters from previous stories: thanks to the publishers Walker Books for sending them for review.

Molly, Olive and Dexter: You Can’t Catch Me!
Catherine Rayner

In this third episode in the lives of a trio of residents of a garden oak tree, Molly the hare, Olive the owl and Dexter, the fox, Dexter asks his friends to participate in a game of chase. First to be ‘it’ is Olive but she’s super speedy and soon catches Molly. When she’s the chaser, Molly finds her fast feet and before long she’s got Dexter, well and truly.

The bump leaves the fox feeling all dizzy and after a bit of chasing in a tired tizzy too. Determined to do something to show his vulpine prowess, he does something that perplexes his pals and in so doing proves he too is a worthy participant in the game of catch.

And the winner? What do you think? …

As always, Catherine’s watercolour scenes are superb; every spread makes the reader want to slow right down and linger over it. Young listeners too will appreciate the artistry as well as enjoying the playfulness of the chase.

Dance with Oti: The Turtle Tango
Oti Mabuse and Samara Hardy

Having learned to dance the Bird Jive, the Lion Samba and the Penguin Waltz, Mrs Oti’s pupils have a new challenge.

Prior to their performance at the grand opening of the aquarium, Mrs Oti takes the members of her dance class to see the marine creatures that are kept in its watery world. They enjoy watching the rainbow fish, wobbly jellyfish, scuttling crabs, the enormous shark and the turtle family. One of the class, Poppy, is concerned about the baby turtle and it’s the turtles that give their teacher an idea for the performance.

Back at the dance studio, the children enjoy emulating the fin flapping fish, the wobbly wobbly jellyfish and hear some sound advice from Mrs Oti. Advice that proves to be particularly important come the big day on stage when there’s a mishap just before the titular Turtle Tango grand finale.

After the show, along with congratulation from their teacher, each of the performers receives a special surprise thank you present.

After enjoying the vibrantly illustrated story, listeners too can learn the finale dance by following the step by step instructions on the last double spread..

The Singing Bear / Dance With Oti: The Penguin Waltz

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The Singing Bear
Amy Sparks and Katie Hickey
Walker Entertainment

It’s always a huge pleasure to visit the Repair Shop and see Jay Blades and his team of expert repairers in these picture books that are based on the real life events of those who visit the workshop. This one featuring Kwai, Anne and young niece Lucy who bring along Singing Ted, for the team to work their magic on, being the third.

Kwai’s elder sister, Anne recounts part of her back story, explaining how as an eight-year old, she learned that her parents were going to adopt a baby girl, Kwai, from Hong Kong. When the little girl arrives, she’s quiet and sad and to try and cheer her up, the family visits the toy shop where they buy a teddy that plays a lullaby at the turn of a key.

On seeing the bear, little Kwai’s eyes light up for the first time

and from then on, Singing Bear as she names her teddy and Kwai go everywhere together. Inevitably over the years, the bear has been loved so much that it now needs Jay and his fellow workers to use their skills on Ted. Can they make the bear sing again as well as fixing the other things that need restoring?

Happily when, the three return, Jay greets them with a big smile and wonderful news.

Amy Sparkes’ telling is a delight but Katie Hickey’s superbly expressive illustrations, endpapers included, really bring the events to life making the book even more special. Back matter recounts the true story of the Singing Bear and introduces Jay and his expert team.

Dance With Oti: The Penguin Waltz
Oti Mabuse and Samara Hardy
Walker Books

Mrs Oti and her dance class are preparing for a special wintry themed show when the snow falling outside prompts one of the children to ask if they can go out and play. Wrapped up warm, off they go and straightway as Mrs Oti teaches them how to balance on snowy ground, penguins are mentioned. This leads one of the pupils to initiate a penguin waddle and after a snowball fight, and further talk of penguins , Mrs Oti tells them she has an idea for the final dance in the show: the Penguin Waltz.
Back indoors, re-energised by hot chocolate, the practising begins in earnest.
Come the day of the show, what a performance the children give until it’s time for the finale. A mishap occurs but Gan’s quick thinking and sense of teamwork save the situation and the dance finishes perfectly, to the delight of watchers and performers.

A delightful addition to the Dance with Oti series: Samara Hardy’s bright, lively illustrations showcase Mrs Oti and her class beautifully: their camaraderie really shines through.
Read the book with your KS1 class, then get up and try the moves: you and your listeners can learn the penguin waltz by following the step by step instructions on the final spread.

Dance With Oti: The Bird Jive

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Dance With Oti: The Bird Jive
Oti Mabuse and Samara Hardy
Walker Books

This is the debut picture book of Strictly Come Dancing star, Oti Mabuse, and as the book opens, Mrs Oti is welcoming a host of would-be dancers into her studio for their very first lesson.

Warm ups and stretches completed, everyone is ready to start learning the jive. There are the inevitable thrills and spills but under their teacher’s enthusiastic, watchful, caring eye, the children are quick learners

and in no time the lesson is halfway through. Then suddenly, an unexpected winged visitor makes an appearance.

Mrs Oti deals with the disruption in her characteristic creative way and soon everyone is back on task

and the lesson proceeds towards the final steps and a wonderful controlled POSE! Just in time to give the waiting families a first performance of The Bird Jive. And humans aren’t the only ones that show their enthusiasm as the dance draws to a close.

With some delightful characters including Poppy, Gan and Olivia, all illustrated with panache by Samara Hardy, and a step-by-step demonstration of the Bird Jive routine by Oti, this is a thoroughly enjoyable celebration of movement, dance and giving it your all. Share the book then, get on your feet and JIVE!

The Turkey That Voted For Christmas / Evil Pea Rules

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The Turkey that Voted for Christmas
Madeliene Cook and Samara Hardy
Oxford University Press

Christmas is an overwhelming no-no when it comes to a certain sector of the residents of Pear Tree Farm, all except Timmy Turkey that is. To the horror of his family, he really wants a dose of the festive fun but in the face of so many determined NO voters what’s a young turkey to do?
Seemingly there’s only one thing – hold a ‘Christmas’ election. First though he needs to canvas support among the other animals to see which will join his Christmas party.

Christmas Eve dawns and it’s time for votes to be cast but what will the result be?
Are the turkeys to be stuffed at last or can it perhaps be a win/win scenario despite the outcome of the poll?
A crazy Christmas offering stuffed with nutty puns and served up by the team who created The Mouse That Cancelled Christmas.

Evil Pea Rules!
Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet
Simon & Schuster

Evil Pea is back and raring to go with his dastardly doings once again. Not content with being ruler of the freezer, he’s determined to take over the whole supermarket with a particularly chilling plan.
With his arch-enemy Supertato duly dealt with, the pesky pea thinks he’s well on the way to supermarket supremacy

but he’s reckoned without the cold-busting power of the chillies.
From its sparkly cover, there’s a decidedly seasonal feeling where this latest Supertato adventure is concerned; so pervasive is it that even Pea finds himself bound to join in with the festivities.
Fans of the series will relish this icy offering, which may well garner additional followers tempted by the arresting cover.

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.