Tag T. Nat Fuller

Super Pooper and Whizz Kid Potty Power / CREATURE vs. TEACHER

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Super Pooper and Whizz Kid Potty Power
Eunice Moyle and Sabrina Moyle
Abrams Appleseed

My partner and I spluttered our way through breakfast reading this, so much so that we almost wet ourselves laughing; it’s an absolutely priceless potty training board book.

Parents needn’t worry about that potty training regime; expert help is at hand courtesy of the Moyle sisters’ team Super Pooper (female) and Whizz Kid (male).

They’ve got the whole thing absolutely sorted; from # secret codes for pee and poo, bumble rumble or sprinkle tinkle alerts, the potty dash and pants clearance …

through waiting time (can be tedious),

to the final result. Phew! What relief!

Adult pleasing superheroes pretty much guaranteed and the reward – ‘BIG BOY AND BIG GIRL UNDERPANTS!
Then all that’s left is that vitally important hygiene routine …

If this doesn’t get your little ones weeing and pooping in the right place then I’ll eat my errr? – hat!

CREATURE vs. TEACHER
T.Nat Fuller and Alex Eben Meyer
Abrams Appleseed

Creature (of large friendly Frankenstein appearance) and teacher (a white-coated boffin-looking kind of person) are in totally different moods. Creature feels playful while teacher’s head is full of equations, formulae and is often completely immersed in a book.

The challenge is, can creature ‘s loopy kite flying,

dance moves, spin turns

and bum wiggling efforts have the desired effect of getting teacher to lighten up and join the fun.

Fuller’s paired rhyming words accompanied by Meyer’s outstandingly bright comic-strip graphics make for a great groovy fun book that’s bound to engage and delight .

Hero vs. Villain / Monty + Sylvester: A Tale of Everyday Super Heroes

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Hero vs. Villain
T. Nat Fuller and Alex Eben Meyer
Abrams Appleseed

Using comic-book style images, the creators of this little board book manage to provide an engaging storyline while at the same time demonstrating opposites – hero/villain, smile/frown, up/down, build/destroy, truth/ lie

and enemies/friends – in just eight spreads.
Toddler super-hero enthusiasts will love the female sporting cloak and mask and laugh over the mock-scary, tooth-snapping, top-hat wearing crocodile villain and delight in the surprise finale. As a tool of conciliation, the cupcake rules!
Conflict resolution for tinies and a satisfying adventure is pretty good going in so brief a book.

For slightly older superhero fans:

Monty + Sylvester: A Tale of Everyday Super Heroes
Carly Gledhill
Orchard Books

Meet best pals Monty (mouse) and Sylvester (bear), new super heroes on the block. They’ve already got the gear, read the manual and followed the training regime and now they’re ready for operation ‘Save the World’.
RING! RING! It’s a call for help and off they go for their very first emergency.

Now this looks tricky but suddenly Mouse has a light-bulb moment and using their faithful vacuum cleaner, mission one is soon successfully completed.
Word of their skills spreads and everything is going swimmingly until …

This rascally rat mounts a counter-attack that really tests the abilities of the friends and makes them wonder if they’ll ever see the light of day again.
Rest assured though, thanks to a deft flick of this …

they do and gain a few extra helpers too.
With its delicious characters, (love the hatching on Sylvester) this is a book to appeal to young listeners especially would-be superheroes. Carly Geldhill’s illustrations are sprinkled with splendidly silly, giggle-inducing details both visual and verbal.

Superbat / A Good Day for a Hat

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Superbat
Matt Carr
Scholastic Children’s Books
There’s a new superhero on the block – or should that be a would-be one? Meet Pat the bat. Sleepless and bored with inverted hanging, one day, he longs to be special like those superheroes in his comics. Suddenly ‘POW!’ Light bulb moment; straightway it’s out with Mum’s sewing machine and he sets to work …

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Hours later, Pat is ready to hit the high spots, but persuading his fellow bats of his super powers is going to take some doing. After all, super-hearing, flying and echolocation don’t count: all bats have those capacities; and he certainly can’t lift cars or shoot laserbeams from his eyes.

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Pat is disheartened. “I’m just a normal bat in a silly outfit,” he says holding back his tears. Is he though? Suddenly, his super ears pick up a distant cry …

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Could this be his big chance?
Matt Carr’s debut picture book is slightly crazy –or rather, batty – and none the worse for that. I suspect Pat the Bat, with his stitched-on-star suit, will win the hearts of young human would-be superheroes. The yesteryear colour palette is perfect for portraying his antics be they by day or by night.

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A Good Day for a Hat
T. Nat Fuller and Rob Hodgson
Abrams Appleseed
Donning a smart titfa, Mr Brown is ready to sally forth and he has a destination in mind. Try as he might though, he just can’t get beyond his own front path. First it’s the weather, then all kinds of unexpected, unlikely events unfold: a band marches by, magical bunnies are leaping all over his lawn,

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a rodeo gallops along; there’s even a huge fire-breathing dragon …

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and that is followed by a pirate ship. But, with no time for further dallying Mr Brown steps out again and this time, he’s well prepared.

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Will he ever make it to Miss Plum’s house though? And what is the purpose of his visit?
Oodles of fun, with clever use of repetition, making its patterned text easy to read, and a super surprise ending, this jolly picture book is a treat for sharing and individual reading.
Early years teachers, think of all the hatty fun you could have with this playful book.