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

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

Talking of kangaroos, new in paperback is

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

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

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