August 2019

Month

Sat
31 ^st

Officer George by Adam Smart & Matthew Boobyer

When little Lils loses her favourite Teddy Bear she is inconsolable. What will she do without him? Fortunately her mum spots a local policeman, Officer George, and asks for his help. Lils is a little bit scared of the big policeman in his shiny uniform but Officer George springs in to action and immediately heads off in search of the lost toy. Will he be able to locate Lils’ friend and bring him back home?

Written by a serving police officer, this lovely book helps children understand that police officers are there to help the public. It’s an unfortunate fact that some parents still use the “You’d better behave yourself or that policeman will take you away” line with their kids. This can cause a negative association in children’s minds and potentially cause problems if they are in a situation where they need help. This story reinforces the fact that police officers are friendly, approachable and not to be feared. It even suggests that children give them a smile and a wave next time they see them to see how they react!

Fri
30 ^th

Where Happiness Lives by Barry Timms & Greg Abbott

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Since receiving this book earlier this summer I have recommended it countless times and purchased it as a gift twice so I figured I should probably write a review!

Grey Mouse has a beautiful little cottage which is filled with love. He doesn’t have a lot of space or material wealth but he is warm, safe and happy. That is until the day he spots a big, spacious house with a grand balcony, and a tiny little bit of jealousy sets in. He presumes that the mouse who lives in this lovely property must be happier than him because he has a bigger house.

However, when he chats to White Mouse – the owner – he learns of an even larger house which makes both of their homes seems tiny. Together they travel to this veritable mansion and a bejewelled Brown Mouse offers to give them a tour. There’s a games room, a parlour, a music room and even an observatory. All of these riches make Grey Mouse and White Mouse extremely sad so they are shocked to discover that Brown Mouse is in fact very lonely.

Mon
26 ^th

Ivy’s Guest Book: Meg Hill, Founder, Stockport Birth Services

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Tell us a little bit about yourself and your family

Hi I’m Meg from Stockport Birth Services. As you can tell from the name, I’m based up in Stockport but I cover lots of the Greater Manchester, Cheshire and Derbyshire area, providing pregnancy and postnatal services. I live up here with my husband Ed (38), three children Sam (10), Emilia (7) and Adelaide (3), as well as being owned by 3 cats.

We’re all big book lovers, with a huge variety of tastes between us. It makes me so happy to see the children settling in over a good book. I used to stress over what they read and try to push them to expand their selections but a wise person told me it’s better that they read what they love rather than be turned off reading so I really make an effort only to make suggestions if my advice has been asked for. That said, I can’t WAIT for them to read some of my favourites.

Sat
24 ^th

The Little Frog With The Bottle Top Hat: A New Home by Dean Vivarelli & Curtis Walker

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If you want to teach your children about the environmental and wildlife issues we face today then this is definitely one to add to your list.

When a little boy called Beau spots a frog wearing a blue plastic bottle top as a hat he has no idea that both of their lives are about to change. They strike up a conversation and Beau learns that the frog’s home has been destroyed by pollution. The pond water is littered with plastic bags and bottles, and all of the plants have died.

Beau decides to take his new friend home and together they plant a lovely frangipani in the garden. The frog is so happy with his new home that he invites all of his friends around and soon Beau is surrounded by frogs of all shapes and sizes.

Sat
24 ^th

Autism With Lola: Playing With Bourbon Badger by Jodie Isitt & Lucy Smith

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Lola the rabbit loves her art lessons at school. The splashing and sploshing of paint completely consumes her, until the bell rings for playtime and her happiness comes crashing down.

Lola is autistic and has a demand avoidant profile. This means she does not like loud noises or being told to stop an activity without any warning. As the children crash and bang around Lola becomes increasingly distressed.

Outside in the playground her discomfort continues. She doesn’t know how to join in with the other children and is scared of being rejected if she does something wrong.

Fri
23 ^rd

Books With Goodbyes by Corrinne Averiss

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We are really excited to be part of the blog tour for the fantastic ‘My Pet Star‘ by Corrinne Averiss and Rosalind Beardshaw. In this exclusive piece, Corrinne reflects on her favourite children’s books which feature goodbyes…

I wanted to write a bit about books with ‘goodbyes’ in. If you’ve read My Pet Star you’ll know that once the little girl nurses her star back to health, he’s well enough to return to his home in the night sky and so, the two friends must say ‘goodbye’ as he takes his final flight from her bedroom window.

A ‘goodbye’ is often a sad event, so as parents keen to see smiles on our children’s faces – it’s likely we won’t deliberately seek out a book which features separation and farewell. Or, we seek it out only at a time when it can help us talk about a very specific or serious loss experienced by the child.

Fri
23 ^rd

My Pet Star by Corrinne Averiss & Rosalind Beardshaw

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As parents we naturally want to shield our children from sadness but it’s an important topic to touch on if we want to raise resilient future adults. There are now lots of titles on the market which feature loss or difficult goodbyes, but all too often we only seek them out in times of need. This beautiful book from Corrinne Averiss is an excellent addition to a child’s bookshelf as it gently weaves the subject in to a wonderful bedtime story.

A little girl finds a fallen star and gently nurses him back to health. She cleans him, feeds him and takes the time to learn all about her new friend. When he starts to get better she wants him to play but understands that he is a little different to her. He sleeps in the day and isn’t interested in toys but they soon find ways to just enjoy each others company.

Thu
22 ^nd

Album Review: Rolling Down The Road by David Gibb

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I’m not going to lie – children’s music drives me bonkers. I totally understand that I am not the target audience but why does it have to be so annoying!

We listen to a lot of music at home and Ivy and I generally take it in turns to pick songs as our tastes are very different. This means poor Spotify regularly bounces between Peppa Pig and Fleetwood Mac, with some nursery rhymes thrown in for good measure.

However we recently received the newest album from family singer songwriter David Gibb – Rolling Down The Road – and I think we have finally found some music we agree on. David has a great voice and the songs cover an eclectic mix of genres, from rock and folk through to jazz and country.

Mon
19 ^th

Ivy’s Guest Book: Danni Perkins, Founder, ZaZa’s Storybox

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Tell us a little bit about yourself and your family

Hi! I’m Danni and I live in Hampshire with my husband and our two children. Zara is a busy 2 year old and Ashton is just about to turn 4 months. I’m sure the time goes even quicker the second time round!

I run ZaZa’s Storybox which provides a convenient, fun way for families to get more books into their homes and inspire their little ones to love reading, setting the foundations for their development. I am passionate about getting more families to understand the importance of reading to their littles ones from day one. Babies develop so quickly, from the moment they are born they are developing skills they will need to read and write.

Sun
18 ^th

A Twist In The Tail by Sandie Anderson

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I am quite excited that we seem to have reached a point with Ivy where she’s ready for slightly longer books. We’re definitely nowhere near chapter book territory yet, but she is starting to show an interest in stories with more complicated plots than standard picture books. However, if i’m honest, I’ve struggled to find books which bridge this gap.

We have recently been reading this series of tales about a worm-like creature called Reggie Wriggle and I’ve found them really useful for this stage of reading. They are quite wordy (in a good way!) but also toddler-friendly as you can colour them in.

In this first Reggie Wriggle adventure, Reggie finds himself a little under the weather. He wakes up one morning and can’t stretch his tail and then he starts to develop some uncomfortable lumps and bumps. His best friend Bert soon arrives with a diagnosis. Reggie isn’t getting enough vitamins so he needs to eat more fruit! Together they set off in search of an apple tree, but before long they find themselves slap bang in the middle of an adventure. Can they rescue local farmer Mr Glossop from sinking in to a giant muddy puddle, and will poor Reggie ever get his fruit?

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