Ivy's Library - Page 50 of 79 - Bite-Sized Book Reviews for Kids

Sat
08 ^th

How To Be A Lion By Ed Vere

Everyone knows what lions are like. They’re big and fierce and they love to chomp on any animals which come their way. Right? Well what if that that’s not the case? What if that’s just a stereotype and all lions are individuals, just like people?

Meet Leonard. Leonard is a lion and he’s not fierce at all (except when he’s protecting his friends). He likes poetry, thinking important thoughts and having long intelligent conversations with his pal, Marianne the duck.

When Leonard and Marianne chance upon a pack of other lions they are mocked and ridiculed. These lions thinks that Leonard is no lion at all. Real lions would have eaten the duck and they certainly wouldn’t sit around watching shooting stars and talking about the universe.

Thu
06 ^th

Snowball By Sue Hendra & Paul Linnet

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At the top of a very tall hill stands a lonely snowball in a tiny yellow hat. As he stares down at the little town miles below him he decides that today is the day his life is going to change. He’s going to leave his quiet hill and go and find some new friends to have fun with.

As he takes the first few steps towards this new adventure he trips and falls – and starts rolling down the hill! Being a snowball, he gathers more snow as he rolls. Getting bigger and faster, his descent is soon out of control! His big snowy body collects things as he rolls – first some twigs and a pebble, then a sheep, some pants and even an acrobat team. Even rolling through the zoo doesn’t slow him down.

What will happen when he finally reaches the bottom of the hill and will he make the new friends he so needed?

Tue
04 ^th

Suzie’s Christmas Time By Charlotte Olson & Nick Roberts

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Our whole family is very excited about Christmas this year. Previously Ivy has been a little too young to grasp what was going on, but having just turned 3 she’s starting to understand the concept and is finding the whole thing really magical!

This lovely book is perfect for her right now as it introduces lots of different aspects of a modern Christmas and shows her what she can expect over the coming weeks.

In the story, little Suzie can’t wait for Christmas to arrive. We see her start opening the doors on her advent calendar and write a letter to Santa. She visits a garden centre with her parents to choose a tree and then they all decorate it together. On Christmas Eve she hangs up her stocking and leaves a mince pie for Santa and a carrot for Rudolph. The next morning she wakes up early and runs downstairs in excitement. Will Santa have been?

Mon
03 ^rd

Ivy’s Guest Book: Sakina Ballard, Founder, Tranquil Birth

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Tell us a little bit about yourself and your family

I’m Sakina. Mum of 2 boys, 7 and 4 living in South London. I’m a Hypnobirthing teacher and Birth Trauma Resolution Practitioner which I became passionate about after becoming a mother. I have always loved reading in my life and sharing books with my kids has brought so much joy and connection to my days as a mother. In those early years at home sometimes at a loss of what to do, a good book and a cuddle on the sofa would transform our day and reconnect us.

Sun
02 ^nd

The Girl, The Bear And The Magic Shoes By Julia Donaldson & Lydia Monks

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This magical story is about a little girl called Josephine who loves to run. When her running shoes begin to get a little tight she buys a new pair from an old lady who has a shoe shop filled with cats. The lady tells her that the shoes are magic bit she won’t reveal their special powers!

When Josephine leaves the shop she discovers she is being chased by a big white polar bear. She runs and runs and runs until she reaches a tall, snow-capped mountain. Feeling defeated, Josephine worries that she won’t be able to climb it to escape the bear – but then her shoes start to talk. They utter a little motivational rhyme before magically turning in to snow boots!

Josephine successfully climbs the mountain but the bear is still hot on her heels. Fortunately the magic shoes know just what to do. When they encounter snow, they turn in to skis. For a muddy bog they transform in to yellow wellies. And when Josephine stumbles upon the shores of a lake they become flippers and power her across to an island.

Sat
01 ^st

Doctor Molly’s Medicine Case By Miriam Moss & Deborah Allwright

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Little Molly loves to dress up and today she has decided to be a doctor. She pops on a white coat and grabs her magical medicine case, which is guaranteed to contain everything she needs to make her patients feel better.

Very soon her little surgery becomes busy. She treats a polar bear with a cold, a crocodile with a broken tail and a pelican who has a sore throat from eating too many bony fish. Each time she opens her bag, the items she needs magically appear – a thermometer and hot water bottle for the bear, some soothing cream and plasters for the croc and some honey and a spoon for the greedy bird.

Soon they all feel better and are off on their way – but Molly is confused when they all come back complaining of rumbling tummies. Can her magical medicine case deliver the goods and help them feel better this time?

Fri
30 ^th

Jasper The Firefighting Dragon By Val Blackburn & Sarah-Leigh Wills

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In Huffenpuffen Valley, dragons and humans live peacefully side by side. The dragons are very well-liked because they are really useful companions – in the winter they light bonfires and fireworks, and in the summer they help with campfires and roast corn on the cob with their flames!

But there’s one dragon who is a little bit different. Jasper breathes water instead of fire! He tries his absolute hardest to assist the people in the valley but the jets of water he sprays just leave them cold, wet and unhappy. Poor Jasper decides that the best thing to do is leave the people alone and just be by himself.

Then one day a fire breaks out at a nearby house and Jasper realises he can help. He swoops down and sprays his water through the windows and over the roof and soon the fire is distinguished. Jasper has saved the day! He may not be able to breathe fire but it turns out he has a very bright future ahead of him as a firefighter.

Thu
29 ^th

Gary’s Banana Drama By Jane Massey

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Poor Gary the Gorilla. He absolutely loves bananas but one day he discovers that there are no more left. What on earth is he going to do? But Gary doesn’t panic. He puts on his hat and heads out to try and find some.

Fortunately he spots some of his favourite fruit right outside his house – what luck! But no. Poor Gary realises he is hallucinating when the ‘bananas’ start to woof. He walks all around the town seeing ‘bananas’ everywhere he goes – but there isn’t a single real banana in sight!

Eventually he bumps in to a giant banana which turns out to be a rocket and when he looks up he sees what looks like a banana in the night sky. He hops in the rocket and heads for the stars. Is it possible that he could find bananas in space?

Wed
28 ^th

Who’s On The Farm? By Julia Donaldson & Lydia Monks

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We’re big fans of ‘What The Ladybird Heard‘ by Julia Donaldson & Lydia Monks. In fact we went through a stage towards the end of last year where we read it at bedtime every night for about 2 months! The illustrations, in particular, are fantastic so we love this little spin off board book with a ‘peekaboo’ theme.

The book starts by asking you who you can see on the farm. It shows you pictures from the original title and identifies the characters, but there are also lift-the-flap sections which encourage you to guess who is hiding. Little fingers can open the chicken coop to find the fat red hen, move a haystack to spot the hairy hog and find the cats behind the hedge. Look carefully and you might even spot Hefty Hugh and Lanky Len in a pile of manure!

Tue
27 ^th

Gently, Bentley! By Caragh Buxton

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Bentley is a cute little rhino with an exuberant personality. He throws himself in to situations with gusto – but unfortunately this often gets him in to trouble as he has no concept of his own size or strength. Something that will be very familiar to parents/carers of toddlers!

At breakfast he accidentally smashes his boiled eggs. He cracks the ceiling getting ready to leave the house for school and causes mayhem playing tag at playtime. He doesn’t mean to be so rambunctious – he just is!

‘Gently Bentley!’ is repeated frequently throughout the book as his parents and teachers try to stop him from breaking everything in sight. But then one day he goes home and there is a tiny new baby, fast asleep in her crib. His mum and dad hold their breath as he approaches. Surely he’s going to wake her up – or is he?

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