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Macmillan Children’s Books

The Everywhere Bear By Julia Donaldson & Rebecca Cobb

The Everywhere BearThe Everywhere Bear belongs to Class One. During the week he sits on a shelf in Mrs MacAllister’s classroom and observes all of his friends as they learn their lessons and listen to stories. At the weekends he goes home with one of the children for an adventure and on Monday they come back and tell the rest of the class what they have done. He lives an exciting life!

One rainy Monday morning he is travelling back to school after a lovely weekend with a new boy called Matt when suddenly he falls out of Matt’s backpack and is washed down a drain. The Everywhere Bear is about to have his biggest adventure yet!

He ends up in the sea, gets caught in a fisherman’s net, is delivered to a fish shop, thrown in the bin and then stolen by a seagull – but will he ever end up back with his friends in Class One?

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The Paper Dolls By Julia Donaldson & Rebecca Cobb

The Paper DollsWe discovered this gem in our local library about 18 months ago and Ivy loved it so much that I bought us a copy that same week. The story is beautiful and I’m not ashamed to say that I bawled my eyes out the first time I read it!

This lovely book is about a little girl whose Mummy makes her a set of 5 paper dolls. She gives them names, plays with them constantly and invents a little song for the dolls to sing about their friendship.

In the girl’s vivid imagination the paper dolls do battle with dinosaurs, tigers and crocodiles. They explore magical islands (on the breakfast table) and dance through forests (in the garden).

Together they come through every adventure unscathed. Until one day they encounter a little boy with a pair of scissors and suddenly the dolls are no more.

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Sharing A Shell By Julia Donaldson & Lydia Monks

Sharing A ShellSharing a Shell by Julia Donaldson & Lydia Monks is a lovely little book about sharing and friendship, which we have read over and over again.

The story is about a little hermit crab who is looking for a new home. He finds a lovely shiny shell and moves right in but then he meets an anemone who wants to move in too! He really doesn’t want to share his shell but the anemone explains that he can help ward off predators so will earn his keep. The crab reluctantly agrees and soon realises that having the anemone around is really helpful and they are very happy living together. Then up rocks a bristleworm who also wants to move in. Again, the crab isn’t keen but relents when he realises that the bristleworm will keep the shell nice and clean.

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The Singing Mermaid By Julia Donaldson & Lydia Monks

The Singing MermaidOur copy of The Singing Mermaid by Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks looks a little the worse for wear as it’s seen a LOT of love in the 18 months we’ve owned it!

The story is about a mermaid with a beautiful voice. One day she is discovered by a circus owner called Sam Sly who convinces her to leave her lovely beach to join his circus and sing to the crowds. He promises that if she goes with him she will become rich and famous. Excited, she agrees to go despite the protestations of her friends.

She makes lots of friends at the circus but surprise surprise, Sam Sly does not turn out to be a nice character. He keeps her in a tiny fish tank and the riches he promised never materialise. Instead she feels trapped and longs to return to the sea.

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“You’re Called What?!’ By Kes Gray & Nikki Dyson

You're Called What?!We love Oi Frog! and Oi Dog! so when we spotted this new one from Kes Gray we knew we had to get it right away. We’re glad we did because it’s hilarious!

The story takes place at the Ministry of Silly Animal Names where a little Cockapoo puppy is waiting to change his name because his friends make fun of him. However he soon realises that compared to some he’s actually quite lucky! Whilst waiting in the queue he meets a Blue-Footed Booby, a Tasselled Wobbegong, a Monkeyface Prickleback and lots more (real!) animals with crazy names.

The names get sillier and sillier until we meet a little wasp who has a name that literally can’t be said without laughing. Can you guess what kind of wasp he is?

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The Snail And The Whale By Julia Donaldson & Axel Scheffler

The Snail And The WhaleThe Snail And The Whale is one of our favourite collaborations between Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. There’s a real sense of adventure but the rhyme is also very calming so it’s perfect for bedtime.

The story is about a little snail who longs to travel – but her family thinks she’s a little crazy and don’t understand at all! She’s determined to see the world so she hitches a lift on the tail of a humpback whale. On their magnificent journey the snail sees icebergs and volcanoes, beautiful beaches and strange animals. She is amazed at how big the world is and this makes her feel small and insignificant.

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Lunchtime By Rebecca Cobb

LunchtimeThis beautifully illustrated book by Rebecca Cobb is perfect for all of you parents out there who (like us!) struggle to get your child interested in sitting down and eating their meals.

The little girl in the story is very busy painting and playing with her toys, so when her mums calls her to tell her that lunch is ready she really doesn’t want to go and eat. She’s having far too much fun to stop for boring old food! Reluctantly she leaves what she’s doing and sits and stares at her lunch, looking grumpy, without eating a bite.

But then she spots a crocodile under the table. Then a bear. Then a wolf. The three fierce animals are VERY interested in her lunch, explaining that her soup, apple and sandwich are much more tasty than little children (who actually taste pretty disgusting). They gobble up her lunch and then thank her heartily for the lovely meal.

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The Detective Dog by Julia Donaldson & Sara Ogilvie

The Detective DogThe Detective Dog seems to be one of Julia Donaldson‘s lesser known books but we think it’s fantastic and deserves a lot more attention. If you haven’t read this one yet then definitely keep an eye out for it!

The story is about a dog called Nell who is very good at finding things. She lives with a little boy called Peter who loses his toys all the time so she uses her exceptional nose to sniff them out and return them to him.

Every Monday Peter takes Nell to school with him and it’s her favourite day of the week. She loves all of the different smells and she is particularly fond of the books which the children read to her. However one Monday, when they get to the school, Nell realises she cannot smell the books. She and Peter rush in to the classroom to find all of the children and the teacher in tears. Someone has stolen all of the books. Every last one of them!

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Tyrannosaurus Drip By Julia Donaldson & David Roberts

Tyrannosaurus DripTyrannosaurus Drip by Julia Donaldson & David Roberts is one of our favourite dinosaur books. It tells the story of a gentle little duckbill dinosaur who accidentally ends up hatching in a Tyrannosaurus nest. He tries his hardest to fit in with the family he believes to be his but he is just too different. His sisters are big and strong with sharp teeth and a love of hunting whereas poor little Drip is gentle and kind and just wants to eat some veg.

When his family start to pick on him for being different he decides to run away and he finds himself swimming with some Duckbill Dinosaurs in the river, unaware that they are his real family. Drip finally feels like he belongs and plays happily with his new friends. When he spots his reflection he is shocked to discover that he was never a Tyrannosaurus at all!

But then a storm comes and knocks over a tree, giving the nasty T-Rex family direct access to the Duckbill’s home. Quick-thinking Drip comes up with a plan but will it be enough to save his new family?

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What The Ladybird Heard By Julia Donaldson & Lydia Monks

What The Ladybird Heard‘What The Ladybird Heard’ is one of our favourite books by Julia Donaldson and we’ve been reading it since Ivy was just a few months old.

The story is about a tiny ladybird who lives on a farm. All of the animals around her are very noisy but she just quietly goes about her business, not saying a word. Then one night everything changes. She overhears a conversation between two burglars (the wonderfully named Hefty Hugh and Lanky Len) and discovers their evil plot to steal the farmer’s fine prize cow.

She goes to the other animals and for once she speaks up, telling them about her fantastic plan to thwart the burglary. The animals listen carefully and they all agree to play their part, which involves impersonating each other in order to confuse the thieves.

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