Poor Stick Man. All he wants to do is go for a little jog but everyone interferes and he ends up on an epic adventure trying to get back to his family.
First a dog uses him as a stick, then a little girl uses him as a pooh stick, then a swan weaves him in to her nest, then a dad uses him as a flag mast for a sand castle…
As Christmas approaches he worries that he won’t reach his family, but a chance encounter with Santa might just get him home on time.
Buy it now: http://amzn.to/2B1kuQa
Kevin the koala lives in a tree surrounded by a beautiful landscape and scores of fun-loving animals. However instead of exploring with his friends he stays up in his tree because he is scared of change. Up there he is safe and nothing bad can happen to him. Why would he risk doing something which might scare him?
Then one day a woodpecker arrives and changes Kevin’s world forever. What will happen when he is forced out of his comfort zone?
I love this book because we’ve all been Kevin – and I think it’s so important for kids to see that stretching yourself and facing your fears can truly enrich your life and bring you closer to your dreams.
Buy it now: http://amzn.to/2BuEJt5
We’ve developed a bit of a thing for Oliver Jeffers in recent weeks and Ivy particularly likes this one as it makes her giggle.
A little boy called Floyd gets his kite stuck up a tree so he throws his shoe up to knock it down. The shoe gets stuck so he throws up a cat. The cat gets stuck so he throws up a ladder. I think you get the idea!
Eventually the tree is full of random things including an orang-utan, a sink and the fire brigade. How will he get them all down?
Every time we read this Ivy runs around yelling ‘Stuck! Stuck! Stuck!’ and laughing to herself!
Buy it now: http://amzn.to/2jyuVqF
There is something hauntingly beautiful about The Bear and the Piano by David Litchfield – and this is another one where Ivy feels compelled to stroke the pages when I’m reading it to her.
The story is about a little bear cub who finds an old piano in the woods. Fascinated by the sounds it makes, he visits every day until he is an accomplished pianist, but he still doesn’t really understand what the piano is.
His playing begins to draw a crowd and eventually Broadway comes calling. He would really, really like to play his piano for audiences around the world but he’s scared of leaving his home and family behind.
What will happen if he takes a leap of faith? And will his friends forget all about him once he’s gone?
This is a really powerful book about how following your dreams doesn’t have to mean losing your roots.
Buy it now: http://amzn.to/2ip1J1O
This beautifully illustrated book by Lizzy Stewart is one of Ivy’s current favourites. She loves the pictures so much that she strokes the pages.
The story is about a little girl called Nora who is staying with her Grandma and announces that she is bored. Grandma sends her off in to the garden promising that if she looks hard enough she’ll see the tiger that lives there, along with dragonflies the size of birds, plants that will eat you up and a polar bear!
Nora is utterly unconvinced but then she sees a dragonfly and chases it deep in to the garden. Could there really be a tiger down there too? And what will happen if she finds him?
This won the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize this year and I can totally see why. It’s fab!
Buy it now: http://amzn.to/2jrOlxq
A very old friend of mine kindly gave us this book at the weekend and Ivy was instantly really taken with it.
It tells the story of a curious owl who decides to have a little night time and then stay up to see what life is like in the daytime. What he discovers is a whole world of bright colours which make him say ‘WOW’ (which incidentally is now Ivy’s favourite word!).
The illustrations are vivid and gorgeous and the story holds her attention right through to the end. Recommended!
Buy it now: http://amzn.to/2jeIN9y