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Thu
23 ^rd

Our Favourite Picture Books About Friendship

There are lots of lovely books available which celebrate friendship and help children learn how to form healthy relationships with their peers. Here we have compiled a selection of our favourites.

Big Hid by Roisin Swales – A beautifully illustrated tale about the friendship between Big (a tortoise) and Little (a squirrel). Together they have many adventures but one day Big just doesn’t feel like doing anything anymore. Can Little help him feel better? Read the review.

Bob Goes Pop! by Marion Deuchars – When a rival artist comes to town Bob is not impressed. Locked in competition, the pair try their best to outdo each other, but soon discover that life might be better if they work together instead. Review coming soon.

Wed
22 ^nd

Take Me Outdoors: A Nature Journal for Young Explorers by Mary Richards

Posted by Shelley Edwards - No Comments

Today is Earth Day 2020, which seems like the perfect time to share this gorgeous nature journal with you.

Split in to 5 chapters, this beautifully illustrated book is designed to help kids explore the great outdoors, discover new facts about nature and preserve the memories of their adventures.

Children are encouraged to engage with their surroundings, whether they are in their own garden, at the park, on the beach or on a woodland walk. What can they see? What can they hear? What can they name? What can they imagine? What can they do to help preserve?

There are sections to write field notes and draw pictures, as well as prompts and ideas for children to craft their own stories about nature. The pages are filled with interesting and accessible facts about nature, animals, artists and explorers. It’s hugely inspiring and extremely well designed. We’ve had lots of fun with it in the garden over the last few weeks!

Tue
21 ^st

My Pet T-Rex by Fabi Santiago

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The T-Rex is Ivy’s favourite kind of dinosaur so she squealed with excitement when she spotted the cover of this book! Set in prehistoric times, the story follows a little girl called Kiki as she learns to look after her new pet T-Rex, Petunia.

At first it seems like having a dino will be easy – but Kiki soon learns that a pet is a big responsibility. Petunia needs to be washed, fed and exercised, plus she needs lots of sleep and visits to the vet. Just when Kiki thinks it might be a little bit too much, Petunia gets lost!

Wil Kiki be able to find her and if she does, will she want to keep her?

If your child is hankering for a pet then this is the perfect book to help them understand how much work they can be. It highlights all aspects of pet care and also teaches that you can’t just give them back if you don’t want to put in the effort anymore.

Mon
20 ^th

The Diddle That Dummed by Kes Gray & Fred Blunt

Posted by Shelley Edwards - No Comments

I love picture books which encourage kids to embrace their unique qualities and this new story from Kes Gray and Fred Blunt is one of the best I’ve seen in a while.

Flinty Bo Diddle is a musician and he’s trying to write a a new piece of music to play on his fiddle. He lines up all the musical notes on the page and then starts to play. It’s all going very well until he gets half way through the tune and one little diddle goes dum.

The little diddle apologises for messing up the music but explains that that’s just how he is. He’s a diddle but sometimes he can’t help going dum.

Sun
19 ^th

Where Are You Lydie? by Emma Poore

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This is a book about child bereavement so if this topic is a trigger for you then please do not read any further———————————————-

This deeply moving book by Emma Poore deals with the extremely difficult topic of sibling loss. The story follows two young boys, Henry and George, as they try to decide what they should do on what would have been their sister Lydie’s first birthday.

The day starts off filled with sadness as they discuss their baby sister. They wonder whether she’s a star in the sky or a special fairy in a magical land. Wherever she is, they miss her and they don’t know how to feel on her special day.

Tentatively they start to play at dressing up and become superheroes in search of Lydie. Then they decide that all birthdays should involve cake so they set about making their sister the best birthday cake ever. When the cake is ready they throw a party because their Dad has explained that even though Lydie isn’t there anymore she is still part of the family and will always be with them.

Sat
18 ^th

Every Child A Song by Nicola Davies & Marc Martin

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Written for the thirtieth anniversary of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), this beautiful book celebrates the worth of every child.

Using the metaphor of song, the story shows us how every child is unique and brings something new and wonderful to the world.

At the start of the book we see a newborn baby bring a new song in to existence. That song is nurtured with love, shelter, protection and a sense of belonging. Afforded these basic rights, the song soars and explores. On its journey it finds new songs – some loud and some quiet, and some long and some short – but each wonderful in its own way.

Fri
17 ^th

ABC of Kindness by Patricia Hegarty & Summer Macon

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If you’re looking for a gift for a new baby, or a sweet bedtime read for a toddler then i’d like to draw your attention to the ABC of Kindness because it is utterly adorable!

The gentle rhyme takes us on a soothing trip through the alphabet, highlighting all the ways we can be kind to each other. Whether it’s F for Forgiveness, P for Patience or U for Understanding, this sturdy little board book is the perfect way to introduce the concept of kindness from a very early age.

The book features a host of loveable animal characters and the illustrations exude warmth and comfort. Ivy’s favourite is the little elephant who pops up on multiple pages with a joyful smile on his face.

Fri
17 ^th

Cave Dada by Brandon Reese

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After a hard day of hunting and gathering Cave Dada is looking forward to putting his feet up – but his little baby has other ideas. He wants his father to read him a book and he’s not going to stop crying until that happens.

The father seems somewhat reluctant and suggests he plays with a rattle or snuggles his blanky instead – to no avail. Tired and a little grumpy, Cave Dada sets off to get the book and when he returns we can see why this wasn’t his first choice of activity. The book is a giant stone tablet!

Unfortunately this isn’t the book the baby wants so the tears resume until a bigger book is brought, but that turns out to be the wrong one too. Whilst travelling back and forth to gather more books Cave Dada accidentally invents fire, but still the baby is unimpressed. All he wants is his favourite story before bed.

Thu
16 ^th

Amazing Daddy by Rachel Bright

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The little panda in this story thinks her Daddy is simply amazing! He makes her yummy food, he loves to snuggle and he smells like ‘safe and warm’.

The gorgeous rhyme follows the pair as they go through their day. To an observer, nothing they do is extraordinary – they eat, they play, they have a bath – but to the baby panda every little moment is special because she gets to spend it with her Daddy.

We love this one because of the gorgeous illustrations and the cheeky humour. There are lots of fun details hidden in the pictures – keep an eye out for Daddy’s aftershave – ‘Old Panda Spice’ – and the very important pieces of paper on the table in Daddy Panda’s office!

Thu
16 ^th

Wonderbooks for Save the Children

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In recent months i’ve noticed that Ivy’s awareness of the sheer size of the planet has definitely increased. Where once she was satisfied to hear that a country was far away, now she wants to know how we would get there, how long it would take, what language they speak and where it sits on a map in relation to the UK. I’ve been using picture books to try and teach her about different cultures but i’ve found it a challenge to explain how different her life experiences are compared to others around the globe.

Enter Wonderbooks, a new monthly subscription service from Save the Children. When they got in touch to see if we’d like to review some of their titles I jumped at the chance because the timing was perfect for us.

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