‘In a windswept house by the tumbling sea lived a girl made entirely of paper.’ The girl is ready to enjoy the world, prepared to live her best life but listening to the village elders she tries her very best to please, to be a good example to others, to be brave and follow all…
Damian the bum fish knows his face looks like a bum, everyone tells him so. He tries to laugh about it but sometimes it makes him sad. Tired of hearing about it all the time he decides to go on an ocean adventure to meet other fish and see what’s hidden in the depths of…
1. Poochie Pete and His Very Big Feet is a fantastic picture book celebrating the joy that music brings. How did you decide on which instruments to choose for the storyline? I think Pete plays the piano because my own dog, Iggy, sits beside me when I’m playing and really stares at me like he…
Poochie Pete has enormous paws. Everything he tries to do, his paws get in the way. Music is his favourite thing in the whole wide world, he’s already tried the trumpet and the flute, but his big paws struggle to play them. Will he ever find an instrument that might be right for his big…
How much do I LOVE this shiny new picture book, I Am NOT A Prince!? Let me count the ways… Firstly, there’s Beatrix Hatcher’s artwork. Those sharp lines, vibrant colours, disctinctive style and a joyful energy combine to make this a wonderful picture book to hold up in front of a class of eager listeners.…
Woohoo! It’s the next installment of Noah’s adventures. Simon James Green‘s debut novel, Noah Can’t Even, had us giggling in all the right places. Such a joy to delve back in to the life of Noah once again. Green takes us further in to the life of Noah – in this second novel we seem…
Julian Is A Mermaid, a picture book from Jessica Love, is a glorious and exciting celebration about being yourself. Whilst the end papers introduce Julian’s love of swimming underwater, the opening narrative begins with Julian and his Nana on a train. When 3 glamorous mermaids step on to the train Julian is captivated. In the…
I love finding books which celebrate difference and encourage children to be proud of who they are. Perfectly Norman by Tom Percival is one of these! ‘Norman had always been normal, perfectly normal… until the day he grew a pair of wings!’ At first, Norman finds having wings is the ‘MOST FUN EVER’. But soon…
Over the years I’ve developed a bit of an obsession with verse novels, you can read all about how it started over here. Following the above article, I received some intriguing suggestions re where to look next… hence my discovery of Marilyn Hilton’s beautifully written Full Cicada Moon, published in 2017. Mimi Yoshiko Oliver has…
Almost Anything is the wonderfully warm and empowering new picture book from Sophy Henn. George, an adorable white rabbit, is feeling very short on confidence. He sits atop a tree stump watching his friends having lots of fun – from painting to skittles and dancing. But George won’t join in – because he fears that…
The Snow Lion from Jim Helmore and Richard Jones, is a stunningly beautiful picture book which deals tenderly with moving house and making new friends. The opening double page spread depicts Caro and her family travelling to their new home. Through the darkness of the page, illuminated only by the moon, illustrator Richard Jones immediately…
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