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Maya Makes a Mess by Rutu Modan
For once it is almost impossible to make a plot summary without giving almost the whole game away – such is the brevity of this bright and breezy book for those youngsters still reading with some supervision. Maya is at home and nothing she can do when eating lunch is to her parents' taste – her posture, her table manners or her use of the dog for leftovers. But lo and behold when they give the Queen as an example where she might need more decorum, there then comes a summons to dinner from the Queen – who would be more than surprised to see Maya in action… Full review...
Little Bear's Trousers by Jane Hissey
When Little Bear wakes up one sunny morning to discover that he has lost his trousers he feels sure that he will find them quickly with the help of his friends. However, although Old Bear, Camel, and the others have all seen Little Bear’s trousers no-one knows where they are now. So Little Bear sets off on a journey to visit all his friends in search of his missing trousers. What has happened to them? Will Little Bear and his trousers be reunited? Full review...
Old Bear Stories by Jane Hissey
The Old Bear stories are delightful. This collection brings together five stories into one book, introducing us to Old Bear, Little Bear, Jolly Tall and all the other toy friends. The toys look like all those lovely old fashioned toys that children used to have, jointed teddy bears and fuzzy rabbits, and the stories too have a sweet, old fashioned appeal. Full review...
Tales for Great Grandchildren by John Jackson and Daniela Jaglenka Terrazzini
I love old folk tales and fables. The treasure chest of myth and legend contains universal stories, as relevant today as they were in the ancient communities in which they were first told. They speak of love, loss, jealousy, courage, cowardice and grief. They wonder about the world in which we live. They offer explanations, some magical, some plain common sense. They're joyful. They're sad. And sometimes they're frightening. They have all the light and shade that adds up to the human experience. Full review...
Mum's Cronky Car by Anita Pouroulis and Jon Lycett-Smith
Mum's car is, well, not the most recent model. In fact it's falling apart and wouldn't even start if it didn't get a push from Dad. The journey to school in this patchwork car held together by bits of string and willpower is full of uncertainty. When they stop at the traffic lights will the car move again - and when it just dies in traffic what can they do? Then one day something rather magical happens. They're stalled in traffic, wondering what to do next, when the car drifts into the sky and flies them all to the school gates. Suddenly this isn't an old wreck but an adventure. Full review...
Elmer, Rose and Super El by David McKee
Elmer, the patchwork elephant, his cousin Wilbur and some of their friends were listening to a distant noise. Elmer agreed that it sounded like a herd of elephants but it wasn't his herd. He and Wilbur set off to find out what was happening. It was the herd of pink elephants, which included Elmer's friend, Rose and Old who was celebrating his hundredth birthday. As Old stood at the top of the cliff all the other elephants began stamping their feet - and the cliff gave way. Old was left stranded on a column of rock which was crumbling ominously. This was a job for Super El. Full review...
It's Time For Bed by Adele Geras and Sophy Williams
It's bedtime for Little Hare but in the way of all small children he looks for ways to delay THAT moment. Mouse isn't in bed yet and a lullaby has to be sung to him. Then it's Bird who also needs a lullaby, as does Frog... Eventually Little Hare gets to bathtime - but then the ducks need a lullaby too. And when nearly EVERYONE - animals and toys - has had their lullaby - there's the inevitable drink of water and the last lullaby is for Little Hare. Full review...
Esme's Egg by Neil Griffith and Chistine Grove
Every day in the laying season Esme the hen laid an egg and every day Farmer Ferguson came along and removed it. Esme tried being a little bit devious but wherever she laid her egg Farmer Ferguson came along and took it away. Nothing daunted, Esme decided that she was going to follow her egg and so began a trip which involved a van and a warehouse and another van and finally a supermarket before Farmer Ferguson arrived to take Esme and six chicks back to the farm. Full review...
Llama Llama Red Pyjama by Anna Dewdney
Every parent will know the bedtime game: it looks as though we're all settled down, on the edge of sleep and it's time for Mummy to slip away and get on with all that has to be done, but then... There's a call: a drink of water still seems to be the favourite and Baby Llama is no exception. Like most children he just wants to hang on to his mother for that little bit longer. Only Llama Mama is busy washing up and then the phone rings... She's distracted but Baby Llama is distraught and works himself up into something of a tizzy. Full review...
Boris Saves the Show by Carrie Weston and Tim Warnes
Bookbag has enjoyed Boris' previous adventures in Oh, Boris! and Bravo, Boris! so I was keen to see what Boris was up to this time around. We're back amongst familiar faces, in Miss Cluck's school, and this time Miss Cluck has decided the class will put on an end of term show, and that there will be special guests from the Pond Side Nursery coming to watch too! But what role will Boris take in the show? Full review...
Rain or Shine (Snip and Snap) by Diane Fox and Christyan Fox
It's an important lesson to learn, if you're growing up in the UK - the perils of planning an outdoor picnic! Snip and Snap have decided to have a picnic, but as poor Snip tries to get ready he finds that the changeable weather thwarts his plans at every step! Will he ever manage to eat his picnic with his friend Snap? Full review...
Red Cat, Blue Cat by Jenni Desmond
Red Cat and Blue Cat don't get on. They don't get on at all. They hiss and scratch and stumble and thwump. They fight like... well, cat and cat. Each cat has a secret, though: each cat would quite like to be like the other. Blue Cat would like to be fast and bouncy like Red Cat, and Red Cat would like to be smart and quick-witted like Blue Cat. Blue Cat tries to turn red, by eating red things. Red Cat copies him. Neither changes colour, and neither takes on the characteristics of the other. Who'd have thunk it? They're going to have to come up with another plan. Full review...
A Dark, Dark Tale by Ruth Brown
Once upon a time, there was a dark, dark moor. On that moor was a dark, dark wood. That wood has a dark, dark... well, you get the idea. Darkness is compounded by darkness, and we delve deeper and deeper into this spooky story, to find what lies at the heart of it. Full review...
The Pets You Get! by Adrian Reynolds and Thomas Taylor
A young boy doesn't like the boring guinea pig his sister has. He'd much rather have a dog... no, a grizzly bear... no, a DRAGON! He runs through a number of options for whizz-bang pets that are much more exciting. However, his sister keeps selling the option of the guinea pig. Maybe, just maybe, he'll come to appreciate the little scurrying creature. Full review...
Oisin the Brave: Moon Adventure by Derek Mulveen and Michelle Melville
After a long day of play Oisin and his friend Orane the Dragon were resting beside the old oak tree and watching the sun go down. They wondered which of the stars would be first to come out to play and it wasn't long before they saw the Big Dipper, the Milky Way and the North Star - that's the one that used to guide explorers home. But then Oisin spotted something very unusual: there was a flashing light coming from the surface of the moon. Before long the two friends had powered up their space ship and they were on their way to the moon. Full review...
Mister Whistler by Margaret Mahy and Gavin Bishop
Mister Whistler wakes up with his head full of singing and dancing. A phone call comes from his Aunt asking him to come over and help but the song is still humming away in his head and his feet are twitching to dance. Can he dress himself and get ready to go without the tune interrupting him too much? Full review...
Miki and the Wishing Star by Stephen Mackey
Miki and penguin and polar bear all share the same birthday, and they're very excited about each getting a birthday wish when they blow out their candles. Penguin goes first, wishing that he were the biggest penguin of all! Just what will he get up to if his wish comes true? Full review...
Fiona Goble's Fairy Tale Knits: 20 Enchanting Characters to Make by Fiona Goble
It's a lovely idea: knitting patterns for twenty fairy tale characters and a brief story to go with them. There's the pleasure of knitting the characters and then of a child playing with them alongside a story and then being able to use their imaginations to built their own stories. Best of all, it's done without a battery or a computer/games console in sight. It's a winner all round. Full review...
Hippospotamus by Jeanne Willis and Tony Ross
Poor hippo has found a spot on her bottom. All of her friends have an opinion about what might be wrong with her, ranging from measles to hippopox or perhaps an allergy to cake! They all have suggestions, too, as to how hippo might get rid of the spot and poor hippo tries them all. Will anything ever get rid of that nasty spot? Full review...
Tuesday by David Wiesner
What do you call a man who illustrates books in such a way that you can sit and stare at individual pictures, as much enthralled by their detail as if they were hung in a gallery? A man who has such trust in his readers that he can tell a complex story without a word of text? Or one who can produce this wordless book and ensure that it appeals to children and to adults in equal measure? Well, he's called David Wiesner and he's a genius. Full review...
Claude in the Country by Alex T Smith
Thank goodness Alex T Smith is doing such a grand job of continuing to feed my Claude habit. Growing up I always had a bit of a thing for Snoopy, but now I do like to steal the Claude stories away from my daughter and curl up to read them myself as they always cheer me up. This time Claude (and Sir Bobblysock, we mustn't forget him!) have a grand adventure in the countryside. So what with chickens and sheep and pigs and cowpats...what could possibly go wrong?! Full review...
Diary of a Christmas Wombat by Jackie French and Bruce Whatley
There is one thing which makes Christmas special for Mothball the Wombat. Presents? No. Fun and games? No. It's carrots. Yes - carrots. Mothball eats, sleeps, scratches, occasionally nibbles a tasty stem of grass, scratches and sleeps some more. The highlight of her day is when she discovers that people leave carrots out for reindeer (for some, obscure reason...) and provided that she is willing to do battle with said reindeer she can munch away to her heart's content. It's when she discovers that a sleigh is a wonderful place for postprandial nap that she is taken on a very exciting journey. Full review...
40 Uses for a Grandpa by Harriet Ziefert and Amanda Haley
It's amazing what you can do with a Grandpa - some you might well have thought about already, such as cash machine, taxi, dance partner and dictionary, but you might never have thought of using him as a basketball hoop, tailor or butler, but perhaps the most important of all forty in the book is friend. It's a delightful celebration of all that's wonderful about being a grandparent - and a grandchild. Full review...
Bear Has a Story to Tell by Philip C Stead and Erin E Stead
Winter is drawing closer, and Bear has a story to tell his friends. Unfortunately, everyone is too busy to hear Bear's story as they are all trying to get ready for winter. Bear slowly, kindly, helps them all to get ready until all his friends are asleep or away, and so there is no one left to tell his story to. Will anyone want to listen when winter is finally over and they're all awake again? Full review...
The Snow Womble by Elisabeth Beresford
Bloomsbury have been doing a fabulous job bringing the equally fabulous Wombles to a new - and hopefully more environmentally aware - children. And they haven't forgotten either Christmas or the littlest members of the family. Here is a little story with a wintry theme featuring our favourite eco-lovers-not-fighers in picture book format. Full review...
Not Now, Bernard by David McKee
Do you always have time for your little ones? When they ask you a question, do you always stop and listen or are you, like most parents, prone to the 'not just now, sweetheart' or the 'just a minute, darling' response? Poor Bernard has two busy parents, and when he brings them his very serious problem they unfortunately don't take the time to listen, with disastrous consequences! Full review...
A Little Bit of Winter by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell
We already know that Rabbit and Hedgehog are best friends despite the fact that Rabbit is awake all day and Hedgehog is awake at night. Now there's going to be a new challenge for the friendship. It's nearly winter and Hedgehog is ready to go to sleep until spring but Rabbit will be awake and coping with the worst that the weather can throw at him - and trying to find food even when the ground is covered in snow. Hedgehog has a request - he'd like Rabbit to save him a little bit of winter because he doesn't know what it's like. Full review...
This Moose Belongs To Me by Oliver Jeffers
Wilfred owns a moose. His moose’s name is Marcel and most of the time Marcel follows Wilfred’s rather lengthy rules on how to be the perfect pet. However some of the rules are rather too demanding for an independent moose and Marcel develops a tendency to take Wilfred on very long walks. One day on a particularly lengthy walk they meet an old lady who greets Marcel enthusiastically, 'Rodrigo! You’re back!' Does the moose really belong to Wilfred? How can he prove that Marcel is his perfect pet? Full review...
A Bed of Your Own by Mij Kelly and Mary McQuillan
Suzy Sue has brushed her teeth, picked up her teddy and clambered into her bed. She is ready to fall asleep any moment until she realises that something is not quite right:
I'm squished. I'm squashed. I'm uncomfy! she said.
I think there's something wrong with my bed.
Full review...
The Magical Life of Mr Renny by Leo Timmers
Our story begins with the words This is not an apple below a painting of a bright green, juicy-looking apple. The apple in question has been painted by Mr Renny who is such a good painter that whatever he paints looks just like the real thing. Unfortunately for Mr Renny though, no-one wants to buy his paintings from him and so one day, a mysterious man in a bowler hat comes along and offers Mr Renny the chance to have everything he paints become real. Will this be the making of Mr Renny? Full review...
Dear Zoo Touch and Feel by Rod Campbell
Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell, the original lift the flap story, is one of our most favourite books. If asked I would give it 5 stars, 6 stars, maybe even 10 stars! It's incredibly readable, interactive and a fun story to share over and over and over again. Now the story has been modernised to give each page a sensory patch, where you and baby can touch and feel the different animals. Full review...
How to Hide a Lion by Helen Stephens
Lions - dangerous? Pah. They're so gentle that a little could have one as a pet. That's exactly what Iris does when a lion wanders into town. Her parents wouldn't see things as she does, so Iris decides to hide the lion around the house. Full review...
Bear and Bird by Gwen Millward
Bear and bird are best friends. They do everything together. They work together, play together, collect firewood together. However, one evening, Bird burns all the firewood, so Bear sighs and heads out to collect some more. When he doesn't return for hours, Bird worries, and heads out to find his best friend. Full review...
Mary Had A Little Lamb by Kate Willis-Crowley
Mary Had A Little Lamb is a much-loved nursery rhyme. We all know the story of its fleece as white as snow, and that it followed Mary to school one day. Kate Willis-Crowley takes the nursery rhyme, and presents it in its purest form. There's no twist, no unusual rewriting, it's simply the sweet rhyme of a girl and her lamb that is familiar to all. Full review...
My Happy Life by Rose Lagercrantz and Eva Eriksson
When Dani can't sleep she doesn't count sheep, she counts all the times that she's been happy! And Dani has been happy a lot of times. She's happy because she's about to start school, though she's nervous about making new friends. But then she meets Ella, and Ella becomes the very best friend she could ever have wished for. They have so much fun together, but then one day Ella tells Dani that she is moving house, and suddenly Dani isn't happy any more. Full review...
Winnie's Dinosaur Day by Valerie Thomas and Korky Paul
Winnie and Wilbur are always happy to queue up with everyone else to visit their favourite museum. There are so many things to look at and play with but best of all is the dinosaur room. Winnie is fascinated by the dinosaurs and tells Wilbur that she would love to see a real one. One time when they visit, they discover that it is actually Dinosaur Week and that there is an exciting competition to make a model or draw a picture to show what the museum's dinosaur skeleton would have looked like when it was alive. Full review...
I Am So Strong by Mario Ramos
There's no hiding the fact that the wolf is a bully. After he's had his meal (obviously it was a good one) he goes for a walk in the woods to aid the digestion and to find out what everyone thinks of him. First he meets a little rabbit, who agrees that the wolf is the strongest around here. Full of the joy of being him he strides on and gets pretty much the same response from Red Riding Hood, the three little pigs and the seven dwarfs. In fact this must be the best day ever for the wolf - until he meets 'the little toad of some sort' and finds that he's met his match. I'm not going to tell you how - you'll have to read the book to find out! Full review...
Rabbit's Wish by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell
Rabbit's best friend is Hedgehog but they don't get to spend a lot of time together because Rabbit is awake during the day and Hedgehog is awake at night. One day Rabbitt made a wish that Hedgehog could stay up all day with him - and it came true, but not in the way Rabbit was expecting. There was a downpour and Rabbit's burrow was flooded. The hill on which he lived was turned into an island as the lake rose higher and higher. His first thought as for Hedgehog and he shouted to see if he was OK - but Hedgehog had worried about Rabbit and he'd swum across to make certain that he was alright. They had a wonderful time but Rabbit worried that it was his wish that had caused the problem. Full review...
Woffles: A Fishy Adventure by The Curtises, James and Nick
Woffles is a big, shiny black Labrador with a very long, pink tongue and he is one happy dog. Once he's greeted you with a yodel and a wuff (and I suspect that there might be a generous lick in there too) he'll tell you all about his wonderful life. What pleases him is that he lives in the countryside - it's very green, you know and there's a complete lack of coffee shops and other things for which he has no time. He has lots of friends, but his bestie is Pip the Border Terrier and today they're off on an adventure down to the lake which is being restocked for the fishermen. And - on a boiling hot day what's better than a dip in the lake and using that long tongue to extract a few sandwiches from the fishermen's hampers? Full review...
Superworm by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler
Superworm is long and strong and he's a real hero as far as all of his insect friends are concerned. He always comes to the rescue when there is trouble. When Baby Toad is in danger of being run over on a major road, he turns himself into a lasso and scoops the baby away from the oncoming wheels. Another time, Beetle falls into a well and Superworm transforms himself into a fishing line in order to save him. In fact, Superworm can pretty much turn himself into anything and that makes him a very useful and helpful friend. Full review...
Katie and the Starry Night by James Mayhew
When Katie goes out with her Grandma to museums and art galleries interesting things always seem to happen whenever Grandma takes a little nap! This time Katie and Grandma have come to see an exhibition of Van Gogh paintings, and as Grandma rests Katie climbs into The Starry Night painting and begins her adventure! Full review...
Muffin and the Expedition by Clara Vulliamy
Muffin the bear has a hankering for an expedition, so he packs three honey sandwiches and some grapes. He shoots past Fizz, Flora and the three chicks, explaining that he's going to a very special place. He wanders around, trying to find something fun to do on his expedition, and then is treated to his friends joining him. Full review...
Wibble Wobble, My Loose Tooth by Miriam Moss and Joanna Mockler
I don't know about your family, but my five year old is desperate for a wobbly tooth! She has already written to the tooth fairy several times and they've built up quite a relationship with discussions about why no money is left if there are no teeth, what the fairies do with all those teeth and it is certainly a hot topic of conversation in our house as we receive regular updates about whose tooth came out at school! Indeed, the other day her best friend lost his first tooth and when I told my daughter about this she burst into tears claiming, dramatically, that her teeth would never fall out and she'd never get any big teeth! Well, as you can probably imagine, any story about wobbly teeth was going to go down well in our house and this is certainly a good one! Full review...
How to Find a Fruit Bat by Michelle Robinson and Lauren Tobia
A young girl heads out on an expedition to find a fruit bat. After all, who better to eat all the fruit that she doesn't want to eat? She gets her cardboard box boat ready, packing it with everything she'll need (including fruit for the fruit bat). On her expedition, she runs into all sorts of excitement and adventure, then sails home in time for supper. Full review...
Mammoth Pie by Jeanne Willis and Tony Ross
On top of a mountain there lived a fat mammoth.
Down in the valley there lived a thin caveman.
The caveman was hungry. Very, very hungry.
He saw the mammoth and licked his lips.
Full review...