Tag Archives: library

The Pirate House by Rebecca Patterson

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I chose the book as its one that Freya has at nursery & it has now become a regular bedtime request. She is happy pouring over the pictures picking out the teddy, a cat and a variety of sealife.

It’s a story of a group of children who believe that Pirates live ‘in that house on the corner’

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They create a whole mythology around this idea, my favourite being if you looked at the pirate washing you could turn into jelly fish.
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When the door to the house finally opens however they are in for a disappointment, but the story ends with a clever little twist. As the children shout ‘nothing EVER happens on our street’ those with keen observation skills may think differently.

I have really enjoyed reading this story, especially the depiction of a group of children happily playing out on the street, stretching their imaginations in a place they are comfortable in. I absolutely love the colour palette & illustrations adding a real joy & vibrancy to the story.

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Albert le Blanc by Nick Butterworth

A few weeks ago I took the children out for breakfast, once fed they were content to enveloped in this charming funny tale set in a toy shop.

It’s a story of a new addition to the toy shop, a huge white polar bear whom the others feel need cheering up. There are some wonderfully endearing characters who energetically carry the story forwards, their eagerness to please builds & builds waiting for the final crescendo. It’s a lovely tale showing kind if misguided spirit. The generousity of the story is complimented by the detailed illustrations, including familiar characters from other stories lined up on the toy shelves.

The book made us smile from the start when told to begin at the beginning & then you get to the title page, feeling like we are being let in on the joke. The over exuberance character are wonderfully comical. A truly delightful read.

I have discovered there is another Albert le Blanc book, I am looking forward to tracking it down & seeing what they have been getting up to, it’s bound to be fun.

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The Big Animal Mix-Up by Gareth Edwards illustrated by Kanako Usui

We have borrowed this book a few times from the library, Bryn is never keen to return it as he knows how much I like it.

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My main reason for loving it is because it appeals perfectly to Bryn’s sense of humour. As daddy bear puts baby bear to bed, his attempts to read a book about animals leads to funny mix ups. The fun in the weird and wonderful animals that are created combined with the excuse for Bryn to show his knowledge as to what the animal should be are a perfect recipe for a fun, giggle inducing read.

Fairies Usborne Touchy-Feely

20111116-212128.jpgThis is the sort of book I generally avoid as being too girly but was pleased I made an exception this time. There is a great range of textures throughout the book, I like the brightness of the illustration and there is plenty of shimmer & sparkle to catch your eye. It’s also robust enought to cope with Freya exploring, turning & chewing the pages.

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Picking out children’s books

Finding books for Bryn & Freya is something I really enjoy doing, perhaps even more than for myself, generally because their books are more fun, vibrant, entertaining & so often beautiful.

Once in the library I head straight to the picture book boxes flicking through them all & picking out any that take my fancy. Once I have a pile I then look through them in a bit more detail & try and reduce the number to something more sensible.

Currently with Freya my main criteria for selection are board books with plenty of texture & colour for her chubby hands to grasp. I am also enjoying rediscovering some of the books we read to Bryn at her age, full of rhyme or animal noises.

When choosing books for Bryn there are some established favourite authors such as Anthony Browne, David McKee, Shirley Hughes, Lauren Child etc which I look out for. I look for modern & classic retellings of fairy tales, funny tales, books with interesting illustration especially collage, stories about wild animals, pirates, dinosaurs, food and whatever else Bryn is interested in at the time. I have recently begun following children’s publishers & book reviewers on twitter which provide a great source of recomendations. I also like keep a beady eye for any books that look brand new as there are so much great stuff being currently published.

Bryn likes to get stuck into the book boxes & choose his own too, I have however yet to work out if he has any method to his selection or just pulls out a random bunch of books.

From a recent haul the books that I enjoyed the most were,

Knight Night by Owen Davy

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I love the retro style illustrations in this book with its beautiful colour palette, understated but bold. The book follows a little boys journey to bed starting in hallway which turns into a forest. It depicts a normal bedtime routine, but in a truly knightly fashion showing a wealth of imagination with constant reminders of the mundane. I found it a charming book which made me smile at each turn of the page, one of my favourite spreads is the final pages of the little boy with a colander on his head grasping his toy horse.

Limelight Larry by Leigh Hodgkinson
A fun book with the flamboyant & proud peacock, Larry, stealing the show. While Larry is keen to be the star of the book other characters keep popping in when he finally gets the pages to himself he begins to understand the real importance of his friends. This quirky tale is beautifully complimented by the textural collage illustrations and I loved how each characters had it’s own font further adding to their characterisation.

Noodle Loves to Eat by Marion Billet

Freya started weaning last month around the time I borrowed Noodle Loves To Eat. This is a colourful touch and feel board book with interesting textures to explore & beautifully cute illustrations. In general Freya preferred to eat the book (a common occurrence) but there were moments when I did manage to wrestle it from her mouth and show her the sweet characters, get her to feel the shiny cheese, sticky fruit etc and it became a fun book to share, especially the mirror at the end where she could give herself kisses.

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Children’s Book Week – day 5

On Friday we read

Before Breakfast
The Real Story of Cinderella & the Ugly Sisters by Liz Pichon

During the Day
What’s in the Witch’s Kitchen by Nick Sharratt
My Giant Book of Snappy Numbers illustrated by Derek Matthews

Bedtime
Perfect Day For It by Jan Fearnley
The Real Story of Cinderella & the Ugly Sisters by Liz Pichon
Oliver Who Would Not Sleep by Marat Bergman, illustrated by Nick Maland
Each Peach Pear Plum by Janet & Allen Ahlberg

Children’s Book Week – Day 4

On Thursday we read

Before Breakfast
The Real Story of Cinderella & the Ugly Sisters by Liz Pichon

Over Breakfast
The Kiss that Missed by David Melling

During the Day
Few poems from – A Poem a Day chosen by Adrian Mitchell

Bedtime
Perfect Day For It by Jan Fearnley
The Real Story of Cinderella & the Ugly Sisters by Liz Pichon
Oliver Who Would Not Sleep by Marat Bergman, illustrated by Nick Maland
Each Peach Pear Plum by Janet & Allen Ahlberg

Children’s Book Week – Day 3

On Wednesday we read

Over Breakfast
The Story of Divaali, retold by Jatinder Verma & illustrated by Nilesh Mistry

During the Day
Noodle likes to eat by Marion Billet
Oscar & Arabella by Neal Layton
Elephant Wellyphant by Nick Sharratt

Bedtime
The Three Wishes by David Melling
The Little Red Train: Great Big Train by Benedict Blathwayt
Snip Snap by Marat Bergman, illustrated by Nick Maland
Each Peach Pear Plum by Janet & Allen Ahlberg

Children’s Book Week – Day 2

On Tuesday we read

Before Breakfast
Barry the fish with fingers & the hairy scary monster by Sue Hendra

Over Breakfast
Tabby McTat by Julia Donaldson, illustrated by Axel Scheffler
Zog by Julia Donaldson, illustrated by Axel Scheffler

During the Day
Creepy crawly by Petr Horacek
Monkey & Me by Emily Gravett
So Much by Trish Cooke

Bedtime
The Little Red Train: Great Big Train by Benedict Blathwayt
The Real Story of Cinderella & the Ugly Sisters by Liz Pichon
Snip Snap by Marat Bergman, illustrated by Nick Maland
Each Peach Pear Plum by Janet & Allen Ahlberg