There are eight billion of us humans on the planet. All breathing, eating, sleeping, fidgeting, and thinking deep thoughts. An unimaginabl...
There are eight billion of us humans on the planet. All breathing, eating, sleeping, fidgeting, and thinking deep thoughts. An unimaginably large number.
So in steps The Biggest Footprint by Rob & Tom Sears and its ‘smooshing machine’ to bring all humankind together, quite literally, into one spectacular giant human to represent all eight billion of us.
And then the smooshing machine starts sucking in animal species to show just how we compare to them - the use of scale images in this book is just genius but I’ll come back to that. And suddenly the mega human looks even more huge. Throw in the animal species we breed for food production and a little history comparison and you start to realise just how out of proportion things have become.
Taking into account not just our effect on other animal species but also earth’s resources and our massive amount of waste, this book is a startling read. But it’s also sprinkled with hope showing that a mega human can cause a lot of destruction but it also (collectively) has great power to plant new trees, clear plastic from the ocean, build wind turbines, clean up and give back to the places were have plundered providing habitats for our fellow earth-dwellers.
This book really is ingenious. I just love it. It reads like a fable but is packed full of facts and statistics. It’s bleak but packed full of humour and ends with a message of hope. The illustrations really make the statistics come to life in a way that I could not have visualised without them. And it empowers us to realise that we, as a collective, have damaged the planet but also that we, as a collective are a powerful force that can fix it.
I implore you to buy a copy of this. It’s so important.
Kim x
Disclaimer: If you click on the image of the book below you will be sent to Amazon.co.uk using an affiliate link. This means that if you choose to purchase on Amazon.co.uk, I will receive a small sum (around 20-90p per book) from Amazon at no extra cost to you. I understand that you may not want to use an affiliate link, but if you like reading our blog post please just think of it as a small tip for a tip-off to an awesome book. And know that your support means I can buy more books! For more information check out our For Readers Section.
What to do when your husband is planning a work trip to Paris that coincides with your birthday*? I’m going to give him a list of books to b...
What to do when your husband is planning a work trip to Paris that coincides with your birthday*?
I’m going to give him a list of books to buy in a French bookshop obviously and insist on my favourite French truffles.
Did you know I used to live in Paris? I studied French at University and spent my year abroad teaching in a school there and it’s been in my heart ever since.
AD: Sponsored Post Professor Astro Cat is without a doubt the world’s smartest (and most stylish) feline scientist explorer and we have l...
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Professor Astro Cat is without a doubt the world’s smartest (and most stylish) feline scientist explorer and we have loved joining the gang on many adventures.
Like many families, our family has now been touched by the Covid-19 pandemic and last week we lost my grandfather (Papa) to this horrib...
Like many families, our family has now been touched by the Covid-19 pandemic and last week we lost my grandfather (Papa) to this horrible disease. It has been a tremendously difficult time not only due to the grief that comes when you lose a beloved family member but also through all the lockdown measures that make the grieving process more difficult - more than anything I just want to be with my mum and give her a hug. But, as with all things, we find a new way in this unprecedented and tumultuous time.
One of the things that has been comforting has been finding a way to talk to the bairns about what has happened and why mummy is sad by reading the book Grandad's Island by Benji Davis. It tells the story of Syd who regularly visits his grandad and spends lots of time with him. One day he finds his grandad in the attic, where Syd has never been before, and underneath a sheet, Grandad reveals a big metal door. Suddenly Syd finds himself on board a very tall ship above the ocean of rooftops all around and they set off on a voyage together. On the horizon they discover an island which the explore high and low, convert an old shack and see new wonders at every turn. It is so wonderful that Syd wishes that they could stay forever. And that is when Grandad tells Syd that he does, in fact, intend on staying. And Syd sails the ship home alone. When Syd goes to Grandad's house the next day, he discovers the house is the same as it has always been but that Grandad is no longer there. But he has left a message for Syd.
The illustrations are bright and colourful and packed full of clues and connections that eager eyes will spot as you read. Grandad's Island is so magically brought to life that you can see why Syd, and Grandad, want to stay there forever.
This is a truly tender and comforting book that shows how those who are special to us never really go away. That those who are dear to us remain near to us. And that it's ok to be sad, to feel lost, to find the journey difficult but to remember that our love for each other will never change no matter how far away our loved ones may seem. This is a heartbreakingly beautiful book and it's message is a gift to give to children, giving them comfort through loss.
Today is Earth Day! So I thought I would celebrate by sharing three of my favourite books about this wonderful rock that we live on! ...
Today is Earth Day! So I thought I would celebrate by sharing three of my favourite books about this wonderful rock that we live on! Taking time to appreciate and celebrate our wonderful planet and all the flora and fauna that live on it is the first step in encouraging children to learn to love, protect and cherish the Earth. With each orbit round the sun we learn more and more about Earth and I hope that we realise more and more how much we need to work together making small and big changes to reduce our impact on all that live here. So here are my three favourites that remind us that Earth is much bigger than we are, and yet we are central to it's destruction and protection.
Welcome to a new feature on the blog! Once every month I want to highlight a book which is absolutely spectacular! A short review with...
Welcome to a new feature on the blog! Once every month I want to highlight a book which is absolutely spectacular! A short review with lots of photos so that you can appreciate it's beauty across the pages. So without further ado...
This is a spectacularly magical and exquisitely beautiful folk tale about love and freedom.
Starbird’s songs weave the richest dreams and delight to all who hear his song, so the Moon King wants to give Starbird as a gift to his newborn daughter. Capturing Starbird and trapping him in a cage, Starbird sings for the little princess but over time the magic and life in his voice begins to fade away. So the princess, much to the dismay and wrath of her father, sets the Starbird free. Starbird flees and tries to hide from the Moon King, gliding through different habitats around the world and hiding amongst some spectacular creatures. But he cannot evade the Moon King forever.
And what follows is perhaps one of the most profound lessons about captivity and freedom in picture book form. With a feeling of a timeless myth, this original fable is utterly beautiful. The exquisite use of silver foil throughout and intricate illustrations make it a true work of art. This is a beautiful book for adults and children alike. (And it’s going on to my, not the kids, picture book shelf!)
Disclaimer: This book was sent by the publisher for review. Words and opinions are my own. Please read our Review Policy if you want to know more. If you click on the image of the book below you will be sent to Amazon.co.uk using an affiliate link. This means that if you choose to purchase on Amazon.co.uk, I will receive a small sum (around 20-90p per book) from Amazon at no extra cost to you. I understand that you may not want to use an affiliate link, but if you like reading our blog post please just think of it as a small tip for a tip-off to an awesome book. And know that your support means I can buy more books! For more information check out our For Readers Section.
This week is Refugee Week, a week celebrating the contribution of refugees and promoting understanding of why people seek sanctuar y. A...
This week is Refugee Week, a week celebrating the contribution of refugees and promoting understanding of why people seek sanctuary. And one of the simple acts that they are encouraging you to do is to share a story.
“The experiences of refugees can feel very far away. But they are all around us, if we know where to look.” And for children a great place to look is a book!
So I wanted to share some wonderful stories about the experiences of refugees and about creating a welcoming nature in your children.
I have mentioned this one several times before as it's such a perfect way to introduce what can be a difficult topic for young children to understand. This one is so good for very small children as it revolves around a trio of polar bears whose ice cap has broken off and floated out to sea. They are in search of a new home, a refuge to make them safe. They are greeted by unwelcoming shouts of "you are too furry, too tall, too bear-ish", they are told there is no room, they are ignored until they find an empty island to make their own. And when some lost monkeys turn up looking for refuge - the bears welcome them with open arms and friendly generosity. A very simple way to share the plight of migrants. And with bright illustrations it really is wonderful for little kids.
The Suitcase is a story about what it’s like to fit all your belongings into one suitcase and then travel to a place unknown. Looking different and having a mysterious past, the stranger tries to explain what is inside his suitcase - a teacup, a chair, a whole home and hillside with trees. Of course, the animals believe he must be fibbing. And become so suspicious they break into your precious suitcase but what they find their floods them with empathy and compassion and an understanding of what the weary stranger has been through and they realise the importance of making them feel at home. The illustrations are heart-warming and vital to the storytelling of the stranger. Overall this books is about overcoming our fears and distrust, reaching out a hand to a stranger in need and realising that that stranger might just enlighten and enrich our own world. Beautiful and powerful.
War can be a difficult concept for our children to understand as so often our teaching of it is confined to the past. But for many children it is a day to day reality. When the little girl starts her normal day, and goes to school to learn about tadpoles turning into frogs, no one was expecting that war would come. As the little girl grapples in confusion with what has happened, what is happening, and separated from her family, she finds a safe place. But whilst she is safe, she is alone. Until the children make her welcome by finding her a chair in their classroom. The Day the War Came is a magnificent work of art, full of story and symbolism showing readers that war is not only in the events of a country far away which cause destruction and devastation but war is also doors shut, people turning away, not having enough chairs. This is such a poignant story I cannot express its importance and beauty.
This is certainly a book to experience as well as read. It's a celebration as much as it is a story! Following a group of children in their school and throughout their day in school, this book shows a school where diversity it's at it's heart. Everyone is welcome no matter their race, religion or background. this story shares an uplifting celebration of cultural diversity and belonging where all children are welcome in the classroom. With children wearing hijabs, patkas, baseball caps and yarmulkes playing and learning side-by-side the illustrations in the book create a world where all the children belong. With scenes of the children pointing to their family's countries of origin, and the children gathered on the floor in a circle drawing illustrations of families of all sizes and colours and a playground full of happy children having fun together this is a really welcoming book! You will want to jump into the illustrations. The accompanying poem (it's definitely more a poem than a story) lets readers know that what they see in the illustrations is reinforced by the language of the school and community: everyone is welcome, they all have a place, they all have a space, no matter what. The school also has children of a variety of abilities including a blind child who carries a whitestick and a child in a wheelchair, reinforcing the lovely message of inclusion. That, for me, sums up what I want a school, and a wider community, to be and to cherish. This book is so wonderfully executed and really lives up to it's important message!
This story promotes the ideals of refuge, inclusivity and friendship at a level even the littlest readers will understand. Mouse is building a house in the middle of the wood. When Frog's pond dries up and he has no where to live, Mouse suggests that they build a home together:
"Everybody's welcome,
no matter who they are,
Wherever they may come from,
whether near or far."
Accompanied by beautiful illustrations that BookBairn loves to pore over, spotting all her favourite creatures, this magical book really teaches little ones about acceptance, generosity and to empathise with others.
And lastly I want to mention two books which I no longer have as I gave them to the school I worked in and the other to a friend's school, wanting as many children to read it as possible.
The Journey by Francesca Sanna is a beautiful and powerful depiction of a family’s flight to safety. In some places quite dark, this picture book is aimed at older children showing them the fear and terror of fleeing one's country in search of safety.
Me and My Fear also by Francesca Sanna is the story a young girl who has traveled to a new country and started a new school and her Fear tells her to be alone and afraid. She doesn't understand the language of the other children in her class, she feels isolated. And her Fear grows bigger and bigger. But one day she realises that she isn't alone in carrying around her Fear - the other children have them too! And when the children all play together the Fears become less intimidating and shrink to a manageable size.
Some mighty powerful picture books on a subject that is so important to share with or children so they can empathise and see beyond themselves and their own experiences to teach them to reach out their hands and open their hearts to others.
Kim and the bairns x
Disclaimer: We were sent all these books free for review purposes by the publishers (except Welcome by Barroux which I bought myself). Words and opinions are my own. If you click on the title or image of the book you will be sent to amazon.co.uk using an affiliate link. This means that if you choose to purchase on amazon.co.uk, I will receive a small sum (around 20-70p per book) from amazon at no extra cost to you. I understand that you may not want to use an affiliate link, but if you like reading our blog please just think of it as a small tip for a tip-off to an awesome book. And know that your support means I can buy more books! For more information check out our 'For Our Readers' section.
I have a bookshelf in my house that I'm a little ashamed to have. It's a shelf full of picture books that I adore so much that ...
I have a bookshelf in my house that I'm a little ashamed to have. It's a shelf full of picture books that I adore so much that I have hidden them away from sticky fingers. So I thought it was time to share some more of these special picture books that tell stories which are not only wonderful for children but also have an added appeal for adults.
Have you ever seen the award-winning short movie based on this book? It's beautiful!
I think most bookworms will appreciate the beauty of this story. It's about a man called Morris Lessmore who loves words, stories and books. His life story is very neat and orderly until one day a storm blows in and scatters his life and words all over. He doesn't know what to do, so lost, he wanders on and on until he happens to look up. In the sky he spots a lady being transported by a squadron of flying books and he follows her to an extraordinary building full of wonderful books. And there Morris finds his home. A magical story that will touch your heart and with illustrations that will enchant you further it's a lovely gift for all book-lovers big and small!
This is such a powerful book about how we end up choosing the lives we choose. It's the story of a little girl who becomes a conductor of an orchestra but why does she take this path? Because an experience she had as a child changed her. Because an orchestra of people played a concert that she watched. Because they were passionate about music. Because people loved to here the music or composers. Because a man named Ludwig wrote beautiful music. In simplifying the story to explain it to you I have taken away much of the poetry of the book but let me assure you that it is poetic, and moving and inspiring. The illustrations also do a spectacular job at bringing colour and life to the magic of music! And it is a gentle reminder about inspiration, about choices, about destiny to us older readers.
Sometimes one of the wonderful things about reading picture books as a grown up is that they remind us about the joyous, and difficult, parts of childhood. This story is a beautiful reminder about friendship and about feeling left out. The little boy in the story has a pet elephant. And today is Pet Club Day - but the Pet Club insists on Strictly No Elephants! So the boy decides to show his tiny pet elephant that friends come in all shapes and sizes and what it means to be a true friend! This is a very simple story but the imaginative and lyrical text, with the accompanying sweet illustrations, is a wonderful reminder to grown ups to make sure that are all welcome and to help us remember that our children want to include and be included so we should follow in their (and their elephants') footsteps.
This book is a very simple but powerful narrative about how your words (and others' words) can affect your heart. The book then tells you all the wonderful things that words can do such as: describing things, explaining stuff, make you happy, make you cry (even pierce someone's heart). Because your words have power!
"Your words can actually change the way someone's heart feels."
The illustrations are very simple with only a black and red colour palette against a white page. Again this plays to the fact that this book is about the words being important. This book is perfect for helping us all see how their words affect others.
This is a wordless picture book, which solely through the illustrations tells the story of a little girl who goes out for a walk with her daddy and picks up flowers she sees growing along the footpath as they walk by. It starts predominantly in black and white with only the little girl's red coat being a vibrant red and as they pass collect flowers they stand out agains the monochrome backdrop with their vibrant colours. But the little girl doesn't just collect the flowers - she gives them to people along the way: placing them on the body of a dead bird, leaving them by a man asleep on a bench, giving them to her mummy as she returns home, placing them in her siblings hair - and as she does so more and more colour appears across the page. It's about find the joy in the little things. It's about spreading joy. It's about kindness. And it made me stop and give pause. After all sometimes a bunch of dandelions is far more beautiful than a dozen red roses because of the little hands that picked them and gave them with love.
Kim - self-confessed picture book fanatic and proud of it.
After all picture books are for grown ups too! x
Disclaimer: these are all my choices. None of these were sent by the publishers (they are all books I bought except for Footpath Flowers which was borrowed from or library) but I have worked with them before. Please read our review policy if you want to know more. If you click on the title or image of the book you will be sent to Amazon.co.uk using an affiliate link. This means that if you choose to purchase on Amazon.co.uk, I will receive a small sum (around 20-90p per book) from amazon at no extra cost to you. I understand that you may not want to use an affiliate link, but if you like reading our blog please just think of it as a small tip for a tip-off to an awesome book. And know that your support means I can buy more books! For more information check out our 'For Our Readers' section.
I have always read children’s books, and never grew out of reading them. As a long-standing children’s book blogger, I have been reviewing kids books for over 8 years and have built up a community of like-minded parents, teachers and kids book lovers.
Focussing on children’s books for primary aged children (5-12), I highlight the best new releases as well as curating themed lists and spotlighting older releases. I have an established trust with my readership as an expert in the children’s book field, sharing honest and well-considered reviews.
I am an outspoken advocate for libraries and as a teacher-on-hiatus am passionate about children’s literacy.
