BookBairn

Are you about partied out? We certainly are! Christmas chaos, followed by New Year fun and a couple of birthday parties thrown into the mix and we have truly danced our socks off, and played enough games of pass the parcel than we could unwrap. But seriously, it has been lots of fun.

We have one party invitation left to join the 'Party Animals' by Clea Dieudonne and it looks like a party to remember! Part narrative story and part seek-and-find this book will provide hours and hours of fun! As you unfold each page of the book part of the story is revealed - it's the hoopoe's birthday and she's having a huge party - and you get a suggestion of which animals to spot. The animals are performing an amazing balancing act, piling one on top of the other to form a teetering tower of creatures: some in fancy dress, some putting up decorations, helping with gifts and organising the food.

BookBairn loves finding the creatures that she is familiar with like the penguin, puffin, lion, crocodile, lemur, etc. But what I find fascinating about this book (if you can call it a book in the traditional sense of the word) is that it is full of less commonly celebrated creatures - armadillo, opossum, komodo dragon, alpaca, skunk, porcupine, etc. Fortunately, each page of text is bordered with mini illustrations of the animals that can been seen on that page (or that fold-out) so that dumbfounded parents, like myself, will be able to identify all the creatures without having to guess or look them all up - there's nothing worse than having a child ask a question that you have no hope of answering, right?

The illustrations are bright and colourful, and the creatures are a fun interpretation of the real thing. The party scene is certainly fun and every time we read it I spot something new and fascinating. BookBairn still finds comfort in re-finding the same things but every time I draw her attention to something different she looks for it again the next time. Mostly I think she enjoys the size of this one and unfolding it across the whole floor - such a novelty! And such fun!

This would make a great party gift!

Happy reading! And enjoy the post-party clear up!

Mummy and BookBairn xx

*Disclaimer: These books were sent to us by the publisher and we were truly delighted to receive them. Words and opinions are our own.

“The things that make me different are the things that make me me.” — Piglet (A.A. Milne).

Books have a magical power to transport the reader into any world at any given point in time. We can sit at home and become completely immersed in somebody else's life. Best of all, books help to expand our understanding of different people and cultures as well as ourselves.

When we read a story as a child, it becomes a part of our own identity. Reading a diverse range of books exposes children to an array of characters with different perspectives. This helps give children a heart for everyone, thus assisting in developing empathy.

This month, the @kidlitpicks book club is featuring books about embracing our differences, a theme chosen and introduced by @booksandbabycinos. It is our hope to create a collection of books that celebrate the diversity of people around the world so that all children might see themselves reflected in stories as well as read about people they’ve never met.

Perfectly Norman, by Tom Percival"Norman’s wings represent any difference our children may have. The yellow coat he hides them under embodies the many emotions that accompany a fear of being accepted. What we learn from Norman's story is that we’re not made from cookie cutters, we’re not meant to be exactly alike. Difference is beautiful and perfectly perfect.” — Summer from @readingisourthing

This Is NOT a Valentine, by Carter Higgins and Lucy Ruth Cummins

“Maybe the sweetest, least saccharine, most touching book about love that ever existed." — Mel from @spiky_penelope

The Lion Inside, by Rachel Bright and‎ Jim Field

“This book has long been a favourite in our house –– beautiful and inspiring verses, illustrations that jump off the page and a great message to take away with you makes it picture book perfection for me.” — Claire from @alittlebookhabit

How to Say I Love You in Five Languages, by Kenard Pak

"This simple but meaningful book embraces love around the world!" — Leah from @astoryaday

Odd Dog Out, by Rob Biddulph

“This is a brilliant ‘coming of age’, learning to accept oneself story for the tiniest tots.” — Kim from @bookbairn

Most People, by Michael Leannah and Jennifer Morris

“With a thoughtful author's note, we can't recommend this book enough.” — Miranda from @bookbloom

Lots, by Marc Martin

“It caught my eye and I haven't been able to take my eyes off it ever since.” — De from @books_and_babycinos

Under The Love Umbrella, by Davina Bell and Allison Cosploy“For children and parents to see their families represented and celebrated in stories is a vital.” — De from @books_and_babycinos

Home and Away, by John Marsden

“The global refugee crisis and the acceptance of a diverse population is highlighted in this powerful and incredibly moving story of a typical (wait for it!) Australian family forced to flee as refugees when war ravages our country.” — Rossa from @curiouslittlepeople

Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal, by Paul Fleischman and Julie Paschkis

"It was after reading Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal by Paul Fleischman and Julie Paschkis, that I realized how worldwide and culturally rich this tale actually is. " — Wendy from @homegrownreader

What a great selection of books from the @kidlitpicks team! If you want to find some more books about embracing your little ones uniqueness check out our blog post 'I am Unique'.

In January, the @kidlitpicks team are focussing on 'New Beginnings' theme and I'm excited to see what everyone chooses!

“This is the beginning of anything you want.” —Author Unknown.

Every New Year is synonymous with a new beginning, we set resolutions and goals for the year ahead which sometimes leads to challenging transitions in our children’s lives. Perhaps this will be the year your child starts a new school, welcomes a new sibling or relocates to a new home. No matter the new challenge in your child’s life, picture books are a great way to inspire, motivate and encourage children with the challenges of new beginnings.

This month, the #kidlitpicks theme is New Beginnings and we are excited to share some great picture books that explore the concepts of transitions or fresh starts. We hope that you will join us by tagging your recommendations with #kidlitpicks_newbeginnings

In our team email it was signed off with this lovely quote and I really wanted to share that with you too:

"The New Year lies ahead, with books to be read and adventures to be led. May you find fulfilment and joy, all year long!"

Happy reading,

Mummy and the bairns xx

The beginning of a new year is always full of excitement, anticipation and planning for me. I love to think about all the adventures we might get up, the places we might explore and the goals we went to achieve. It's the time of looking forward and I love that! So, with that in mind, I thought I would try and come up with a list of some of the picture books that we are most looking forward to getting our hands on this year. This list is by no means exhaustive as when I was researching this blog post I wrote a list of over forty books that I'm looking forward to seeing but I thought, for the sake of my sanity and yours I'd limit it to a top ten. But if you are interested in learning more about which picture books are being released this year I am hosting a Twitter chat this evening at 8pm with some fellow picture book bloggers and fans and I'm sure there will be a rather exhaustive and exhausting list of greta reads to look forward to. You will be able to catch up on the whole chat by searching for the hashtag #2018picturebooks

But without further ado, here are the books we are looking forward to:

Goodnight Mr Panda - Steve Antony (11 January)

BookBairn loves 'Please, Mr Panda' (it even featured on our Best Reads of 2017 list) and we are really looking forward to collecting the rest in the series. But it's even more exciting that there will be a brand new book starring Mr Panda released this year. Always exciting to go on a new adventure with a familiar friend.

My Colourful Chameleon - Leonie Roberts and Mike Byrne (Paperback Release 25th January)

I feel like I am cheating slightly by including this one because I have already seen inside it as the lovely author sent me a digital copy in preparation for our taking part in the blog tour the week of this book's release (we will be on 27th January). It tells the story of a troublesome chameleon who keeps changing colour and disappearing from sight. It is a beautifully rhythmic and rhyming text which I know BookBairn is going to enjoy hearing read aloud and the illustrations are simply colourful and delightful. I think BookBairn is going to enjoy learning about this little colour-changing chameleon!

Oi Goat - Kes Grey and Jim Field (22 February)

We just love the 'Oi' series of books and I am really exciting to get a little bit more as part of the World Book Day £1 book promotion. You can't really argue with another Kes and Jim creation starring hilarious characters with rhymes that you know will make you laugh out loud for the bargain price of £1 (or free with your child's £1 book token). What a perfect combination! Can't wait to read it! (Sorry non-UK readers but I don't think this will be released abroad!)

Almost Anything - Sophy Henn (1 March)

You know that we are big fans of Sophy Henn's books (and even bigger fans after I met her in person and she was just the loveliest) so we are very excited to meet a new character of hers. (As well as two new Ted books being released this year). Described as "an empowering book about the power of self-belief" and with Sophy's magic touch at creating characters that children relate to, this is bound to be wonderful! We've already framed her Christmas postcard starring George the rabbit for The Wee Page Turner's new bedroom so he's already a favourite!

What to do with a Box - Jane Yolen and Chris Sheban (Board Book Release 6 March)

I suppose I am cheating slightly by including this one as this one has already been released in hardback but I love the sound of the board book which will apparently literally take the shape of a box to bring the concept to life! All about the imaginations of child with a box this promises to be a magically adventure with wonderful rhythmic and poetic text. If you want a sneak peek you could have a look for the hardback version in the bookshop but I am waiting for the board book!

Crash! Boom! A Maths Tale - Robie H. Harris and Chris Chatterton (3 May)

BookBairn just loves building towers and The Wee Page Turner loves knocking them down. So this book about building a tower as tall as an elephant that introduces simple maths concepts of counting, estimating, questioning, measuring, and predicting will be a great companion to their game. I love it when books support learning at the level that children actually play. And I love Chris Chatterton illustrations so this one is bound to make a crash into our bookcase!

How to Be a Lion - Ed Vere (28 June)

If you are a regular reader you will know that BookBairn loves her Louis the lion toy - he goes everywhere with us and, in her own words "Louis is my best friend". So any books that have lions in them are bound to be popular on our bookshelves. And Ed Vere books are always enchanting with illustrations that make you laugh out loud.

Pink is for Boys - Eda Kaban and Robb Pearlman (28 June)

One of the things I want to add to the blog this year is a new feature - the Little Feminist Book Club. There is a real rise in feminist literature for both big and little readers at the moment and I think it's a great message to spread to empower our girls but we also need to raise our boys as feminists too. I love the sound of this new picture book which "rethinks and reframes the stereotypical blue/pink gender binary and empowers kids-and their grown-ups-to express themselves in every color of the rainbow." Sounds like the perfect book for our little book club!

Mixed A Colourful Story - Arree Chung (3 July)

We love books about colours, there are quite a few on our shelves that get read over and over again. And I think this one will fit in nicely. In the beginning, there were three colours - red, blue and yellow. But they didn't always get along and eventually they decide to separate until a never-before-seen colour comes along to save the day. Described as "inspiring book about color, tolerance, and embracing differences" I can't wait to read this one.

If Polar Bears Disappeared - Lily Williams (28 August)

BookBairn really enjoyed watching Frozen Planet this year and whilst penguins were her favourite she also enjoyed watching the polar bears play. Coupled with the fact she has begun to learn a bit about global warming through seeing the cracks in the ice in Happy Feet Two, I think she will enjoy this one. I want to raise BookBairn to be a thoughtful and responsible citizen and I think this book will be a great way to support he in becoming that!

So there you have it. Ten books we are excited about this year! As I mentioned pop along to the Twitter chat tonight if you are free, I'd love to meet you and find out what you are excited about reading this year!

What are you most looking forward to in 2018?

Happy New Year,

Mummy, BookBairn and The Wee Page Turner xxx

*Release dates are for UK release provided by publisher but may be subject to changes.

I love it when a book seems to magically fit in with BookBairn's current games, play and interests. And for the recent while she has been absolutely obsessed with penguins and in particular she loves Happy Feet Two, listening to Oliver Jeffers's 'Lost and Found' on audiobook, and the penguin scene from Mary Poppins. And she loves the penguin dressing up outfit kindly given to us by a friend whose children had outgrown it! She loves waddling around in it like a penguin and she thought it was really funny that I served her (pretend) fish for her lunch. Her imagination is really beginning to flourish and I love watching her play.

In 'I am Actually a Penguin' by Sean Taylor and Kasia Matyjaszek, the little girl in the story loves dressing up and her current favourite thing to dress up as is a penguin. She insists on wearing the penguin suit at all times: to the supermarket, on the train, in bed, even to her aunties wedding! Her parents are less than impressed, but as many of you will probably know (or at least surmise) a toddler's will power is pretty impenetrable.

Things get a little more out of control as she starts to act more and more like a penguin - covering the house in toilet paper to make it snow, insisting on sliding down the stairs on her tummy and letting her brother throw his fish fingers and trying to catch them in her beak. But as with all things toddler-y the penguin suit gets grubbier and grubbier and the tomato ketchup covered fish fingers are the last straw. Mum, Dad and her brother insist that she takes it off and gets it washed. So she does. And then she finds another costume to try...

This is such a funny story that really captures the imaginative play and willpower of a toddler! You will no doubt see your own children in this book as you read and BookBairn certainly sees herself in it. The illustrations are brilliant and you can really feel the movement of the little penguin-girl throughout the story as she waddle and slides from page to page. I particularly love when she visits the penguins at the zoo!

Fortunately BookBairn is generally happy to take her penguin outfit off at the end of the day! And I'm glad she hasn't tried sliding down the stairs on her tummy! I'm pretty sure this penguin obsession will last a while longer - so I think we are overdue a trip to the Aquarium or the Zoo to see the penguins waddling and swimming for real.

Do penguins read books? Perhaps not. So maybe she couldn't be a penguin forever.

Happy reading (and waddling),

Mummy and Book-Penguin-Bairn xx

*Disclaimer: These books were sent to us by the publisher and we were truly delighted to receive them. Words and opinions are our own.

Occasionally a wonderful little book crops up in the strangest of places and I found this magical story in the supermarket of all places (given I had read about it on 'A Little But A Lot' blog). And this is such a beautiful story I had to share it with you.

'Words and Your Heart' by Kate Jane Neal made such an instant impact on me as a parent and when I first read it I thought "yes! this is something I want BookBairn to know and to embrace". It's a very simple but powerful narrative about how your words (and others' words) can affect your heart.

It begins by telling you that this is a book about your heart and that 'your heart' is the little bit inside of you that makes you, you! Isn't that just a wonderful way to talk about emotions with children?! I loved this connection which is repeated in italics at the bottom of many of the pages and when I read it with BookBairn I tap her chest and give her a big smile, making eye contact so she knows that her heart is special because she is special. And now when we read it she likes to tap my heart back.

The next part of the book come across as if it is presented as a lesson:

" Will you listen really carefully? Because it's REALLY IMPORTANT!"

But when we read it together I try to make it more like a shared secret and that makes the message even more magical for BookBairn. The typography in the book is varied throughout with use of italics, bold, capitalisation as well as hand-drawn text which I think really helps, as the reader, you to vary your tone of voice as you read which really draws children in (this is something I have been thinking a lot about recently - how we can become more effective readers when reading aloud).

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! Isn't this so empowering for children? Especially ones like BookBairn who are just learning to speak and finding their own voice.

"Your words can actually change the way someone's heart feels."

They have the power to cheer someone up when they are sad, make them keep going when they are about to give up, make them giggle, laugh and grin. The book ends by reminding children that their words are amazing and powerful and if we use them in a kind way we can make somebody else's world a better place and that makes us feel happy. And that we should look after each others' hearts.

Such a magical tale that is really empowering for young children as well as encouraging them to be kind and, in turn, make our world a happier place. Kate Jane Neal is incredibly clever in her choice of words and empowers children. 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.

If you have a little one you must pick up a copy of this book. It really is a wonderful read and it's one that we will be reading again and again and again.

Happy reading,

And look after your heart - that little bit inside of you that makes you, you!

Mummy and BookBairn xx

Happy New Year!!

What a year 2017 has been for us! Most excitingly we welcomed our newest little bairn into our family and he's our absolute joy. BookBairn has grown and changed so much and yet she's the little sparkler we've always loved. I've passed a full year as a stay at home mum and mostly really enjoyed it. Writing this blog has become more than a hobby and is a real passion-project which has required dedication and something I am short of, which is time. But it's been so rewarding to get to know our readers more, to join in with the picture book fan communities on social media and even be ranked in the top 100 children's book bloggers in the world. I'm very excited for what 2018 has in store for us and I hope that we will settle into a new rhythm with each change. Lots of plans to hatch, plots to conspire over and books to read. I'm hosting a little Twitter chat on the most anticipated picture books with lots of picture book fans joining in next Sunday at 8pm and will have a blog post up about that soon.

But looking back to 2017 here are BookBairn's best reads of the year.

Diggersaurs by Michael Whaite

Combining two of the most common fascinations of toddlers it's not a surprise to me that BookBairn has chosen to read this over and over. In fact, we read it again today. She enjoys spotting the numbers on the sides of these dino-diggers and likes to read it by herself. The illustrations are bright and colourful with great thought put into how each digger could resemble a dinosaur (or the other way around as they are so well-woven it's hard to know where the starting point is). The backgrounds have great little details to pick out and enjoy, and the text is a brilliant bouncing rhyme making it a super read aloud. For our full review check out this blog post.

Fly by Xavier Deneux

It is brilliant little interactive book starring a family of little birdies. On the first page, we meet a little yellow bird who has found a tree to make her home in. And you have to lift the yellow birdy out and move the character into the tree! Then a little red birdy pops along and he moves in too (and again you can literally move him in). Next you can help them build their nest by moving the twigs around, and help their babies hatch from the eggs by removing the shell pieces. And finally, of course, you can lift out on the of babies and make it fly off into the sky! This book is incredibly stylish and the illustrations just pop-out of the page, both figuratively and literally. This is one of the books that BookBairn pulls off the shelf again and again and again. Our full review of this one is here.

Deep in the Forest by Josef Anton and Lucie Brunelliere

This is a book that BookBairn enjoys reading at any time of day - she will pull it out of the book case and drag it's oversized pages, spread it out on the floor, lie on her tummy and pour over the pages searching for animals again and again. Each page takes a different perspective showing the forest from above, delving underground, floating down the rivers, above the tops of the trees, and even a night scene where the eyes of all the creatures are glowing luminously. To add to the brilliance of the artwork there are over 50 animals to find which are listed on the back and throughout the text with an animal truly hidden under a flap on each page too. BookBairn enjoys flipping between the final two page spreads seeing the animals in the day, and then like the flick of a switch at night - she says 'goodnight' to all her favourites. This is a truly imagination capturing book. Check out more of our thoughts here.

Please Mr Panda by Steve Antony

This funny story about a panda who has doughnuts to share is a great story for teaching children the importance of saying 'please'. But, that aside, it's also a funny tale about a quirky looking panda and an abundance of over black-and-white creatures and their desire for a doughnut (or two). BookBairn loves this one - and thanks to all the repetition she can recite most of it by heart. However, just so you know, BookBairn doesn't share her doughnuts with anyone! (Just kidding! She actually has two wooden ones that she plays with at tea parties and I often get one to pretend-gobble!) It was one of our favourites in May (and still a popular choice now) and you can read more about it in our May Favourites Shelf blog post.

Blocks by Irene Dickson

Another book which featured on our Favourites Shelf in June was 'Blocks' which is one that we have been reading this week a lot as BookBairn settles into her new big girl bed, requiring a few more stories at bedtime (and this one is super short so perfect if you need to fit an extra story in). This is a lovely story of two children - Ruby with her red blocks and Benji with his blue blocks - who are learning to share their blocks. Except they don't really want to share and there is a bit of a crash-tastrophe but all ends well... until Guy shows up with his green blocks. BookBairn now understands the humour of this final page and laughs out loud. She thinks it's hilarious. And I like it a lot too!

Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers

This is a bit of a cheat to include this one because in actual fact we don't read the book very often (though I am told it is a favourite at nursery). But we do listen to it every day in the car. On repeat. Thank goodness it's so good. If you don't know the story - it's about a boy who finds a penguin at his door and eager to help him he tries with all his efforts to return him to his home. However, once safely deposited back at the Antarctic the boy realises he has made a huge mistake. BookBairn loves this one so much she has renamed it (something that only happens with favourite books) 'The Penguin and the Boy'. The animated film version is also pretty good too!

Hairy Maclary Mini Library by Lynley Dodd

I include these ones only because Daddy BookBairn says I have to. And he's right, they are BookBairn's most read book of the year (which is probably why I am a bit sick of them - being only five pages each and with no story simply a description of the illustration - I find them a bit boring). But BookBairn adores them! She must have read them over a thousand times this year (seriously). And of course now she can read them herself. Each mini book stars a character from the Hairy Maclary series and describes something that they like doing. The illustrations are taken from the popular books. Daddy BookBairn says "these are not really about the books but more about the experience of reading them with her. She really enjoys them and that means that I enjoy them too. I love that she shares them - I get Hairy Maclary, Mummy gets Slinky Malinky, Louis (the lion) gets Schnitzel von Krumm and she reads Zachary Quack - one for each of us. And that makes bedtime special."

Snuggle the Baby by Sara Gillingham

As you know we welcomed The Wee Page Turner into our family in April so we spent much of the early part of 2017 reading books to help BookBairn adjust to his arrival. But this book has remained a favourite. And, like some of the other books I have mentioned in this post, it's one that BookBairn likes to read and play with by herself. It is truly a perfect book for little ones to introduce the idea of looking after a newborn. Completely interactive, the readers have to help play with and look after the baby in the story. The colours and illustrations are just lovely and the baby character is enchanting. If only looking after a baby really was this easy! Check out our full review here.

Say Zoop! by Herve Tullet

Writing this one I realise I owe you readers a short apology - how could I have not reviewed this series already?! I am so sorry and will write it on my to do list asap so you can expect a full review soon. This isn't a story in the typical sense but it is great fun to read. Each page features a variety of coloured dots, large and small, reed, blue or yellow. And at the beginning of the book each colour is allocated a sound and the varying size of the dot indicates the volume. Accompanied by text that encourages you to read the dots in a particular way this book is great fun. Laugh out loud fun. BookBairn can definitely read this one - not just memorise it - and she has learned that a symbol can correspond to a specific sound, as well as realising that text is read from left to right. What a lot of learning that she didn't even notice because she was having far too much fun!

Well, that's our favourite reads. It's funny to think that by the end of the year I'll be including The Wee Page Turner's favourites too (he's still too little to be showing any choice as yet though it's evident he already loves books and storytime). What was your favourite book last year?

Happy reading,

Mummy and BookBairn xx

Merry Christmas and festive wishes to all our readers!

One of the things I love to do is curl up in bed with a book on Christmas Eve. Something I can read cover to cover and absorb the full story. So I was thrilled to pick up a very small, but perfectly-formed, book with a festive theme this year. I so enjoyed reading this illustrated edition of 'The Nutcracker' by designer Sanna Annukka. I've never read the story before, originally by ETA Hoffmann though I am familiar with the Alexandre Dumas version that was adapted for the stage ballet. And I found the differences quite fascinating. I loved this story so much, and as it was short I'd recommend reading it even if you are already familiar with the more famous retelling. The illustrations in this version were bold, striking and full of the life of the story. They are very linear and geometric in style and make this book all the more beautiful and stylish.

This was the perfect choice for me to read this year as BookBairn has been enjoying 'The Story Orchestra' retelling of Tchaikovsky's ballet with illustrations by Jessica Courtney-Tickle.

For those of you unfamiliar with the story (the ballet version) is the magical adventure of a little girl called Clara who is given a beautiful selection of hand-made toys by her Uncle Drosselmeyer but her favourite is a wooden soldier nutcracker. She stays up late playing with her new toy when all of a sudden the Mouse King and his army declare war on the Nutcracker and Clara and her brother's toys. Just when it looks like the Mouse King will be victorious, little Clara throws her shoe across the room and clonks him straight on the head and knocks him out cold. (The original Hoffmann tale goes into great history of the Mouse King and Queen which I found to be fascinating.) And when the Mouse King is defeated the Nutcracker is revealed as the true Prince of the Land of Sweets. He whisks Clara off on the adventure of a lifetime to watch performances from the Sugar Plum Fairy and various delicious dancers. As the night ends, Clara awakes to find her nutcracker toy in her arms, as if the whole thing was a dream.

And this version really is a dream to read. The illustrations are utterly delightful and really capture the magic of this tale. The characters truly come alive.

But this book has a little more magic between it's pages. Each page has a unique button that when pressed plays a short excerpt of music from Tchaikovsky's original music from the ballet. BookBairn just loves this! And it really does sweep you away into the story. Such a brilliant way to introduce children to classical music too. Whilst this is a wonderful story and beautifully illustrated, BookBairn's favourite page is the very final endpaper which features all ten musical note buttons so she can play each part of the ballet over and over. And, ok, for the moment she chooses her favourite buttons based on their colour but I hope that it will help her appreciate the music too.

These two books are both incredibly beautiful and make great companion reads for the Mummy and BookBairn Book Group.

If you have any recommendations for Mummy and BookBairn Book Group, we would love to hear them! And if you want to read along, we'd love to hear your reviews.

Happy Reading,

Mummy and BookBairn xx