BookBairn

"Nothing is better than reading and gaining more and more knowledge" - Stephen Hawking

The late great Stephen Hawking knew about the power of books, the power of reading, the power of being read to. And nothing is more empowering to your little ones than reading with them. If you want to raise baby geniuses, reading is the key. Einstein said "if you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales."

And he's right. But in Einstein's day they didn't have access to as many awesome books as we do today. And I reckon he'd be an advocate of this 'Baby Loves..." series by Ruth Spiro and Irene Chan. We are super keen scientists in this house: Papa BookBairn has been trying to teach Mummy phsyics concepts since she was tiny (with very little success - though I do have a Standard Grade in Physics from school so he can't have failed to miserably) and he know introduces science concepts into play with his grandchildren. The Wee Page Turner is definitely a fan of knocking down towers to learn about gravity and I overheard some play with BookBairn's slinky being a discussion of waves. So these board books fit perfectly into our life!

Each book takes a (sometimes rather complicated) science concept and simplifies it into a simple story for the tiniest readers.

"Quarks" is about protons, neutrons, electrons, atoms, molecules and all the teeny tiny elements that make up everything on our planet. Introducing vocabulary like this to babies may seem strange, as to us these are quite scientific words that we don't use in every day life. But to babies and toddlers these are just new words. No more tricky than dog or cat. So what a great way to give them tools for understanding at such an early age.

"Quantum Physics" is my favourite in the series. It's a simple retelling of the theory of Schrodinger's cat. (For fans of the Big Bang Theory you will no doubt be familiar with this theory.) In basic terms (as this story puts it) if you put a cat in a box and close it, you don't know what the cat is doing: it could be awake, it could be asleep. (Schrodinger's original theory is more blunt with life and death and radioactive material involved.) Whilst baby doesn't know if cat is awake or asleep, the cat can be thought of as both awake and asleep simultaneously. (No dead cats in this baby friendly version thank goodness.) This has turned a complicated concept into a lovely story for babies. And The Wee Page Turner loves it - perhaps it's the cat snoring sounds that he find hilarious?

"Aerospace Engineering" explores how birds fly. Now I know babies don't ask these questions (or maybe baby geniuses do?) but BookBairn is beginning to ask questions like this and we now have this book as a tool to explain the simple science behind the physics of flight for birds, planes and rockets. If that's not a perfect parenting tool for inquisitive toddlers I don't know what is. I need books like this for all her how and why questions! With illustrations that help me understand and explain.

"Thermodynamics" is about being full of energy! About how energy is transferred. Starting with sun, air and water, the tree can grow. It can grow apples. Apples which feed the baby. And the baby can turn into energy to play. And read stories!!

The illustrations in these books are a great support to the text, which is, appropriately, very simple. Like diagrams that unlock the formula, the illustrations in these books are central to unlocking the text and the science. The babies are adorable. (As babies should be.) And the pictures are well thought out - really bring the science to life. I love the soft colour palette in the majority of the pictures and I love that the backgrounds are very simple and plain allowing little readers to really see the science without any distraction.

In short, these books are perfect for baby geniuses. And would make wonderful new baby gifts for science nerds and science dunces alike. Maybe parents will learn a thing or two as they read with their babies! I can't wait to add the new release "Gravity" to our collection. Though from the photos you will see that The Wee Page Turner is already quite familiar with the concept as he knocks down towers, giggling with delight as everything tumbles to the ground!

Baby loves Science! Baby loves reading about Science too!

Mummy and The Wee Page Turner xx

P.S. Papa BookBairn we love your science lessons!!

*DISCLAIMER: we were kindly sent these books from the publisher after I requested them. Our words and opinions are, as always, our own.

BookBairn is fascinated by bugs and beasties and is delighted that Spring is returning and she will be able to go outside with her 'mag-a-no' (magnifying glass) and examine what she can find. So I thought it would be fun to read some books about little creepy crawlies that she might discover!

There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly by Pam Adams

Ok, so there's only a couple of creepy crawlies in this one but BookBairn loves 'There Was a Wee Lassie Who Swallowed a Midgie' which is a Scottish take on this nursery rhyme but we had never read the original book. The traditional version is just as fun! There was an old lady who swallowed a fly, and then a spider, a bird and a cat and so on... Why she did such a crazy thing? No one knows. This is a fun story with bright and colourful illustrations and die-cut holes so you can see all the creatures in her tummy. And little ones will love singing the rhyme along with you. A word of caution though (and it was something I had forgotten) the old lady dies at the end. So if you don't want to discuss that or think your child isn't ready for it, this book is best avoided - try the Scottish one instead! But BookBairn loves the bouncy song and really enjoys this book despite the macabre ending.

Spinderella by Julia Donaldson and Sebastien Braun

This is slightly lengthier than traditional Julia Donaldson books because it is packed full of fabulous story! 'Spinderella' is about a little spider - and her whole family of spiders - who live in a primary school. They watch the children and become fascinated by their games of football but, being spiders, they can't count so never know how many goals have been scored. And when they play their own game of football, using a pea as a ball, they can't keep score. "Down with numbers!" they shout! But Spinderella has the help of her Hairy Godmother who shows her into a classroom where the teacher is showing the children how to count. And when Spinderella returns to her family, after a little mishap involving a child shouting "Spider!!!" and Spinderella being shown the window, she divides the family into two equal teams and can keep score. And just to make the game more fun - Hairy Godmother magics up some football boots so their tiny spider feet don't get sore kicking the ball. Young readers will love this story, and ones that love counting as much as BookBairn will defintely have fun teaching Spinderella how to count. And big brothers and sisters reading along will have fun spotting the Cinderella connections! The illustrations are bright and colourful and the spiders are more adorable than heebie-jeebie inducing. So a perfect book for the whole family to read together!

Norman's New Shell by Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet

Norman is a little slug who wants to be a snail so he sets off on a mission to find the perfect shell. He tries a rubber duck, teapot, apple until he finds the perfect substitute shell. Written in simple concise text, this is a delightful story to read together. Each page is cut out to the outline of Norman's new shell so little ones will enjoy exploring the pages. And if it doesn't strike you as an adorable irresistible story already, it is a perfect book for teaching colours as each shell is a different colour. BookBairn loves this one. Maybe a little too much. I'm going to have to keep an eye on the slugs in the garden to make sure she doesn't start attaching things to their backs. (Just kidding! - No animals will be harmed as the result of this funny story!)
*Edit: In fact, we have a snail game where you balance pieces on the back of a slug body to create a shell so we used some blue-tak and tried out different shells just like Norman does!

These brilliant books are just some of the 400 books in the Scholastic World Book Day Book Club which has brilliant recommendations for books for all ages. When I was contacted by Scholastic I found it really hard to choose from their vast selection and couldn't believe some of the offers they had, especially on their value packs - great for schools and nurseries or people just starting to build their own library at home. All the books featured in their World Book Day Book Club are discounted and, when you shop with Scholastic, you can make it go a little further as Scholastic donate 25% worth of free books back to the shopper’s nominated school or nursery for every order over £10, which means schools can add to their library or class book shelves for free! To browse the full World Book Day Book Club, (search by age and type of book) check out https://shop.scholastic.co.uk/

Scholastic want to make every day 'Book Day' and in celebration of World Book Day they are running a competition to get more books into kids hands. All you have to do is send a written or video review to Scholastic by tagging them (@ScholasticUK) and World Book Day (@WorldBookDay) on Twitter and use the hashtag #KeepReading with your review by 29th March and they'll select three winners to give £30 worth of books to and to donate £30 worth of books to a school or nursery of the winners’ choice. (Other terms and conditions apply so check out their website for details.) And good luck!

Hope your little bookworms enjoy some mini-beastly reading!

Mummy and BookBairn xx

*DISCLAIMER: This is a collaborative post with Scholastic Books - we received a donation into BookBairn's nursery's Scholastic account and the books reviewed in this post. As always opinions are completely our own!

One of the great things about birthdays is that you get awesome new toys to play with! And BookBairn just loves this illustrated Make Your Own Farm by Anna Kovecses. I has been sent this a little while ago by the publishers and had stashed it away for her birthday as I knew she would love it and I was right.

We spent one morning this week, whilst The Wee Page Turner napped, popping out all of the pieces and sliding them together to make them stand up. BookBairn loved pushing the pieces free of their cardboard surrounds but found putting them together a bit tricky so I helped her turn the fantastic 2D flatpieces into spectacular little 3D sheep, cows, farmhouse, tractor and more.

One of the things that we discovered too is that the box folds flat to create a floorpiece for the farm to be set up on allowing the ducks to have a pond, the farmhouse to have a path leading through the garden and the chickens could have a coop.

BookBairn then spent, I kid you not, nearly an hour playing with the pieces. I pottered around the kitchen whilst she played with the farm set on the kitchen table. I had a cup of tea whilst I could hear the sounds of the farm animals down on her farm. The only reason we stopped was because her little brother woke up!

And we have left it set up on the table for the time being and she goes back to play with it again and again. She happily played away with her Papa over the weekend down on the farm. And it's still on the table.

That's the only downside to the farm for us. It is set up and the pieces won't fit back into the box without dismantling them. An older child could take them apart and build them up again easily and thus no mess but for BookBairn that would require me to do it every time. So we are going to leave the farm out for a week or so and then pop it away in the box to get back out at a later date. It does mean this would be a great toy to take on holiday or travel with due to it's portable size.

The illustrations are lovely and I love the use of slightly off colours and shades (the bull has a purplish tint and some of the sheep are definitely a pinkish wool) making them a little more interesting. The characters have neutral faces allowing children to project their emotions as they play and have the sweetest little outfits. The attention to detail is exquisite. Perhaps the best part is the tractor with removable trailer. This is the bit that BookBairn plays with most. She changes the driver, loads up different animals on to the trailer and moves it around the farm. Lots and lots of fun.

This is a gift that will keep on giving as BookBairn gets older - the pieces seem quite durable (although if your child plays roughly it's probably not one for them and better stick with plastic or wooden farms) so we hope to get lots of play. As BookBairn gets older her imaginative play is more interesting and with lovely toys like this the possibilities are endless.

We love some of the illustrated toys that we have - beautiful stacking cubes, matching pairs card games and some lovely Russian nesting dolls. They are like playable artwork!

Happy playing,

Mummy and BookBairn xx

*DISCLAIMER - we were sent this toy from one of the publishers that we work with for review purposes. Words and opinions are, as always, our own.

Hello lovely readers!

Sorry we have been a bit quiet in the last fortnight - it was BookBairn's birthday and we have been very busy in real (not bookish) life! I can't believe our little BookBairn is three! The time is flying by so quickly and she is growing up so fast. If you have been following since the beginning of our little blogging journey, she was only six months when I started and you have followed from babyhood into toddlerhood and now into preschooler pandamonium.

BookBairn was very excited about her birthday so we read this wonderful book ''When's my Birthday?" by Julia Fogliano and Christian Robinson over and over. This book doesn't have much a story but we still really enjoyed it! It's the voice of a small child asking over and over "when is it my birthday? when will it be my birthday? how long until my birthday?" and so on. And then they invite everyone to their birthday, and get excited about presents and cake and balloons and all things birthday. This pretty much mimicked the last few weeks in our house. (In fact, BookBairn woke me up yesterday by singing Happy Birthday to herself over the baby monitor as you do.)

The best thing about this book are Christian Robinson's illustrations. They are incredibly detailed, colourful and packed full of fun. His social media accounts are 'the art of fun' which is the perfect description of this talented artist. If you were to turn fun into an art form his illustrations would fit the bill. We will definitely be looking for more books illustrated by him in future.

BookBairn had a brilliant weekend last weekend. We went to the local science museum and brushed tails with dinosaurs (The Wee Page Turner thought that the velociraptor was hilarious), went to the toy shop to spend birthday pennies on Duplo, Trolls and Go Jetters and then went to her favourite soft play/restaurant for dinner. Then we had unicorn cake with all the family on Sunday and she was spoiled with presents. Three year old heaven!

Not long until The Wee Page Turner turns one!

Let birthday planning commence!

Mummy, BookBairn and The Wee Page Turner xx

Today is International Women's Day and I couldn't let it passed unmarked without reading some books about awesome and inspiring women. My go-to for a boost to our feminist reading is always the Little People Big Dreams series (though I wish they would add some male role models too! I'd collect them all).

We recently added three new titles to our collection: Audrey Hepburn, Rosa Parks and Emmeline Pankhurst. Three women who stood for causes close to their hearts. I don't think I need to give you a biography of these mighty girls - they are well known names and a quick google search will give you the details. But needless to say these books are just as incredible as the previous titles. And I can't wait to get my hands on Ada Lovelace and Ella Fitzgerald who will feature as part of our 'Little Feminist Book Club' in May. And there are even more great names to add to our collection out later this year: Anne Frank, Mother Theresa, Harriet Tubman, Jane Goodall, Lucy Laud Montgomery, Simone de Beauvoir, Georgie O'Keeffe, Jane Austen and Josephine Baker.

All the stories are written in short concise sentences making them easy for little readers like BookBairn to follow and are not at all overwhelming as some books in this new genre of 'feminist picture books' for very young readers. They would also make great early-readers for children who are ready to tackle reading some more challenging vocabulary. Each book also features a timeline with a more detailed biography giving you even more information as well as a final page that includes suggestions for further reading.

As this series has expanded so have the variety of illustrations. Most are bold and colourful and all are wonderfully engaging and I love that the illustrations of the mighty women never cross the line into becoming caricatures. They remain true to the women they represent and are beautiful.

The books also treasure how wonderful it is to be unique, to conquer challenges and perseverance. Things that I think most mighty girls should learn. I have recently got a set of 'Yes Mum' Kids cards for BookBairn that have positive affirmations that will help her self-esteem and help my little girl realise that she is a mighty one! They are great!

I hope you are celebrating International Women's Day with a good read starring a mighty female character. If you want to read more mighty girls books check out our 'mighty girls' list for inspiration.

Happy Women's Day

Mummy and BookBairn xx

We have a new friend. Well to be honest he's not that new - we just have two new books starring our old friend Ted and that has brought him back to life in BookBairn's imagination. We read at least one Ted book every day. They all live in a book basket in The Wee Page Turner's room and BookBairn loves to choose Ted stories for her little brother before his nap and bed times. And he loves them too.

This series are about a little toddler called Ted - he has a wonderful imagination and is a typical toddler (writing great toddler books seems to be Sophy Henn's forte - have you met Pom Pom yet? And we will be getting to know Edie for our Little Feminist Book Club this month.). We reviewed the first book - Bedtime Ted - last April and the follow-up - Playtime Ted - was featured in or Favourites Shelf last May so you know that we are already pretty fond of this little guy. He's incredibly cute, imagines his toys as real characters and, in typical toddler-style, he delays bedtime and can turn a box into anything he likes with the power of his mind!

In the two newer books, Ted is using his imagination again! In 'Time to Go Ted' he is off out for the day - to the supermarket, the park, swimming and other toddler friendly locations and his imagination goes wild. He sees monkey's swinging on the swings at the park, finds a polar bear in the freezer section and he goes swimming with a whale at the pool. In 'Dress Up Ted' he imagines himself as a knight, a cowboy and a spaceman turning a blanket into a cape and a collander into a helmet.
Ted certainly knows how to play. I love these books too as they model imaginative play for BookBairn at just the stage she is playing at and as she begins to play more imaginatively she also begins to play more independently. BookBairn loves them because she can identify with Ted. He gets up to the same mischief as her - dragging bedtime out as long as possible, playing inside a cardboard box for hours. He's a perfect mirror to her play. The Wee Page Turner loves them because they use bold colours and simple lines and backgrounds so he can focus on the real action of the page and make the connections between the words and the illustrations so easily! He also adores the full-page sized flaps that his wee hands can now manoeuvre. Ted is irrestible in his red and yellow wellies with his orange and turquoise bobble hat (I'll be he chose his own outfit that day!) and his animal friends are as cute and cuddly as can be.

We can't wait to wait to join Ted for 'Teatime with Ted' out next month and am probably most excited for 'Storytime with Ted' because you know we just love our storytime!

Is it just me, or do they look like they are plotting bedtime shenanigans?

In short, Ted fits in with our family nicely. He's a friend we like to invite over to play!

Who is your favourite book best friend?

Mummy, BookBairn and The Wee Page Turner xxx

*DISCLAIMER - the two newest books in the series were sent to us for review by Boolino as part of their 'Boolino Friends' reviewers scheme. But I would have bought them anyway. Honest!

Legacy. That word holds great strength. It’s in the lives that last. Lives that linger within our own. Lives that inspire generations to come. Lives that are known forever by the tracks they leave behind. We can find such legacy within our own family tree or in our community, and we can, without doubt, find such legacy in the wonderful world of picture books.

Picture book biographies are legacies. Within these factual stories are examples of courage, determination, love, hope and resilience. We read about real people who achieve their dreams, create and innovate, who fight for change, make a difference, believe in themselves and overcome challenges, thus demonstrating to our kids that they too are capable of doing the same.

During February the @kidlitpicks book club chose to highlight books about famous legacies.

Before She Was Harriet, by Lesa Cline-Ransome and James Ransome

“The poetic voice in Before She Was Harriet is a glorious one. At times some may see a person at face value—old, tired and worn, but within those wrinkles and the weary eyes are stories, and Harriet Tubman’s story is an inspiration.” — Summer from @readingisourthing

Between the Lines: How Ernie Barnes Went from the Football Field to the Art Gallery, by Sandra Neil Wallace and Bryan Collier

“No matter how hard he tried, Ernie never forgot his love of art, and eventually with time and patience he finds a way to realize his dreams, even becoming the creator of an artistic movement" — Mel from @spiky_penelope

Emmeline Pankhurst (Little People, Big Dreams), by Lisbeth Kaiser and‎ Ana Sanfelippo

“Emmeline Pankhurst was integral in the suffragette movement and through her efforts along with all the other women (and men) who fought for a more equally society. What a wonderful legacy to leave. ” — Kim from @bookbairn

Ella, Queen of Jazz, by Helen Hancocks

“I think she so accurately straddles Black History and Women’s History month.” — Miranda from @bookbloom

Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls 2

“I can see with such clarity that these phenomenal women who've all made such an impact upon the world started out as girls, just like me, rebel girls..” — De from @books_and_babycinos

Meet Sidney Nolan, by Yvonne Mes and Sandra Erovic

“The text is just right for early primary school kids to relate to. It could also lead to discussions about different types of art, the importance of patrons for arts, war and conscription and the early settlement of Australia. ” — Carissa from @bookskidslove_

Noah Webster's Fighting Words, by Tracy Nelson Maurer and Mircea Catusanu

“Webster and Roget greatly influenced how we read and write today!” — Arielle from @childrensbooksgalore

Emmanuel’s Dream, the true story of Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah, by Laurie Thompson and Sean Qualls

“Emmanuel’s legacy is truly a remarkable one and shows us that one person (and a disabled one at that!) is enough to change the world.” — Rossa from @curiouslittlepeople

The Noisy Paint Box, by Barb Rosenstock and Mary Grandpré

“This fascinating look at the origins of Kandinsky’s abstract art explores his synaesthesia and emphasises the joys to be had in following one’s passion.” — Rossa from @curiouslittlepeople

Alabama Spitfire: The Story of Harper Lee and To Kill a Mockingbird, by Bethany Hegedus and Erin McGuire

"It is also a wonderful story of being true to yourself and following your dreams." — Lauren from @happily.ever.elephants

Freedom Song, by Sally M Walker and Sean Qualls

“We enjoyed learning more about Henry and his amazing story of bravery, courage and determination through this lyrical text.” — Charnaie from @hereweeread

Miss Moore Thought Otherwise, by Jan Pinborough and Debby Atwell.

"Miss Moore pushed for children to be allowed to check out books and have areas dedicated especially to encourage their love of reading.." — Wendy from @homegrownreader

Brave Jane Austen: Reader, Writer, Author, Rebel,by Lisa Pliscou and Jen Corace“The charming illustrations help reinforce the historical setting and evoke a wonderful sense of tenderness.” — Heather from @kidlitbookbits

Three Cheers for Women!, by Marcia Williams

“Each woman is given a double page spread and facts, quotes and jokes pepper the borders. Hip, hip hooray!” — Shannon from @ohcreativeday

From Above the Clouds, by Kezia Brett

“A rhythmic hymn celebrating and cherishing the arrival of life - the journey parents, family and the child make to come into this world.” — Liam from @words.and.illustrations

Anna from @kidlitcrafts chose our theme for March, which is going to get your creative juices flowing—ART!

"My favorite picture books have the power to inspire us; they’re the ones that get my kids itching to create—to get off the couch and into the craft cabinet, digging around and making messes that drive me crazy but make me proud."

This month, the @kidlitpicks book club will be featuring books that inspire ART. Whether it’s a story about an artist or one with illustrations worth imitating, we’ll be looking at picture books that influence the way we create. So what are some of your favorite books about art? Join us by tagging your pictures with #kidlitpicks_art and be sure to follow all the accounts on the @kidlitpicks team.

Let's hope it looks more like Spring by the end of the month,

Happy Reading,

Mummy