It's been a while since I posted about our top five reads from our Favourites Shelf. It's partly because the shelves were out of a...

Favourites Shelf - May 2017

Thursday, May 18, 2017 BookBairn 14 Comments

It's been a while since I posted about our top five reads from our Favourites Shelf. It's partly because the shelves were out of action for a while whilst Daddy BookBairn re-painted the room from pink to a boy and girl friendly 'soothing white' (and yes the name did tempt us to choose it in the hope it will help soothe BookBairn and The Wee Page Turner to sleep). But we have still been reading bedtime and naptime stories galore so here are some current favourite reads.


Please, Mr Panda by Steve Antony 

Every Sunday morning BookBairn and her Daddy go off for a walk to the park and they pop to the shops to get a doughnut for Daddy and a cookie for BookBairn. It's their special time together. And BookBairn was delighted to read this book where doughnuts play such an important role! Mr Panda has a box of doughnuts that he wants to share but many of the other animals don't seem to have very good manners and are rather bossy and demanding. "I want..." "Give me..." they are all forgetting the magic word (which BookBairn is surprisingly good at using herself thank goodness!). Until the final creature that is and his reward for using that little magic word is great... turns out Mr Panda doesn't even like doughnuts so he shares the whole box! A simple story with a simple message! The illustrations are also lovely with the colourful doughnuts the star of each page with a black and white (the illustrator is colourblind so perhaps this is the reason for his monochrome choices) animal requesting the doughnuts. BookBairn really loves this one and we've read it dozens of times since we borrowed it from the library. We might need to get a copy of this one to add to our collection!


Papasaurus by Stephan Lomp

For anyone who read our Papa Penguin review a few weeks ago, you will know that BookBairn has a great fondness for her Papa! And we were delighted when 'Papasaurus' arrived in the post. Not only that but the Babysaurus and the Papasaurus are playing one of BookBairn's favourite games: hide and seek! Babysaurus is counting and Papasaurus is hiding and when Babysaurus can't find him she asks all the other dinosaurs in the wild jungle if they have seen him. We won't give away the ending other than to say Babysaurus finds his Papa in the most surprising place! We love the illustrations of all the different dinosaurs in this one and the black background, though unusual for children's books, makes them really stand out. Each dino is cute but true to the characteristics you would expect of their species so provides a little early learning too. I just learned this is a sequel too so we will be on the lookout for 'Mamasaurus' by the same author/illustrator.


What the Ladybird Heard by Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks

I can't believe we haven't featured this one before!! It was one of BookBairn's first ever favourites and we listen to the audiobook (and song) on a daily basis in the car. So much so she can pretty much recite the whole story by heart! This is a great story about a little ladybird who overhears two thieves plan to steal the fine prize cow from the farm and how the animals hatch a plot of their own to thwart them. Packed full of animal noises and brilliant rhyming prose this is a must read for all toddlers! The illustrations are perfect and the glittery ladybird on every page creates an extra little bit of fun for tiny fingers. If you haven't picked this one up yet you absolutely must find a copy! And we also recommend the audiobook!


Playtime with Ted by Sophy Henn
We recently reviewed 'Bedtime with Ted', the other book in this duology, and as we loved it so much I ordered a copy of 'Playtime' for BookBairn too! As brilliant as the 'Bedtime', starring the terrifically imaginative little toddler Ted, 'Playtime' is a great companion story. Ted finds a box to play in and under each flap you reveal what he imagines the box is: a submarine, a racecar, a rocket. But BookBairn's favourite is the big yellow digger! She loves diggers at the moment! Sophy Henn does a wonderful job (again!) capturing the world of a toddler and bringing it to life in the pages of her books. And her illustrations are great for little ones with enough details to discuss but without overfilling the page with superfluous extras. Sophy Henn's books feature on our Favourites Shelf on a regular basis so well worth keeping an eye out for her books in the library or bookshops.


Dino Tails by Anne Wilkinson (for Jellycat)
This is The Wee Page Turner's first contribution to the Favourites Shelf (though it doesn't technically sit on the shelf as it's a cloth book!). As you can imagine when it comes to new baby gifts people are wary of sending us books: we have so many already! But one brave soul (Book Lover Jo) sent us this brilliant cloth book and both BookBairn and The Wee Page Turner love it! BookBairn likes to describe the touch and freely tails to her little brother and he likes to feel the different textures. It's the beginning of them reading stories together! And for that reason it makes the list of favourites even if it's not actually on the shelf - it's on the playmat so we have it at hand to grab easily!


Hope you've enjoyed reading about our favourite books of the moment. Despite all the newborn chaos I have kept changing the books on the shelf but haven't always had time to review them on here. You can always see our latest 'favourites shelf' on our social media feeds (linked in the header at the top of the pages). 

What are your favourite reads at the moment? 

Happy reading, Mummy, BookBairn and The Wee Page Turner x

*Some of these books were sent to us by publishers for review and others are ones that we have borrowed from the library or purchased ourselves. These are our geniune re-reads so all opinions are our own.




14 comments:

  1. It was great fun reading Papasaurus with BookBairn and it's nice to know that she is sharing reading books with the Wee Page Turner. At the moment I am reading "The Girl Who Played With Fire" by Stieg Larsson. I am enjoying the book but am more than a little confused by a large number of main characters whose surname all begin with "B". However, I have passed half way which is always a good sign that I'm might finish a "story" book.

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    1. You've read quite a few story books recently but most have pictures in them! Papasaurus is one of the most perfect books for BookBairn at the moment and I enjoyed hearing you read it at bedtime last night, as did BookBairn!

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  2. I just love this selection - and I did see some of my favourites on the shelf 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar' and 'Tickle My Ears'. One a longstanding favourite and the second has completely won me over recently.

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    1. Two great books! It's hard to beat the Very Hungry Caterpillar for a classic! Loved by many generations I think!

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  3. What a lovely selection of books and how nice to see the Wee Page Turner's first contribution. Our favourites are always Jacqueline Wilson and we're looking forward to starting her new book, Wave Me Goodbye, very soon!

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    1. I loved Jacqueline Wilson books when I was at school! Can't wait to share them with BookBairn when she's old enough!

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  4. Great recommendations! I'm so glad to have found your blog- I love it! #readwithme

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  5. A fantastic selection as always, so fun and vibrant, thanks for sharing with #readwithme

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  6. What the Ladybird Heard is one of my favourite picture books of all time. It's definitely one that I would take with me to a desert island :o)

    #ReadWithMe

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    1. A favourite of mine too! We just love the audio book too!

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  7. There is a song for What the Ladybird Heard!? We need this in our lives!
    Love the look of Papasaurus, could be a good Father's Day present. Good to see Wee Page Turner has his favourites already. #readwithme

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    1. Papasaurus would make a great Father's Day gift! A lovely story that has a little more fun to it than a 'dad is great' book. What the Ladybird Song is great! You should YouTube it!

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