To round off this year’s book advent, I have a lovely picture book from Little Door Books. Everybody loves the stars but have you ever loved them enough to steal them? Not just one or two, but all of them? When a little girl decides she wants a real star of her own, she writes … Continue reading Christmas Advent – Day 23 ‘The Girl Who Stole the Stars,’ by Corrina Campbell.
Today’s choice is a lovely story about a little mouse searching for a new home on Christmas Eve and all the creatures she helps along the way. ‘It’s Christmas Eve, and Mouse is trying to find the perfect place to call home. But by the time she’s helped Bunny, Fox and Bear, the sun has … Continue reading Christmas Advent – Day 21 ‘A House for Christmas Mouse,’ by Rebecca Harry.
When Book Boy was younger, this imaginative dinosaur series was on constant bedtime story repeat. Although he’s now a very grown-up Year 7, he couldn’t resist having a peek through this new Christmassy title when it dropped through our letterbox. When Santa’s sleigh gets stuck in a snowdrift on Christmas Eve, there’s only one team … Continue reading Christmas Advent – Day 19 ‘Dinosaur Christmas,’ by Penny Dale.
This is a brilliantly fun lift-the-flap book to let little ones to join in with the hunt for Santa. It’s Christmas Eve and Mouse is hunting high and low for Santa. He’s searched in the house, in the snowy garden, and behind the twinkling Christmas tree but he just can’t find him anywhere. Doesn’t Mouse … Continue reading Christmas Advent – Day 14 ‘Can’t See Santa!’ text by Mandy Archer, illustrated by Chris Jevons.
Today I’m sharing a great board book for babies and toddlers which follows the adventures of a rather magical snowman. Head off on a sparkling magical adventure with Snowman and his elf friends as he goes to help mend Santa’s sleigh! There’s lots to spot in the festive illustrations and a whole host of lovable … Continue reading Christmas Advent – Day 12 ‘My Magical Snowman,’ illustrated by Yujin Shin.
Sometimes it’s nice to read a Christmas book which reflects on the meaning of Christmas beyond flashy lights, Santa and baubles. This heart-warming story is one of those... It’s Christmas morning. Esme and Bear have opened all their present except for one last red-wrapped gift hidden beneath the tree. When they read the gift tag, … Continue reading Christmas Advent – Day 11 ‘The Most Wonderful Gift in the World,’ by Mark Sperring, illustrated by Lucy Fleming.
Celebrate fifteen years of ‘Dear Santa’ with this special edition of Rod Campbell’s Christmas classic with an extra sparkly gold-foiled cover. Join Santa as he wraps and packs the perfect present for each and every child. For generations, children have loved joining in with the simple text and repeated refrains, lifting the flaps to see … Continue reading Christmas Advent – Day 10 ‘Dear Santa,’ by Rod Campbell.
Any child of the eighties (and onwards) will be familiar of the tale of ‘Dogger,’ a beloved favourite toy who goes missing then reappears in the most unexpected of places. I am absolutely beyond delighted to be able to report that the legendary Shirley Hughes has created a magical new Dogger adventure: ‘Dogger’s Christmas.’ “It's … Continue reading Christmas Advent – Day 8 ‘Dogger’s Christmas,’ by Shirley Hughes
Today have a fabulously festive romp for your reading pleasure as little ones are encourage to help Santa find his pants! It’s Christmas Eve, the sleigh is packed and the reindeer are ready to go. But as Santa starts getting dressed to head out, he can’t find his pants! As his spare pairs blown off … Continue reading Christmas Advent – Day 7 ‘Can You Find Santa’s Pants?’ by Becky Davies and Alex Willmore.
Emma Yarlett creates the most beautiful picture books so I was very excited to see that she’s created a rather wonderful Christmas story with fold-out letters and plenty of laughs. Every year, Santa gets thousands of letters full of Christmas wishes from children all over the world and he is usually able to find the … Continue reading Christmas Advent – Day 5 ‘Santa Post,’ by Emma Yarlett.
If ever there was an excuse to buy the littlest bookworms a new board book to chew, surely Christmas is it? ‘Peas on Earth’ is a super-cute counting book featuring five very excited little peas! All the peas are getting very excited as the countdown to Christmas gets underway, with one popping off to visit … Continue reading Christmas Advent – Day 2 ‘Peas on Earth,’ illustrated by Lindsey Sagar.
If you are after a festive treat to officially kick off the festive season, you absolutely cannot go wrong with one of Alex T. Smith’s beautiful picture books. This year’s delight is a reimagining of a classic Christmas poem, borne from Smith’s inability to remember the original gifts celebrated in poetic form. Things start off … Continue reading Christmas Advent – Day 1 ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas or Grandma is Overly Generous,’ by Alex T. Smith.
The loss of a family member or loved one isn’t something you can ever really prepare for, but sharing books which explore ideas around what happens when someone dies before the situation arises can be so helpful for young children. After being told to avoid writing a picture book exploring beliefs about death, Eva Hibbs … Continue reading ‘Where is Uncle Al?’ by Eva Hibbs, illustrated by Sarah Harrison.
Today I’m sharing two wonderful picture books which focus on that Halloween staple - pumpkins! Find out how they grow then go on a spooky Halloween hunt... ‘We Planted a Pumpkin,’ by Rob Ramsden (Scallywag Press) I really love Rob Ramsden’s ‘In the Garden’ series - beautiful illustrations, heart-warming stories and an important message about … Continue reading Take a visit to the pumpkin patch…
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for this funny, silly, reassuring not bedtime story, bedtime story! Make sure you read Eoin’s piece about why he finally conceded to his young son’s taste for monsters with this scary (but not really) tale. Get ready for ‘The World’s Scariest Monster’ and his friends to take … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘This Book is Not a Bedtime Story!’ by Eoin McLaughlin and Robert Starling.
It’s Chriiiisssstmaaass!!!! Well, almost. But it’s definitely time to start buying Christmas books for all your favourite people. So, without further ado, let me introduce you to ‘Billy and the Balloons.’ Billy was out with his dad selling balloons on Christmas Eve and was desperate to hold the bunch, but dad keeps telling him that … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘Billy and the Balloons,’ by Elizabeth Dale, illustrated by Patrick Corrigan.
There’s so much research which demonstrates how vital reading stories to the very littlest of bookworms is: it builds a bond between adult and child, dramatically increases their vocabulary by the time they turn five and teaches them early literacy skills in preparation for school and a lifelong love of reading. To that end, I … Continue reading Board Book Bonanza!
Today’s stop is brought to you by the letter ‘L’ for ‘Library Girl and Book Boy’ as we journey through the alphabet with the newest addition to the award-winning ‘Oi Frog!’ series. If you’re an animal and want to know where to sit, Frog is your go-to amphibian, but he seems to bet getting weary … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘Oi Aardvark!’ by Kes Gray & Jim Field.
Today I have not one, not two, but three glorious picture books all about books! This joyous read joins a T-Rex as she discovers books and reading for the very first time. As she learns that books have amazing powers to transform a bedroom into a castle or a roaring ocean, to teach you how … Continue reading It’s all about the books!
Laura Gallagher wrote this story following a long and difficult journey to motherhood via IVF. She wanted to create a book which would allow other families to celebrate the many different ways in which babies can arrive. ‘Robo-Babies’ was the result. Make sure you read Laura’s special piece about her favourite picture book families. In … Continue reading Blog tour: ‘Robo-Babies,’ by Laura Gallagher, illustrated by Nicci Martin.
