Billy's Beetle by Mick Inkpen

Billy's Beetle - Mick Inkpen (Pub: 2007)

Billy's Beetle is about a little boy, Billy, who looses his pet beetle and is searching for it. As the search for his beloved beetle continues, he enlists the help of many a colourful characters, who are drawn in and captivated into his world of searching for the beetle. The fun is made even greater by the appearance of the beetle in all of the pages, to which children will enjoy spotting the awol beetle. As the reader becomes entranced with looking for the beetle too, Inkpen skillfully involves the reader into the very world he has created in Billy's Beetle.

The language is expressive and fun with lots of sounding words, great for expanding a young child's vocabulary. Inkpen is a master illustrator, as well as author, who uses the vastness of the white canvas/page to concentrate the readers viewing solely on the characters in the book.

A book for children aged 3 - 5. This book is very English, but this adds a charm to it.

Lots of fun is to be had, by reading it, finding the beetle and giggling about the silly people, who miss the beetle in the most obvious places.

The Blue Balloon by Mick Inkpen

The Blue Balloon - Mick Inkpen (Pub: 1990)

Mick Inkpen (yes, that's his real name) has written lots of book. He has two main characters:

Kipper and Wibbly Pig. Today I will focus on two books, I've found, which are of neither of his main character.

The Blue Balloon is for children from ages 3 - 6 and they will love it. (Hey, so do I). The Blue Balloon, is all about a special unbreakable balloon that a little boy (Kipper's owner) finds after his birthday party. There are all kinds of pages that flip out, flip up and flip over, but it's not overdone. Filled with Mick Inkpen’s glowing artwork, this celebrated classic tells a timeless tale of imagination. It's chock full of fanciful wonderment, where Inkpen has really used all the pages and flip outs to create a very special book.

I'd rate it in the top ten great books for this age group.

This one is easy to find at your local library. I love the fact that our local library has good child friend librarians, who get in good books to borrow. Although, I liked the balloon one so much, I found it in a shop and bought it. If you are looking for a great book to read in play group - this one is a certain winner

Peepo by Janet and Allan Ahlberg

Peepo - Janet and Allan Ahlberg (Pub 2001)

This husband-and-wife team have written several well known children's books.

Peepo is a book about what a baby in the family sees throughout the day.

Set in war time London, it is based on childhood memories of the two authors which give the authentic feel and shows their intricate of that time and place, as illustrated in their very detailed pictures.

Peepo is a peek-a-boo book with a difference. The Ahlbergs have strategically placed "peep-holes" in the pages so the reader sees a small view point of what the baby in the story sees at various points in his day.

Children will love to hear the rhymes of the short verses in the book, and to spy out all the things that the baby is able to spy out also. Peepo, enables children to hear and identify the rhyme and the repetitive words and phrases which encourages them to join in with the recitative. This helps to develop their memory skills also.

This is a great book for children of a wide age group from 2 - 7 as it has much depth to it, form the rhyming verses, to the detailed illustrations, this book is able to grow and develop as the children reading it will grow and develop. This in itself, is a testament to how cleverly written and brilliantly illustrated this book is.

If you have a friend about to have a baby, the gift of this book will be with them for many years as the baby grow into a child. They will love it, and as you read it for the 100th time, you still will too.

Leonardo the Terrible Monster - by Mo Willems

Leonardo the Terrible Monster - Mo Willems (Pub: 2007)

From the writer of Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus and the Knuffle Bunny series, (he also has worked on Sesame Street's creative team for many years), comes a humours book about being friends and choices of how to be a friend.

The story is about Leonardo who is a terrible monster. He compares himself to some other monsters and seemingly has nothing going for him because he is unable to scare anyone. He researches and finds a boy who he thinks he can "scare the tuna salad out of". But this boy has just had a bad day. Then Leonardo chooses to be a friend rather than a scary monster - and from there a friendship is forged between the two.

Willems is a very clever writer and illustrator. He is a master manipulator of space in the pages of the book, and uses the size of the book (it is larger than the average book) to create the sense of space and loneliness, and the feeling of isolation. His use of vectors, and making the reader's eye follow the lines of sight that he, as the illustrator wants, is very clever. The Toronto Star is quoted as saying:

Willems has mastered the use of empty space great expanses of pastel page, in mood colours (mauve, dusty pink), enhance the emotion tied up in Leonardos intense attempts to be frightening. Most kids wont be able to help chortling over Leonardos grotesque faces, or sympathizing entirely with the miserable boy, who has had a very bad day. A cheering vision of true and uproarious companionship that shows you can write about self-esteem and still be funny and clever.

It will take a few readings with your child for them to understand what is really going on in this book. However, once there is an understanding of what is going on, they will love this book.

For children aged 5 - 7 yo; it's a good one for boys.

Uno's Garden by Graeme Base

Uno's Garden - Graeme Base (Pub: 2006)

'When Uno arrives in the forest one beautiful day, there are many fascinating and extraordinary animals there to greet him. And one entirely unexceptional Snortlepig.

Uno loves the forest so much, he decides to live there. But, in time, a little village grows up around his house. Then a town, then a city. . . and soon Uno realises that the animals and plants have begun to disappear. . .

Enter the magical world of Graeme Base's forest, filled with wild and wonderful animals, Uno's unique family and friends – and the elusive Snortlepig!

From the creator of the international bestsellers Animalia, The Waterhole and Jungle Drums, here is an illuminating blend of storybook, puzzle book and numbers book – a moving and timely tale about how we all unknowingly affect the environment around us, just by being there, and how we can always learn from our mistakes and find ways of doing things better." Here

That about sums it up, in a nice way. Base has jumped on the 'environmentalist band wagon', and is using his book to push his trendy ideology on young children. It seems as though Base has worked hard to gain the same notoriety and acclaim that his first hit book, Animalia awarded him.

Ecocriticism is a trendy movement at the moment, as we can see from books such as Uno's Garden and movies, such as Avatar, and 'documentaries' such as An Inconvenient Truth.

The illustrations are gorgeous in this book, aimed at children from 4 - 9 years old. The story, is a frustrating read, where the overriding ideology pushes the story line. Not enjoyable for the discerning parent, unless you agree with the overall thesis.

Hurricane by David Wiesner

Hurricane by David Wiesner (P: 1990)

"Natural disasters that one survives are usually among the best-remembered signposts of childhood", and Weisner uses this natural disaster to create a fun and exciting tale, based loosely on an experience of he and his brother had growing up. Even down the very detail of the wallpaper found on page thirteen in this highly autobiographical book.

Wiesner, captures perfectly the aura of a giant storm from a child’s perspective. When the lights go out and the family is together around the flickering fire place in a darkened room, it felt safe with everybody together, 'even though there were creaks and groans and sometimes great roaring sounds coming from outside.'

And as the storm is in full swing, it knocks a tree down in a neighbour's yard which leads to a great adventure of imagination. In Hurricane, we see the boy’s fantasies as they play on the large fallen tree. “Realism gives way to fantasy once the two boys in the family enter the post-hurricane yard the next day.”

The illustrations are FANTASTIC, being of high modality, which essentially means, they are like photo-realism, which Wiesner is well known for. His detailing in all parts of the picture, down to a tin of tuna for the cat, or, as I said before, the mundaneness of wall paper. Wiesner's use of the play of light (Illumination) is also expertly executed.

An impressive read (both verbally and visually) for children aged 6 - 12 years old. Not scary, but highly charged as the storm rages. A great tale of fun, playfulness and imagination.

Mr Pusskins- A Love Story; Mr Pusskins - Best In Show by Sam Llyod

Mr Pusskins - A Love Story by Sam Lloyd

Mr Pusskins - Best In Show by Sam Lloyd

This week, I've bought a couple of new picture books (no surprise there) and I bought two in the same series: Mr Pusskins - a love story; and, Mr Pusskins - Best in Show.

What a sense fun these two stories bring to the reader. They are about a bad tempered pussy cat owned by Emily who simply adores him.

Each book has a little lessons learned by Pusskins, which, as an outcome, the young read may also take note.

It was fascinating how much young children get caught up in the stories, especially the second one, where Pusskins was purposely told the wrong directions and lost the trophy he wanted to win. And with excitement, a young children may be overjoyed by the positive outcome at the end of the book.

They are well written, with descriptive words and vocabulary which will expand a child's phraseology and vocab.

The illustrations are fun, and very reminiscent of H. A. Rey's, Curious George.

For children from kindy til year two. Overall, an enjoyable read.

and the train goes ... by william bee

and the train goes ... by william bee (Pub: 2007)

"Here is the school class off on a trip, and the children yell, Please, sir, please, ma'am...are we there yet?

and the train goes, Clickerty-click, clickerty-clack…"

This book is about all the different sounds that you will hear on a train. Not only from the train itself but also from the many passengers traveling:

"The bright retro illustrations look like a 1960s record-album cover. The train and the characters' clothing are depicted in glossy colors and covered with flat floral patterns and other graphic designs. The people's stylized faces are adorned with eyeglasses, freckles, and/or beards and mustaches; surrounded by hair of different shades; and topped with hats of all shapes and sizes."

Based on repetition of sound and the refrain of the train's clickerty click, clickerty clack. With a pushing rhythm and lyrical expressions; as you read, you will feel both the locomotion of the train but also the movement of the story. The story culminates as the reader arrives at the final page, which is the train platform that the reader started at, where the station parrot recites all the fun sayings in one breath for the reader.

This is a wonderfully fun book to read aloud to your preschooler up to kindy age group. And would work in playgroup story time also.

OOPS! Jean-Luc Fromental/Joelle Jolivet

Oops! by Jean-Luc Fromental and Joelle Jolivet (Pub: French 2009; Pub English translation 2010)

Oops! is a fun book where one thing leads to another in this madcap race through Paris, as an unlucky family tried to make it to the airport amid the chaos: A movie shoot, a parade, policemen, rampaging bears, aliens, and much more collide in this remarkable new picture book adventure.

Very stylistically French, with "Joëlle Jolivet’s signature retro, and it's eye-catching style", this book is full of twists and turns where each page has several 'oops's' to find with your child as you read it together.

There is about three to four sentences on each page, and often there is action, not only in the drawings, but also as much of the written words are spoken from the characters heightening the intensity of the book, with the family's desperate attempt to get to the airport in time.

The use of the written words being not just straight but also angular at times, lends itself to a sense of fun and playfulness. And the author cleverly uses the 'movie frame' idea towards the end of the book on a double page to help break up the continual double spread of each page.

Finally, the books concludes with a opening flap to help the readers find the "chain of catastrophes".

Great for children 5 - 9 years old, this oversized book, would be a good book to buy for your own children or as a gift for others, and would certainly give depth to any picture book collection.