Difference between revisions of "Newest For Sharing Reviews"

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[[Category:For Sharing|*]]
 
[[Category:For Sharing|*]]
[[Category:New Reviews|For Sharing]]
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[[Category:New Reviews|For Sharing]]__NOTOC__
==For sharing==
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{{Frontpage
__NOTOC__
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|author=Adam Stower
{{newreview
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|title=Murray and Bun
|author=Gareth Edwards and Kanako Usui
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|rating=4.5
|title=The Big Jungle Mix Up
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|genre=Confident Readers
|rating=5
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|summary=Murray is supposed to be a humble, tidy and friendly cat, one who is able to sleep and eat and eat and sleep and, well, whatever takes his fancy next of the two.  But he's a bad magician's cat, so his favourite bun has been turned into a hyperactive sticky rabbit called Bun, and the catflap they both use can chuck them out, not into the regular back garden, but into a world of frightening adventure and whiffs.  This time round it drops them into a Viking land, where a troll hunter is expected – well, one much bigger than Murray was, to be honest, but he's turned up and he'll have to do…
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|isbn=0008561249
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{{Frontpage
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|isbn=1732898766
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|title=The Adventures of Birpus and Bulbus: Book One: The Sour Milk Dragon
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|author=Wynn Everett-Albanese, Michael Albanese and Indre Ta (Illustrator)
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|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Big Bear is teaching little bear all about the animals in the jungle as they are out walking one dayBut Big Bear keeps mixing them up and little bear has to keep putting him straight:
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|summary=When we first meet Birpus and Bulbus they're running for their lives in the Forest of Fine ReputeTheir greatest fear has come about: the Sour Milk Dragon is chasing them. He's right behind them, spewing hot, sour milk from his nostrils.  (Please don't try this at home: it won't end well.)  Fortunately, they were nearly at Nobby Lob-lolly - and when a ladder of moss and vines was lowered for them, they escaped.  They climbed up to the Tree Wee homes high up in the tangled woods where they lived with their Grand Wees, Nester Nook and Granny Cranny.
   
 
'We might find a monkey, with feathers and beak, pea-green, carrot orange, we'll teach it to speak…
 
 
You've got it mixed up! As orange as a carrot? A beak that can speak? Then it must be a… *open flap* PARROT!'
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1444903047</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=B0CC9W7GLR
|author=Gareth Edwards and Kanako Usui
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|title=On the Beach: The Winter Visitor
|title=The Big Animal Mix-Up
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|author=Chris Green and Jenny Fionda
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=We're back with Big Bear and little bear again and this time, Big Bear is teaching little bear all about the animals from little bear's big ''Book About Animals'' as they are settling down for bed one nightBut Big Bear keeps mixing them up and once again little bear has to keep putting him straight:
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|summary=Kit and Teal were just beginning to wonder whether it was better to be at home, bored but warm, or frozen cold and building sand sculptures on a snowy beach when a large slab of silvery ice drifted onto the shoreline.  On top of the ice was a polar bear.  As the ice bumped onto the sand, the bear woke and with wobbly legs moved from the ice. Kit was all for making a run for it, but Teal knew that the bear was hungry and gave him one apple and then anotherHe obviously needed to be taken home on the bus and given a good meal and somewhere to sleep. What else would you do?
   
 
'This is a fish.  It has very soft fur. If you give it a cuddle, you'll hear it go 'purr'…
 
 
'Hang on a minute! A fish can't do that.  If it's purry and furry, it must be a... *open flap* CAT!'
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0340989890</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1913839656
|author=Amber Stewart and Layn Marlow
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|title=Let's Celebrate Being Different
|title=Bramble the Brave
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|author=Lainey Dee
|rating=4.5
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|rating=3.5
|genre=For Sharing
 
|summary=Bramble and her friend Twig love adventures especially when it comes to digging very deep molehills. Bramble leads and Twig follows whether they are digging, wading through ponds, climbing or rolling down hills. You would think that this brave little mole would be prepared to try anything and she is. That is until it comes to food when she turns into the fussiest little mole imaginable. She won't eat pondweed soup because it is too slimy; four-leaf clover salads are too crunchy and she won't even try Mummy's hazelnut pie because she only likes berries. Her parents try to persuade her to try all of this lovely food but eventually they get fed up of making a fuss and just let Bramble eat berries for a whole week. At first, Bramble is delighted but soon her paws look as if they have been splashed with purple paint and her whiskers feel sticky all the time.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0192780239</amazonuk>
 
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{{newreview
 
|author=Tony Ross
 
|title=Little Princess: I Want to Win!
 
|rating=5
 
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=The Little Princess always likes to win so, when at the castle sports day she finds herself trailing in the running race, she insists that they all run in the opposite direction and then she has least far to go. When playing table tennis with the maid, she is always allowed to win. She is so used to winning that it comes as a big shock at school when other children win the prizes for numbers, painting, science and poems. It's especially disappointing as she really tried her hardest in all of those subjects. However, some of her efforts are quite scary, unorthodox, and even a bit dangerous as she almost blows up the science lab. Luckily, there is one more cup and as that's the prize for 'trying the hardest', there is obviously only one worthy winner!
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|summary=Todd was excited about spending the weekend with his grandmother, not least because she made the best beetle juice.  He packed two pairs of dungarees and his favourite hat and then gathered together his button collection to show his grandmother. She had promised to take him to the Friday Night Club at the local community centre and Todd was pleased about this as he wanted to make new friends. At home, his only friend was his mum and he wondered why that could be. Grandma thought that it might be because he looked different.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849394024</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1529504775
|author=Stephen Davies and Christopher Corr
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|title=The Toy Bus (The Repair Shop Stories)
|title=The Goggle-eyed Goats
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|author=Amy Sparkes and Katie Hickey
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Life is pretty chaotic in Timbuktu where Ali Haji Amadu lives with his wives, children and their many animals. They have one dangle-tailed donkey, two snaggle-toothed camels, three curvy-horned cows, four wobble-legged lambs and five goggle-eyed goats. That would probably be enough if the goats were not so troublesome and mischievous, munching and chewing everything in sight. At the insistence of his three wives, Fama, Rama and Sama, Ali Haji sets off to Mopti Market with the intention of selling the goats. It's a long trek but he finally arrives early the following morning and tries to find someone to buy them. It's not as easy as he expects though, especially when certain members of his family, having followed him, decide to intervene. It seems that the goats are wanted after all even though there is always such a hullabaloo when they are around.
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|summary=Elsie and her little brother David loved to go to the park and watch the red buses drive pastElsie would race the buses along the side of the park but David couldn't - he'd been born with cerebral palsy and even just standing up was very difficult.  One day Elsie spotted a bus in the toy shop window which would help David - and was happy to use the coins from her money box to pay for it as cash was tight at home. Gradually, David learned to stand up, use the bus for support, and walk behind it. Many decades later, Elsie brought the bus, now damaged and rusted, to the Repair Shop, hoping that the experts there could make it so that her grandchildren could play with it.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849392935</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1529504767
|author=Ronda Armitage and Andrew Gordon
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|title=The Christmas Doll (The Repair Shop Stories)
|title=Wave the Flag and Blow the Whistle
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|author=Amy Sparkes and Katie Hickey
|rating=3.5
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|rating=5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=A little boy and his grandad, and a spotty giraffe toy go out one day for a ride on a trainThey're off on a journey to Blueberry HillWhat will they see?  What will they do?  All the excitement of travelling by train are looked at in this story!
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|summary=Susan was very young when she was evacuated from London in 1939 and nervous about how she would be greeted when she got to her final destination.  She needn't have worried though as she went to the home of Mr and Mrs Russell, who couldn't have been kinder to her.  She even had her own room - all to herself.  Gradually she relaxed and began to enjoy her lifeShe'd help Mrs Russell with the baking and when it came to Christmas Eve Susan and Mr Russell put the decorations on the Christmas treeThe best surprise happened the following morning.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1405253401</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1916459943
|author=David Lucas
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|title=Squeakily Baby
|title=The Lying Carpet
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|author=Beth Webb
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
|genre=Confident Readers
 
|summary=There is a room in a big old house where nothing moves but the insects.  An empty chair sits to one side, a stone statue of a girl called, and representing, Faith, the other.  In between is a tiger rug.  What potential is in that for the setting of a charming book?  What potential indeed...
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849390177</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
{{newreview
 
|author=Debbie Foy
 
|title=Pants, Vest, Getting Dressed! (All By Myself)
 
|rating=3.5
 
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Have you ever noticed that there are certain processes which a child needs to master but which cause quite a lot of grief along the way?  Most children are alright with one or two but stick on others - and they're the ones which parents come to dread each dayGetting dressed is one of these.  The need for it isn't immediately obvious and - let's be honest - there's not a lot of fun in it is there?  Well - that might be about to change with a series of books from Debbie Foy which inject some fun into the processes.
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|summary=Much as mothers love their babies, there's something they all dread - a squeakily baby.  He's so tired but he can't - or won't - go to sleep: instead, he just lies on his blanket and ''wails''.  The sea offers to help.  It rocks Baby gently and the waves sing ''hush, hush''Think of gentle wavelets falling onto a sandy beach and you have the sound perfectly.  The mermaids join in - ''la lou, la lay...''  And for a moment it seems to have worked as Baby closes his eyes.  Then a seagull '''shouts''' and we know exactly what's going to happen next.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0750265817</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=140639131X
|author=Charlotte Middleton
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|title=A Practical Present for Philippa Pheasant
|title=Christopher's Caterpillars
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|author=Briony May Smith
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Christopher Nibble, a charming little guinea pig, loves gardening with his friend Posie. When they find six munching caterpillars on their plants though they decide that they cannot stay and choose to keep them as pets instead. They make a list of the things that they think that the caterpillars will need such as woolly socks and mini hairbrushes. When they visit Mr Rosetti, who runs the local café, he puts them straight and suggests that they get some clean jars, juicy leaves, twigs, and make lids with holes in them instead. They now know exactly what to do in order to look after their new pets and they do – very carefully.  
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|summary=Philippa Pheasant was ''tired'' of nearly getting squished as she tried to cross the Old Oak Road.  She wrote to the mayor about the problem but didn't even get a reply. Philippa wasn't a bird to sit back on her tail feathers when there was a problem which needed solving: she saw the benefits of the lollipop lady at the school crossing and decided that she would set up something similar herself. Her uniform and lollipop stick were both a little amateur to start with but the benefits were obvious. All the animals used the crossing and Hedgehog was even trained up to provide a safe path overnight.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0192732315</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1776574338
|author=Gerry Boland
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|title=Leilong's Too Long!
|title=Marco Moves In (A Rather Remarkable Grizzly Bear)
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|author=Julia Liu and Bei Lynn
|rating=4.5
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|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=
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|summary=Every morning Leilong, the brontosaurus school bus, makes his way through the city, picking up children as he goes.  Children who live at the top of tower blocks don't even need to go downstairs – they simply climb out of the window and slide down his neck.  It's perfect, isn't it?  What could be a more fun way of going to school?  There is a problem, though. Leilong isn't happy in the city: he's always having to be careful about where he puts his feet and – because he's longer than a tennis court – he often causes damage without intending to and traffic regularly gets snarled up. The school decides that he can't be the bus anymore.
''It's not every day that a grizzly bear turns up on your doorstep.'' Yet, this is exactly what happens one night at Patrick'shouse. The grizzly bear, Marco, has escaped from the local zoo and is looking for somewhere to live. The entire town is on the lookout and a grizzly can be rather hard to hide. After a host of close calls, Patrick and Marco find the perfect place.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847172296</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1776574028
|author=David McKee
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|title=Bumblebee Grumblebee
|title=Elmer's First Counting Book
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|author=David Elliott
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=It's a lovely board book in the ''Elmer'' series and a lovely way of introducing the youngest readers to the patchwork elephant although there's only one of him and as this is a counting book he only gets to feature on the front and back covers and the first page.
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|summary=I love a good board book''Bumblebee Grumblebee'' is aimed at quite a niche market: it's for the child who still enjoys board books (er, see my first sentence) but has mastered sufficient language skills to have realise that you can ''play'' with words and make something quite different from each one.  We have the elephant who dons a tutu - and becomes a ''balletphant''.  The buffalo who has had a bath (complete with yellow duck) and then dries off with a hair drier becomes a ''fluffalo''.  The rhinoceros who drops his ice cream cone is a ''crynoceros'' (think about it!)  The pelican who sits on his potty changes into a ''sm.......''  OK, let's not go there  Some people are eating!
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1842706306</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1838226834
|author=Alison Murray
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|title=Carried Away With the Carnival
|title=Little Mouse
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|author=Ed Boxall
|rating=5
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|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary='Sometimes, when I am being very quiet and cuddly, my mummy calls me her little mouse'Although mostly, Little Mouse is anything but quiet, just as you would expect from a pre-school age child; she can waddle like a penguin, eat like a horse and splash like a whale in author Alison Murray's gorgeous wander through the daytime exploits of an imaginative little girl, who likes to turn the plainest of activities into something fun and adventurous, becoming her favourite animals en route.
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|summary=It was one of those memories we treasure from our childhoods: an outing with our grandparents. They're there to undo all the good that parents do, so the trips out were always so much funA young boy was going to the carnival with his Grandad, who told him:
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1408316331</amazonuk>
 
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{{newreview
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''It'll be brilliant, just remember, don't let go of my hand.''
|author=Helen Stephens
 
|title=The Big Adventure of the Smalls
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|summary=Paul and Sally Small live in Small Hall; except Small Hall isn't very small… It's HUGE!  On one especially special night – the night of the Small Hall Grand Ball – Paul and Sally Small are having a peek at the guests arriving, when disaster strikes!  Paul's beloved bear, Mr Puddles, falls through the banisters and into the throng.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1405254203</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=B09MYXSRV4
|author=Tariq Kurd and Laura Robertson
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|title=Otter's Coat: The Real Reason Turtle Raced Rabbit: A Cherolachian Tortoise and Hare
|title=The Quest In A Vest (Gordon the Goblin)
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|author=Cordellya Smith
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
|genre=Confident Readers
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|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Gordon the Goblin is more than a little fed up because he is so small and not big and tough like all of the other goblins. They are all fearless hunters and go off on exciting adventures whilst Gordon is left behind. He decides that there is nothing else for it but to set out on his very own quest even though he feels very nervous at the thought of it. He approaches the chief goblin who laughs at him, before deciding to send him off to capture a dragon – not for one moment thinking that Gordon will succeed. It does look like an impossible feat especially as Gordon does lack strength and muscles. Maybe though, he will be able to use his brains and charm rather than relying on brute force. Will Gordon be able to find a dragon and actually persuade him that he wants to be captured and what will happen if he does?
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|summary=When the world was made, the animals were given gifts. Bear was given strength so that he could become a protector. Water Spider received a strong web that even fire could not burn.  Owl had excellent sight so that he could see the present ''and'' the future. Rabbit developed intelligence - but, unfortunately,  not the ability to use it well. He liked to trick other animals.  He was also jealous which was how he came to be in a race with Turtle.  You might think that's not a fair contest but wait and see.  Things are not always as they seem.  I'll tell you how it came about.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1907762051</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|author=Rob Keeley
|author=Rachel Bright
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|title= Carrots Don’t Grow On Trees!
|title=Love Monster
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|rating= 4
|rating=4.5
 
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=At the start of this lovely book, the reader meets a red googly-eyed monster who is a 'bit funny looking to say the least'. Unfortunately for him, he lives in a world of cute looking things which only make his strange unorthodox looks more noticeable. He feels lonely when he sees that everyone loves the cute bunnies, kittens and puppies who live close by but no one seems to love him. Rather than be downhearted though, he decides to set out to find someone who will love him.
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|summary= Lily loves eating fruit and vegetables. She likes carrots, broccoli, cabbage and aubergines. When her friends at school turn up their noses, Lily is keen to explain how good they are for you and how nice to eat. One day, poor Lily gets tricked by Jordan, who tells her that carrots grow on trees. Infuriated, Lily checks with the teacher, who explains that fruits grow on trees and vegetables, like carrots, grow in the ground. Jordan says, "I did try to tell her, Miss!" and everyone laughs at poor Lily.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0007445466</amazonuk>
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|isbn= B09HHN541V
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=B09FFJF8YS
|author=David Bedford and Tor Freeman
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|title=You Can't Wear Panties! (No More Nappies!)
|title=Babies Don't Bite
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|author=Justine Avery and Kate Zhoidik
 
|rating=3.5
 
|rating=3.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Hegley the pony is excited.  His mummy is having a baby!  His friends, however, don't seem to share his excitement...their mums are all having babies too, but they know that babies just mean trouble!
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|summary=''For the big, grownup girls out there, the potty masters in training, "You Can't Wear Panties!" is a cry (the big-girl kind!) of toilet triumph and persevering panty pride.''
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1444903527</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
 
|author=Gervase Phinn and Tony Ross
 
|title=Who Am I?
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|summary=When a funny little creature hatches out of an egg deep in the jungle, all alone, he sets off to try and discover who he is.  Wandering through the jungle he meets lots of different creatures and he asks each of them ''Who'' ''am'' ''I?'' but they are all mystified, able only to tell them who they are.  Will he ever meet another creature just like him?
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849392889</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
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And so it is! This latest book from Justine Avery celebrates a little girl's final goodbye to nappies and pull-ups and graduation to "proper" pants by following her around as she proudly explains to her dog, her cat, her stuffed rabbit and her baby sibling that ''she'' can wear super-duper proper pants, while they cannot. Neither can the flowers, nor the fish, nor the birds. Boy's certainly can't. She's a big girl now and she wants everyone to know it!
|author=Rachel Mortimer and Liz Pichon
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}}
|title=Red Riding Hood and the Sweet Little Wolf
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{{Frontpage
|rating=4.5
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|author= Justine Avery and Naday Meldova
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|title=Everybody Toots! (Everybody Potties!)
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|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary='Once upon a time there was a Big Bad Wolf who lived in the woods. Well. That's not quite true... Really, she was a Sweet Little Wolf who loved all things pretty and pink, especially fairy tales.'
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|summary= Toots, trumps, farts. Whatever your word for them, find us a child that doesn't find them irresistibly funny. Funny to talk about and joke about, that is. But horribly embarrassing if you let one go at the wrong time. In class, say, when everyone will hear it and everyone will laugh. At you. Justine Avery's latest entry in her ''Everybody Potties!'' series takes aim at any shame associated with tooting and gently and calmly, with the familiar humour attached, explains that tooting is perfectly normal. Everybody does it: ''Everybody Toots''!
 
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|isbn= B09C2RVJ2W
From the very start of this wonderful book the reader discovers that not all wolves are big and bad and is introduced to the sweetest, mildest wolf that ever lived. The only problem is that her parents are big and bad and they want her to be exactly like them. This is why they send her out with a shopping list for dinner which along with the onions, potatoes and carrots includes 'one little girl (tender and juicy)'
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}}
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1444900668</amazonuk>
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{{Frontpage
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|isbn= B09BG8V3Q6
 
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|title= Who Needs Nappies? Not Me! (Everybody Potties!)
{{newreview
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|author= Justine Avery and Seema Amjad
|author=Chris Judge
 
|title=The Great Explorer
 
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=I really enjoyed Chris Judge's first book, [[The Lonely Beast by Chris Judge|The Lonely Beast]] so I was excited to pick up his latest story. This time we're following the story of a young boy called Tom. His dad, a famous explorer, has gone missing at the North Pole and so Tom sets out to find himHis adventurous, exciting journey sees him facing dangerous animals and the treacherous terrain. Will he make it to find his dad?
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|summary= ''Who Needs Nappies? Not Me!'' is the latest release in the ''Everybody Potties!'' series from Justine Avery. This series of fun picture books aims to take the pain out of potty training children and replace it with some fun. It's a worthy aim, as any frustrated parent will tell you.  .
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849394016</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=B07GZ81J7C
|author=Micah Player
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|title=When Fred the Snake Got Squished and Mended
|title=Chloe, Instead
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|author=Peter Cotton
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=When Molly imagined her little sister she thought she'd be someone just like her, but instead she got Chloe! Molly loves to draw, Chloe loves to eat the crayons! Molly loves books, and so does Chloe but in a rather more page-ripping way!  This lovely story looks at an older sibling trying to cope with her shattered expectations of what having a little sister would be like.
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|summary=Meet Fred.  Well, actually, you're going to be meeting Fred-Fred for reasons which will become all too obvious very quickly.  But I'm getting ahead of myself: I'd better tell you a bit more about Fred. Fred is a snake and even those of us who have a phobia about snakes are going to warm to him. He arrived as a present in a box with holes so that he could breathe and immediately became part of the family, to the extent that they would take Fred out with them when they went out for a walk.  And that was where the problem started.  Fred didn't have any road sense.  Or brakes.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0811878651</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|author= Justine Avery and Naday Meldova
|author=Jonathan Emmett and Steve Cox
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|title= Everybody Pees! (Everybody Potties!)
|title=The Treasure of Captain Claw
 
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=This is the story of what happens when two dogs, Oscar and Lily, are on holiday together and come across an old treasure map.  In their adventurous quest to find the treasure they are captured by pirates but they cleverly manage to outwit them in a way which leads to a laugh-out-loud conclusion to the story!
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|summary= Can potty training ever be joyous? It often isn't, as any parent will tell you. But really, why shouldn't it be? We all have to learn about our bodily functions just as we have to learn about everything else when we are small. Why shouldn't potty training be as much fun as, say, learning about why the sun and the moon take turns in the sky?
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1846167418</amazonuk>
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|isbn= B098BJZYHH
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|author=Justine Avery and Naday Meldova
|author=Val McDermid and Arthur Robins
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|title=No, No, No!
|title=My Granny is a Pirate
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|rating=4
|rating=4.5
 
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=It seems the pirate phase is something all small children go through at some point. My daughter spent several months dressed as a pirate, completing her outfit with a knitted eye patch, which she asked my mum to knit for her, swiftly followed by a knitted parrot!  It is rather fun to run around shouting 'Arrrrrrrrrr me hearties!' actually, so I can see the appeal.  Anyway, this story caters beautifully for all the little wannabe pirates out there and tells of one little boy's granny and her secret life story.
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|summary=They say the best picture books are the simplest ones. And nothing could be truer of this latest from Justine Avery, a Bookbag favourite.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1408309262</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
+
''No, No, No!'' is based around the simplest text imaginable.
|author=Giles Andreae and Vanessa Cabban
 
|title=There's a House Inside My Mummy
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|summary=The arrival of a new sibling can be a tricky time in any child's life, but this lovely book helps ease the way for a new baby and explains about pregnancy in a very easy, funny way that is perfect for sharing with toddlers.  The idea of there being a house inside mummy's tummy is a clever one, and instantly understandable by small children, and the loving family relationship that is depicted in the story is wonderful to see.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1408315882</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
+
''No, no, no! Okay, okay. Yes, you may.''
|author=Sandra Horn and Ken Brown
 
|title=Tattybogle
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|summary=At the start of this story, Tattybogle stands in the middle of the field in which he has stood for a long time. He is made of sticks and sacks, wears the farmer's old clothes and his head is full of straw and cheerful thoughts. It would seem that this scarecrow's life is a very good one especially when the wind blows because he likes a bit of a dance. He also likes the rain and when the stars twinkle at night.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1842706853</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
+
That's it! But, like all the best picture books, this tiny snippet of text is a veritable tardis - so much bigger on the inside that it appears on the outside.
|author=Stephen Mackey
+
|isbn=1638820457
|title=Pushka
 
|rating=3.5
 
|genre=Confident Readers
 
|summary=The circus train is coming to town and little Pushka is asleep in the last wagon. Unfortunately, he topples out and wakes up in fright amongst the enchanted trees of the forest. He is scared by enormous thuds on the ground but then he spies a beautiful dancing girl and instantly falls in love. Little does he know that the lovely girl, Lulu, is a puppet and there is an evil giant controlling her strings and using her to lure Pushka to danger. He finds himself in a lot of trouble when he is enticed into the giant's oven with its fierce burning flames. Luckily, the giant does not reckon on the strength of the love that Lulu feels for her new friend, at it is the power of this that helps her to save him.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1444901346</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=194812467X
|author=Hiawyn Oram and David Melling
+
|title=The Farm Shop
|title=The Totally Terrifying Three
+
|author=Devon Avery, Justine Avery and Ema Tepic
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=This story sees the gathering together of three unlikely friends: a dragon, a witch and a giant. They all consider themselves to be TOTALLY TERRIFYING, yet when they meet each other, they're not scared. As they wander around together they come across a toddler. She isn't phased by any of them and the totally terrifying three soon find themselves entertaining her with a shoulder ride, a trip on the broomstick and a sweetly crooned dragon lullaby. It seems the three friends are not so terrifying after all!
+
|summary=Kirelle and her best friend Sam the cat decide to go for a walk. Kirelle is dressed for all weathers in her bright yellow wellies and Sam is perfectly turned out as ever in his smart grey fur coat. As they walk to the top of the hill, they see a big barn with a sign outside. It's a farm shop! But this is a farm shop with a difference: all the stallholders and customers are farmyard animals. There are sheep and ducks and cows, goats and chickens, and even some mice. Excited, Kirelle and Sam go shopping.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1444903020</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
+
What will they buy?
|author=Paul Geraghty
 
|title=Slobcat
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|summary=''Slobcat is our cat.''<br>
 
''He does nothing but lie''<br>
 
''about and sleep.''
 
 
 
Well that is what the little girl who tells this wonderful story about a most endearing cat thinks. Actually, she is quite wrong, as the reader discovers, as the story progresses. Because she and the rest of the family only see him lazing around and sleeping, they have named him Slobcat. It is a term of affection though as they do really love their cat, even though they have got him quite wrong. She tells the reader that Slobcat is too lazy to eat his dinner; often comes home soaking wet because he can't be bothered to shelter from the rain and he would be totally useless if there were any rats or mice that might need catching.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849393885</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
+
{{Frontpage
|author=Kes Gray and Lee Wildish
+
|isbn=0995647895
|title=Leave Me Alone
+
|title=Sadie and the Sea Dogs
 +
|author=Maureen Duffy and Anita Joice
 
|rating=3.5
 
|rating=3.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=A young boy sits in a field, and to every advance by the animal friends around him he declares 'Leave me alone.'  He finally explains that his problems are too big for anyone to help him with because his problem is a giant who bullies and teases him.  When the bully appears the animals gather together and tell him to leave the boy alone.
+
|summary=Sadie's mother always said that she was a dreamer, her mind never on what she should be doing.  She lives by the River Thames at Greenwich and she loves to spend hours at The Maritime Museum or gazing at Cutty Sark.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1444900145</amazonuk>
+
 
 +
''Her class had gone one rainy afternoon''<br>
 +
''When all the houses cowered in the gloom,''<br>
 +
''To the Maritime Museum''.  
 +
 +
Her imagination was fired.  She'd love to sail the oceans on an ancient sailing ship and went back regularly. One day she fell asleep under a glass case (it's the one where Nelson's Trafalgar breeches are on show) and missed the closing bell and the attendant's warning shout.  When she woke (hard floors don't make comfy beds) she was in the midst of an adventure that she could never have imagined in a world of dolphins, pirates, mermaids and treasure.
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=1782227741
|author=Kes Gray and Mary McQuillan
+
|title=Little Gold Ted
|title=Pedro The Penguin (Get Well Friends)
+
|author=Vanessa Wiercioch, Poppy Satha and Sasha Satha
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=It is a beautiful Polar morning. The sun is shining, the icebergs are glistening, and Pedro decides to start the day with an early morning swim! He gets ready to dive in, tucks in his tummy, point his beak to the sky, and dives high, high, high into the air. But oh dear. He forgot to break the ice before diving in! CRUNCH! But don't worry, with a little help from Nurse Nibbles and his Get Well Friends, he'll soon be feeling better.
+
|summary=One day, Gold Ted falls into a puddle. It's quite a deep puddle and the water is swirling. Poor Ted starts to spin around and around and is sucked down a drain on the side of the street. Finding himself  down in the sewer, Ted starts to panic. ''OH HELP ME PLEASE'' he cries and alerts the attention of Reg the sewer rat, who plucks him out of the dirty water using his cane, which might look just a bit like an old cricket bat. Reg is a kind soul and he dries Ted off and warms him up with a nice bowl of broth.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1444900226</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
 
{{newreview
 
|author=Kes Gray and Mary McQuillan
 
|title=Zoe the Zebra (Get Well Friends)
 
|rating=3
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|summary=It was a beautiful day in Africa. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and all the zebras were peacefully eating their lunch. All except for Zoe who is so busy looking out for big, scary animals that she isn't looking where she is going and trips up over a teeny-tiny tortoise!  However, Nurse Nibbles is on hand and with the Get Well Friends it seems that Zoe will soon be on the mend.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1444900250</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=B08R7LXQ9S
|author=Kristina Stephenson
+
|title=Remy: A book about believing in yourself
|title=Sir Charlie Stinky Socks and the Tale of the Terrible Secret
+
|author=Mayuri Naidoo and Caroline Siegal
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=The brave and bold Sir Charlie Stinky Socks and his companions - who are, as I am sure you already know by now, his good grey mare and his pet cat, Envelope - are led to a castle that teeters on top of a hill from which strange cries are heard. Sir Charlie knows that even though he is a bit scared, he must be brave and put right the terrible thing that has happened in the tall, tall tower (with the pointy roof). And so our hero's tale begins…
+
|summary=Remy is feeling miserable. He's let himself down ''again''. The school bully Jayden,  together with his sidekicks Ryan and Brandon, have been laughing at Remy, calling him names because he is short and has small eyes. They are mean but they are not stupid. They are careful to wind up Remy when nobody can see and then push him just that little bit further when the other kids are around. So, when Remy reacts, it looks as though he was the instigator. And then he gets into trouble at school and the teachers don't believe him when he tries to explain what happened.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1405253975</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=1471191303
|author=Adele Geras, Anne Fine, Henrietta Branford, Jacqueline Wilson, Malorie Blackman, Philip Pullman, Tony Mitton, Alan Garner, Berlie Doherty, Gillian Cross, Kit Wright, Michael Morpurgo, Susan Gates and Linda Newbery
+
|title=The Invisible
|title=Magic Beans
+
|author=Tom Percival
|rating=4
+
|rating=5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=I was attracted to this book because it features stories from [[:Category:Jacqueline Wilson|Jacqueline Wilson]], [[:Category:Philip Pullman|Philip Pullman]], [[:Category:Michael Morpurgo|Michael Morpurgo]], [[:Category:Alan Garner|Alan Garner]] and many other prominent children's writersI thought it might make a great Christmas or birthday present (and it would).  There's a selection of stories from traditional sources such as Hans Christian Andersen, and Aesop, and I imagine that the authors were inveigled into writing for publisher David Fickling with a free choice of original stories.  So don't expect a collection or compendium, but rather an anthology of tales that have entranced and inspired these writers in their own childhoods  – magic beans indeed.
+
|summary=This is the story of Isobel, a little girl who made a big differenceIsobel lived with her parents in a house - a very cold house, because her parents couldn't afford to put the heating on:
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0857560433</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
+
''Ice curled across the inside of the window and crept up the corner of the bedpost.''
|author=Steve Backshall
 
|title=Predators
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|summary=Many readers would probably know that on the simple count of humans they helped to dispatch, mosquitoes may be the most deadly animals ever. But did you know that if you take into account the success rate of hunts, diversity and spread, ladybirds are more successful predators than tigers?
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1444004174</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
+
The family didn't go to the cinema or on holidays but they had each other and they were happy. Then the day came when they couldn't afford the rent for the house and they had to move to the far side of the cityThis part of the city was cold, sad and lonely and Isobel felt invisible.
|author=Rod Campbell
 
|title=Dear Zoo (Noisy Book)
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|summary=There is something slightly unsettling about the notion of a noisy book; the very idea that you can make a racket with something intended as a quiet pastime is a tiny bit of an oxymoron for meBut not, of course, for your average toddler (let's assume that we are disregarding the din they are able to make just by banging a fair sized hardback such as this, on the table!)  And I've never met a child who did not like a book with interactive buttons and flaps – never.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0230757650</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|author=Nick Jones and Si Clark
|author=Michael Foreman
+
|title=One Night in Beartown
|title=Cat on the Hill
+
|rating=4
|rating=3.5
 
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=The story is told through the eyes of the nameless cat. It starts in Summer when he tells how he loves living at the top of the hill with its tremendous views of the sea and the constant visitors who are only too happy to share their sandwiches and the drips from their ice creams. Life is good even with horrible squawky gulls trying to steal his food. He explains how he used to be a ship's cat until both the skipper and the ship became too old to sail the seas.
+
|summary= Many children have an obsession and Sandy Lane, who lives in Beartown, is obsessed with bears. She collects books about bears. Her favourite toy is Berisford, a teddy bear passed down by her grandmother. Every night, she looks out of her bedroom window and says goodnight to the bear statue outside. Every morning she says hello to Bee Bear, a colourful painted bear that lives at her school. She even has bears on her bedroom wallpaper!
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1842704710</amazonuk>
+
|isbn=B08NFH7H9X
}}
+
}}
  
{{newreview
+
Move on to [[Newest General Fiction Reviews]]
|author=James McKnight and Mark Chambers
 
|title=The Day The Gogglynipper Escaped
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|summary=
 
One day, when rounding up the rather dangerous and often very smelly Gogglynippers, Diggle discovers that there are only nine of the purple monsters, instead of ten.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849564507</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
 
{{newreview
 
|author=Neil Griffiths and Peggy Collins
 
|title=Don't Invite Dinosaurs To Dinner
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|summary=Don't invite dinosaurs to dinner, or take them to the shops… don't take them to a football match, or to sports day, or to the zoo …. In fact, '''DON'T''' take a dinosaur anywhere because, as you will find out, it's a really, really bad idea!
 
I've got to tell you now, that I really love this book – firstly, the stanzas are the well-paced rhyming variety and not your ''moon'', ''June'', ''spoon'' assortment of verse, either, which was a pleasant surprise and went down very well in our house and secondly there are fold out flaps which are huge and beautifully illustrated, often with hilarious punch lines lurking inside.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1905434847</amazonuk>
 
}}
 

Latest revision as of 09:24, 2 December 2023

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Review of

Murray and Bun by Adam Stower

4.5star.jpg Confident Readers

Murray is supposed to be a humble, tidy and friendly cat, one who is able to sleep and eat and eat and sleep and, well, whatever takes his fancy next of the two. But he's a bad magician's cat, so his favourite bun has been turned into a hyperactive sticky rabbit called Bun, and the catflap they both use can chuck them out, not into the regular back garden, but into a world of frightening adventure and whiffs. This time round it drops them into a Viking land, where a troll hunter is expected – well, one much bigger than Murray was, to be honest, but he's turned up and he'll have to do… Full Review

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Review of

The Adventures of Birpus and Bulbus: Book One: The Sour Milk Dragon by Wynn Everett-Albanese, Michael Albanese and Indre Ta (Illustrator)

4star.jpg For Sharing

When we first meet Birpus and Bulbus they're running for their lives in the Forest of Fine Repute. Their greatest fear has come about: the Sour Milk Dragon is chasing them. He's right behind them, spewing hot, sour milk from his nostrils. (Please don't try this at home: it won't end well.) Fortunately, they were nearly at Nobby Lob-lolly - and when a ladder of moss and vines was lowered for them, they escaped. They climbed up to the Tree Wee homes high up in the tangled woods where they lived with their Grand Wees, Nester Nook and Granny Cranny. Full Review

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Review of

On the Beach: The Winter Visitor by Chris Green and Jenny Fionda

5star.jpg For Sharing

Kit and Teal were just beginning to wonder whether it was better to be at home, bored but warm, or frozen cold and building sand sculptures on a snowy beach when a large slab of silvery ice drifted onto the shoreline. On top of the ice was a polar bear. As the ice bumped onto the sand, the bear woke and with wobbly legs moved from the ice. Kit was all for making a run for it, but Teal knew that the bear was hungry and gave him one apple and then another. He obviously needed to be taken home on the bus and given a good meal and somewhere to sleep. What else would you do? Full Review

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Review of

Let's Celebrate Being Different by Lainey Dee

3.5star.jpg For Sharing

Todd was excited about spending the weekend with his grandmother, not least because she made the best beetle juice. He packed two pairs of dungarees and his favourite hat and then gathered together his button collection to show his grandmother. She had promised to take him to the Friday Night Club at the local community centre and Todd was pleased about this as he wanted to make new friends. At home, his only friend was his mum and he wondered why that could be. Grandma thought that it might be because he looked different. Full Review

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Review of

The Toy Bus (The Repair Shop Stories) by Amy Sparkes and Katie Hickey

4.5star.jpg For Sharing

Elsie and her little brother David loved to go to the park and watch the red buses drive past. Elsie would race the buses along the side of the park but David couldn't - he'd been born with cerebral palsy and even just standing up was very difficult. One day Elsie spotted a bus in the toy shop window which would help David - and was happy to use the coins from her money box to pay for it as cash was tight at home. Gradually, David learned to stand up, use the bus for support, and walk behind it. Many decades later, Elsie brought the bus, now damaged and rusted, to the Repair Shop, hoping that the experts there could make it so that her grandchildren could play with it. Full Review

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Review of

The Christmas Doll (The Repair Shop Stories) by Amy Sparkes and Katie Hickey

5star.jpg For Sharing

Susan was very young when she was evacuated from London in 1939 and nervous about how she would be greeted when she got to her final destination. She needn't have worried though as she went to the home of Mr and Mrs Russell, who couldn't have been kinder to her. She even had her own room - all to herself. Gradually she relaxed and began to enjoy her life. She'd help Mrs Russell with the baking and when it came to Christmas Eve Susan and Mr Russell put the decorations on the Christmas tree. The best surprise happened the following morning. Full Review

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Review of

Squeakily Baby by Beth Webb

4star.jpg For Sharing

Much as mothers love their babies, there's something they all dread - a squeakily baby. He's so tired but he can't - or won't - go to sleep: instead, he just lies on his blanket and wails. The sea offers to help. It rocks Baby gently and the waves sing hush, hush. Think of gentle wavelets falling onto a sandy beach and you have the sound perfectly. The mermaids join in - la lou, la lay... And for a moment it seems to have worked as Baby closes his eyes. Then a seagull shouts and we know exactly what's going to happen next. Full Review

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Review of

A Practical Present for Philippa Pheasant by Briony May Smith

4.5star.jpg For Sharing

Philippa Pheasant was tired of nearly getting squished as she tried to cross the Old Oak Road. She wrote to the mayor about the problem but didn't even get a reply. Philippa wasn't a bird to sit back on her tail feathers when there was a problem which needed solving: she saw the benefits of the lollipop lady at the school crossing and decided that she would set up something similar herself. Her uniform and lollipop stick were both a little amateur to start with but the benefits were obvious. All the animals used the crossing and Hedgehog was even trained up to provide a safe path overnight. Full Review

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Review of

Leilong's Too Long! by Julia Liu and Bei Lynn

4star.jpg For Sharing

Every morning Leilong, the brontosaurus school bus, makes his way through the city, picking up children as he goes. Children who live at the top of tower blocks don't even need to go downstairs – they simply climb out of the window and slide down his neck. It's perfect, isn't it? What could be a more fun way of going to school? There is a problem, though. Leilong isn't happy in the city: he's always having to be careful about where he puts his feet and – because he's longer than a tennis court – he often causes damage without intending to and traffic regularly gets snarled up. The school decides that he can't be the bus anymore. Full Review

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Review of

Bumblebee Grumblebee by David Elliott

4star.jpg For Sharing

I love a good board book! Bumblebee Grumblebee is aimed at quite a niche market: it's for the child who still enjoys board books (er, see my first sentence) but has mastered sufficient language skills to have realise that you can play with words and make something quite different from each one. We have the elephant who dons a tutu - and becomes a balletphant. The buffalo who has had a bath (complete with yellow duck) and then dries off with a hair drier becomes a fluffalo. The rhinoceros who drops his ice cream cone is a crynoceros (think about it!) The pelican who sits on his potty changes into a sm....... OK, let's not go there Some people are eating! Full Review

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Review of

Carried Away With the Carnival by Ed Boxall

4star.jpg For Sharing

It was one of those memories we treasure from our childhoods: an outing with our grandparents. They're there to undo all the good that parents do, so the trips out were always so much fun. A young boy was going to the carnival with his Grandad, who told him:

It'll be brilliant, just remember, don't let go of my hand. Full Review

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Review of

Otter's Coat: The Real Reason Turtle Raced Rabbit: A Cherolachian Tortoise and Hare by Cordellya Smith

4star.jpg For Sharing

When the world was made, the animals were given gifts. Bear was given strength so that he could become a protector. Water Spider received a strong web that even fire could not burn. Owl had excellent sight so that he could see the present and the future. Rabbit developed intelligence - but, unfortunately, not the ability to use it well. He liked to trick other animals. He was also jealous which was how he came to be in a race with Turtle. You might think that's not a fair contest but wait and see. Things are not always as they seem. I'll tell you how it came about. Full Review

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Review of

Carrots Don’t Grow On Trees! by Rob Keeley

4star.jpg For Sharing

Lily loves eating fruit and vegetables. She likes carrots, broccoli, cabbage and aubergines. When her friends at school turn up their noses, Lily is keen to explain how good they are for you and how nice to eat. One day, poor Lily gets tricked by Jordan, who tells her that carrots grow on trees. Infuriated, Lily checks with the teacher, who explains that fruits grow on trees and vegetables, like carrots, grow in the ground. Jordan says, "I did try to tell her, Miss!" and everyone laughs at poor Lily. Full Review

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Review of

You Can't Wear Panties! (No More Nappies!) by Justine Avery and Kate Zhoidik

3.5star.jpg For Sharing

For the big, grownup girls out there, the potty masters in training, "You Can't Wear Panties!" is a cry (the big-girl kind!) of toilet triumph and persevering panty pride.


And so it is! This latest book from Justine Avery celebrates a little girl's final goodbye to nappies and pull-ups and graduation to "proper" pants by following her around as she proudly explains to her dog, her cat, her stuffed rabbit and her baby sibling that she can wear super-duper proper pants, while they cannot. Neither can the flowers, nor the fish, nor the birds. Boy's certainly can't. She's a big girl now and she wants everyone to know it! Full Review

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Review of

Everybody Toots! (Everybody Potties!) by Justine Avery and Naday Meldova

4star.jpg For Sharing

Toots, trumps, farts. Whatever your word for them, find us a child that doesn't find them irresistibly funny. Funny to talk about and joke about, that is. But horribly embarrassing if you let one go at the wrong time. In class, say, when everyone will hear it and everyone will laugh. At you. Justine Avery's latest entry in her Everybody Potties! series takes aim at any shame associated with tooting and gently and calmly, with the familiar humour attached, explains that tooting is perfectly normal. Everybody does it: Everybody Toots! Full Review

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Review of

Who Needs Nappies? Not Me! (Everybody Potties!) by Justine Avery and Seema Amjad

4.5star.jpg For Sharing

Who Needs Nappies? Not Me! is the latest release in the Everybody Potties! series from Justine Avery. This series of fun picture books aims to take the pain out of potty training children and replace it with some fun. It's a worthy aim, as any frustrated parent will tell you. . Full Review

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Review of

When Fred the Snake Got Squished and Mended by Peter Cotton

4.5star.jpg For Sharing

Meet Fred. Well, actually, you're going to be meeting Fred-Fred for reasons which will become all too obvious very quickly. But I'm getting ahead of myself: I'd better tell you a bit more about Fred. Fred is a snake and even those of us who have a phobia about snakes are going to warm to him. He arrived as a present in a box with holes so that he could breathe and immediately became part of the family, to the extent that they would take Fred out with them when they went out for a walk. And that was where the problem started. Fred didn't have any road sense. Or brakes. Full Review

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Review of

Everybody Pees! (Everybody Potties!) by Justine Avery and Naday Meldova

4star.jpg For Sharing

Can potty training ever be joyous? It often isn't, as any parent will tell you. But really, why shouldn't it be? We all have to learn about our bodily functions just as we have to learn about everything else when we are small. Why shouldn't potty training be as much fun as, say, learning about why the sun and the moon take turns in the sky? Full Review

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Review of

No, No, No! by Justine Avery and Naday Meldova

4star.jpg For Sharing

They say the best picture books are the simplest ones. And nothing could be truer of this latest from Justine Avery, a Bookbag favourite.

No, No, No! is based around the simplest text imaginable.

No, no, no! Okay, okay. Yes, you may.

That's it! But, like all the best picture books, this tiny snippet of text is a veritable tardis - so much bigger on the inside that it appears on the outside. Full Review

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Review of

The Farm Shop by Devon Avery, Justine Avery and Ema Tepic

4star.jpg For Sharing

Kirelle and her best friend Sam the cat decide to go for a walk. Kirelle is dressed for all weathers in her bright yellow wellies and Sam is perfectly turned out as ever in his smart grey fur coat. As they walk to the top of the hill, they see a big barn with a sign outside. It's a farm shop! But this is a farm shop with a difference: all the stallholders and customers are farmyard animals. There are sheep and ducks and cows, goats and chickens, and even some mice. Excited, Kirelle and Sam go shopping.

What will they buy? Full Review

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Review of

Sadie and the Sea Dogs by Maureen Duffy and Anita Joice

3.5star.jpg For Sharing

Sadie's mother always said that she was a dreamer, her mind never on what she should be doing. She lives by the River Thames at Greenwich and she loves to spend hours at The Maritime Museum or gazing at Cutty Sark.

Her class had gone one rainy afternoon
When all the houses cowered in the gloom,
To the Maritime Museum.

Her imagination was fired. She'd love to sail the oceans on an ancient sailing ship and went back regularly. One day she fell asleep under a glass case (it's the one where Nelson's Trafalgar breeches are on show) and missed the closing bell and the attendant's warning shout. When she woke (hard floors don't make comfy beds) she was in the midst of an adventure that she could never have imagined in a world of dolphins, pirates, mermaids and treasure. Full Review

1782227741.jpg

Review of

Little Gold Ted by Vanessa Wiercioch, Poppy Satha and Sasha Satha

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One day, Gold Ted falls into a puddle. It's quite a deep puddle and the water is swirling. Poor Ted starts to spin around and around and is sucked down a drain on the side of the street. Finding himself down in the sewer, Ted starts to panic. OH HELP ME PLEASE he cries and alerts the attention of Reg the sewer rat, who plucks him out of the dirty water using his cane, which might look just a bit like an old cricket bat. Reg is a kind soul and he dries Ted off and warms him up with a nice bowl of broth. Full Review

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Review of

Remy: A book about believing in yourself by Mayuri Naidoo and Caroline Siegal

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Remy is feeling miserable. He's let himself down again. The school bully Jayden, together with his sidekicks Ryan and Brandon, have been laughing at Remy, calling him names because he is short and has small eyes. They are mean but they are not stupid. They are careful to wind up Remy when nobody can see and then push him just that little bit further when the other kids are around. So, when Remy reacts, it looks as though he was the instigator. And then he gets into trouble at school and the teachers don't believe him when he tries to explain what happened. Full Review

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Review of

The Invisible by Tom Percival

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This is the story of Isobel, a little girl who made a big difference. Isobel lived with her parents in a house - a very cold house, because her parents couldn't afford to put the heating on:

Ice curled across the inside of the window and crept up the corner of the bedpost.

The family didn't go to the cinema or on holidays but they had each other and they were happy. Then the day came when they couldn't afford the rent for the house and they had to move to the far side of the city. This part of the city was cold, sad and lonely and Isobel felt invisible. Full Review

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Review of

One Night in Beartown by Nick Jones and Si Clark

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Many children have an obsession and Sandy Lane, who lives in Beartown, is obsessed with bears. She collects books about bears. Her favourite toy is Berisford, a teddy bear passed down by her grandmother. Every night, she looks out of her bedroom window and says goodnight to the bear statue outside. Every morning she says hello to Bee Bear, a colourful painted bear that lives at her school. She even has bears on her bedroom wallpaper! Full Review

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