Difference between revisions of "Newest Children's Non-Fiction Reviews"

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{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|title=Big Fat Christmas Book (Horrible Histories)
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|isbn=1839948493
|author=Terry Deary and Martin Brown
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|title=A World of Dogs
|rating=3
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|author=Carlie Sorosiak and Luisa Uribe
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|rating=5
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|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
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|summary=In the interests of full disclosure, I must tell you that I'm a sucker for dogs.  In nearly eight decades, I've never met one I didn't trust and I've loved most of them.  I wish I felt the same about human beings.  So, any book about dogs, I'm going to sit down and devour.  Then I'm going to go back and read it properly.  And so it was with ''A World of Dogs'', with ninety-six pages devoted entirely to my four-legged friends.  Author Carlie Sorosiak found herself the accidental owner of an American Dingo - she's learned quite a lot about dogs since then.
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{{Frontpage
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|isbn=1529507987
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|title=The Repair Shop Craft Book
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|author=Walker Books and Sonia Albert (Illustrator)
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|rating=4.5
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|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
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|summary=I love ''The Repair Shop''.  It's my go-to programme when I want to be cheered up.  After a hard day, there's nothing better than watching experts repair treasured items without ever mentioning what they're worth.  You see, the value is in what these possessions are worth to the people who own them and the memories they hold.  No expense appears to be spared and the experts spend as much time and effort as is required to achieve the desired result.  Regular viewers know the experts and they're all brilliant at explaining what it is they're doing.  But how did they start?
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{{Frontpage
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|isbn=024162343X
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|title=Stolen History
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|author=Sathnam Sanghera
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|rating=5
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|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
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|summary=I was the bad company other people got into at school.  I was disruptive in religious education classes because I disputed the existence of a 'god'.  Where was the proof?  In history lessons, it was probably worse still.  Not too long after the end of WWII, I didn't so much want to learn about the British army's successes (and occasional failures, but we didn't dwell on those) in what came to be called 'the colonies' as want to dispute what right the army had to be there in the first place.  Looking back, I still believe I was right - but I regret that I lacked the maturity to approach 'the problem' politely.  I wish I'd had Sathnam Sanghera's ''Stolen History''.
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{{Frontpage
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|author=Jeremy Dronfield and David Ziggy Greene
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|title=Fritz and Kurt
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|rating=4
 
|genre=Confident Readers
 
|genre=Confident Readers
|summary=I was reading Terry Deary before he even started writing the ‘Horrible History’ franchiseIt seems that as I grew out of children’s non-fiction just as he exploded in popularity, selling millions of books in the series and even spawning a successful TV show (that I admit to watching).  It has been years since the first Horrible History book, but they are still popular enough to produce an annual of sorts, but is this a case of annual horribilis?
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|summary=We start with the pair of brothers Fritz and Kurt, and their muckers, doing things any Jewish lad in 1930s Vienna would want to do – kicking things around the empty market place, helping the neighbours, being dutiful when it comes to the synagogue choir and at a vocational schoolKurt has to make sure the lamps are turned on at their very Orthodox neighbours' each Friday night – the Sabbath preventing them for using anything nearly as mechanical and workmanlike as a light switch.  But this is the time just before the Austrian leader is going to cave to Hitler's will, and instead of having a national vote to keep the Nazis out, invite them in with open arms.  ''Kristallnacht'' happened in Vienna just as much as in Germany, as did all the round-ups of Jews.  These in their turn leave the younger Kurt at home with his mother and sisters anxious to hear word of an evacuation to Britain or the US, while Fritz and his father are, unknown initially to each other, packed off on the same train to Buchenwald and the stone quarry there.  And us wondering how the titular event for the adult variant of all this could come about…
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1407147749</amazonuk>
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|isbn=024156574X
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1913750353
|title=The Paint Book
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|title=Britannica's Word of the Day
|author=Miri Flower
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|author=Patrick Kelly, Renee Kelly and Sue Macy
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=Crafts
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|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=Craft blogger Miri Flower challenges bored children everywhere with her lovely new series of art books, which utilise basic materials that can be found in most homes. ''The Paint Book'' outlines seventy simple projects which encourage kids to get crafty and creative with paints. It's going to get messy, so house-proud parents turn away now...
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|summary=''Britannica's Word of the Day'' has a sub-title: ''366 Elevating Utterances to Stretch Your Cranium and Tickle Your Humerus'' which probably tells you all that you need to know about this brilliant book.   It starts on January 1st with ''Razzmatazz'', tells you how to pronounce it (''raz-muh-TAZ''), gives you a definition and then includes the word in a sentence so that you know how it should be used.   You also get an engaging and frequently amusing illustration too. I don't think I've ever encountered a word which uses the letter Z four times before!
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>071123583X</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=0711266204
|title=The Pencil Book
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|title=The Secret Life of Birds
|author=Miri Flower
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|author=Moira Butterfield and Vivian Mineker (illustrator)
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=Crafts
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|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=Summer is almost over. Gone are the carefree days playing outdoors in the sunshine with friends. Here come the rainy days and dark evenings, heralding the inevitable cry of: ''I'm bored!''. Author and craft-blogger Miri Flower (fantastic name!) comes to the rescue of harassed parents everywhere with her new series of art books which encourage children to utilise simple materials to create fun games and artwork. ''The Pencil Book'' sees the humble pencil takes centre stage, with seventy projects to keep kids engaged and amused.
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|summary=I have recently discovered a great pleasure: I sit and watch the vast numbers of birds which visit our garden on a daily basis.  An hour can pass without my noticing.  I've established which species feed from the ground, which pop to the feeders for a quick snatch of some food and who settles in for a good munch but I wish I was more knowledgeable. It would have been wonderful if, as a child, I'd had access to a book such as ''The Secret Life of Birds''. So – what is it?
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0711235848</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=0192779230
|title=Mad About Mega Beasts!
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|title=Very Short Introductions for Curious Young Minds: The Invisible World of Germs
|author=Giles Andreae and David Wojtowycz (Illustrator)
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|author=Isabel Thomas
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=For Sharing
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|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=When I was small I was fascinated with things that were big; big buildings, big vehicles, big animalsHowever, I have recently learnt that there is a size that is bigger than big – megaWhat beasts, both from now and from the past, are large enough to achieve this accolade and be welcomed into the hallowed pages of this book?
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|summary='Germs' seems to have become a catch-all word to cover anything unpleasant which has the potential to make you illIn the first book in what looks to be a very promising new series, OUP and Isabel Thomas have provided a clear and accessible introduction to the world of germsWe get an informed look at how people originally thought about diseases and what they thought caused them and how the thinking has developed over time.  The vocabulary can be confusing but Thomas gives a regular box headed 'speak like a scientist' which explains some of the trickiest concepts and you'll soon be familiar with bacteria, fungi, protists and viruses – and how we should protect ourselves.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1408329352</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1800464495
|title=Book
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|title= 100 Ways in 100 Days to Teach Your Baby Maths: Support All Areas of Your Baby’s Development by Nurturing a Love of Maths
|author=John Agard and Neil Packer (illustrator)
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|author=Emma Smith
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=Meet Book. I'm sure you have many times over, for otherwise you wouldn't be here.  We've met well over 10,000 of them on this website over the past few years of our young life.  I myself have personally reviewed over 1,000 of them in that time (gulp).  Some have been completely enjoyable and spending time with them is like being entertained by a best friend; others have been the equivalent of meeting someone you wouldn't spit on if they were on fire.  But even though Book has talked to me in many different ways in that time, he was yet to tell me exclusively of himself.  This then is Book as historian, as entertainer and again as friend, as Book gives a summary of his own birth, history and current state of play. And I'm sure you agree he has a lot to be proud of.
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|summary=''Babies seem to be born with an amazing number sense: understanding shapes in the womb, being aware of quantities at seven hours old, assessing probability at six months old, and comprehending addition and subtraction at nine months old.''
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0744544785</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
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Did you know this? I didn't! How about:
|title=Animal Lives: Giraffes
 
|author=Sally Morgan
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Animals and Wildlife
 
|summary=The new ''Animal Lives'' series of picture books aims to help young children become animal experts, with each book focusing on a different wild animal. The current series looks at animals of the African savannah and this time it is the turn of the noble giraffe to take centre stage.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781715300</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
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''Maths ability on entry to school is a strong predictor of later achievement, double that of literacy skills.''
|title=Animal Lives: Elephants
 
|author=Sally Morgan
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Animals and Wildlife
 
|summary=The eye-catching image on the cover of this glossy picture book certainly encourages young readers to pick it up and start reading. Two cute baby elephants gaze confidently into the camera lens whilst sharing a trunkful of lush green vegetation. There is just ''something'' about baby elephants, isn't there? Who could resist opening the book for a closer look?
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781715319</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
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I didn't know this either! I think most parents are aware that giving your children a good start in literacy - reading stories, teaching pen grips, singing rhymes - gives children a solid foundation when they start school. But do we think the same way about maths, beyond counting? I don't think we do, in part because so many of us are afraid of maths. But why are we? Most of us use maths in daily life without realising and it follows that giving our children a similar pre-school grounding will be just as beneficial.
|title=Animal Lives: Cheetahs
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|author=Sally Morgan
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{{Frontpage
|rating=4.5
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|isbn=1406395404
|genre=Animals and Wildlife
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|title=The Awesome Power of Sleep: How Sleep Super-Charges Your Teenage Brain
|summary=The first thing that struck me about this book was the excellent use of visuals. Most of the photographs in the book are for a double page spread. The images are crisp and clear and provide a great close-up view of these beautiful cats. Using the photograph as a centrepiece, each two-page section examines a different aspect of cheetah behaviour. Subjects covered include growing up, hunting, territory and cheetahs under threat. The sections have a brief introductory paragraph in large, bold print and then several smaller facts surround the main picture, sometimes including smaller photographs to illustrate the main points.
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|author=Nicola Morgan
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781715327</amazonuk>
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|rating=5
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|genre=Teens
 
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|summary=2020 has been a strange year: I doubt anyone would argue with that statement.  Lots of our routines have been completely dismantled and for some teenagers this will have brought about sleep problems.  Some teens will dismiss this as irrelevant ('who needs sleep? - I've got loads to be doing) and others will worry unnecessarilyMost people, from children to adults will have the odd bad night but worrying about your lack of sleep is only likely to make it worseAnd there's also the fact that for far too long, lack of sleep has been lauded as a virtue and sleep made to seem like laziness.  Being up early, working late has been praised and the ability to survive on little sleep has almost become something to put on your CV.
{{newreview
 
|title=Charles Dickens: Scenes from an Extraordinary Life
 
|author=Mick Manning and Brita Granstrom
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|summary=''Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life these pages must show…''  Such Dickens wrote – although of course he never wrote that about himselfHe did write a lot – letters, short stories, travel journals, and of course a firm dozen classic novels – but never a strict autobiographyThis book for the primary school age reader gets round that by cribbing bits from here and there, and by using a good graphic eye, to tell the stories of not only his life, but many of the works too.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847805000</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1849767343
|title=Explore and Draw Patterns: An Art Activity Book
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|title=Count on Me
|author=Owen Davey and Georgia Amson-Bradshaw
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|author=Miguel Tanco
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Crafts
 
|summary=Explore and Draw Patterns is a beautifully presented interactive workbook designed to spark creativity and imagination. The appeal of the subject matter is universal; everyone loves to doodle, so the book would be equally enjoyable for adults or children.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1782401407</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
 
{{newreview
 
|title=Top 10 of Everything 2015
 
|author=Paul Terry
 
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=The Top 10 of Everything 2015 is, as the title implies, a compilation of 'top ten' lists covering a wide variety of topics including the natural world, pop culture, sport and technology. The style of the book will appeal to its target audience of pre-teens with its use of bright colours, vibrant images, fun facts, puzzles and quizzes.
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|summary=The title and format of this book might lead you to think that it's either about responsibility - or it's a basic 1-2-3 book for those just starting out on the numbers journey. It isn't: it's a hymn of praise to maths.  It's about why maths is so wonderful and how you meet it in everyday life.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0600628868</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1849767009
|title=The Life of a Car
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|title=It Isn't Rude to be Nude
|author=Susan Steggall
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|author=Rosie Haine
|rating=4.5
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|rating=5
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
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|genre=For Sharing
|summary=As the daughter of a car worker and the mother of a little boy who is fascinated by wheels, ''The Life of a Car'' stood out on the shelf. Part of the ''Busy Wheels'' series, this non fiction picture book illustrates the life cycle of a car from manufacture to scrapping with the help of just the odd word or two or three.
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|summary=This could have been one of those books which 'preaches to the choir': the only people who'll buy it are the people who know that nudity is OK and the ones who ''know'' that it's shameful will avoid it like they avoid the hot-and-bothered person in the supermarket who is coughing fit to bust. But... Rosie Haines makes it into something so much more than a book about not wearing clothes.  It's a celebration of bodies: bodies large and small and of every possible hue.  Bodies with disabilities and markings.  They're fine.  In fact, they're wonderful.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847804217</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1776572858
|title=S is for South Africa
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|title=How Do You Make a Baby?
|author=Beverley Naidoo and Prodeepta Das
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|author=Anna Fiske and Don Bartlett (translator)
|rating=4.5
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|rating=5
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
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|genre=Home and Family
|summary=Beverley Naidoo is best known for her award winning fiction for older readers but in this title in the World Alphabet series she brings her native country of South Africa to life for younger children. Starting with A for the Apartheid Museum and finishing with Zoo Lake in Jo’burg she covers many different aspects of life including traditions, food, landscape, animals, music and family life and each subject is accompanied by one of Prodeepta Das’s stunning photos. The poetic text flows and this would work well read aloud.
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|summary=It's more than sixty years since I asked how babies were made.  My mother was deeply embarrassed and told me that she'd get me a book about it. A couple of days later I was handed a pamphlet (which delivered nothing more than the basics, in clinical language which had never been used in our house before)  and I was told that it wouldn't be discussed any further as it ''wasn't something which nice people talked about''.  I ''knew'' more, but was little ''wiser''.  Thankfully, times have changed.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847805027</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1526362759
|title=Rubik's Quest: Mission Invent
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|title=Dosh: How to Earn It, Save It, Spend It, Grow It, Give It
|author=John Farndon
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|author=Rashmi Sirdeshpande
|rating=3
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|rating=5
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=The Rubik Cube is not only a great toy, but also a great brandWhy should Lego have all the fun? To wit Rubik have recently branched out into creating variations of their famous puzzle, but also into other formats including books.  ''Rubik's Quest: Mission Invent'' by John Farndon is one of a new series of fun puzzle books designed for kids that combine a story with improving your knowledge; in this case, in science.  Can science be fun?  The answer is yes, but perhaps ''Mission Invent'' is not the best example of this.
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|summary=What a relief!  A book about money, for children, with clear explanations of what it is, why it matters, how to acquire more of it (nope - robbing banks is out) and what you can do with it when you've managed to get hold of itYour reasons for wanting money don't matter: we all need it to some extent. You might want to go into business, be a clever shopper, a saver (you might even become an ''investor'') and there might be something you really, ''really'' want to buy.  There's also the possibility of using to do good in the world.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781715580</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=178112938X
|title=Elephant
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|title=Survival in Space: The Apollo 13 Mission
|author=Suzi Eszterhas
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|author=David Long and Stefano Tambellini (illustrator)
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=For Sharing
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|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary=''Elephant'' is part of the wonderful ''Eye on the Wild'' series by award-winning wildlife photographer Suzi Eszterhas. The book follows the journey of a young bull elephant calf from birth through adulthood. The vivid full-page photographs show heartwarming snapshots of life in the herd; a purely matriarchal society where strong females form a close family bond and work hard rearing and protecting their young.
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|summary=It's fifty years since the Apollo 13 mission was launched from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, but the story of that journey remains one of the greatest survival stories of all time.  ''Survival in Space: The Apollo 13 Mission'' is a brilliant retelling of what happened.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847805035</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
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|author=Kathleen Boucher and Sara Chadwick
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|title=Nine Ways to Empower Tweens
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|rating=4.5
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|genre=Confident Readers
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|summary=''9 Ways to Empower Tweens'' is a self-help book for tweens, setting out to show them vital #lifeskills. Don't groan! I know there is a market glut of such books for we grown-ups and for young adults too, but there is a needful space in an increasingly technological world accessible to younger and younger children for material for tweens too. 
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|isbn= 0228818826
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{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|title=Tiger
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|isbn=1609809173
|author=Suzi Eszterhas
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|title=Eiffel's Tower for Young People
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|author=Jill Jonnes
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=For Sharing
 
|summary=''Tiger'' is a simply stunning picture book following the lives of a tiger family from birth to adulthood. Each page is filled with enchanting pictures of the tigers in the wild, taken by award-winning photographer Suzi Eszterhas.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847805043</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
{{newreview
 
|title=50 Things You Should Know About The First World War
 
|author=Jim Eldridge
 
|rating=4
 
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=It's a non-fiction book certainly for the primary school audience, and as a result is fully pictorial and not terribly wordy. The '50 Things' idea is a hook to draw one in, and that leads to fifty more salient paragraphs being given us in bold print, mostly but not all given a double-page spread.  But there are other boxed-out paragraphs, timelines, factoids written up the edge of the page, illuminating captions and more, so there is certainly a welter of detail.  Said diversity of detail can be delivered at times in awkward fashion – even with three paragraphs at most per page it can still be a test to read them in the right order but it does mean this book covers the gamut of the War, pretty much in chronological order, and more or less in perfectly-judged depth.
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|summary=Brash and elegant, sophisticated, controversial and vibrant, the 1889 World's Fair in Paris encompassed the best, the worst and the beautiful from many countries and cultures. The French Republic laid out model villages from all their colonies, put on art shows, dance performances, food festivals and concerts to stun the senses. And towering above it all, the most popular and the most hated monument to French accomplishment and daring – the Eiffel Tower.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781715890</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=1848576536
|title=The Secrets of Stonehenge
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|title=Humanatomy: How the Body Works
|author=Mick Manning and Brita Granstrom
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|author=Nicola Edwards and Jem Maybank
|rating=3.5
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|rating=5
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=I hope you agree with me about the sheer optimism of this book's title.  It carries a certain chutzpah to pretend to show all the secrets about a mystical site which remains, even with a lot of evidence, sheer conjecture.  Yes we know when the stones were erected, and from where they came under the orders of what kind of prehistoric man, but nothing is guaranteed in the occult world of pagan ritual, prehistoric pantheons and primitive perpetual calendars.  This book won't admit to doubt beyond saying some people have different ideas about Stonehenge, but it will succeed in giving a fleeting glimpse to some of the mysteries and oo-er factors that make the site so intriguing for all ages to this day.
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|summary=''Get under your own skin, pick your brains, and go inside your insides!''
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847805205</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
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That's what ''Humanatomy'' invites you to do and honestly, I don't see how you could resist. This informative book provides a wonderful primer about the human body to curious children- from the skeletal system to the muscular system via circulation, respiration and digestion, right up to the DNA that makes who we are.
|title=Big Meals for Little Hands
 
|author=Virginie Aladjidi, Caroline Pellissier and Marion Billet
 
|rating=3.5
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|summary=When you learn that it features recipes from a Michelin starred chef, Sébastien Guénard, you immediately know that this is not going to be just any kids’ cook book. And it’s not. Featuring recipes categorised by season, and utilising fresh fruit and vegetables as the centre for each dish, this is a book that may appeal most to children with more adventurous palates.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1909263168</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=Langford_Emily
|title=Do Nice, Be Kind, Spread Happy
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|title=Emily's Numbers
|author=Bernadette Russell
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|author=Joss Langford
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=Bringing up a child right seems an almost impossible task to me. You can do right by them at home, only for them to go crazy out of the house. Kids will be kids, be they happy, sad, curious, lazy or any other trait that adults also have. If you are lucky to have a kind natured kid, or are hoping to influence them a little, then ‘Do Nice, Be Kind, Spread Happy’ by Bernadette Russell is a super sweet book that is bound to chime with the right type of mini human.
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|summary=Emily found words ''useful'', but counting was what she loved best. Obviously, you can count anything and there's no limit to how far you can go, but then Emily moved a step further and began counting in twos.  She knew all about odd and even numbers.  Then she began counting in threes: half of the list were even numbers, but the other half was odd and it was this list of odd numbers which occurred when you counted in threes which she called ''threeven''. (Actually, this confused me a little bit at first as they're a subset of the odd numbers but sound as though they ought to be a subset of the even numbers, but it all worked out well when I really thought about it.)
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1782401059</amazonuk>
 
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=Buckingham_Dawn
|title=The Story of the World Cup
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|title=The Little Book of the Dawn Chorus
|author=Richard Brassey
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|author=Caz Buckingham and Andrea Pinnington
|rating=4
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|rating=5
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
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|genre=Animals and Wildlife
|summary=Look at the calendar and you will see that it is a year ending in an even number, what does this mean?  To a host of football fans it means a summer free from boredom as an International Tournament will fill the void that the Premier League has left.  For non-football fans it's more excuses for people to watch a pigskin be knocked aroundBe you young or old, football can get in your blood and you want to know moreFor the younger fan, there are worse places to start their obsession than the World Cup and getting to know more about the esteemed tournament in Richard Brassey’s 'The Story of the World Cup'.
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|summary=What a treat!  I really did mean to just ''glance'' at ''The Little Book of the Dawn Chorus'' but the pull of the sounds of a dozen different birds singing their hearts out was far too much to resist on a cold and rather wet February morningI spent an indulgent hour or so reading all about the birds and listening to their songThen - just because I could - I went back and did it all again and it was just as good the second time around. So, what do you get?
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>144400946X</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
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{{Frontpage
{{newreview
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|isbn=Pankhurst_Women
|title=Outdoor Wonderland
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|title=Fantastically Great Women Who Made History
|author=Josie Jeffery
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|author=Kate Pankhurst
|rating=4.5
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|rating=5
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=When I was growing up we had ‘Why Don’t You’ to inspire us what to do during the summer holidays, but I still don’t understand why a TV show would encourage me to switch off the telly – how am I meant to know what to do?  A far more sensible guide for outdoor fun is a book like Josie Jeffery’s ‘Outdoor Wonderland’, an informative book full of interesting things to do outside no matter the weather or time of day.
+
|summary=A lot of history is about men. Kings and generals and inventors and politicians. Sometimes, it feels almost as though there were no women in history at all, let alone ones young girls might like to read about or regard as role models. Of course, this isn't true and there are plenty of women who, throughout history, have achieved amazing things or shown incredible bravery, or created something never seen before. So here, in this wonderful picture book from Kate Pankhurst, are the stories of some of them.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1782400826</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Ignotofsky_Sport
|title=Secrets of the Seashore
+
|title=Women in Sport: Fifty Fearless Athletes Who Played to Win
|author=Carron Brown and Alyssa Nassner
+
|author=Rachel Ignotofsky
|rating=4
+
|rating=5
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=This book starts in a rock pool. It’s not a boring, quiet, calm place, though, it’s bustling with life, and with every page that turns we learn more about the mysterious creatures that live within it. You might not see them at first, but with a hint of magic they appear.
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|summary=''Women in Sport'' is coming to us just before the Winter Olympics in South Korea in February 2018. It celebrates a century and a half of the development of women's sport by looking at fifty of its highest achievers, covering sports as diverse as swimming, fencing, riding, skating, and much more. Think of a sport and a pioneering woman succeeding at it is probably in this book somewhere. Each entry is a double-page spread with a brief biography and a striking portrait.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1782401105</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Rooney_Dino
|title=Earth in 30 Seconds
+
|title=Discovering Dinosaurs
|author=Anita Ganeri
+
|author=Anne Rooney and Suzanne Carpenter
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
|genre=children's Non-Fiction
 
|summary=As a former cataloguer of children’s books there are names that are synonymous with juvenile non-fiction, in my time the author Anita Ganeri has graced my work table 112 times.  She is a prolific author and her legacy continues in the form of ‘Earth in 30 Seconds’, part of a series of books for 7-11 year olds that explore scientific principles in easy bite size pieces.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1782401091</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
{{newreview
 
|title=Flowerpot Farm: A First Gardening Activity Book
 
|author=Lorraine Harrison
 
|rating=3.5
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|summary=With the demand for us to eat seemingly more fruit and vegetables every day, the world of grow-your-own is back.  Why buy from the supermarket when you can release the kids into the garden to graze like cattle?  However, before you do this, perhaps you should pick up a book like ‘Flowerpot Farm’ by Lorraine Harrison and Faye Bradley which will show them how to create their own fruit, veg and flower garden no matter how small a space they have to work with.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1782400818</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
{{newreview
 
|title=A First Book of Nature
 
|author=Nicola Davies and Mark Hearld
 
|rating=5
 
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=There is a difference between a book for children that the kids themselves will like and one that adults will like.  A more mature person may like some interesting illustrations or imaginative story, but most of the children I know are happy just to see some dinosaurs in their pants.  However, there are books that transcend this and can appeal to both groups.  Books that may have slightly dry reading for the very young, but illustrations that will transfix and amaze – introducing ‘A First Book of Nature’ written by Nicola Davies and illustrated by Mark Hearld.
+
|summary=Lift the flap books have progressed somewhat since I was a child. This one comes with sounds! Taking us layer by layer, through various different ages of dinosaurs, we meet a variety of creatures, some of whom are very familiar but some I'd never heard of before! Each scene peels open, layer by layer, showing you what the various dinosaurs are getting up to, with background noises, roars and squawks to accompany them! The book creates a dinosaur experience, rather than just being facts about dinosaurs it's very visual, placing the dinosaurs in their habitats and giving us sounds too that spike your imagination.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>140634916X</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Mason_poo
|title=Jake's Bones
+
|title=The Poo That Animals Do
|author=Jake McGowan-Lowe
+
|author=Paul Mason and Tony de Saulles
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=My oldest son has wanted to be a palaeontologist since he was three and both boys are fascinated by how things work. Last year my youngest saw some scientific anatomy drawings and begged for more, so I began looking for children's books on skeletons, and anatomy. There are very few available and this looked the best by far, I spent two days searching not only British but American booksellers before noticing that the book had not been released yet - so sadly we were forced to wait. It was worth waiting for though, this book is truly one of a kind.
+
|summary=I know, I know, sometimes you really don't want to encourage your children's poo jokes, but this book is brilliant! I sat and read it by myself when the kids had gone to school and found it fascinating! Who knew there was so much I didn't know about poo? The book manages to be both funny (and silly) as well as being very interesting and educational. Using a mixture of facts and figures, photographs and funny cartoons, you come away having sniggered a little at the vulture who poos on its own feet but also knowing a lot about different types of poo, why poos smell, and why wombats do square poos.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1783250259</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
  
{{newreview
+
Move on to [[Newest Children's Rhymes and Verse Reviews]]
|title=The Beatles
 
|author=Mick Manning and Brita Granstrom
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|summary=''The Beatles'' begins with the childhood of John Lennon at the end of the second world war. The first illustration seems to convey and infant John twisting and shouting on his way to the air raid shelter. The text and illustrations both paint a picture of mischievous but intelligent child. We especially loved an illustration that shows the mixed emotions of the passengers and driver as John plays an old harmonica for hours on the bus. Some of the passengers look desperate to escape, but the driver is so impressed he gives John a better harmonica.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847804519</amazonuk>
 
}}
 

Latest revision as of 13:29, 9 September 2023

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Review of

A World of Dogs by Carlie Sorosiak and Luisa Uribe

5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

In the interests of full disclosure, I must tell you that I'm a sucker for dogs. In nearly eight decades, I've never met one I didn't trust and I've loved most of them. I wish I felt the same about human beings. So, any book about dogs, I'm going to sit down and devour. Then I'm going to go back and read it properly. And so it was with A World of Dogs, with ninety-six pages devoted entirely to my four-legged friends. Author Carlie Sorosiak found herself the accidental owner of an American Dingo - she's learned quite a lot about dogs since then. Full Review

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Review of

The Repair Shop Craft Book by Walker Books and Sonia Albert (Illustrator)

4.5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

I love The Repair Shop. It's my go-to programme when I want to be cheered up. After a hard day, there's nothing better than watching experts repair treasured items without ever mentioning what they're worth. You see, the value is in what these possessions are worth to the people who own them and the memories they hold. No expense appears to be spared and the experts spend as much time and effort as is required to achieve the desired result. Regular viewers know the experts and they're all brilliant at explaining what it is they're doing. But how did they start? Full Review

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Review of

Stolen History by Sathnam Sanghera

5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

I was the bad company other people got into at school. I was disruptive in religious education classes because I disputed the existence of a 'god'. Where was the proof? In history lessons, it was probably worse still. Not too long after the end of WWII, I didn't so much want to learn about the British army's successes (and occasional failures, but we didn't dwell on those) in what came to be called 'the colonies' as want to dispute what right the army had to be there in the first place. Looking back, I still believe I was right - but I regret that I lacked the maturity to approach 'the problem' politely. I wish I'd had Sathnam Sanghera's Stolen History. Full Review

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Review of

Fritz and Kurt by Jeremy Dronfield and David Ziggy Greene

4star.jpg Confident Readers

We start with the pair of brothers Fritz and Kurt, and their muckers, doing things any Jewish lad in 1930s Vienna would want to do – kicking things around the empty market place, helping the neighbours, being dutiful when it comes to the synagogue choir and at a vocational school. Kurt has to make sure the lamps are turned on at their very Orthodox neighbours' each Friday night – the Sabbath preventing them for using anything nearly as mechanical and workmanlike as a light switch. But this is the time just before the Austrian leader is going to cave to Hitler's will, and instead of having a national vote to keep the Nazis out, invite them in with open arms. Kristallnacht happened in Vienna just as much as in Germany, as did all the round-ups of Jews. These in their turn leave the younger Kurt at home with his mother and sisters anxious to hear word of an evacuation to Britain or the US, while Fritz and his father are, unknown initially to each other, packed off on the same train to Buchenwald and the stone quarry there. And us wondering how the titular event for the adult variant of all this could come about… Full Review

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Review of

Britannica's Word of the Day by Patrick Kelly, Renee Kelly and Sue Macy

5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

Britannica's Word of the Day has a sub-title: 366 Elevating Utterances to Stretch Your Cranium and Tickle Your Humerus which probably tells you all that you need to know about this brilliant book. It starts on January 1st with Razzmatazz, tells you how to pronounce it (raz-muh-TAZ), gives you a definition and then includes the word in a sentence so that you know how it should be used. You also get an engaging and frequently amusing illustration too. I don't think I've ever encountered a word which uses the letter Z four times before! Full Review

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Review of

The Secret Life of Birds by Moira Butterfield and Vivian Mineker (illustrator)

5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

I have recently discovered a great pleasure: I sit and watch the vast numbers of birds which visit our garden on a daily basis. An hour can pass without my noticing. I've established which species feed from the ground, which pop to the feeders for a quick snatch of some food and who settles in for a good munch but I wish I was more knowledgeable. It would have been wonderful if, as a child, I'd had access to a book such as The Secret Life of Birds. So – what is it? Full Review

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Review of

Very Short Introductions for Curious Young Minds: The Invisible World of Germs by Isabel Thomas

5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

'Germs' seems to have become a catch-all word to cover anything unpleasant which has the potential to make you ill. In the first book in what looks to be a very promising new series, OUP and Isabel Thomas have provided a clear and accessible introduction to the world of germs. We get an informed look at how people originally thought about diseases and what they thought caused them and how the thinking has developed over time. The vocabulary can be confusing but Thomas gives a regular box headed 'speak like a scientist' which explains some of the trickiest concepts and you'll soon be familiar with bacteria, fungi, protists and viruses – and how we should protect ourselves. Full Review

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Review of

100 Ways in 100 Days to Teach Your Baby Maths: Support All Areas of Your Baby’s Development by Nurturing a Love of Maths by Emma Smith

4.5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

Babies seem to be born with an amazing number sense: understanding shapes in the womb, being aware of quantities at seven hours old, assessing probability at six months old, and comprehending addition and subtraction at nine months old.

Did you know this? I didn't! How about:

Maths ability on entry to school is a strong predictor of later achievement, double that of literacy skills.

I didn't know this either! I think most parents are aware that giving your children a good start in literacy - reading stories, teaching pen grips, singing rhymes - gives children a solid foundation when they start school. But do we think the same way about maths, beyond counting? I don't think we do, in part because so many of us are afraid of maths. But why are we? Most of us use maths in daily life without realising and it follows that giving our children a similar pre-school grounding will be just as beneficial. Full Review

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Review of

The Awesome Power of Sleep: How Sleep Super-Charges Your Teenage Brain by Nicola Morgan

5star.jpg Teens

2020 has been a strange year: I doubt anyone would argue with that statement. Lots of our routines have been completely dismantled and for some teenagers this will have brought about sleep problems. Some teens will dismiss this as irrelevant ('who needs sleep? - I've got loads to be doing) and others will worry unnecessarily. Most people, from children to adults will have the odd bad night but worrying about your lack of sleep is only likely to make it worse. And there's also the fact that for far too long, lack of sleep has been lauded as a virtue and sleep made to seem like laziness. Being up early, working late has been praised and the ability to survive on little sleep has almost become something to put on your CV. Full Review

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Review of

Count on Me by Miguel Tanco

4.5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

The title and format of this book might lead you to think that it's either about responsibility - or it's a basic 1-2-3 book for those just starting out on the numbers journey. It isn't: it's a hymn of praise to maths. It's about why maths is so wonderful and how you meet it in everyday life. Full Review

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Review of

It Isn't Rude to be Nude by Rosie Haine

5star.jpg For Sharing

This could have been one of those books which 'preaches to the choir': the only people who'll buy it are the people who know that nudity is OK and the ones who know that it's shameful will avoid it like they avoid the hot-and-bothered person in the supermarket who is coughing fit to bust. But... Rosie Haines makes it into something so much more than a book about not wearing clothes. It's a celebration of bodies: bodies large and small and of every possible hue. Bodies with disabilities and markings. They're fine. In fact, they're wonderful. Full Review

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Review of

How Do You Make a Baby? by Anna Fiske and Don Bartlett (translator)

5star.jpg Home and Family

It's more than sixty years since I asked how babies were made. My mother was deeply embarrassed and told me that she'd get me a book about it. A couple of days later I was handed a pamphlet (which delivered nothing more than the basics, in clinical language which had never been used in our house before) and I was told that it wouldn't be discussed any further as it wasn't something which nice people talked about. I knew more, but was little wiser. Thankfully, times have changed. Full Review

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Review of

Dosh: How to Earn It, Save It, Spend It, Grow It, Give It by Rashmi Sirdeshpande

5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

What a relief! A book about money, for children, with clear explanations of what it is, why it matters, how to acquire more of it (nope - robbing banks is out) and what you can do with it when you've managed to get hold of it. Your reasons for wanting money don't matter: we all need it to some extent. You might want to go into business, be a clever shopper, a saver (you might even become an investor) and there might be something you really, really want to buy. There's also the possibility of using to do good in the world. Full Review

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Review of

Survival in Space: The Apollo 13 Mission by David Long and Stefano Tambellini (illustrator)

5star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

It's fifty years since the Apollo 13 mission was launched from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, but the story of that journey remains one of the greatest survival stories of all time. Survival in Space: The Apollo 13 Mission is a brilliant retelling of what happened. Full Review

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Review of

Nine Ways to Empower Tweens by Kathleen Boucher and Sara Chadwick

4.5star.jpg Confident Readers

9 Ways to Empower Tweens is a self-help book for tweens, setting out to show them vital #lifeskills. Don't groan! I know there is a market glut of such books for we grown-ups and for young adults too, but there is a needful space in an increasingly technological world accessible to younger and younger children for material for tweens too. Full Review

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Review of

Eiffel's Tower for Young People by Jill Jonnes

5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

Brash and elegant, sophisticated, controversial and vibrant, the 1889 World's Fair in Paris encompassed the best, the worst and the beautiful from many countries and cultures. The French Republic laid out model villages from all their colonies, put on art shows, dance performances, food festivals and concerts to stun the senses. And towering above it all, the most popular and the most hated monument to French accomplishment and daring – the Eiffel Tower. Full Review

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Review of

Humanatomy: How the Body Works by Nicola Edwards and Jem Maybank

5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

Get under your own skin, pick your brains, and go inside your insides!

That's what Humanatomy invites you to do and honestly, I don't see how you could resist. This informative book provides a wonderful primer about the human body to curious children- from the skeletal system to the muscular system via circulation, respiration and digestion, right up to the DNA that makes who we are. Full Review

Langford Emily.jpg

Review of

Emily's Numbers by Joss Langford

4star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

Emily found words useful, but counting was what she loved best. Obviously, you can count anything and there's no limit to how far you can go, but then Emily moved a step further and began counting in twos. She knew all about odd and even numbers. Then she began counting in threes: half of the list were even numbers, but the other half was odd and it was this list of odd numbers which occurred when you counted in threes which she called threeven. (Actually, this confused me a little bit at first as they're a subset of the odd numbers but sound as though they ought to be a subset of the even numbers, but it all worked out well when I really thought about it.) Full Review

Buckingham Dawn.jpg

Review of

The Little Book of the Dawn Chorus by Caz Buckingham and Andrea Pinnington

5star.jpg Animals and Wildlife

What a treat! I really did mean to just glance at The Little Book of the Dawn Chorus but the pull of the sounds of a dozen different birds singing their hearts out was far too much to resist on a cold and rather wet February morning. I spent an indulgent hour or so reading all about the birds and listening to their song. Then - just because I could - I went back and did it all again and it was just as good the second time around. So, what do you get? Full Review

Pankhurst Women.jpg

Review of

Fantastically Great Women Who Made History by Kate Pankhurst

5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

A lot of history is about men. Kings and generals and inventors and politicians. Sometimes, it feels almost as though there were no women in history at all, let alone ones young girls might like to read about or regard as role models. Of course, this isn't true and there are plenty of women who, throughout history, have achieved amazing things or shown incredible bravery, or created something never seen before. So here, in this wonderful picture book from Kate Pankhurst, are the stories of some of them. Full Review

Ignotofsky Sport.jpg

Review of

Women in Sport: Fifty Fearless Athletes Who Played to Win by Rachel Ignotofsky

5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

Women in Sport is coming to us just before the Winter Olympics in South Korea in February 2018. It celebrates a century and a half of the development of women's sport by looking at fifty of its highest achievers, covering sports as diverse as swimming, fencing, riding, skating, and much more. Think of a sport and a pioneering woman succeeding at it is probably in this book somewhere. Each entry is a double-page spread with a brief biography and a striking portrait. Full Review

Rooney Dino.jpg

Review of

Discovering Dinosaurs by Anne Rooney and Suzanne Carpenter

4star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

Lift the flap books have progressed somewhat since I was a child. This one comes with sounds! Taking us layer by layer, through various different ages of dinosaurs, we meet a variety of creatures, some of whom are very familiar but some I'd never heard of before! Each scene peels open, layer by layer, showing you what the various dinosaurs are getting up to, with background noises, roars and squawks to accompany them! The book creates a dinosaur experience, rather than just being facts about dinosaurs it's very visual, placing the dinosaurs in their habitats and giving us sounds too that spike your imagination. Full Review

Mason poo.jpg

Review of

The Poo That Animals Do by Paul Mason and Tony de Saulles

5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

I know, I know, sometimes you really don't want to encourage your children's poo jokes, but this book is brilliant! I sat and read it by myself when the kids had gone to school and found it fascinating! Who knew there was so much I didn't know about poo? The book manages to be both funny (and silly) as well as being very interesting and educational. Using a mixture of facts and figures, photographs and funny cartoons, you come away having sniggered a little at the vulture who poos on its own feet but also knowing a lot about different types of poo, why poos smell, and why wombats do square poos. Full Review

Move on to Newest Children's Rhymes and Verse Reviews