Difference between revisions of "Newest For Sharing Reviews"

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[[Category:New Reviews|For Sharing]]__NOTOC__
 
[[Category:New Reviews|For Sharing]]__NOTOC__
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=1948124572
+
|author=Adam Stower
|title=Think Outside the Box
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|title=Murray and Bun
|author=Justine Avery and Liuba Syrotuik
+
|rating=4.5
 +
|genre=Confident Readers
 +
|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
 +
|isbn=1732898766
 +
|title=The Adventures of Birpus and Bulbus: Book One: The Sour Milk Dragon
 +
|author=Wynn Everett-Albanese, Michael Albanese and Indre Ta (Illustrator)
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=''Whenever you find a problem <br>
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|summary=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.
''Wherever there's a puzzle to solve <br>
 
''However you get stuck in a sticky situation <br>
 
''Just think outside the box''
 
 
 
And so begins the latest picture book from Justine Avery and Liuba Syrotiuk. It's a clarion call to children to use their imaginations and not logic alone when it comes to solving problems.
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=1948124440
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|isbn=B0CC9W7GLR
|title=What Wonders Await Outdoors
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|title=On the Beach: The Winter Visitor
|author=Justine Avery and Liuba Syrotiuk
+
|author=Chris Green and Jenny Fionda
|rating=4
+
|rating=5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=The second book in Justine Avery's Wonders series is the perfect antidote to long summer days with bored children - or, indeed, as we've found recently, for those long lockdown days when an awful pandemic is rolling across the world. What do you do when every book has been read and every toy has been played with, repurposed, and played with again?
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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 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?
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=1776572858
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|isbn=1913839656
|title=How Do You Make a Baby?
+
|title=Let's Celebrate Being Different
|author=Anna Fiske and Don Bartlett (translator)
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|author=Lainey Dee
|rating=5
+
|rating=3.5
|genre=Home and Family
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|genre=For Sharing
|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 itA 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.
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|summary=Todd was excited about spending the weekend with his grandmother, not least because she made the best beetle juiceHe packed two pairs of dungarees and his favourite hat and then gathered together his button collection to show his grandmotherShe 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 friendsAt home, his only friend was his mum and he wondered why that could beGrandma thought that it might be because he looked different.
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|author= Justine Avery and Daria Yudina
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|isbn=1529504775
|title= This Book Wants to Make You Laugh (Living Book)
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|title=The Toy Bus (The Repair Shop Stories)
|rating= 4
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|author=Amy Sparkes and Katie Hickey
|genre= For Sharing
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|rating=4.5
|summary=This Living Book is on a mission. What's the mission? To make you laugh! I can't think of many better missions than that, can you? Let's see how it does...
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|genre=For Sharing
 
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|summary=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.
.... well, it opens up with a terrible joke. A groany joke, an eye-roll joke. The joke isn't very funny but it is funny to see how enthusiastic and how generously this book wants to make you  laugh - ''Oh, I'm terrible at jokes. Some books are so good at them. I always wanted to help someone laugh.''
 
|isbn= 194812453X
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|author=Justine Avery and Daria Yudina
+
|isbn=1529504767
|title=Baby Trolls Get a Bad Rap (Underrated Babies Book 1)
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|title=The Christmas Doll (The Repair Shop Stories)
|rating=4
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|author=Amy Sparkes and Katie Hickey
 +
|rating=5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary= Horatio, Saul and Grizelda are three baby trolls who are fed up that everyone forgets about baby trolls. They are ignored in books and TV shows and films in favour of their very scary grown ups. Our three heroes want equal rights for baby trolls. They want to be seen and heard and they've started a petition about it that they want you to sign. But how should they go about it?  
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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 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 treeThe best surprise happened the following morning.
|isbn= B07XGN4LGY
+
}}
}}  
 
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|author=Justine Avery and Daria Yudina
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|isbn=1916459943
|title=This Book Is Alive! (Living Book)
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|title=Squeakily Baby
 +
|author=Beth Webb
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary= Books ''want'' you to read them! They're not intimidating or standoffish or particular about readers. Books ''want'' to be read.
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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.
 
+
}}
This is the key message in Justine Avery's latest offering, ''This Book Is Alive!''. By anthropomorphising the relationship between book and young reader, she's sending an invitation to all - pick me up, read me, be my friend, we can go on a journey together. It's a great message, don't you think?
 
|isbn= 1948124416
 
}}  
 
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|author=Justine Avery and Ema Tepic 
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|isbn=140639131X
|title=I Dreamed You
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|title=A Practical Present for Philippa Pheasant
 +
|author=Briony May Smith
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=It is always a pleasure to review a new book by Justine Avery and ''I Dreamed You'' carries on the tradition beautifully. This little book is the perfect exemplar of our category name, ''For Sharing''. It is a mother's love letter to her child, told in rhyme form.
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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.
|isbn=1948124505
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}}
}}  
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{{Frontpage
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|isbn=1776574338
 +
|title=Leilong's Too Long!
 +
|author=Julia Liu and Bei Lynn
 +
|rating=4
 +
|genre=For Sharing
 +
|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.
 +
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=1838593187
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|isbn=1776574028
|title=Guess What I Found in the Playground!
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|title=Bumblebee Grumblebee
|author=Victoria Thompson
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|author=David Elliott
|rating=4.5
+
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Tilly is excited.  She's just come dashing out of the classroom, pigtails flapping behind her and a big grin on her faceDad's come to collect her and her brother and he ''has'' to try to guess what she found in the playground today, although she concedes that he will never guessDad wants to know how school was, but ''obviously'' that's not important. Could Tilly have found more collectable things for her scrap box?  (Isn't that so much more sensible than a scrap ''book''?Well, actually, Tilly did find exciting stuffThere are sequins, glittered paper and all sorts of other things in her pocket, but that's not what she wants Dad to guess.
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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 oneWe 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!
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=1686751680
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|isbn=1838226834
|title=My Mummy does weird things / Maman fait des choses bizarres
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|title=Carried Away With the Carnival
|author=Amelie Julien and Gustyawan
+
|author=Ed Boxall
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Which child doesn't think that their mother is, well, ''weird''? It might be that in the morning their mother doesn't like speaking much when every self-respecting child knows that that is when you're at your brightest with lots to say?  ''Why'' then does Mummy stick her fingers in her ears?  Then there's doing yoga in front of the television, which could be worrying if it wasn't so funny. We won't go into too much detail about what goes on in the bathroom and the colour changes which have occured when Mummy emerges and frankly, the less said the better about her reactions to your artistic efforts on the wall.  I mean, what else would you use paint for?
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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 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.''
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|author=Justine Avery and Liuba Syrotiuk
+
|isbn=B09MYXSRV4
|title=What Wonders Do You See... When You Dream?
+
|title=Otter's Coat: The Real Reason Turtle Raced Rabbit: A Cherolachian Tortoise and Hare
 +
|author=Cordellya Smith
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=''The day has ended''<br>
+
|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.
''Hasn't it been splendid?'' <br>
+
}}
''But now, it's time, to be sure'' <br>
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{{Frontpage
''For an entirely different adventure'' <br>
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|author=Rob Keeley
 +
|title= Carrots Don’t Grow On Trees!
 +
|rating= 4
 +
|genre=For Sharing
 +
|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.
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|isbn= B09HHN541V
 +
}}
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{{Frontpage
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|isbn=B09FFJF8YS
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|title=You Can't Wear Panties! (No More Nappies!)
 +
|author=Justine Avery and Kate Zhoidik
 +
|rating=3.5
 +
|genre=For Sharing
 +
|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.''
 +
 
  
I hope you haven't forgotten how it feels to be much too excited for bed. If you're a parent at least, you'll know how it is to persuade an excited small person that yes, it is in fact time for bed. ''What Wonders DoYou See...'' sets out to cater to these children. Instead of trying to persuade them that night time is calm time, it takes a slightly different tack. It tells them that sleep is actually an exciting time: a time of dreams in which imagination takes over and has no limit. But the trick in accessing this wonderful and exciting world is to get calm and relaxed first so that you can easily fall asleep and open the door to it
+
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!
|isbn=194812422X   
 
 
}}  
 
}}  
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=0993340334
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|author= Justine Avery and Naday Meldova
|title=Bunny
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|title=Everybody Toots! (Everybody Potties!)
|author=Peter Lynas and Clare Lindley
 
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=You might have seen Bunny on the beach where he lived. Like many beaches it was full of sand and Bunny didn't like sand, not least because it got between his toes and ''scratched''. What he really liked was juicy green grass. All the other rabbits lived on the top of the cliff, where Bunny could see a lot of tasty-looking grassBut the cliff was very high.
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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
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}}  
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{{Frontpage
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|isbn= B09BG8V3Q6
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|title= Who Needs Nappies? Not Me! (Everybody Potties!)
 +
|author= Justine Avery and Seema Amjad
 +
|rating=4.5
 +
|genre=For Sharing
 +
|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.  .
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=1925820025
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|isbn=B07GZ81J7C
|title=Once, I was Loved
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|title=When Fred the Snake Got Squished and Mended
|author=Belinda Landsberry
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|author=Peter Cotton
|rating=4
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|rating=4.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Tock, the toy rabbit, is in a box of toys going to the charity shop.  He realises that he's not wanted any more, but muses that it wasn't always this way''Once'', he says, ''I was loved''.  And he tells us of all the children who have loved him over the years.
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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 walkAnd that was where the problem started.  Fred didn't have any road senseOr brakes.
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=0993340342
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|author= Justine Avery and Naday Meldova
|title=Madeleine Goes to the Moon
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|title= Everybody Pees! (Everybody Potties!)
|author=Peter Lynas and Charlie Roberts
 
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Madeleine is a very lucky girl: in her room, she has all a girl could ask for in the way of toys, books, games and dollies. She's a very lucky girl in another way too: she has imagination and everything in her room can be used to take her on adventures. She spends all day there: Dad thinks that she likes to be alone, but Madeleine's not alone on all the trips she takes. We'll find out that yesterday she was told to tidy her room, but instead of doing that, she went to the moon.
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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?
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|isbn= B098BJZYHH
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=0993340318
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|author=Justine Avery and Naday Meldova
|title=Recipe for Making a Snowman
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|title=No, No, No!
|author=Peter Lynas and Rosie Alabaster
 
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Who knew it?  You can even get a recipe book which tells you how to make a snowman - and there's no cooking involved! Mum, Dad and the two children are absolutely meticulous though: they're going to get everything right, even down to doing some mining to get the coal for the eyes, searching through the bits 'n bobs jar for buttons for the snowman's coat and picking out the perfect piece of headgear.  There's quite a choice available, but the family decide on the bobble hat, presumably to keep the snowman warm. The moth-eaten pair of mittens simply won't do and a pair with purple and pink stripes are chosen.
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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.
}}�{{Frontpage
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|isbn=0993340350
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''No, No, No!'' is based around the simplest text imaginable.
|title=The Very Rude Toytoise
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|author=Peter Lynas and Andy S Gray
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''No, no, no! Okay, okay. Yes, you may.''
|rating=5
+
 
|genre=For Sharing
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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.
|summary=It was one of those blissful days in the forest.  Mrs Rabbit was collecting carrots because she wanted to make a cake.  Mrs Blue Bird was gathering twigs to build a nest.  Mrs Spider was busily spinning a web to catch juicy flies.  Mrs Squirrel was piling up acorns.  And Mr Bear sat comfortably in a chair, fishing for lunch.  What could be better?  And then...
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|isbn=1638820457
}}{{Frontpage
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}}
|isbn=1925810097
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{{Frontpage
|title=Don't Drink the Pink
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|isbn=194812467X
|author=B C R Fegan
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|title=The Farm Shop
 +
|author=Devon Avery, Justine Avery and Ema Tepic
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Madeline is very fond of Grandfather Gilderberry. He's always busy in his workshop, creating crazy potions, and he always has a smile on his face. Madeline's dad thinks he's a bit bonkers and Madeline's mum thinks the same but gives him a pass because he's old. But Madeline? She thinks Grandfather Gilberberry is just great. Particularly on her birthday when he unfailingly arrives with a selection of potions and allows her to choose one as a gift. And he always says the same thing...
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|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.
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 +
What will they buy?
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=1910989339
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|isbn=0995647895
|title=Loved to Bits
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|title=Sadie and the Sea Dogs
|author=Teresa Heapy and Katie Cleminson
+
|author=Maureen Duffy and Anita Joice
|rating=5
+
|rating=3.5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=''Loved to Bits'' is the heartwarming story of a boy's love for his bear.    Bear's adventures with boy take him to all kinds of places and together they fight and defeat every obstacle put in their way, from the jungle to the sea.  Inevitably mishaps occur on the wayThe loss of an arm, a leg, an ear or an eye are nothing to Stripy Ted who shrugs off all injuries with a cheery ''don't worry, I've got one more''.  But boy loves him just as he is and won't hear of him being mended.  His place, after all, is in Boy's bed.
+
|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.
 +
 
 +
''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 regularlyOne 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 shoutWhen 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
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=0874869722
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|isbn=1782227741
|title=When Spring Comes to the DMZ
+
|title=Little Gold Ted
|author=Uk-Bae Lee
+
|author=Vanessa Wiercioch, Poppy Satha and Sasha Satha
|rating=5
+
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=There is a place on this earth that, at the time of writing, is resplendent with life. In the spring seals gambol in the river – not venturing too far, for fear of being slashed open on the razor wire the humans have put in place. In the autumn, salmon come upstream, looking doleful as well they might, for they will spawn and die if they reach their birthing grounds. Mountain goats gambol prettily among the hills – if the landmines men left behind do not prevent them from doing so. This is a snapshot of life in the DMZ, the demilitarized zone between the two countries with Korea in their name, and it's the world's least welcome wildlife sanctuary.
+
|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.
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=1419731408
+
|isbn=B08R7LXQ9S
|title=Sweep: The Story of a Girl and her Monster
+
|title=Remy: A book about believing in yourself
|author=Jonathan Auxier
+
|author=Mayuri Naidoo and Caroline Siegal
|rating=5
+
|rating=4
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Nan is a climber, the best chimney sweep in London. She is growing fast, so what will happen to her when she gets too big to climb, when people realise she is a girl? Everything changes, when she is stuck in a chimney, set on fire, and saved by a golem. A story of outcasts, and friendships, told through two tales, the girl and the sweep, and the girl and her monster. Both intertwined beautifully so that you have a fairy tale within a fairy tale. Moments of sadness slip easily into glorious happiness, then swiftly into heart-breaking tragedy. This is a heart-warming and engaging read for both young and old.
+
|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.
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{Frontpage
 
{{Frontpage
|isbn=1786894327
+
|isbn=1471191303
|title=The Truth Pixie
+
|title=The Invisible
|author=Matt Haig and Chris Mould
+
|author=Tom Percival
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=For Sharing
 
|genre=For Sharing
|summary=Poor old Truth Pixie. She's cursed! She can't speak unless it's to tell the truth. You might think this is a good thing because telling lies is bad, right? But sometimes the truth isn't nice and sometimes a white lie is okay and sometimes it's better to say nothing at all. You might not want to attract the attention of the school bully by calling him mean and nasty, for example, or you might not want to tell someone that you think their brand new haircut looks awful.
+
|summary=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.
 
}}
 
}}
 +
{{Frontpage
 +
|author=Nick Jones and Si Clark
 +
|title=One Night in Beartown
 +
|rating=4
 +
|genre=For Sharing
 +
|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!
 +
|isbn=B08NFH7H9X
 +
}} 
  
 
Move on to [[Newest General Fiction Reviews]]
 
Move on to [[Newest General Fiction Reviews]]

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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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Review of

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

4star.jpg For Sharing

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

4star.jpg For Sharing

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

1471191303.jpg

Review of

The Invisible by Tom Percival

5star.jpg For Sharing

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

B08NFH7H9X.jpg

Review of

One Night in Beartown by Nick Jones and Si Clark

4star.jpg For Sharing

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

Move on to Newest General Fiction Reviews