Newest For Sharing Reviews

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Wumbers by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld

Confident Readers

Wumbers mixes - as you might have guessed - words and numbers. Think text speak that doesn't horrify stuffy parents. Each page takes in a different scene, with a speech bubble along the lines of Look at his 2can ta2!"" It takes a little bit of decoding for its young readers (and rapidly ageing reviewers) but look upon it as a bit of a game, and it's good fun. Full review...

The Great Fairy Tale Disaster by David Conway and Melanie Williamson

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'Once Upon a Time there lived an old Big Bad Wolf. He no longer had any huff and puff to blow down the Three Little Pigs' house and he'd had enough of falling into hot water.'

Well, when it's put like that it's no wonder that the Big Bad Wolf decides that he has had enough of his own particular fairy tale. He decides that he needs a nice relaxing one instead and thinks that he would fit in well to Cinderella. However, when a very nervous Cinderella allows him to take her place, he's not too happy to find himself in a dress and glass slippers. It's not good for his macho wolf's image at all. Full review...

The Really, Really, Really Big Dinosaur by Richard Byrne

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Finlay is what you might call a little dinosaur; there are certainly plenty bigger than him. One day, a big dinosaur walks past and Finlay offers to share his jelly beans with him.

But the big dinosaur wants all the jelly beans for himself and even though Finlay explains that the jelly beans actually belong to his really big friend and they aren't his to give away, the big dinosaur just puffs up his chest and tells Finlay to let his friend know that he's going to take the jelly beans all for himself anyway. Full review...

Monsters Don't Cry! by Brett McKee and Ella Burfoot

For Sharing

Archie awoke with a shout in the night.
Only a dream, but what a terrible fright.
Well monsters may roar, may growl or just sigh,
But monsters are strong, monsters don't cry.

Archie is a funny, adventurous and brave little chap but in spite of the fact that he's a little monster – literally – sometimes when life's little twists and turns don't go his way, it all gets a bit upsetting. Because even monsters get scared; especially little ones like Archie. Full review...

Good Night, Gorilla by Peggy Rathmann

For Sharing

When it's bedtime at the zoo the zookeeper goes round all the animals and wishes them 'good night'. What he doesn't realise is that the crafty gorilla has gently lifted the zoo keeper's key ring from his belt and is opening the cages. All the animals - Elephant, Lion, Hyena, Giraffe and Armadillo are tiptoeing along behind the zookeeper as he leaves the zoo and goes home to bed, completely unaware that he has all his friends with him. In fact - it's not until his wife wishes him good night and receives a lot more replies than she was expecting that the animals are found out. I'm not going to tell you the rest of the story because I want you to enjoy it for yourself. Full review...

I Don't Want to Wash my Hands (Little Princess) by Tony Ross

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The Little Princess is always getting her hands dirty whether it's by playing in the palace garden, stroking Scruff, the dog or going on her potty. Whenever she does any of these, there's always someone there to tell her to wash her hands. Now, as the Little Princess never likes being told what to do, she does not take kindly to this hand washing business and she demands to know why. However, when the level-headed maid, who never puts up with any of her nonsense, tells her about all the germs and nasties and horrible things that could make her ill, she is soon found rushing to the hand basin at every opportunity. Not only that, she starts insisting that everyone else always washes their hands too. Full review...

Mayfly Day by Jeanne Willis and Tony Ross

For Sharing

Here is Mayfly.
It is her first day on earth.
It is also her last

This is the way that this wonderful book starts and the reader is left in no doubt that a mayfly's life is quite an extraordinary one. We go on to discover all the amazing things that the mayfly is able to see and do in this one special day. It will see eggs hatch, lambs trying to stand, taste honey on plants and feel the warmth of the sun as well as the summer rain. These are just some of the things that the mayfly will experience in this one remarkable day. The day ends with the mayfly laying her own eggs and leaving them to hatch. Full review...

Belle & Boo and the Birthday Surprise by Mandy Sutcliffe

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What a lovely story! Belle and Boo are always together. Belle is a little girl and Boo is her rabbit. One day Belle is very busy preparing for a birthday. Together they make a card, and some cakes, and set up a picnic in the garden. But who's birthday is it? Full review...

Whiffy Wilson by Caryl Hart and Leonie Lord

For Sharing

Wilson is a terribly dirty little wolf who never washes, or brushes his hair, or changes his underwear! His mum seems at a loss, demanding that he has a bath or he can't go out to play but Wilson, the naughty wolf, just runs away and hides! It is only when he meets a little girl called Dotty that he does anything about how stinky he is. She thinks he's a monster he's so smelly, and when that makes him feel sad Dotty says they can soon sort things out and takes him home for a bath! Full review...

Rabbityness by Jo Empson

For Sharing

Rabbit is a very rabbity rabbit. He loves doing rabbity things like hopping and jumping, washing his ears and burrowing. He also likes doing unrabbity things too, like painting, and making music, filling the woods where he lives with music and colour! But one day, Rabbit disappears. Where has he gone? The other rabbits find everything has become grey and silent without Rabbit. They find that Rabbit left behind some gifts, lots of things to make colour and music with. Together they all begin to discover that they enjoy doing unrabbity things, and that doing these things makes them think of Rabbit and they feel happy. Full review...

Denver by David McKee

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Denver, who was extremely rich, lived in Berton Manor. He was so rich that he was able to employ a chauffeur, a cook and some gardeners. When he invited friends to dinner he was able to employ more people to serve all of the food. This was very good for the village of Berton as he was paying the people who live there. Not only that, he always did his shopping in Berton, presented prizes at the local school and, at Christmas, dressed up as Santa and handed out presents. It seems quite obvious that many people in the village were able to benefit from his wealth. Full review...

Pot-San's Tabletop Tales by Satoshi Kitamura

For Sharing

We love all things Japanese in our house having visited the country a few times and come home laden with books and movies and general cute knick-knacks galore! So I was excited to read this story to my little girl all about Pot-san, a teapot, and his other tabletop friends who have lots of adventures together! Full review...

Small Knight and George and the Pirates by Ronda Armitage and Arthur Robins

For Sharing

Small Knight and George (a little red dragon) live together in an old castle, a rather crumbling old castle that's in desperate need of repair. There's no money to fix things up however, so Mum and Dad Knight decide to send Small Knight off with a treasure map to be a pirate, to get them some treasure so they can fix up the castle! Full review...

Fetch by Jane Cabrera

For Sharing

Fetch is a little black dog who one day turns up in the village and proves to be very useful to everyone. He fetches things at home for Rosa, he fetches newspapers at the newsstand and parcels at the post office. He's helpful wherever he goes. But one day, Fetch has disappeared...what could he have gone to 'fetch' this time..? Full review...

Fancy Dress Farmyard by Nick Sharratt

For Sharing

There's a party at the farmyard and it's going to be fancy dress. Let's turn the pages together and find out who has come dressed as what! Full review...

Never Say No to a Princess! by Tracey Corderoy and Kate Leake

For Sharing

The little princess is used to having everything she wants immediately. She wears a sparkly dress and a sparkly tiara; she sleeps in a sparkly bed and plays with sparkly toys. And whenever she wants something new, she just shouts at the top of her lungs that if she doesn't get it, she will cry. And do you know what? She gets it! Straight away! But having what she wants, the minute she wants it doesn't make the little princess happy. Because she isn't smiling at all. In fact, she never smiles. Ever. Nothing is ever quite good enough for this little princess. Full review...

The Snorgh and the Sailor by Will Buckingham and Thomas Docherty

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The Snorgh lives alone in a little shack on a windy and quiet stretch of beach that is known for its rather fabulous crop of samphire, upon which the Snorgh munches. Lucky little devil, isn't he?! Full review...

Me, the Queen and Christopher by Giles Andreae and Tony Ross

Confident Readers

Freya, who is seven years old, received a very important letter. On the back of the envelope it said Buckingham Palace and it was from the Queen, inviting her to tea. It looked as though the day was going to be a disaster as Freya curtsied - and managed to knock the Queen over. But the Queen is nothing if not resilient and up she got and off they went to her private quarters where she and Freya made themselves baked beans on toast and mugs of tea ('always dip your tea bag exactly twenty-seven times' is the Queen's advice for a good cuppa) and really it's rather like being in Freya's Gran's flat. Full review...

The Pirates Next Door by Jonny Duddle

For Sharing

Matilda lives in the little seaside town of Dull-on-Sea where the average age is 67. The house next door has been empty since she was a baby and she longs for a family with a girl of her own age to move in but instead a family of pirates move into the decrepit old house - complete with their pirate ship, treasure chests, barrels of grog and Jim Lad who is in Matilda's class at school. The neighbours - well, the town - are not pleased, so what will the pirate family do to win them round? Meanwhile, Matilda is having a lot of fun. Full review...

I Love Beasts! by Emma Dodd

For Sharing

This little boy loves beasts, all kinds of beasts! Using rhyme, we see all the different kinds of animals that he loves until finally he ends with the one he loves the very best, his own cuddly teddy bear! Full review...

Hugless Douglas and the Big Sleep by David Melling

For Sharing

Douglas is excited! He's on his way for a sleepover and his friend Rabbit's house. First there is the packing, then there's the journey to get there and on his way Douglas runs into rather a lot of little sheep who decide to tag along for the sleepover too. Rabbit's house ends up being very crowded, but they manage to come up with an acceptable solution for everyone, after only a little bit of trouble! Full review...

A Bit Lost by Chris Haughton

For Sharing

Little owl has fallen out of his nest - uh-oh! Thankfully, a kindly squirrel is going to help him find his mummy. The little owl remembers aspects of what she looks like, so the squirrel ticks off animal after animal until they find mummy owl. Full review...

Cub's First Summer by Rebecca Elliott

For Sharing

It's the first day of summer, and when Cub wakes up, Mum suggests a walk in the forest together. As Cub and Mum explore Cub bombards his mum with questions (in true toddler fashion!) about the heat, about the length of the days, about the flowers and the birds. They spend a happy day together, enjoying the delights of summer until the sky grows darker and a thunderstorm approaches. Quickly, they run back home and as the storm rages they enjoy one more pleasure, snuggling up together for sleepy time! Full review...

Reach for the Stars and Other Advice for Life's Journey by Serge Bloch

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A young boy and Roger, his dog, receive some traditional advice about how they should live their lives. We've all heard the sentiments (and being honest - not always in the best of circumstances) many times but Serge Bloch gives us his interpretation of the words which we hear so often. Boy (for he has no other name) is told that he has his whole life ahead of him - and gazes at the future through a telescope. It's the first of almost thirty delightful illustrations designed to make us think about what we're saying. Full review...

Six Little Chicks by Jez Alborough

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It's a beautiful day and Hen has already given birth to five fine chicks. She still has one more egg to hatch though so she still needs to sit on that while the other chicks explore and play outside. She is just settling down when she hears Owl’s loud 'To-wit-to-woo!' telling them that the big, bad fox is on the prowl. She dashes out to see all her chicks playing happily with no wolf in sight so she warns them to stay close and goes back to her egg. Not long after, Goose comes along with a similar warning but still there is no fox. Finally though, the fox does arrive and although the chicks are now hiding in the hen house, he entices them to 'come closer'. It looks as if time may be up for these sweet little creatures. Luckily though, the fifth chick had been kicking a stick which, in the little ones' attempts to get away, flies up in the air and manages to land in the fox's mouth wedging it open. This is very fortunate as it is just in time for them to see their sixth little brother or sister be born! Full review...

I Love You, Little Monster by Giles Andreae and Jess Mikhail

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There's a little monster called Small and a big monster called Big. Small is fast asleep in bed one night when Big comes in, ruffles his hair and starts talking to him. As he speaks it becomes apparent how much he loves the little monster and how much he wants to protect him. He explains that the days are always so busy and there is never enough time to say all of the things that he should say, but it is easy to do so when it is dark. Full review...

Let's Find Mimi at Home by Katherine Lodge

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Mimi is a little mouse who lives with her mouse family. This book takes us through her day at home, waking up, getting dressed, eating breakfast etc. Each double page spread has a small description of what Mimi is doing and the challenge is to find Mimi (and her family too, if you wish) and see what she's getting up to! Full review...

Grimm's Fairy Tales: Rumplestiltskin by Saviour Pirotta and Cecilia Johansson

Confident Readers

Rumpelstiltskin is one of the better known of the tales from the Brothers Grimm and a perennial favourite. The poor miller shows off in front of the king about the abilities of his beautiful daughter - she can apparently spin straw into gold. The king insists that the girl be sent to the palace and when she arrives tells her to get a load of straw spun into gold - or suffer the (fatal) consequences. The girl is saved by the appearance of a dwarf who works his magic in return for the girl's necklace; on the second night it's her ring she gives up and on the third it's the promise of her first-born child. Full review...

Grimm's Fairy Tales: Twelve Dancing Princesses by Saviour Pirotta and Cecilia Johansson

Confident Readers

There was once a king who had twelve beautiful daughters. Frightened that they would sneak out and go dancing he locked them in a big bedroom at night, but each morning he would find their satin shoes danced to pieces. As he couldn't work out how they escaped he issued a proclamation to all the young men of the land. Any prince who worked out how they escaped could marry one of the daughters and would inherit the kingdom. But - if after three nights he hadn't discovered the secret, he would lose his head. Full review...

Where is Fred? by Edward Hardy and Ali Pye

For Sharing

Fred, the fluffy, white caterpillar loves hiding and playing games as he is very good at camouflaging himself amongst dandelions and sheep. It’s a bit dangerous when he tries to eat lush green leaves though as there is nowhere to hide. That’s normally OK but one day Gerald, the crow, happens to catch sight of him and is determined to eat him. Fred will not give up without a fight though and scarpers off down the High Street. When Gerald catches up, he is only able to see a smart looking lady wearing a fluffy necklace. She says that she has not seen Fred so he moves on until he meets a man with grey straggly hair and lovely fluffy white eyebrows. He also has not seen Fred so Gerald moves on to ask a little girl with a fluffy white hair band and an elderly man with a big white moustache. Of course, any eagle eyed child will soon spot where Fred is hiding in all of the pictures but luckily Gerald does not. Full review...

I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen

For Sharing

The poor bear has lost his hat. He wants it back. As with all bears, he's a bit of a surly ol' thing. His pointy red hat is about the only thing that puts a smile on his face, and he just can't find it. The fox and frog don't know where it is, the rabbit is evasive, and the tortoise is more interested in climbing a rock. How will the bear ever find his hat? Poor bear. Full review...

When I Dream of 123 by Oakley Graham

For Sharing

'When I dream of 123' is an enchanting book that would make any bedtime very special. It is a counting book that starts at number one and goes all the way to one hundred which is a bit unusual for many picture books. This also makes it an ideal book for slightly older children as well as the very young. It is also a lovely book because each number is accompanied by a gorgeous illustration and some unusual and often comical information about what is seen. It reads like a non-fiction book but all of the pieces of information are mainly imaginary. Full review...

Quack Quack Moo, We See You! by Mij Kelly and Katharine McEwen

For Sharing

Poppa Bombola has lost his darling daughter! He's hunting high and low, under tables, under chairs and all around the farmyard - but she is nowhere to be found.... Or is she? Maybe Poppa Bombola isn't looking close enough... Full review...

The Big Jungle Mix Up by Gareth Edwards and Kanako Usui

For Sharing

Big Bear is teaching little bear all about the animals in the jungle as they are out walking one day. But Big Bear keeps mixing them up and little bear has to keep putting him straight:

'We might find a monkey, with feathers and beak, pea-green, carrot orange, we'll teach it to speak…

You've got it mixed up! As orange as a carrot? A beak that can speak? Then it must be a… *open flap* PARROT!' Full review...

The Big Animal Mix-Up by Gareth Edwards and Kanako Usui

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We're back with Big Bear and little bear again and this time, Big Bear is teaching little bear all about the animals from little bear's big Book About Animals as they are settling down for bed one night. But Big Bear keeps mixing them up and once again little bear has to keep putting him straight:

'This is a fish. It has very soft fur. If you give it a cuddle, you'll hear it go 'purr'…

'Hang on a minute! A fish can't do that. If it's purry and furry, it must be a... *open flap* CAT!' Full review...

Bramble the Brave by Amber Stewart and Layn Marlow

For Sharing

Bramble and her friend Twig love adventures especially when it comes to digging very deep molehills. Bramble leads and Twig follows whether they are digging, wading through ponds, climbing or rolling down hills. You would think that this brave little mole would be prepared to try anything and she is. That is until it comes to food when she turns into the fussiest little mole imaginable. She won't eat pondweed soup because it is too slimy; four-leaf clover salads are too crunchy and she won't even try Mummy's hazelnut pie because she only likes berries. Her parents try to persuade her to try all of this lovely food but eventually they get fed up of making a fuss and just let Bramble eat berries for a whole week. At first, Bramble is delighted but soon her paws look as if they have been splashed with purple paint and her whiskers feel sticky all the time. Full review...