Picture Book - Lost and Found - Oliver Jeffers (Author & Illustrator)

Picture Book - Lost and Found - Oliver Jeffers (Author & Illustrator)

Recomended for - Babies/Toddlers/Younger Readers

I'm trying to gather up everything I can find by Oliver Jeffers, as he's easily been one of my favourite picture book writers that I've discovered over the last year or so (and he's a fine illustrator too). I've discovered several books with a friendship between a boy and a penguin, and this is the first.

When a boy finds a penguin on his doorstep, he thinks he must be lost and tries to help him find his way home, eventually landing at the South Pole. As he leaves though, he notices that the penguin is still sad, and realises that he was just lonely. Will he make it back in time though to find the penguin and his new best friend?

I'm happy to say that, yet again, Oliver Jeffers has come up trumps. While it's not on the highest level with The Hueys in The New Jumper, Stuck or This Moose Belongs To Me, it's close, and well worth checking out. The slightly eccentric humour that Jeffers does so well is present, especially as the boy tries to ask various parties (including some random birds, which is hilarious how it happens) about where the penguin might belong. I also very nearly burst into tears in the last couple of pages (that's not unusual, but I've never done it reading a picture book before!) - there's a scene that's so touching, I wanted to force everyone else to read it straight away afterwards. There was no-one around though, so I had to read it myself again, which was absolutely fine by me.

It's almost become too easy to predict, but you have to check this out, and everything else Oliver Jeffers has done.

9/10

Picture Book - Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed - Mo Willems (Author & Illustrator)

Picture Book - Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed - Mo Willems (Author & Illustrator)

Recommended for - Toddlers/Younger Readers

Well, how could you not love a story about a naked mole rat.

The mole rat of this story in particular, Wilbur, is a troublesome one - whilst mole rat law dictates that every mole rat should be naked, Wilbur likes to wear clothes. He's frowned upon and disliked by all the other mole rats, who constantly remind him that 'nake mole rats don't wear clothes!', until one day Wilbur asks 'why not?'. When the other mole rats bring this problem to Grand-pah mole rat, he thinks about it and then decrees that Wilbur is correct, and why shouldn't they wear clothes. From then on, some mole rats wear clothes, some stay naked, and all of them are happy.

Firstly, I love the fact that it's a mole rat - I can't think of any other stories being written about a mole rat, which just makes this funnier and funnier. It's written with the same humour that Mo Willems other Elephant & Piggie and Pigeon series have, and he's fast become one of my favourite children's authors. It's also a great message to children, to sometimes think 'why not?' about a problem. And I do so like a book that has a bit of a moral message, when it isn't being hammered home to much. A subtle moral message is like...er, is like a...

I should stick to writing reviews, not metaphors.

Children will giggle at the fact the mole rats are naked, and adults will smile at the humour behind the text and illustrations. At the moment, I find it hard to give Mo Willems anything but 10/10, as all of them feel like bona-fide classics.

10/10

Picture Book - My Friend Is Sad (Elephant & Piggie) - Mo Willems (Author & Illustrator)

Picture Book - My Friend Is Sad (Elephant & Piggie) - Mo Willems (Author & Illustrator)

Recommended for - Toddlers/Younger Readers

If you've never read any of the Elephant & Piggie books by Mo Willems then apologies, but you're about to learn a lot about them, as they're going to form the bulk of the next 20 or so reviews for this site. For I have recently discovered them (thanks to a certain team of librarians - yes, librarians are awesome for learning about new books. Who knew?!), and the first time I read one of the stories I laughed, and laughed, and laughed, and laughed. I think at that point I had to go and serve someone in the library, but when I had finished I went back and laughed some more.

For those unfamiliar with the Elephant & Piggie series, they are books about best friends Gerald (the elephant) and Piggie (the pig - you guessed that already? Gold star!), and the funny adventures they get into. There's often a very funny little twist that will make grown ups smile knowingly, and this first story is no exception. This tale sees Gerald looking upset, and Piggie wondering about what can be wrong with his friend. Piggie tries his best to cheer him up by putting on disguises, but Gerald remains upset until Piggie comes to see him as himself, whereupon Gerald tells him that he was even more upset because he wanted to share the fun with Piggie, who wasn't there. It's a lovely little twist that will make grown ups smile and children laugh, and I warmed to Gerald and Piggie straight away because they're both slightly dopey.

These may be books for young children, but there's a genuine humour to them that reminds me of Jon Klassen and Oliver Jeffers. Oh, how I wish that my attempts at picture books could put me in their league. Mo Willems also does another series (as well as other books in general) based on a rather angry pigeon, and they're just as good, so look out for some of those reviews appearing soon too!

I really can't recommend highly enough that, if you have a child who's starting to appreciate humour in picture books, you should start getting the Elephant & Piggie books out straight away.

10/10

Picture Book - I'm Not Cute! - Jonathan Allen (Author & Illustrator)

Picture Book - I'm Not Cute! - Jonathan Allen (Author & Illustrator)

Recommended for - Babies/Toddlers/Younger Readers

Oh, how I do love a story about a grumpy animal!

Poor Baby Owl - no matter where he goes, everyone tells him how cute he is. He tries to tell them about how fierce he really is, but secretly, does he want to be cute after all?

Everytime I think of this book I can't help but smile - the thought of a baby owl throwing a mini-strop and stamping his feet when he's told he's cute is hilarious! Having a young son who gets grumpy when he's tired (as I'm sure most of you reading this will have experienced!) I can feel a certain empathy with Baby Owl's mother. It'll make you all giggle and smile, that's for sure.

The illustrations add to the laughter, with Baby Owl grumpily jumping up and down everytime he's called cute, like some deranged little ball of fur. 

Guaranteed to make you and your children laugh.

9/10

Picture Book - Mr Pusskins and Little Whiskers - Sam Lloyd (Author & Illustrator)

Picture Book - Mr Pusskins and Little Whiskers - Sam Lloyd (Author & Illustrator)

Recommended for - Babies/Toddlers/Younger Readers

I'm a sucker for a story about a grumpy cat (owning one myself), so the expression on the front cover drew me in straight away.

Mr Pusskins lives quite happily with his owner Emily, when she suddenly announces that she has a wonderful surprise - a kitten! Mr Pusskins is less than happy however, so will he be able to make friends with this new addition to the family?

I suppose in a way this is what it must be like for your first-born having to cope with their younger brother or sister coming in to the world - although hopefully it won't cause you to giggle quite as much! I really enjoyed Mr Pusskins' reactions to this turn of events, with the typewritten letter a particular highlight, and it also has a great lesson for kids that they need to apologise if they've done wrong, and that they can still make friends after a rocky start (I'm big on my lessons within books).

The style of illustrations is almost haphazard in a way, but that's not meant to be a criticism - it fits Mr Pusskins grumpy persona very well!

This is the second book of the series, so there'll be a review of the first book up soon - as long as Mr Pusskins is the same grumpy cat as in this story, I'm sure I'll enjoy it just as much!

8/10

Picture Book - It's A Book - Lane Smith (Author & Illustrator)

Picture Book - It's A Book - Lane Smith (Author & Illustrator)

Recommended for Toddlers/Younger Readers 

Occasionally, a children's picture book comes along that has theme that must have been written with adults in mind. I Want My Hat Back (Jon Klassen) has wonderfully subtle pictures with dark overtones. The Hueys in The New Jumper (Oliver Jeffers) features one person doing something different, only for everyone to do it so they can also be different. And now, It's A Book joins the ranks of the elite.

It's such a simple idea, but phenomenally well done. It's funny, and will ring true to anyone who has stopped to consider that children will grow up in a world where e-books are the norm. Some people panic over this, some embrace it (me - the important thing is that they're reading), but this story is a gem for anyone who doesn't want to see us lose the printed word.

It's simple plot is thus - a monkey is happily reading, when a jackass appears and asks him a series of questions about it, along the lines of 'Can it text? Tweet? Wi-fi?' etc. By the end of the story, the jackass is completely entranced, despite it's lack of technology.

Words along cannot do justice to just how funny I found this, as did all my library colleagues (e-books vs printed books is a hot topic at the moment, as you can well imagine). I don't think I've ever seen anything as clever put down in print for children. The pictures are fun, adding to the humour as the monkey gets more and more exasperated.

It's perfect for helping to explain to your children why a book can be as much fun as a techno-gadget. No excuses, this is a must read!

10/10

Picture Book - Bear Wants More - Karma Wilson (Author) & Jane Chapman (Illustrator)

Picture Book - Bear Wants More - Karma Wilson (Author) & Jane Chapman (Illustrator)

Recommended for - Babies/Toddlers/Younger Children

And so, for now, I bid farewell to Bear, as I come to the end of the eight books in the series published so far...

Bear wakes up following a long period of hibernation, and he's rather hungry. But what will he do if he eats so much that he can't fit through the entrance to his cave anymore?

For once, FINALLY, Bear doesn't seem to suffer too much! Sure, he can't fit into his home for a while, but that just means he takes the party to the forest outside. That's more fun, surely? I'm not sure if this is actually the latest book in the series, but it's a nice way to finish it, compared to the last two stories I've reviewed where he gets stuck in a storm, and then feels ill!

Throughout the series, the stories have had a heart-warming centre, about a Bear and his friends who help each other out when the need arises. The words flow together brilliantly, the illustrations are wonderful to look at, and there's always a delightful feel-good ending (not that you'd expect anything different in a book for children!). The quality is consistently great throughout, never dipping, making all the books in the series a must-read.

Well done Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman - in my opinion, I think the Bear series is the best long children's picture book series availble. Please write some more!

9/10