4 to 5 years

Funny!

Age range: 3 - 5 years

The children loved this book. They identified with the characters as animals. When each animal does their "funny" things many of the children copied the actions described in the book. The pictures are fun, vibrant and colourful. This is a tip-top funny book

Claire Bozward - August 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

I Wish

Age range: 3 - 5 years

A beautifully illustrated story about two red squirrels Cubby & Clementine and their many wishes. A lovely bed time read.

Mandy Ackland - August 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

I'm Special

Age range: 3 - 5 years

This book was very big with lovely big clear pictures. This book really kept the children interested and encouraged them to talk about lots of things such as the way they felt and things they do at home and when out and about. They began to understand that everybody is different and that they are all different in many ways and in what they can do. A brilliant book for a pre-school or group environment.

Sharon - Pollyanna Pre-School - August 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Just Like Sisters

Age range: 3 - 5 years

What a surprise when Nancy's pen friend turned out to be Ally the Alligator! This book made me laugh especially when Ally tells about her brother Snap who will look so handsome when his brace comes off! A colourful book full of fun but a bit sad at the end.

Tracey Thomas - August 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

The Knight that took all Day

Age range: 3 - 5 years

The story is about a Knight vying for the attention of the beutifal princess who isn't interested in his shows of his prowess through jousting and fighting. So he goes of in search of a dragon to defeat, after an unsuccesful search ( he wasn't looking very well as my son saw 3 hidden in the pictures). when he returns to his tower a dragon attacks the kingdom. eventually, after the knight has the squire running up and down the 101 steps loads of times to find the best looking armour, the knight goes out to fight the dragon only to find that the princess has already tamed the dragon and all the kids are going for dragon rides. the knight goes back to the tower and the princess marries the squire and the both fly in to the distance on the dragon.

My 4 year old son really enjoyed this book, part of his enjoyment was the illustrations, he could see parts of the story unfolding that the knight was missing, for instance while the knight is fussing about the princess is getting dressed in her own armour to prepare to meet the dragon. The pictures are very colourful and have loads going on, so much so, that my son asks to look through the book again to look at the pictures and tell the story from the princess's side.

Although it is a hardback £10.99 seems very expensive it is a good story and has great pictures, I feel that if they bring out a soft back out that is quite a lot cheaper it would be a great book to buy.

Kevin Brook - August 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Laura's Star

Age range: 3 - 5 years

This is a lovely story about a little girl who found a star which became her special friend. It is well written and beautifully illustrated. Laura's own star shines and sparkles from the pages of the book as you read through the story.

Sarah Edwards - August 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Molly's Fairies

Age range: 3 - 5 years

My daughter Jodie who is 4 thoroughly enjoyed this book. She really loves anything to do with fairies so this really appealed to her. The story was well written and easy to understand, she loved the little fairies on each page and the fact that as you turned the pages one by one they disappeared. She especially loved the pop up section at the back, even to the point that she would leave the book open on that page and pretend play with her little dolls as if they lived in the castle! This is a magical book for little girls around the age of 4 and 5.

Louise Bennett - August 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Monster

Age range: 3 - 5 years

Jackson wants a pet and Angela McAllister's gentle humour takes us through his adventures with 'Monster' at the same time teaching the importance and responsibility of caring for a pet. You'll have to read the book to find out how Jackson's escapade with 'Monster' ends!

Tracey Thomas - August 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Once Upon a Tide

Age range: 3 - 5 years

The words are easy to read. The children enjoyed the fact that it rhymed all the way through. The pictures are detailed but not overwhelming. They enjoyed pointing out other objkects that they could see in the pcitures. Overall the book is ideal for the age range of pre-school chilren.

Claire Bozward - August 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Riggledy Piggledy

Age range: 3 - 5 years

A paperback book of the best loved Nursery Rhymes with riddles before each Rhyme so you can guess which one is coming next.

Mandy Ackland - August 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Sweet as a Strawberry and Cool as a Cucumber

Age range: 2 - 5 years

Wow! What fantastic photos!

These two books, out of a series of 4, are a credit to the photography studios. Beautiful pictures of children interacting with fruit and veg in an interesting and colourful way, for example there's a photo of a really cheeky looking girl holding two strawberries up to her face as if they are eyes, another of a little boy balancing an apple on his head.

The concept of the books is 'lift the flap' - you get to see a child with an piece of fruit. Once you lift the flap you then have the fruit displayed in a variety of ways - sliced, halved, squeezed etc. - and another photo of the same child looking thoughtful, with words like: "coconut ... dry and tasty like popcorn or lentils".

These books are most definitely discussion books. The words are very limited on the page - you have your foody phrase, like the one above, and the other words are descriptive words of the food arrangement, like skin, seeds, half, slice which describe what the child is seeing. The other two books from the series are apparently recommended National Literacy Strategy books for reception. I can see that there could be lots of learning to have if one took the books as part of a project on food, learning about how fruit and vegetables grow, experimenting with taste and what the different foods look like. As books to have at home on the book shelf, personally I find them not that useful as a tool. It requires a lot of effort to mount a discussion with a 3 year old about the seeds in a kiwi fruit!

The final thought is that for 'educating' your child, these books are fine but IF you want to enjoy a book for the sake of it ... choose 'Guess how much I love you'. BUT, if you are into photography and want to see some really good examples of children's photography have a look ... you might enjoy it more than the kids!

Abigail Farndon - August 2005

for Sweet as a strawberry www.amazon.co.uk

for Cool as a cucumber www.amazon.co.uk

The Teeny Weeny Tadpole

Age range: 2 - 5 years

This a great book and I would highly recommend it. It follows the journey of a tadpole as he transforms into a frog. The tadpole is desperate to be able to jump like his mum. As he explores his new world he meets a number of animals that encourage him whilst demonstrating their own jumping ability. The book is very colourful with vibrant characters and lots of eye-catching action. Parts of the story are written in a rhythmic style making it great fun to read. I was hooked on this straight away and enjoy it every time I re-read it.

Linda Mosaic - August 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Wanda's First Day

Age range: 2 - 5 years

This is a great book for all those who are starting school. It’s all about a little witch trying to fit in with the fairies at her new school and wondering whether she should be at a different school. Both of my daughters aged 4 and 5 loved it. The illustrations were fun and the story showed that everyone feels a bit nervous about starting school – even witches! It emphasized that not everyone is the same and that you can fit in even if you are different from the others. A joy to read.

Louise Bennett - August 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Well Done

Age range: 0 - 5 yrs

This is a lovely book for toddlers. I read this on my own and thought it would be too young for my daughter who is 3 on 19th May. However, when I read it to her she loved it. I think she associated with all the things the child was doing, as my daughter has already achieved all the goals in the book. It is a really nice book, great for parents who are trying to get their children to dress themselves, or use the potty or feed themselves etc. I can understand why it is classed as a confidence building book.

Not much else to say about it really. Just "well done"

Cath Ball - May 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Why Must I

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

Why must I exercise?

Attractive colourful book, nice pictures to be read by wide age range – from 3 – 10 by reading in more or less detail. Interesting topic broken into small easily accessible sections. Informative and educational. Ideal for primary school children who can read it themselves. The contents and index are easy to use this would make a good school library book. A little repetitive at times.

Why must I eat healthy food?

Attractive format – very interesting for children, can be dipped into for smaller children.Less repetitive than ‘Exercise’ book. Very informative.

Why must I wash my hands?

Attractive format – I found this one a bit preachy. Good for children. Well written and informative. Nice to have a different text in different fonts.

Why must I brush my teeth?

Useful book – nice pictures, attractive pages. Not too repetitive, not preachy. A book which offers good advice.

Sharon Webb (Pre-school teacher) - May 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Funniest Story Book Ever

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

I read this book with Isabel my five year old daughter and we enjoyed it. The book contains 12 stories each of 3/4 pages long - each story just the right length for a bedtime story. The stories are enjoyable and Isabel was able to ' read along' recognising a lot of the words. We thought the best thing about this book were the illustrations - each story has lots of bright, colourful and quite detailed pictures which describe the stories perfectly and we spent as much time looking at & talking about the pictures as we did reading the words. This is a book we will definately come back to and re-read.

Julie and Isabell Nield - May 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Cushie Butterfield - What Now

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

I enjoyed the book we were sent, however Jack got bored of it very quickly. There was no real story line and would suit a much younger child, however Jack did like the bright and bold pictures

Jodie Baker - May 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

How to Catch a Star

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

We loved this book right from the start. The cover was very inviting, promising to reveal the secret of catching your very own star. The blurb on the back of the cover simply introducing the first line but every child in my class immediately identified with the main character. A boy, wanting to catch his very own star, to take long walks on the beach with. They were sad at his failed attempts, but how they smiled when his spaceship ran out of petrol. You can only imagine their delight as the boy eventually catches a star of his very own. This is a wonderful picture book to share with children.

Heather Barfoot - Dinton Pre-School - May 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Keeper's Ball

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

This is a book for young readers or to read to young children.

The story is a very good length and each page has a cartoon like illustration which makes it perfect for a child to read themselves, as they can be 'put off'by a whole page of text. The illustrations are in black and white and fit into the story very well. The story itself is fairly simple and although older children may be able to work out the ending, 'new readers' would enjoy the tale so this would not be a problem. It is amusing and the characters are believable. I don't think too many girls would show an interest in reading it but a boy who supports a 'blue' team would be attracted to the colourful cover. Maybe the book could be marketed with 2 covers.......one in blue and one in red.....????

Sue Whittle - May 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Balamory - Camping

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

My daughter Kate (18 months) loves watching Balamory and became quite excited when she recognised the books. In particular 'The Clown' was very popular as the pictures in the book are actual photographs of the Balamory characters. She sat still and pointed to the pictures as we read the book. The other book 'camping' did not go down as well as the pictures are drawn rather than photos. I thought that the drawings were an acurate reflection of the characters, but felt that the ones with photographs were better for a younger child. My 6 year old son liked the books too (although he considers himself too old to watch Balamory!) as the language in the book was fairly simple and he could easily read to his little sister.

Sarah Hussey - May 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Balamory - THe Clown

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

Sarah comments can be read above.

Sarah Hussey - May 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

My Best Dad

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

My Best Dad is a heart-warming, comic book that would be perfect for a Father's Day gift. However, as a well-loved book to be read again and again, I feel it is limited. Each double page introduces a new 'Dad' and the good and bad things about him, like he's the best at playing football but then sleeps for hours after ... true yes, but as kids book material ... not so sure!!! My daughter is 3 and adores books. She was very excited when the parcel arrived with a new book to look at. She read it enthusiastically the first night but after that lost interest, mainly because, I think that there is little of interest in it - no story-line as such - just "my Dad's best at ... but he never ..." "My Dad's great at ... but he doesn't ..." etc. etc. To it's favour, lovely illustrations and a heart that is really in the right place. It's the sort of book you buy for a 'one-off': birthdays, father's days or just to say 'I love you Dad'.

I'd give My Best Dad 2* for its content but 5* for the thought!

Abigail Farndon - May 2005

This book is one of the competition prizes in May, so look out if you are a winner!

www.amazon.co.uk

Pirates, Plants and Plunders

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

This has got to be one of the most original books I have read for a long time. I really enjoyed it. A series of short stories providing an insight into the brave explorers who discovered many of the plants we now take for granted. It is like the other history and science books that have been written to encourage children to take an interest in a subject which can seem dull when read in a text book. While the illustrations, in black and white and are quite comical, the stories themselves are very good indeed. They have just enough gore and danger to, hopefully, leave the reader wanting more. These varied and exiting stories are a perfect length and with 12 to read, they should keep a child interested for quite a while. This is a book that should appeal to all. Maybe if a teacher used this type of story, children would want to discover more of the history of these great and brave explorers.I suggest Mum and Dad read it too.

Sue Whittle - May 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

No Place Like Home

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

A charming, and beautifully illustrated book.

Mole thinks he’d like a bigger, brighter, more beautiful new home. We go with him on his search for a new home. On his journey we are introduced to his friends, who try to help him find his perfect home.

His journey ends as he discovers there is No Place Like Home…especially your own!

www.amazon.co.uk

A Kick in the Head

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

I'm not sure what age group this collection of poetry is aimed at.

The design and size of the book would suggest a younger age bracket but the content is aimed at the serious poet and too advanced for young children. There is useful information about poem structure such as tercet, haiku and sonnet and use of rhyme which may help a child who is starting to study poetry at school.

Although many of the poems are short my children failed to understand the meaning to most of them, it therefore appears to be a book for deeper consideration that that of a child.

Suzanne Heath - April 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog!

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

Pigeon finds a hot dog, and all he wants to do is savour eating it.

However, the clever little Duckling has other ideas. The real story is disguised behind simple cartoon like illustrations.

The books illustrations and language manage to masterfully express, the two characters who have real attitude! It is a great fun book to read out loud. All works out well for a classic ending. I was surprised that the children enjoyed the humour of this book as much as I did.

Heather Barfoot - Dinton School - April 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Little Rabbit Runaway

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

Attractive illustrations both on the outside cover and inside the book.

The story is simple and easily accessible to children from 2.5 to 5 years.

The children related well to the story and listened with interest. There wasn't too much text on the page so the children were able to turn the pages quite quickly, it's written using words that young children would use. A good story with a clear beginning, middle and end.

Sharon Webb, Pollyanna Pre-School - April 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

In a Little While

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

In a Little While is a story about a wolf whose Mummy goes to hospital.

My 2 and a half year old Jack, liked this book.

The pictures were very detailed which held his attention, he got a bit sad as he understood the story line, so maybe a book for children who know someone in hospital. Overall though, Jack did enjoy it and keeps picking it up to look at the pictures and to tell me what he can see.

Jodie Baker and son Jack - April 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

In a Little While

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

"In a little while" by Charlotte Hudson and illustrated by Mary McQuillan is a beautiful book aimed at 2-4 year olds. It tells the story of Wobbly Fang and how he deals with his mummy being in hospital. My eldest son is almost three and was captivated by the illustrations of the various wolves, racoons, bears and birds of the forest. The pages are so full of lovely little touches that he discovered new things each time we read together. The story is reassuring for little ones and my son never tires of hearing it. At £10-99 it may seem a little expensive but I believe the price is well worth paying for the hours of enjoyment toddlers will have discovering new things with ever read.

I heartily recommend this book to all parents of under 5's.

Karen McIntosh - April 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Balamory - Colouring Book

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

This book is more suited to children who have a good attention span and have managed to grasp the ability of colouring to a reasonable standard - rather than a semi-scribble, because of the small areas needed to be coloured.

The pictures resemble the characters in the programme, but they are illustrations, and my children said they didn't really look like the proper people!

Jackie, Megan, Freya and Cerys - April 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Balamory - Sticker Book

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

The girls least liked this book which surprised me as generally they love stickers books.

They enjoyed the activity of actually placing the stickers into the book but didn't find the images or content of the book very stimulating at all.

Jackie, Megan, Freya and Cerys - April 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

Balamory Fun and Games

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

My girls loved the books and recognised the characters and places with delight. My 4 year old enjoyed them the most.

They preferred the look of the books with actual photos of the characters from the BBC programme, rather than the illustrated books.

The books reflect the programme with the stories unravelling in the same format to the programme. As the children felt they 'knew' the characters it made the books more of a discussion tool, because the children wanted to share similar stories that they had seen on the TV programme.

Jackie, Megan, Freya and Cerys - April 2005

www.amazon.co.uk

'Tiger' - from the Proud Parents Range

Age range: 2 - 6 yrs

This book is of a new clever design which incorporates a smaller child-size book within the body of the larger book. The smaller book sits inside a cut-out shape and attaches by velcro to the back cover.

The text tells of Tasmin Tiger and her Mum's encounters in the jungle. Not so much of a story, but short sentences.

The smaller book runs parallel but is told by another Tiger sibling, Tom, who is Tasmins twin brother. It answers in response to what has been said in the larger book, page by page.

This book is bright with simple illustrations and simple wording. The lack of a story didn't engage Thomas' interest, however I feel that it would become a firm favourite with much younger children.
Shared with Thomas age 4. Francine

www.amazon.co.uk

Wake Up Sleepy Head

Age range: 6 months - 5yrs

This book is full of rhymes describing animals waking up in their natural habitats. The animals range from Cows and Koalas to Skunks and Frogs.

On face value the book is beautifully illustrated with soft colourful pictures, however I feel the text itself lets the book down. Thomas found a few of the rhymes funny and entertaining, but mostly he was not amused with the poor rhyming and nonsense verse.

I had great expectations for this book on seeing the cover, but I was very disappointed when reading it aloud. You had a sense of how it was trying to introduce the young to poetry, but in my opinion it fell far short.

Shared with Thomas age 4 & Georgia 6 months. Francine

www.amazon.co.uk

Mole And The Baby Bird

Age range: 2-6 yrs

Mole rescues a bird, nurses it to health and keeps it in a cage. Understandably he wants to keep the bird, but comes to realise that you have to let the things you love go free.

The story is quite complex with many themes and issues, including love and loss. The appearance of the book gives the impression that this is for young children, around two years of age, as the pages are thick cardboard. Unfortunately this age group may not appreciate the depth of story contained.

The artwork is lovely, very warming and illustrates the story superbly. My four year old daughter liked the story and was very engaged by the layout and appearance of the book.
Karen.

www.amazon.co.uk

My Mum

Age range: 0-5 yrs

Personally this came across as the sort of book a grandparent would buy - it wasn't terribly exciting visually - the illustrations, although charming seemed a little flat and the overall feeling was of an era that is no longer here. The mother wasn't a convincing character and my 4 year old was insistent she couldn't be a Mum at all but a 'granny' - with her kitted out in some huge floral monstrosity that really is how the book comes across, which is a shame because the message (which was pretty much, "My Mum can do anything" was really quite sweet.
Suzanne

www.amazon.co.uk

Twenty-four Robbers

Age range: 3 - 8yrs

This is a story based on the traditional skipping rhyme-

Not last night, but the night before…Twenty-four robbers came a-knocking at my door. I asked then what they wanted, and this is what they said…….. H O T …Hot Peppers!!!

And so the story goes on over 32 pages of this paperback book. Each page contains a sentence of the rhyme. The pictures are very cheerful, bright and busy, with each illustration showing a dozen or more robbers involved in various activities, such as knocking the door, dancing around a fire, or running in the woods!

Remembering back to my childhood, I recall the first couple of lines to this rhyme, and some of the tune, but confess to no knowledge of the ‘hot peppers thread’ at all! This made it somewhat difficult to sing-song my way through the story/rhyme to my five year old.

I must admit to being a bit uncertain of this book. I felt the story about robbers a bit unsettling to my five year old, who questioned me why robbers were knocking on the door. The robbers, at the end of the story, acknowledge that sharing is better than stealing, so that does lighten the mood.

I did hear my son singing the catchy first couple of lines to himself later on, so maybe that shows that the rhyme had crept into his imagination!

But I’m still curious how the rest of the tune actually goes! I am going to send the book into school next week, so see how they get on with it!

Melanie Whitehead

www.amazon.co.uk

What's the Time, Mr Wolf?

Age range: 3 - 6yrs

"This book follows Mr Wolf and Junior Wolf through their day, from waking up until dinnertime. A finger puppet of Mr Wolf runs through the book and this really brings the book to life. The time is shown on each page in analogue and digital format.

Not only is this book educational, it is great fun and exciting. My 5 and 8 year old thought it was excellent! Highly recommended!"

Clare

www.amazon.co.uk

Ten Little Speckled Frogs

Age range: 3 - 6yrs

"The book starts with 10 colourful frogs sitting on a log, and as you read each page, the dial is turned as each frog jumps off into the pond until there are none. The book is very colourful and educational, with repetitive text.

In my opinion, it is suitable for 3 - 5 year olds - my son took it into school (he’s in Reception) and his classmates (and teacher) loved it and asked him to bring it in again…a definite stamp of approval!"

Clare

www.amazon.co.uk

For more details of the Child's Play programme of books, games and toys or to request a catalogue please visit www.childs-play.com

Poppy Cat's Jigsaw Book

Age range: 1 - 4yrs

"I sat and read this book with my 2 year old daughter and it was a lovely little book to read with her.

She is perhaps a bit advanced for it as she can already count up to 13, but she still enjoyed it though especially the idea of the jigsaws.

My son is too old for it at 5 but for younger ones I think it is a lovely book, would be a great gift to give as it combines the jigsaw with the book.

My only fault with it is, as soon as my daughter had finished with it, she picked it up and all the pieces fell out of the jigsaw. So in all, a very good learning book brilliant jigsaw idea but not very practical for little people to pick up."

Cath

www.amazon.co.uk

Mr Men Go BIG!

A Little Bit of Trouble

Age range: 3 - 6yrs

"My 5 year old daughter especially loved this book as she is a big teddy bear fan, so a bear story was bound to be a big hit.

The pictures of Grandfather bear with his two youngsters as they go on a disastrous picnic are delightful.

Each double page has just one small paragraph of text so this book would be ideal for a quick read, but by looking at the pictures and discussing them further it is easy to spend much longer telling the story. There is so much more to each page than what is said in the text by trying to predict what will happen next or by talking about the dangers of any particular activity. The book also brings in aspects of the countryside code and nature so could also be a useful learning tool.

This book would probably appeal to both boys and girls alike from age 2 to 7ish with the older child being able to read the simple text for themselves. It would be the ideal story to accompany a teddy bear's picnic."

Pam

www.amazon.co.uk

Mr Happy and the Wizard

Age range: 3 - 6yrs

"My sons both enjoyed this new Mr Men tale. It contained the same bright simple pictures you come to expect of the Mr Men series, plus it has a lovely enticing bold sparkly cover to give a magical feel.

The story tells of Mr Happy, who going about his normal Saturday routine finds a spell book and wizards hat left in his local library.

The magical spell books talks to him and requests he returns him to his rightful owner, a Wizard. Mr Happy kindly agrees and sets out on his adventure, spell book under his arm and Wizard hat upon his head.

Along his way he meets some of his friends whom Mr Happy takes it upon himself to help. With the help of the spell book, he sets about correcting each Mr Men's given dilemma with disastrous results. Returning everyone to their normal selves he finally reaches the Wizards cottage where he is warmly greeted and treated to special Wizards supper."

Francine

www.amazon.co.uk

Harry and the Dinosaurs Play Hide and Seek

Age range: 2 - 6yrs

"I read this book with my three year old son. The book consists of pages with "peep through" cut outs. You then lift the page to find the hidden dinosaur beneath.

My son liked the book but it didn't hold his attention for long.

Some of the dinosaur names e.g. Scelidosaurus I'd not heard of before and I think that the unfamiliar and strange sounding names made the book less appealing to my three year old.

Each page has a colour theme and he did find it fun naming and matching the colours. We've read other Harry books and have both loved them; and although in this book the illustrations were colourful and entertaining it wasn't up to the standard I expected before opening it.

I'd say it's a good book to borrow from the library but for us it's not going to become a well read well loved favourite. I think he would have preferred a more traditional format "lift the flap" book rather than the "fold out" style used in this book."

Kerry

www.amazon.co.uk

Zoo Poo

Age range: 2 - 4yrs

"My son has been potty trained for about 8 months now, but he still enjoyed reading about how different animals at the zoo go to the toilet.

The book is very colourful, and the character of a little boy appears on each page as he tours around the zoo, giving continuity and added interest.

At the end of the book, the boy sits on the toilet himself to demonstrate how boys and girls poo. There are some useful guidelines for parents about to attempt potty training.

We enjoyed reading this book together, and it is highly recommended for families about to start potty training their child."

Charlotte

www.amazon.co.uk

A Chick Called Saturday

Age range: 0 - 5yrs

"Initial impressions are that this is just another run of the mill children’s book. Don’t let the cover fool you. When I opened the book and started to read it to my children, not only were we treated to a good, and at times amusing story culminating in a great lesson, but the bold and colourful watercolours really helped to fire the imagination.

From start to finish it kept both my two and four year olds quiet, (worth the money just for that!), but after the story had ended, there were pleas to read it again form the younger one, whilst the older started with a barrage of questions. Definitely worth spending some hard earned pennies on."

Andrew

www.amazon.co.uk

Get Busy This Summer

Age range: 0 - 5yrs

"My son Jordon and I really enjoyed reading this book. As well as the story there's lots of lovely bright pictures.

It's about a family of Penguins going on a holiday to have lots of fun in the sun, like they do every year. They go sailing, fruit picking, fishing and more. They get time to relax on the beach and get some sun, they go for a swim and have lots of fun.

Jordon loved the pictures Lovely bright colours, good size writing for children to read. He took the book to bed and was really happy looking at the pictures till he feel asleep."

Jayne

www.amazon.co.uk

The Sprog Owner's Manual
(or How Kids Work)

Age range: 4yrs+

Georgia Says: "I liked this book because it had lots of good information all about how our bodies work, some of the things I already know from school but there was lots of new things to learn too. Some of the pictures were really funny like when the bad sprog chases the good one because its got the wrong brain. I think Im a good sprog because the bad sprogs were horrid."

Ryan Says: "I liked this book because it was very funny. The bad sprogs were really disgusting especially the bit about potty training and stuff and the bit about the worms in his stomach was really yuk! The pictures were really good and I think that most of my friends would think this book was really funny and cool. Its got lots of information about how our bodies work and stuff and that was really interesting too."

Both of the children enjoyed this book, but Ryan read it several times more than Georgia, with a morbid fascination for all things disgusting!

Georgia, aged 6 and Ryan, aged 8

www.amazon.co.uk

Yuk!

Age range: 0 - 5yrs

"A colourful hard back book about Daisy, who is about to be a bridesmaid. The problem is Daisy 'doesn't do dresses' and she 'doesn't do lovely'. The book takes you through the hunt for a dress and everything is 'Yuk!' until the eventual compromise between Daisy and the grown-ups, when she is allowed to design her own dress.

Enjoyable to read with great illustrations, Daisy's antics are fun for children to follow, although if you have a budding tomboy bridesmaid yourself it may give her ideas!"

Jacky

www.amazon.co.uk

Yellow Bird, Black Spider

Age range: 2 - 4yrs

This book is aimed at toddlers and as such is very colourful and engaging for that age group.

It is a bit different from the other books I have read my 20 month old in that it has a wicked twist in the tail which I hope won't give him nightmares! My husband thought the twist was hilarious though!

The book is all about a yellow bird that refuses to conform and is as contrary as any toddler I know. Maybe that is why it works. The artwork is very interesting - not cute and cuddly but sharp and witty. My son now loves the book and I have had to read it at least 20 times to him. It is great for learning colours and the names of everyday items but does it in a funny quirky way.

I liked this book but I'm not sure I would shell out £9.99 for it, as it is very short."

Karen

www.amazon.co.uk

Thomas & Friends - New for 2004!

February and March 2004 saw the publication of 4 new Thomas & Friends story books including 'James and the Queen of Sodor' and 'Gordon and the Competition', all of which tie in with the current TV series.

There are also 5 new titles to add to the My Thomas Story Library, 'Percy', 'Bill and Ben', 'Sir Handel', 'Oliver' and 'Bulstrode'.

Percy

Age range: 2 - 5yrs

"Percy loves to play tricks, but realises in the end that it is just as important to be a 'really useful engine'.

Lovely illustrations, especially the expressions on the faces of the trains and a nice size for small hands.

A book for sharing. Some of the language is rather lengthy and stilted. Good for pre-reading skills - telling the story from the pictures, predicting what might happen next and how the characters are feeling."

Tina