Just One More!

Text: Tracey Corderoy

Illustrations:  Alison Edgson

Year: 2012

Publisher: Little Tiger Press, London

Age: 4 – 8 years

No. of Pages: 32

Book Type: Bedtime Picture Book

ISBN:  978 1 84895 313 0

Little Brown Bunny is ready for bed but he can’t seem to get enough stories for the night. After a few stories, his exhausted Mummy passes the books on to Daddy. Soon, Granny and then, Grandpa read to him.

Finally, after all the stories have been read, Little Brown Bunny is still not ready to sleep. However, he has a wonderful idea on how to get a new bedtime book.

Excerpt

Teatime was over. Bath time was over.

That meant just one thing …

“Story time!” cried Little Brown Bunny.

So Mummy read him a story. Then another.

You’re Too Small!

Text: Shen Roddie

Illustrations: Steve Lavis

Year: 2004

Publisher: Little Tiger Press, London

Age: 4 – 8 years

No. of Pages: 32

Book Type: Picture Book

ISBN: 978 1 85430 965 5

Little Pip wakes up to a wonderful morning. He wants to help out his busy friends at the farm. The other animals, however, find that he’s too small – pig thinks he might get squashed under the marrows, Goat says he’ll get lost in the hay and Goose knows he’s too small to sit on her eggs.

Pip finds his niche though. When the animals are locked out of the barn, Pip squeezes in through a tiny hole and opens the door from within. The animals now realize that Pip is just the right size for himself.

Excerpt

Pip woke up all warm and tingly as a dot of sunshine touched his nose.

He peered out of the window.

One Sleepy Night

By Sebastien Braun 

Year: 2013

Publisher: Little Tiger Press, London

Age: 2 – 4 years

No. of Pages: 20

Book Type: Bedtime, Board Book

ISBN:  978 1 84895 512 7

This charming bedtime board book is beautiful. And, of course, the central character is a baby bear on his way to bed. They stop by one sleepy owl, two badgers and three fireflies before finally calling it a night.

The rhyming text is memorable too!

Excerpt

Three sleepy fireflies litter and peep.

Softly, the wind whispers, “Hush! Time for sleep!”

One little bear has a wash before bed. 

Me and My Dad

Text: Alison Ritchie

Illustrations: Alison Edgson

Year: 2007

Publisher: Little Tiger Press, London

Age: 3 – 6 years

No. of Pages: 32

Book Type: Picture book

ISBN:  978 1 84506 465 5

This delightfully illustrated tender expression of love from a cuddly, baby bear to his strong, tall daddy bear is a treasure.

The book traces a day in the life of the cub, from his father’s wake-up kiss to cuddling with his dad at night and packed with all their fun adventures in between.

This is a memorable book especially because of its enchanting illustrations that celebrate the love of a parent and child. 

Excerpt

My dad tells me stories as

As day turns to night.

We cuddle up close

In the twinkling light. 

Ducking for apples

Text: Lynne Berry

Illustrator: Hiroe Nakata

Year: 2010

Publisher: Henry Holt and Company, New York 

Age: 4 and above

No. of Pages: 28

ISBN: 978 0 80508 935 6

The title “Ducking for Apples” is merely a play on words because the story is about five little ducklings that set out bicycling one fine day and chance upon an apple tree. That means snack, a pie and a cake. :-)

The vibrant watercolor illustrations burst with innocence and gush of energy that only little ones enjoy.

Excerpt

Three little ducks cut fruit in slices,

Mix with sugar, toss with spices.

Two little ducks press sticky dough

Down in the dish where the fruit will go. 

Said Mouse to Mole

Author: Clare Bevan

Illustrator: Sanja Rescek

For Ages: 3 and above

No. of Pages: 22

Publisher: QED Publishing, London

Year: 2004

ISBN: 978-1-84538-015-1

If I were to make a list of some of the finer things of life, it would include poetry, paintings and innocence. I would not have thought it possible, but I found all the above packaged beautifully into this lyrical story about two friends, a mouse and a mole.

One fine day, they find themselves gloomy and wish to be somebody else until they realize they are perfect just as they are.

Each page is a painting and the book will brighten up your children’s bookshelf. The story will delight young readers especially those who have been introduced to the concept of rhymes.

It’s one of those rare books that make you want to frame each page up.

Excerpt

Said Mole, “I wish that I could be

Taller than the tallest tree.”

Said Mouse, “But if you grow so tall,

Your little house will be too small.”

Said Mouse, “I wish that I could change

To something beautiful and strange.”

Said Mole, “But if you’re strange and new,

Will you like me? Will I like you?”

Percy and the Pirates

Author: Russell Punter

Illustrator: Kate Sheppard

For Ages: 6 and above

No. of Pages: 48

Publisher: Usborne Publishing, London

ISBN: 978 0 74609 160 9

Here's another gem from the Usborne Young Reading series.    

Meet Percy, an enterprising and clever boy who courageously changes his family’s misfortune after an adventure with a band of pirates led by Captain Crook. Yes, that’s his name. His crew mates are Willy Weevil, Sam Scurvy and Ronnie Rum.

I liked this story because it portrays good old values of bravery, courage and honesty. But there are man-eating sharks that make their appearance more than once. Parents might want to cushion that bit of cruelty.

The watercolor illustrations weave right into the story, seamlessly.

By the way, the ships that the pirates plunder are called Crimson Cuttlefish, Pink Prawn, Blue Blowfish and Red Herring. Notice a cute pattern there? 

Excerpt

Percy didn’t want to be a pirate. But he didn’t want to be a shark’s dinner, either.

“Tell Percy the ship’s motto, lads,” bellowed Crook, and the pirates sang.

“We steal for Crook ‘cos he’s the best,

Then put the treasure in his chest.”

The ship sailed out to sea.

“Will I ever see my family again?” thought Percy.

The Big Pancake

Retold by Nicola Baxter

Illustrator: Tony Kenyon

For Ages: 4 and above

No. of Pages: 24

Publisher: Ladybird Books, London

ISBN: 978-0-72141-694-6

This delightful adaptation of a folktale will find echoes with children of most cultures. And, anyway, a rolling-moving pancake is bound to catch the imagination of little minds.

The delightful illustrations make the tale easy to relate to – a mom in tracks and sneakers, a little boy with glasses.

Of course, children’s tales are rarely complete without talking animals, of which there are plenty here.

Excerpt

So, two hungry little boys cracked the eggs and …

two hungry little boys measured the milk and …

two hungry little boys weighed the flour and …

one hungry little boy mixed it all together (and got quite a lot on the floor!).

Gruff the Grump

Author: Steve Smallman

Illustrator: Cee Biscoe

For Ages: 4 and above

No. of Pages: 26

Publisher: Little Tiger Press, London

Year: 2009

ISBN: 978-1-56148-669-4

Now here’s a beautiful story with brilliant illustrations that make you want to frame up a couple of pages to hang on the wall.

This tender story about a grumpy bear discovering kindness and eventually, happiness in his lonely existence is bound to evoke feelings of empathy amongst young readers.

The story is narrated extremely well. It’s not poetry but you almost want it to be. Don’t be surprised if your children pick up a few sentences and repeat them like rhymes. But then, it isn’t a rhyme, either.

I must say, meaningful stories (for children) like this are rare and a find like this ought to be treasured.

Excerpt

Gruff was a bear.

A great big bear.

A great big, scowly, growly, grizzly grump of a bear.

He lived all alone in a musty, dusty old cave where nobody ever came to visit. The other animals hid when they saw him coming. They called him, ‘Gruff the Grump’.

“HUMPH!” went Gruff the Grump to show he didn’t care. 

Bright Stanley

Author and Illustrator: Matt Buckingham

For Ages: 2 and above

No. of Pages: 22

Publisher: Little Tiger Press, London

Year: 2006

ISBN: 978-1-58925-059-8

Meet Stanley who belongs to a shoal that’s the ‘brightest, sparkliest fish in the whole of the deep, dark sea.’

It shows too. Little Stanley is illustrated with shiny, golden scales that little ones will love to see and play with.

He has a little encounter with a mean ole’ shark but comes through safely.  

Our 4-year-old wanted me to read it to her everyday that we had the book. (it was borrowed from the State Library.) So a good choice for little ones, especially those who are inclined to shiny and sparkly stuff.

Excerpt

CLONK!

Stanley crashed head-first into something very hard.

“Jumping jellyfish!” he cried. It wasn’t one of his friends at all, but his own reflection in a shiny pearl!

Stanley rubbed his bumped nose, feeling a little dazed. He didn’t notice a dark shape coming up behind him. 

Rapunzel (Ladybird Books)

Retold by: Nicola Baxter

Illustrator: Martin Aitchison

For Ages: 6 and above

No. of Pages: 24

Publisher: Ladybird Books, Leicestershire, UK

Year: 1993

ISBN: 978-0-72141-557-4

Based on the story by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, this version is merely a retelling, abridged to suit young readers.

Every page has a full-color illustration, true to Ladybird Books style.

The witch looks awful, through.

Excerpt

Years passed, and Rapunzel never set eyes on another living person. Then, one day, a young prince riding through the forest heard Rapunzel’s sweet singing.

“I have never heard such a lovely voice,” he said to himself. “I shall not rest until I find out who it belongs to.”

So the Prince hid nearby and saw the witch climb the tower.

That evening, after the witch had gone, the Prince called out,

“Rapunzel, Rapunzel,

Let down your hair.”

How to build a House

By Nick Turpin and Barbara Nascimbeni

Year: 2005

Publisher: Evans Brothers, London

Age: 2 and above

No. of Pages: 32

ISBN:  978 0 23753 065 5

This story of a house that Jack, supposedly, built is a humorous look at children and the grand plans they come up with, while their parents work to make those plans a reality.

Jack wants to build a house – more like a playhouse, in his yard. All, he does is come up with a plan. He, then cleverly (rather cheekily) enlists the rest of his family to finish it!

This book belongs to the Twisters series for little ones where words are few and the illustrations speak a lot.

Excerpt

“We need more people.”

“Your sister can help us.”

“Good work, Dad!”

Big Hug: The Jungle House

Author: John Grace

Illustrator: Stuart Trotter

Publisher: Ladybird Books, UK

Age: 3 and above

No. of Pages: 26

ISBN: 978 0 72141 433 8

Big Hug is a gentle blue bear who lives on Coconut Island.

Max the Cat and Billy the Rabbit set up a jungle house which is occupied by a mean-tempered elephant. They enlist the help of many friends to get the elephant to leave the house but the angry giant is in no mood to listen. Until Big Hug gets help from a little friend. :-)

The Big Hug series from Ladybird Books is ideal for pre-readers and beginner readers. What makes the text stand-out is the presence of repetitive phrasing and the use of several easy words to encourage children to read.

Excerpt

Max and Billy went to see the tiger.

He was very brave.

They told him about the elephant with big ears.

Tiger went to the jungle house. “Roarr-r!” went the tiger. 

Other books in the Big Hug series include

• A Busy Day
• A Quiet Walk
• Hide and Seek Counting 
• Rainbow Colours

Max has a fish – Puffin Young Readers – Level 1

Author:  Wiley Blevins

Illustrator: Ben Clanton

Year: 2012

Publisher: Puffin Young Readers, USA

Age: 3 and above

No. of Pages: 32

ISBN: 978-0-448-46294-3

The Puffin Young Readers is a fantastic series for young readers.

The book on Max and his fish is a sweet, simple story with beginner-level words. The longest sentence has only seven words and that appears only once. The rest are much smaller.

Excerpt

The fish looks at Max.

And looks at Max.

And looks at Max.

But the fish cannot dance. 

Other titles in this series

• Level - 1: A new friend
• Level - 1: At the beach 
• Level - 1: Ice Cream Soup
• Level - 1: Nicky Upstairs and Down 
• Level - 1: Play with Blue
• Level - 1: Tiny goes camping 
• Level - 1: Tiny the Birthday Dog 
• Level - 1: Tiny the Snow Dog 

• Level - 2: Cowboy Roy
• Level - 2: Red, White and Blue
• Level - 2: Shape Spotters
• Level - 2: The Garden that we grew  
• Level - 2: The very lonely firefly

• Level - 3: Agapanthus Hum and the Eyeglasses
• Level - 3: Amanda Pig on her own
• Level - 3: Why do birds sing?

Hernando Fandango – The Great Dancing Dog

Author and Illustrator: Rachel Swirles

Year: 2012

Publisher: Meadowside Children’s Books, London

Age: 7 and above

No. of Pages: 24

ISBN: 978 1 84539 600 8

It was bound to happen sooner than later – a book for little ones set in the backdrop of a reality show. A dance show at that too!

Meet Hernando Fandango and Miss Adelaide Mogg who love dancing. Jazz, Ballroom dancing, Tap, Ballet – you name it, they do it. 

By a twist of fate, they get a chance to perform on television and enthrall the nation.

Yes, a bit far-fetched, I know, but then, isn’t that true for almost every book for tiny tots? :-)

Again, the story is set out in lyrical form so there are a few new words like kerfuffle, sensation but that's not a reason to ignore this book.

Excerpt

The host shouted out, “Do we have any dancers?”

Adelaide knew this was the rarest of chances.

She longed to cry out,

But she wasn’t that brave,

And already a figure had taken the stage!

Can you guess who it was,

Who could waltz, jive and tango…?

Chocolate Mousse for Greedy Goose

Author: Julia Donaldson

Illustrator: Nick Sharratt

Year: 2005

Publisher: Macmillan Children’s Books, London

Age: 4 and above

No. of Pages: 24

ISBN: 978 1 40502 190 6

It’s a dinner party unlike any other. The guests are an odd assortment ranging from Seal to Shetland Pony to Hyena.

Some are hungry and some, angry. The others are greedy or just plain fussy. It's hard to imagine a good ending after the chaotic meal, but surprisingly, it does. And you know what they say - all’s well that ends well. :-)

This is a non-cluttered book with each page featuring an animal and just one pertinent sentence in rhyme. This book might be good for beginners.

Excerpt

“I’ll lick the bowl,” says furry Mole.

“I’ll like it cleaner,” laughs Hyena.

“It’s all gone,” says sad white Swan.

“I’ll eat the cloth,” says happy Moth. 

One, Two Buckle My Shoe

Illustrated by Eric Smith

For Ages: 2 and above

No. of Pages: 20

Publisher: Armadillo Books, Leicester

Year: 2002

It’s just a popular nursery rhyme but it’s got a book devoted to it! 

Each line is complimented by a colorful painting and a clever thread runs through the illustrations to connect the lines of the rhyme which otherwise, seem quite disjointed. 

Clue: A little girl in red.

I could not help but notice the extraordinarily thick paper used for the book, obviously targeting a young audience but not young enough to merit board pages.   

Excerpt

Eleven, twelve, dig and delve

Thirteen, fourteen, maids a-courting

Fifteen, sixteen, maids in the kitchen

Seventeen, eighteen, maids in waiting

Nineteen, twenty, my plate’s empty!

Jungle Kids

By John Wallace

For Ages: 3 and above

No. of Pages: 28

Publisher: Collins Picture Lions, London

Year: 2000

ISBN: 978 0 00198 332 8

Meet the Jungle Kids – Todd, the scientist, Jamie, the smallest and Georgina, the bossy one. They have a ‘jungle hideout’ and something’s been dipping into their stash of chocolates. They hatch an elaborate plan to find the culprit and instead, end up with a furry friend.

The narrative is endearing with several additions to the story that pop in through the illustrations. 

A corner of the page has been reserved for a delightful commentary in black-and-white. For example, when Jamie starts meandering into the story, there’s Georgina annoyed reminder – “Will you please GET ON WITH THE STORY!”

Excerpt

In the end, we decided to hide until the monster came then LEAP out and scare him…

We decided to do it THAT VERY EVENING …

First we got ready. 

Disney – Winnie the Pooh – Pooh’s Honey Tree

Adapted by Isabel Gaines

Illustrator: Nancy Stevenson

Year: 1998

Publisher: Random House Children’s Books,  New York

Website: Step into Reading

Age: 3 and above

No. of Pages: 32

ISBN:  978-0-73641-352-9

Website: Winnie the pooh

This book belongs to the Step into reading series – Step 2 which introduces basic vocabulary, short sentences and simple stories. 

Here’s another charming story from Disney's Winnie the Pooh based on A. A. Milne's beloved bear.

Winnie the Pooh bear is hungry and sets out on an adventure to fill his tummy with honey. He follows a bee into the Hundred-Acre Wood and finds that the honeycomb is too high. He gets Christopher Robin to help him on his quest.

Excerpt

Soon he came to a tall tree.

Pooh climbed up the tree.

CRACK!

A branch broke.

Down Pooh fell.

THUMP!

Pooh rubbed his head.

Maybe Christopher Robin could help Pooh get some honey.

Pooh set off to find his friend. 

Goldilocks and the Three Bears - First Readers

Retold by Sue Graves

Illustrator: Priscilla Lamont

For Ages: 3 and above

No. of Pages: 30

Publisher: Parragon Books, UK

Year: 2006

ISBN: 978 1 44541 211 5

My kids enjoy these First Readers Series and like I've said earlier- get the whole series! :-) This book presents the timeless fairy tale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears with expressive illustrations in watercolors. The three bears are adorable and seem to have jumped right out of a child’s toy cupboard. :-)

Excerpt

“Who’s been sleeping in my bed?” said Daddy Bear.

“Who’s been sleeping in my bed?” said Mummy Bear.

“Who’s been sleeping in my bed?” said Baby Bear. “She’s still there!”