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Peppa Pig: Where’s George’s Dinosaur?

Peppa Pig: Where's George's Dinosaur?

Peppa Pig: Where’s George’s Dinosaur?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Peppa Pig: Where’s George’s Dinosaur?

Peppa Pig

Ladybird, 2022

10pp., board book., RRP $A14.99

9780241543542

George is looking for Mr Dinosaur but he can’t find him anywhere and he’s distressed.  So Mummy Pig suggests they retrace their steps through the day, but no matter how promising things look, what’s revealed under the flap is not Mr Dinosaur.

In a book reminiscent of the advertisement for a particular brand of car in which a family retraces their steps in search of Gonzo the missing toy rabbit, little ones can not only follow George’s search as they resonate with his rising distress but they learn that there can be a logical sequence of events to follow rather than throwing a tantrum. So that when they misplace something, parents can draw on George’s experience to guide them in theirs.

Again, the use of a familiar plot, favourite characters and a lift-the-flap technique mean the book will engage even our youngest readers and those crucial concepts about the value of print will continue to develop.  There’s something special about quietly observing Mr Nearly 3 taking himself off to a quiet spot and retelling himself the story using his own vocabulary as he recounts George’s adventures.  But there was also something disconcerting when at the conclusion he said, “I bet his mum put it there out of her bag,” suggesting that maybe he had been exposed to that advertisement once too often!

Toy Mountain

Toy Mountain

Toy Mountain

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Toy Mountain

Stef Gemmill

Katharine Hall

EK Books, 2021

32pp., hbk., RRP $A24.99

9781925820966

Sam is getting bored with playing with the same toys every day – toys that had been played with by his Grandma and while sturdy and reliable, they didn’t have the whizbangery of the toys made in the Tiny Hands toy factory towering over the town, high in the clouds at the end of the rainbow.

So when his mum arranges for him to become a toy tester for the factory he is very excited and day after day boxes and boxes of toys arrive at his house for him to play with and give his opinion about. He immediately discards his old favourites for the new ones but are they all that they are cracked up to be?  Why do all the bells and whistles quickly turn to a sad plonk, plonk, plonk as the toys break and become an ever-increasing mountain of broken plastic junk?

While being a toy-tester might seem like the dream, this is an important story to share about appreciating what we have and taking care of it because shiny and new isn’t always the best choice. There is also a broader message about the amount of plastic that is produced each year, the 79% of that which ends up in the oceans or in landfill. and thus, being aware of and responsible for the amount of waste we create as individuals.

So while children marched in protest at COP26, here, in one story especially written for the young is a direct way that they themselves can make a difference and show the way for others around them.

The Boy and the Moonimal

The Boy and the Moonimal

The Boy and the Moonimal

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Boy and the Moonimal

Debi Gliori

Bloomsbury, 2021

32pp., hbk., RRP $A24.99

9781408892916

When the boy discovers the moonimal in the toyshop, straight away the boy hugs him tight and because moonimals are made to be hugged tight,  they become inseparable.  They played together and went everywhere together. But one day the boy trips over in the woods and because he broke his glasses he couldn’t see Moonimal lying amongst the leaves.

Convinced the boy will come back for him he lies there for many days and nights until he is discovered by some rabbits, who see him as special because although he looks like them, he has three ears.  And so, instead of snuggling in with them he sleeps alone, rather than being hugged tight.  The adventures for Moonimal are just beginning … snatched by a large bird, dropped in the river, discovered by deer… will he ever be found by the boy again?

Again Debi Gliori has created a charming story for our youngest readers that will resonate with them as the tale of a lost toy is all too familiar.  But telling it from the toy’s point of view is unique and while there is sadness and even intrigue, it is always tinged with hope through Moonimal’s belief that he will be reunited.  The illustrations are full of details that not only enrich the text but offer something new to discover each time the story is read – as it will be, over and over. 

The New Baby’s Bunny

The New Baby's Bunny

The New Baby’s Bunny

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The New Baby’s Bunny

Philippa Brown

Krista Brennan

Little Steps, 2020

32pp., pbk., RRP $A16.95

9781925839029

Each time a new baby is born into the family, Nanna knits a new baby bunny.  Each is distinct in its colouring and becomes a favourite with the recipient.  But the fourth bunny is a bit different – it has a grey body but no eyes.  Nanna says she can’t decide what colour to use and leaves the task to the family.  Each comes home from the haberdashery shop with their choice of buttons, but will any of them do the job and be perfect?

This is a charming story for young readers that shows an unusual way of having siblings become involved in the birth of a new baby so they feel part of the process.  It offers opportunities for them to talk about special toys and gifts they have received and will perhaps even pass on to their own children.  But it is also a powerful statement about gift-giving – it is not the fanciest, most expensive gift that is necessarily the most treasured.  It is often those made with love and time and a personal connection that stand the test of time. 

Boo!

Boo!

Boo!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Boo!

Margaret Wild

Andrew Joyner

Puffin, 2019

24pp, hbk., RRP $A19.99

9780670078073

‘Boo!’ said the baby to the monkey in the cot.

‘Boo!’ said the baby to the penguin in the yacht . . .

Babies love to play peek-a-boo and these ones have a lovely time playing with their toys. But…

What happens next?

Turn the page and see…

Ready, steady, count- 

One, two three!

This is a delightful book for the very young who are learning the fun that can be had in picture books.  The constant repetition of the word BOO will encourage them to join in as it is shared with them, and they will just ROFL at the ending.  Maybe not one for bedtime because it encourages raucous rollicking fun, but nevertheless, one for building up that unique relationship between reader, child, stories and books!

 

52 Mondays

52 Mondays

52 Mondays

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

52 Mondays

Anna Ciddor

Allen & Unwin, 2019

208pp., pbk., RRP $A14.99

9781760523480

Melbourne in the hot summer of February 1964 , in the hot car on the way to Nana and Zayda’s and Anna clutches the library book she can’t wait to read. It’s called Hitty: the life and adventures of a wooden doll and it not only inspired young Anna to own her own antique doll, a dream that lasts 52 Mondays, but also inspired the older Anna, the author, to tell the tale of the joys and disappointments of her real-life childhood search for the doll.

Based on her own life and following the success of The Family with Two Front Doors  which tells the story of  her own family, the Rabinovitches who “dance, laugh and cook their way through an extraordinary life in 1920s Poland”, the author takes the readeron a journey through the life and times of children growing up in 1960s Melbourne.  No computers, no Internet or social media, in many homes, not even a television set – just the day-to-day adventures of children who had to seek and make their own fun.  For those like me it is a trip down memory lane to the days of warm school milk, Mr Whippy, and desks in rows in schools, while for more modern young readers it is an insight into the lives of their grandparents -something very different to that which they know.

Whichever, it is a very readable story about a little girl with a dream, parents who understand and support it, the  highs and lows of following it, and the determination and resilience  required to achieve it. 

 

 

It’s Not Scribble to Me

It's Not Scribble to Me

It’s Not Scribble to Me

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s Not Scribble to Me

Kate Ritchie

Jedda Robaard

Puffin Books, 2018 

32pp., hbk., RRP $A19.99

9780143790136

Little Teddy loves to draw – crayons, paints, pencils, even stencils (and the permanent markers if he can reach them) are all his favourite tools of trade.  But while paper is nice, it’s not big enough to hold all of his drawings and so he uses other nearby surfaces like the wall,the bathroom tiles and even the toilet seat lid -wherever the colour takes his imagination.  Like most parents, his parents get annoyed at having to continually clean up but Teddy doesn’t see his work as scribble.  Each one is a personal masterpiece inspired by his surroundings and begs them to understand that his marks are the “colourful, magical, bountiful, beautiful, whimsical, wonderful world” in his head.

On the surface, this is a fun book that will be a familiar scenario for many preschoolers, written in rhyme to engage them and perhaps even consolidate their knowledge of colours. Its theme will resonate with many parents and they might even have discussions about what else Teddy could have drawn that was green, red, yellow or black.

But it is also a very useful tool to teach slightly older readers about perspective – that what one sees as beautiful artworks, another sees as scribble and vice versa.  Little children are still very much in the world of the here and now and what they can see, so to start to view things from another’s perspective is a critical step in their development, particularly as they also have a very strong sense of justice and what’s fair. Taking someone’s pencil without asking may be seen as “theft” by one little one, while really it’s just using something that’s needed and available by another one used to sharing without asking. 

Little Miss Muffet might have been frightened by the spider, but how did the spider feel about her sitting right where he was in the process of building his web? 

Little Boy Blue probably shouldn’t have fallen asleep while he was supposed to be watching the sheep, but what if he had been up all night helping a little lamb be born?

Seeing another’s point of view is an essential element of the development of Ethical Understanding  and it’s not too early to start our littlies thinking about the perspectives of those around them, perhaps even exploring the old adage that “there are always two sides to a story.”

 

LEGO Super Heroes Visual Dictionary

LEGO Super Heroes Visual Dictionary

LEGO Super Heroes Visual Dictionary

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LEGO Super Heroes Visual Dictionary

Elizabeth Dowsett & Arie Kaplan

DK, 2018

128pp., hbk., RRP $A35.00

9780241320037

Since 2006 when it first released its Batman-themed sets, LEGO, a contraction of leg godt which means “play well” in Danish, have offered fans construction sets related to the popular superheroes so they can learn to read and follow instructions and develop their fine motor skills as they make the intricate models from the movies, then use their imagination to build new stories and adventures with their creations.

 This visual guide to the minifigures, vehicles and sets of the Superhero world offers lots of background information about the characters culminating in a behind-the-scenes chapter which features concept art and an interview with the LEGO DC Super Heroes creative team.

Like its predecessors that have been linked to popular movies and characters, this is a book that will have young fans poring over it, talking about what they are discovering, wanting to learn more and reading to do so- engaging in all those behaviours that show that print offers them something and that reading for pleasure is a worthwhile thing to do.  Guaranteed to hook young reluctant readers, appeal to more independent fans and even offer suggestions for the Christmas stocking as each model has details of its release date, set number, and the number of pieces and minifigures that come with it. There is even a Yellow Lantern Batman included!

Paddington Bear – 60th anniversary

Paddington at St Pauls

Paddington at St Pauls

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paddington at St Pauls

Michael Bond

R. W. Alley

HarperCollins, 2018 

32pp., hbk., RRP $A24.99

9780008272043

Sixty years ago today, on October 13, 1958 a small bear with a blue coat, a red hat, a suitcase and a note pinned to his coat which read “Please look after this bear” was found by the Brown family at Paddington Station London.  Sent from darkest Peru by his Aunt Lucy who has gone into a retirement home, the little bear was a stowaway on a lifeboat where he survived on marmalade until the Browns renamed him Paddington and took him to their home at 32 Windsor Gardens near Notting Hill. 

And so began a great series of adventures culminating in this final addition, completed before Bond’s death in June 2017 and issued to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Paddington’s arrival.

Also being released are anniversary editions of the main Paddington Bear series, each of which has a number of chapters which work either as a continuing story or a stand-alone episode, making them perfect as read-alouds to get the child used to the concept of the continuing characters in novels or read-alones for the newly independent reader.

 

The Paddington Collection

The Paddington Collection

With more than 35 million copies sold worldwide, translated into 40 languages, television and features movies, Paddington Bear is arguably one of the most favourite bears in the world.  To have the stories republished, an exquisite gift edition of the first story with the original illustrations by Peggy Fortnum, and this final chapter is indeed a fitting anniversary gift to introduce a new generation to this series inspired by a lone teddy that Bond saw on a shelf in a London toy store and the children who were evacuated from English cities during World War II. 

The LEGO Book – 60th Anniversary Edition

The LEGO Book - 60th Anniversary Edition

The LEGO Book – 60th Anniversary Edition

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The LEGO Book – 60th Anniversary Edition

Daniel Lipkowitz

DK, 2018

280pp., hbk., RRP $A39.99

9780241314227

In 1932 and facing the Great Depression which was engulfing the world, Danish master carpenter Ole Kirk Kristiansen closed his carpentry business and turned his attention to making wooden toys for children. Fifteen years later, after World War II and all its development with technology and materials, particularly plastic, Kristiansen purchased an expensive plastic injection-moulding machine and his wooden toys were now made of plastic. Using a name that is a contraction of leg godt which means “play well” in Danish, the LEGO group was established and by 1954, the idea of building bricks that locked together firmly so they were stable but which also came apart easily was launched with the Town Plan range of construction sets.  Finally, in January 1658 the block was perfected, the patent lodged and the rest, as they say, is history. 

And it is the history of that block from its evolution as a plan for a toy that could be used to build virtually anything to that realisation that is the focus of this fascinating new release, marking the 60th anniversary of the building block as we know it. 

Driven by the belief that children and their development mean everything and that this must pervade everything that is created, and based on the principles that the system must

  • provide unlimited play opportunities
  • be for girls and boys
  • inspire enthusiasm in all ages’
  • be able to be played with all year round
  • provide endless hours of healthy, quiet and safe play
  • inspire imagination, creativity and development
  • be topical and provide add-on value for preceding products

those initial town construction sets have evolved into a world of designs and models that span buildings, characters, transportation, books, movies, furniture, fabric, licensed merchandise, even theme parks! That journey is traced in full colour photographs, easily-accessible text and the signature DK layout making this a dig-and-delve must-have in any LEGO fan’s collection or any library whose clients are LEGO fans.  Every page has something to pore over, wonder at and learn, making it perfect as a shared conversation book so important to emerging readers.

Something particularly special for the Santa Sack for any age!

If your foot has ever found Lego in the night and you hate it, this might restore your faith…