January Beautiful Books

Let’s Go!

Julie Flett

Greystone Kids

Award winning Cree-Métis author and illustrator Julie Flett, has created another wonderful picture book featuring Cree words and expressions. The story is something all children will identify with, the need to get outside, learn new skills and be part of a community.

A little boy watches older children whoosh past his window on skateboards. One day his mother brings him something home, the skateboard she had when she was younger. At first it’s difficult but he can’t wait to try! They go to skateparks and meet others that are learning too.

Julie Flett’s illustrations have a beautiful colour palette and create so much movement on the page. The images of the children playing on skateboards are very skillful, the text is poetic and flowing, making this a pleasure to read.

The more I watch and the more I skate, the more I become part of something - and myself. Sometimes we skate down the street, like a little river, together.

As well as the importance of belonging to a group, engaging in an activity, we read about how finding something you love helps make you who you are.

There are some notes in the back pages about the Cree words and how they are pronounced, these make an interesting addition to the story, helping you get to know a bit more about the characters in the book, just like the skate boarding, someone’s culture is part of what makes us who we are. A beautiful picture book about growing up, identity and getting outdoors!

What Do You See When You Look At A Tree

Emma Carlisle

Royal Botanical Gardens Kew

A little girl looks at a tree in her garden, she begins to wonder about her tree, wonder what it feels and thinks, wonders what this tree has seen throughout their life. When it was small, did other children stroke the bark and play in the branches?

Emma Carlisle’s illustrations are soft and luminous, the trees are depicted with vibrant greens, their branches seem to move on the page. We get to see the creatures that live in the branches and we get to see underground, where creatures live in dens and burrows. The rhyming text is poetic and fun to read, it gives us lots to think about. What is important in life and what has true value. The story also shows us just how amazing and important trees are to us.

Throughout the story we see the changing seasons, changing weather and changing times. The tree remains a constant, and the little girl grows up. This is a beautiful book to encourage children to appreciate our trees and see them as a part of our lives. The end pages have some lovely ideas for thinking and discussing and getting to know more about trees!

Fiery Fox learns: recycle, reuse, and take rubbish home.

By Teresa Davis, Illustrated by Eli Rees-King

Bear Books

One Sunny spring morning, Fiery Fox and his Family set out for a walk in the forest. They admire the flowers and the insects, the beautiful scenery, but then they come across a clearing, where people have been camping. Much to the fox family’s dismay, they find the campers have left rubbish everywhere.

Fiery Fox and Family, pick up the rubbish and help a field mouse that had become trapped in a sandwich box. On their way home with baskets full of rubbish they come across Fiery’s friend squirrel who has got chewing gum stuck to his fur. The story has a wonderful conclusion, the fox family sort the rubbish into recycling, they make some crafts and have a celebration party in the forest.

As with the other Fiery Fox books, Teresa Davis’ delightfully fun rhyming text, makes the story a joy to read. The Illustrations are wonderful, Elli Rees-King has a talent for forest creatures, the night time party scene is magical and reminiscent the joyful animal scenes painted by Molly Brett. There is a page at the back with scenes to find in the story and a page of information for grown ups. Taking care of our environment, recycling and reusing is such an important subject for our children to learn about and this book makes learning about this so much fun!

Fiery Fox Books can be found at www.bear-books.net or Etsy bearbooksltd

The Pickletrims Go Wild

Marie Dorléans; Translated by Polly Lawson

Floris Books

The Pickletrims love their garden, but it has to be just so. Not a blade of grass too long, everything planted in straight lines, perfectly manicured hedges and flowers lined up as if they were on military parade.

One day their gardener decides he has had enough and leaves. Not being practical people, they struggle to hold back nature as it rampages into their lives. Foliage starts to pour into the house, before they know it, birds are eating crumbs under their dining table and squirrels are ransacking their kitchen shelves. They realise that they have lost their battle against nature and decide to embrace a new way of life. They relax in the undergrowth, they examine the insects and marvel at the birds. Their summer was filled with joy and wonder, until a falling leaf brings the realisation that they will soon go back to school and work.

The conclusion is lovely, although the story is wonderfully silly and exaggerated the message is profound, finding a balance, allowing some places to become overgrown, some to stay tidy, finding time to relax and time to work, things to worry about and things that don’t matter, are all parts of finding the perfect balance. And the most important message which is finding time to immerse yourself in nature!

The Pickletrims Go Wild is printed on FCS paper with plant based inks.

Whose Footprints Are These?

Gerda Muller

Floris Books

In this wordless picture book, we follow a little boy on a snowy day adventure. Although we catch glimpses of the characters, we mainly follow the story through footprints and tracks. We follow the boy’s footprints getting out of bed, going for breakfast and being joined by his dog. When they step out into the snow covered garden, their footprints are joined by others. Whose are they? Where did they go? Can you guess what they are doing?

This is a wonderful book to discuss with children, there are lots of questions to ask, mysteries to solve and animals to seek. It’s fun to match the animals to the footprints and to see what they are doing. Gerda Mullers soft pencil and gouache illustrations are beautiful, they are skilfully observant of the natural world and full of detail, silver birch, pine tree bark and needles, the way that snow turns slushy by a stream and the soft pinkish grey of a snow laden sky.

A perfect winter read for those who love outdoor play, nature and wintery scenes.

A Home that Means the World

Victoria Turnbull

Frances Lincoln

Flora is a little bug who lives in a tree with her family. Her mother weaves, and mends their home until one day their tree is cut down. They find themselves homeless, they gather up their possessions and move on. Along the way they meet other displaced beings, some are friendly, some have stories to tell, others are not so welcoming. Eventually Flora and her family find somewhere new to live, they build a new community and with help they build a new home.

The illustrations are wonderfully inventive, we get to see scenes of bugs snuggled underground in the roots of trees, groups of caterpillars with party hats feasting on a cabbage, a cricket playing the harp inside a tulip. There are many magical scenes in this insect world. A heart-warming tale that ends with the reassuring message that what can be lost, can also be found, what is broken, can also be mended. Above all, home is where your loved ones are.

Hilda and Twig Hide From the Rain

Luke Pearson

Flying Eye Books

Hilda sets of for a mornings adventure, armed with a sandwich and accompanied by her little companion Twig, who is half fox, half deer. When it starts to rain, the friends look for somewhere to shelter. They go into a small doorway in the side of a mound and find other animals sheltering inside. Soon the animals begin to talk, there is a legend of a giant snake and they begin to scare each other with their tales. Luckily Hilda cannot understand them, but Twig can and thinks it’s time to get out of the cave and get some fresh air. When Twig leaves the cave he discovers something he wasn’t expecting and goes on an adventure, ultimately saving the day and in a clever twist, freeing his friends and his beloved Hilda.

Told in a graphic novel format, this story is full of excitement and adventure, our heroine Hilda and her plucky companion Twig make the story unique and interesting. The way that we can hear what Twig and animals can say, but Hilda cannot, adds so much humour to the story. There are many engaging characters in this series, all with their own personalities. Real characters, such as Hilda and her mum blend perfectly with real life animal characters but also mythical ones, making this a very intriguing read.

The Hilda series feels like stepping into another world, perfect escapism, humour, adventure, a little bit of danger and a satisfying conclusion. Hilda and Twig is a prequel to the original series, but it contains no spoilers so it can be read before or after the other books in this series.

Imelda and the Goblin King

Briony May Smith

Flying Eye Books

Imelda is a little girl who lives next to a wood, she loves to spend her days playing happily with the fairies. She plays in the enchanted forest and learns from the fairies which berries will turn your hair blue or which ones can turn you into a worm. She is happy there until a nasty bully arrives. The fairies treat him with kindness, hoping this will change his ways but sadly it doesn’t, he greedily eats the fairies food and takes the queen prisoner. The fairies know one person who can help. Imelda comes up with a cunning plan to trick the goblin into eating a pie that contains the berries needed to turn him into a worm and free the fairy folk from his tyranny.

The illustrations have a beautiful autumnal colour palette and the story has the feel of a good versus evil fairy-tale with everything turning out very nicely for the good fairies! Ideal for those that like a story that sees the bad goblin get what he deserves and the good fairies triumph!

Oh! Look a Boat!

Andrew J.Ross

Flying Eye Books

One day Mouse comes out of his house and says Oh! look, a boat! Before he knows what is happening he floats past his friend Badger’s house and out into the ocean. Mouse’s boat adventure is fast paced, he encounters pirate rabbits, passes volcanoes, navigates icebergs, sails through storms until at last he finds himself home again. Leaving his boat outside he wearily goes to bed. Next day Badger comes out of his house and says, Oh! look, a boat! You can imagine what happens next!

A wonderfully funny adventure with some endearing animal characters and a whistlestop tour around the world in a paper boat!

Apple Cake: a Gratitude

Dawn Casey, Genevieve Godbout

Frances Lincoln

This gentle story follows a little girl and her dog as she goes to the apple tree to pick some apples for a cake. As she brings them back in her basket she thinks about all the things she is grateful for. She passes birds, flowers, friends and stops to look at a rainbow. When she returns to her family they make an apple pie and sit down to eat together.

The illustrations have a soft and dreamlike quality and the text is gentle and calming. The back pages have an apple pie recipe to try at home. A simple and beautiful story about appreciating those around you and the small things in life.