#HappyNewYear #2023 #ChildrensBooks and #YoungAdultBooks I Highly #Recommend that I #Reviewed in #2022 of many genres from #PictureBooks to #ChapterBooks to #Novels

I reviewed a number of children’s books right across the ages from 0 to teenagers. Here are some I highly recommend. Starting with young children’s books, working up in age range. I have also provided links to the blurbs and full reviews as you wok you way down.

The Picture Books – 0 to 6 years

Trains, Trains, Trains! Is a fun-packed picture book that works on different levels. It encourages thought, speech and language as kids choose their favourite trains. It also has fun with counting and speed and provides children, including babies with a certain comfort in its train like rhythm of the words. It’s a book that adults can have fun with reading to children. Here is the link: Trains, Trains, Trains

Tilda Tries Again By Tom Percival was recently on CBeebies, read by Rob Burrows. It has fantastic illustrations, which really goes towards aiding the story along. It’s a positive, encouraging story that takes children into Tilda’s world, where it’s okay to give things another try. Here’s the link to the blurb and full review Tilda Tries Again

David’s Bathtime Adventure By Sue Wickstead is great for kids who love or dislike bathtime alike. It’s full of imaginative fun. It’s also got great tips for adults after the story too. Here’s the link to the blurb and full review: David’s Bathtime Adventure

The Fairy In The Kettle By Pauline Tait is a sweet story about friendship. It is also fun with a fairy who lives in a kettle and plenty goes on in this short adventure. Check out the blurb and review here: The Fairy In The Kettle

What The Ladybird Heard at Christmas By Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks is full of adventure and trepidation in this fun poetic story. Find out more in the link here: What The Ladybird Heard at Christmas

Daddy’s New Shed By Jessica Parkin sees him needing a new one, but who will get to use it? It has much humour. Here’s the link to the review and blurb: Daddy’s New Shed

Where Is My Smile? is charming and about a boy who has lost his. Is there a solution that can be found? The book promotes talk of feelings and wellbeing. Here’s the link to the blurb and review: Where Is My Smile?

The Middle Grade Books – 7 plus years

The Ultimate Guide to Growing Dragons by Andy Shepherd shows you too can grow dragons. The book is great for the adventurous and for young gardeners and the curious. It’s part of the excellent The Boy Who Grew Dragons series. This one also has fun pages set out like collection cards and so much more, as well as the story. Find out the blurb and full review in this link: The Ultimate Guide to Growing Dragons

Benji And The Gunpowder Plot By Kate Cunningham gives children a great time travelling adventure to the time of Guy Fawkes. It’s the first book in The Time Tumblers series. Find out more in the link for the review and blurb: Benji and the Gunpowder Plot

Jump By J.G.Nolan is a football story where old and young come together. They each learn something about football and a particular footballer. Here is the blurb and full review: Jump

Dread Wood By Jennifer Killick, author of the successful Craters Lake, is middlegrade horror at its best, on a par with Goosebumps by R.L. Stine. It’s atmospheric and twisty with mystery and dark tunnels… also a detention to boot. Why then is a teacher underground and a caretaker acting strangely? Here is the link to the blurb and full review: Dread Wood

Which Way To Anywhere By Cressida Cowell – author of How To Train Your Dragon and Wizard of Once, is exhilarating with a terrific cast of characters, including a robot assassin and trees not being quite how you would expect in this new magical world. Here is the link to the blurb and full review: Which Way To Anywhere

Young Adult/Teens -12 years plus

Being is Better and Beyond Invisible is a duology of books. Meet Amber and her friend. Both have quite different backgrounds and yet find each other. The book highlights teenage loneliness, grief, parental divorce, health issues, friendship. It is relatable and essential reading for teens/young adults. Here is the link to full blurbs and reviews of both books – Being Is Better Duology

Bodies, Brains and Bogies By Paul Ian Cross, PHD. Illustrated By Steve Brown @DrPaulScience @rararesources #ChildrensNonfiction #STEM #HumanBody #Science #Biology #HumanMind #Blogtour

Bodies, Brains & Bogies
By Paul Ian Cross, PHD
Illustrated By Steve Brown

Thanks to Welbeck Books and Rachel Random Tours for inviting me to review Bodies, Brains & Bogies, which will serve children’s curiosity well, in a fun and informative way. Now, onto the blurb and my review.

Blurb

Bodies, Brains & Bogies

This fantastic title from Paul Ian Cross, the writer of How to Vanquish a Virus, takes the reader on a whirlwind tour of everything that’s disgusting, unusual and amazing about the human body. Find out everything about poo, pus and bogies, while learning a whole lot about how our bodies work hard in hundreds of fascinating ways to keep us alive.

With tons of hilarious and informative illustrations, it includes lashings of Paul Ian Cross’s trademark laugh-out-loud humour, in-depth knowledge and infectious optimism. It’s the perfect funny, accessible way to discover everything you’ve ever wanted to know about the human body, but were too grossed-out to ask!

Review

For the curious minds of children who also love gross facts and humour as they learn something new about their bodies.

Bodies, Brains and Bogies, what’s not fun about that for kids? It has humour and pictures mixed in with the facts, so there’s no way kids are going to find this book dry and dull. It’s exciting and intelligent and speaks directly to kids. So, amongst the fun, the author clearly takes things seriously, so children will learn a lot about themselves. There’s everything from how the brain works, to a cake, but not in the sense we instantly think, how vital organs such as the heart work and what they look like, right down to poops and burps and so much more…

Like a quiz? There are also fun quizzes throughout to see what you know and learnt. It’s totally grossed out and is packed full of fascinating facts in short sections and pages, making it easy to focus on.

This is a non fiction book about the human body that I highly recommend for home, libraries and in the classroom.

#BookReview By Lou of Otter’s Coat: Real Reason Turtle Raced Rabbit By Cordellya Smith #OttersCoat @cordellyasmithauthor @RandomTTours #ChildrensBook

Otter’s Coat: Real Reason Turtle Raced Rabbit
Cherolachian Tortoise and Hare

By Cordellya Smith

Illustrated By Blueberry Illustrations

Today I am on the blog tour for Otter’s Coat. It is a sweet, fun and engaging story, suitable for 5-7 year olds. Thanks to Random T Tours for organising the tour and a copy of the book. Discover more about the book in the blurb and review below, as well as the author.

Blurb

When Rabbit hears the animals talking abut what a beautiful coat Otter has, he becomes jealous and tricks Otter totake it for himself.

Follow along as Turtle races Rabbit to the top of the Black Mountain to win back Otter’s coat and make sure it is returned.

Review

Instantly the book is recognisable as a take on Aesop’s famous fable – The Hare and the Tortoise, so it mixes something a bit new with a timeless classic and a lovely story is told once again that will be engaging for 5-7 year olds.

Throughout the story is a game of hide and seek, whereby children have to hunt out the chipmunk along the way to the end.

The book nicely takes children to a nut moon festival and then sneakily into the rabbit’s trick with the otter in its bright bold illustrated pages, in what unfolds into a fast-paced chapter book. It is great for those lessons on fables and their outcomes for schools or for reading for pleasure and is well-designed for its targeted age group, as well as being engaging, with themes that are familiar that create a fun story, which can also be used as discussion pieces, like you would with Aesop’s Fables, which this book could be easily paired up with.

At the end, there is a note for parents that explains what a Cherolachian is, which is added interest and adds roots.

About The Author

Originally from the mountains of Kentucky, Cordellya Smith is a storyteller who loves to share stories that provide children with versions of beloved tales that reflect her Cherokee and Appalachian roots. A first generation college graduate, Cordellya works to promote literacy and a lifetime love of reading.

#BookReview by Lou Fantastic Fin Faces His Fears by Jessica Bowers It’s a book with #ClassroomResources @rararesources #JessicaBowers #ChildrensBook #KS1 #KS2 #FacingFears #ChildrensWellbeing

Fantastic Fin Faces His Fears
by Jessica Bowers

Fantastic Fin Faces His Fears is suitable for 4-7 year olds. It has a pages at the back for parents and teachers to support children through this story. There are also resources available for the classroom. Thanks to Rachel Random Resources for inviting me to the blog tour and for gifting me the book. Find out more in the blurb and my review.

Blurb

Come and join Fantastic Fin as he grows his courage by embodying various inspiring characters and animals to face his fears!

Teachers, Parents and Carers can access the free Fantastic Fin Teaching Resource Pack available from the author’s website.

This is the first book in a series supporting children’s mental health by well-being author and psychotherapist Jessica Bowers. Ideal for children age 4-7.

Review

Fantastic Fin Faces His Fears tells the story, in rhyme, of a boy called Fin, or rather Fantastic Fin. He is a shy and anxious boy who finds a lot of life challenging. He then imagines he is different things like t-rex, a spy, a shark and many more to help him feel brave and overcome these life challenges he is experiencing. The pictures are big and bold with a hint of humour around the hope they provide as Fantastic Fin transforms and feels braver to confront his fears with all his might. At the end of the story there is a page of “Fantastic Fin’s Factfile”. It gives children some practical tips and there is also a page they can draw on themselves, to show how they feel when they face their fears and perhaps conquering them.

The book provides positivity and enough story that can also be woven into a greater conversation and topic of wellbeing or positivity. It can also be used as a conversation opener to find out what your children fear most and how they may face them and overcome them in a fun way. It can, as the story is also fun, be a way of also bonding and finding out more about your child and their emotions in a gentle manner.

About The Author

Jessica is a well-being writer with an extensive background in supporting both young people and adults with their emotional well-being and mental health. Jessica is a qualified Counsellor and Psychotherapist who trained at the Sherwood Psychotherapy Training Institute. Prior to this, she worked for over 10 years with young people with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. Jessica consults with and writes for the wonderful Storytime Magazine, for their emotional well-being and mental health content. She has written a collection of well-being themed children’s picture books for 4-7 year olds, and Fantastic Fin Faces his Fears is her debut book. She has also developed some school workshops which offer emotional education aswell as offering author visits to read her books and poetry to EYFS and KS1 children. Jessica develops free activity and teaching resource packs around emotions and well-being themes which are available from her website at www.jessicabowers.co.uk .

Social Media Links –

https://www.facebook.com/jessicabowerswellbeingwriter

https://twitter.com/bowerswellbeing

https://www.instagram.com/jessicabowerswellbeingwriter/

Purchase Links

UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fantastic-Fin-Faces-His-Fears/dp/1527298868/

US – https://www.amazon.com/Fantastic-Fin-Faces-His-Fears/dp/1527298868/

#NationalPoetryDay Perfect resource for #KS1 #KS2 @school_poet #anewkindofnormal – Let’s Get Children Talking Through Poetry #Poetry #SchoolPoetry #ReadingRocks #SchoolResource

Thanks to Katherine at School Poet who has sent me video clips, links to the School Poet website and more…. The poems sensitively and sometimes with a bit of humour and all done in a supportive way as they talk about Corona Virus and what children have endured so far. It is all very relatable to them and is written perfectly for KS1 and KS2 classes in a way that is at their level of understanding and without freaking them out. It could spark some conversations, some further understanding and more… There are accompanying resources that go with the poems (more info on that below.
The Arts Council has also funded this project so a film can be made.

Do read more about this below for further info and and then scroll back to explore the website.

Website: https://www.schoolpoet.com/

Twitter: @school_poet

A New Kind of Normal is an interactive poem in 8 parts to help primary school children discuss, process and flourish from their experiences of the Covid-19 lockdown. At 5 points during the poem there are moments to pause, with question prompts, so children can talk about their own ideas, worries, and hopes for the future.

The poem is attached to this email – please feel free to share it with friends and colleagues. In addition, the Arts Council has supported me to make a beautiful and inclusive animated film of it (including deaf actors). You can see clips of the video on my website www.schoolpoet.com.

There’s also an accompanying teacher resource pack for KS1 and KS2 pupils, with 5 different literacy and poetry lesson plans and printable pdfs. The whole school can get involved and get creative!

The resource was produced to help children:

Discuss the strange and confusing time during lockdown in order that they can process their experiences in a nurturing and supportive way;

Explore the ways in which we all can harness this difficult event and use it as an opportunity to learn, grow and rebuild our society even better than it was before.

Gain a greater understanding of important themes such as: mental health, wellbeing, society, disability, the planet and humans’ place within it, the science of germs (with tips on how to keep safe), and – most important of all – the power of creativity;

Feel inspired to get creative, write their own poetry and take control of their future!

I hope you enjoy the poem. If you know of schools that would be interested in the film and teacher pack I am asking for £35. And there are discounts for group buys. Do get in touch if you have any questions, and I’d love to hear feedback!

#Bookreview of #ChildrensBook – Ben and The Bug by Natalie Reeves Billing – Essential Reading for Our Times @BillingReeves @RandomTTours

Ben and The Bug
By Natalie Reeves Billing
Rated: 5 stars *****

One of the most important and essential children’s books of our times!
Engaging and sensitive, this book takes children through our times of Covid 19 in a way they will understand and not be scared, but that will assist them to be more aware, through story, facts and a game.
I thank Random Things Tours for inviting me onto the blog tour and for them and Natalie Billing for sending me a copy of the book.

Blurb

When Ben meets Bug at the swing park, they instantly become the best of friends. But when everyone around them gets sick, Ben wonders about the identity of his new playmate.Ben and the Bug is written for families looking for a friendly approach to discussions around Coronavirus.

Review

This is an engaging story with one of the most important purposes of our times. Everyone knows about the Corona Virus now, but it can be challenging to remind children or know where to even start with children, when explaining it. In this engaging book that really brings everything down to a child’s level, this book will be an incredibly useful tool for children, child-educators and parents alike, through story and a game.

The game is “Spot the Bug”. On each page there is a bug to find, which will engage children further into the story of Ben and his Auntie Pat.

The book starts in the park. That’s where the bug was first encountered. It’s a fun, yet serious story that shows how a bug can be spread and make people feel unwell. It’s done in a sensible and sensitive way, through fun and bold illustrations and story, that is engaging for children. As well as the story are facts about keeping clean and the bug that all backs up the story and gently informs children. There are more facts at the back of the book as well, that can be brought into any discussion.
The book also shows the bug being sad that it is making people sick and wants to help. It will dissipate any fear factor, even though, of course the bug won’t do that, yet will help children to be able to better understand what is going on, to ease some anxieties, which could also help them to take the situation of Covid 19 more seriously. The book has elements of positivity as it tells of what people are trying to do to make this situation better.

About the Author

Natalie Reeves Billing is a Liverpool lass with a dark sense of humour, which often spills onto the page. She loves to write spooky, fantastical stories for young audiences, and dabbles in poetry, contemporary fiction.
Natalie spent most of her early career in the music industry as a performer and professional songwriter. This lead, almost inevitably, to storytelling.

Natalie is an Arvon Foundation friend and is a student of the Golden Egg Academy. She is mentored under the Lloyds Bank SSE program, with her Bubs Literacy project. She is published in several anthologies with her poetry and flash fiction, including the Writing on the Wall, Read Now, Write Now, and is involved in several collaborations with fellow writers across poetry, song, and scriptwriting.
Her new book, My Mummy is a Monster (part of the Monstrous Me collection) will be available in March 2020 and Carry Love in June 2020
Connect with Natalie on Twitter @BillingReeves.