#Review by Lou of A Ticket To Ride by Sue Wickstead @JayJayBus #ChildrensBook #ATicketToRide #Stories #Rhymes @rararesources

A Ticket To Ride
By Sue Wickstead

All aboard!!! Got your ticket to ride this fantastically entertaining children’s book. This is a fun children’s book with rhymes and short stories that are great for on the bus or playing around with the idea of the bus in an imaginative manner. Today, I am part of the blog tour for this next instalment in this lovely collection by Sue Wickstead. Check out the blurb and my review below of A Ticket To Ride for 2 years to 12 years, thanks to Rachel’s Random Resources blog tour spot.

This collection of light-hearted poems and stories is perfect for a cosy afternoon reading with your little ones. Perfect for sharing.

Around the corner and up the hill, jumping off when the bus stops still.

Animals and friends hop on and off the bus as it travels through lands near and far, on special days and everyday afternoons. On this journey, you can meet everything from cats and elephants to one very celebratory bee, telling jokes and adding their opinions.

A Ticket to Ride is a fun collection of cheerful poems with a few short stories sprinkled in. I love the silliness as well as the thoughtful moments, and who doesn’t need a few extra knock-knock jokes to brighten their day? This book is a great read-along, with poems for anytime you want to celebrate.

Review

What will your stop be? The book is your ticket to ride to wherever your imagination or heart takes you on a bus. It encourages fun around buses, language and the silly fun that kids just love to be entertained by. They’re also fun if you’re an adult reading to children. This is part of a gorgeously fun collection of complete within themselves books, which I choose to use in some Bookbug sessions (a Scottish Booktrust group for 0-5 year olds) and kids and adults alike have fun with them. Please note, this isn’t part of their collection, but we do have freedom to choose our books outwith too. The book itself is suitable for children of 2 years to 12 years. There are poems galore, some that are acrostic and all manner of other styles, which is what makes it suitable for such a broad age range.

Packed with jokes, animals and more, it’s the journey you and your children don’t want to miss. Meet animals in entertaining places like a Lion In A Bath, a Gutter Beetle, a Mouse Maze, some strange Electric Elephant Rain and more…
The illustrations are colourful, bold and entertaining for all children to enjoy.

The stops and imaginative, interactive aspects remind me a bit of Playbus in the 80’s. It has that level of fun (for adults, that title also makes me think of Ticket to Ride by The Beatles).

I highly recommend this book which encourages fun, imagination, language through rhyme, which is great to read aloud with children or for older children to also share and perhaps read aloud to their siblings or adults in their lives.

#Review by Lou of Bibi Saves the Ocean @judithewa_author @LoveBooksTours #LBTTour #LBTKids #ChildrensBook #PictureBook #Ocean #BibiSavesTheOcean

Bibi Saves the Ocean
By Judith Ewa

Review by Louise Cannon

Saving the ocean is a hot topic and here it is packaged into an entertaining picture book story, just in time for the sunnier, better weather is on the horizon.
Find out more in the blurb and then my review below.

Blurb

Clever, resourceful, and bighearted! When this little girl discovers nature has taken a beating, can she use her head to rescue the day?

Bibi loves the beautiful world. Hitting the beach with her two best friends, the joyful nine-year-old can’t wait to have fun in the sun, surf, and sand. But she’s shocked when the pristine playground she was expecting is covered in garbage.

Determined to solve the mystery, the conscientious child discovers the recycling area is hidden, the no-littering signs are faded, and the trash bins are neglected. But with a job so big, she fears rolling up her sleeves and getting her hands dirty won’t be enough to set things right.

Can Bibi recruit her community to jump in and turn the dump into a paradise?

Bibi Saves the Ocean is the heartwarming second book in the Preserve the Planet Series of children’s picture books. If you or your young reader like protecting the environment, working together for the good of all, and discussing the power of caring for the Earth, then you’ll love Judith A. Ewa’s illustrated tale of hope.

Buy Bibi Saves the Ocean to be part of the solution today!

Review

Bibi is just a normal child. She loves hanging out with her friends. On this occasion their chosen destination is the beach and they have a fun-filled day planned. What she hadn’t banked on is that their day will be ruined by other people’s rubbish scattered across what should have been a pristine beach of golden sands and blue sea. Bibi and her friends go on an adventure around to see what needs improvement and discover how to get the community involved in cleaning it up, so it can be a beach people can use responsibly again.

Bibi Saves the Ocean is poignant and relevant. It’s as emotional as it is fun with a good plot line. The author manages to get the point across about the ocean and beaches needing to be clean and recycling your litter without it being overly preachy, which is clever. The illustrations are punchy and fun as well, that get across the story, well. The book also shows team work and what can be achieved when we work together for a cause and how much fun can be had on a beach when it’s clean.

It sits well with similar books that are about the environment and taking manageable action, being aware of the environment and aware of our own actions.

About the Author

Judith A. Ewa is the award-winning author of the new children’s book Bibi Saves the Ocean. Her international career as a finance professional, currently working in the area of climate change, has spanned the areas of humanitarian assistance, sustainable development and peacekeeping. The focus of her career has been on improving the lives of children around the world, especially in developing countries. Her latest work is the second book in the Preserve the Planet Series. Through her books she aims to bring awareness to children about the importance of preserving the environment. Each book also offers a simple solution that children can actively carry out to bring about small changes today, to make a big difference tomorrow. Judith holds an MBA from the University of Leicester. She enjoys listening to jazz, is an avid football and tennis fan who currently resides in Switzerland. Find out more about Judith at www.judithaewa.com

#Review by Lou of Mousey Mornings by Fiona Lowry @FionaLowry9 #PictureBook #KidsBook #MouseyMornings

Mousey Mornings
By Fiona Lowry

Review written by Louise (Lou) Bookmarks and Stages

Mousey Mornings is a cute, cosy picture book with lots of pictures, a story without too much cheese and can also be used for useful discussions.

Blurb

Discover the cozy, hidden world beneath the stairs with Melvin and Zara.

Melvin is a brilliant little chef who loves to whip up delicious treats for his best friend, Zara. But when Melvin’s whiskers droop from exhaustion, Zara realizes it’s time to step up and lend a paw.

Through teamwork, kindness, and a sprinkle of determination, the two friends embark on a heartwarming journey to rediscover what makes their friendship so special.

Perfect for young readers, Mousey Mornings is a delightful tale about the importance of helping one another, sharing responsibilities, and the magic of lasting friendship.

Join Melvin and Zara as they learn that the best recipes aren’t just for food—they’re for friendship, too!

Review

There’s a whole mousey world to have fun exploring. Young readers join Melvin and Zara in this cosy story about friendship and teamwork.

It’s a book that can be related to human households. Melvin is exhausted after always doing nice things like creating treats for his friend Zara, who doesn’t really do a lot back. She then realises just how tired he’s becoming after working hard and decides it’s time for her to give him a hand (paw) out. The friends then realise how valuable their friendship is and even more so when they work as part of a team.

Mousey Mornings is nicely illustrated and is great for reading alone or aloud. It’s a lovely bedtime story.
It’s also great for opening up discussions as part of a family or in an educational setting.

#Review By Lou of the delightful Paddington and the Christmas Surprise By Michael Bond Illustrated by R.W. Alley @HarperCollinsUK #Paddington #Christmas #ChildrensBooks #PictureBooks

Paddington and the Christmas Surprise
By Michael Bond
Illustrated By R.W. Alley

Paddington Bear never really gets old. Paddington and the Christmas Surprise makes a beautiful present or a pre-Christmas cosy reading time. It’s suitable for 4 years plus. The gold cover makes it especially special for children and adults alike to create cosy memories of story-times together. Discover my review after the blurb and fun cover.

Blurb

A funny, festive picture book about Paddington, the beloved, classic bear from darkest Peru.

When the Browns take Paddington to the Christmas grotto at the local department store, their journey through the Winter Wonderland is full of unexpected surprises. But the best surprise is a present from Santa. After all, who else would find the perfect present for a bear like Paddington?

Join Paddington on his festive adventure as he discovers why Santa Claus makes everyone’s Christmas so special.

Review

Enter the department store, Barkridges where Paddington Bear is with the Brown’s who are taking him to Santa’s grotto. The biggest questions for a curious bear is, does Paddington have marmalade? Will he reach the end of the Winter Wonderland tour? What will Santa do?

The illustrations are fabulous and there’s lots for children to look at and find as the story is being read. It’s a real treasure trove and feast for the eyes. The story is sweet and festive, with well-timed and paced trepidation as Paddington can’t be found by the Brown’s who are keen for him to see the end of the tour.

I highly recommend Paddington Bear books It’s a great time to try out the books or continue your Paddington journey as there’s a new film and Paddington Bear statues popping up across the UK.

#Review By Lou of Felix’s Favourite Day By Fiona Lowry @FionaLowry9 #PictureBook for 3-5 years #ChildrensBook #KidsLit @RandomTTours #FelixsFavouriteDay

Felix’s Favourite Day
By Fiona Lowry

Today I am part of starting off the Random T. Tours blog tour with a review of a lovely award winning picture book for 3-5 year olds. Discover the cover, blurb and review below.

Blurb

A fun and colourful picture book of positive thinking to show that your dreams come true.
Perfect growth mindset book for ages 3-5yrs

Winner of The Golden Wizard Book Award 2022.
Winner of American Writing Awards 2023 Children’s Book International,

Felix loves animals and dreams of being a vet when he is older. The only problem is, he doesn’t have his own pet to look after yet.
After begging, badgering and bothering his parents, Felix is finally taken to the local animal shelter for what his parents hope will be a sensibly chosen cat or dog…Felix may have other ideas!

Review

Felix very dearly wants a pet and has ambitions to become a vet when he grows up. Young readers are taken through his desires for a pet through a lovely rhyming story and brightly coloured, attractive pictures of the different animals he looks at and considers.

The book is playful and fun as well as easily accessible with its linkage of words to pictures and varying fonts. It’s an eye-catchingly attractive book that has a great storyline that is short enough to hold the attention for 3-5 year olds and has humour they’ll appreciate. It’s a book that is just easy to want to turn page after page until the end.

It’s great for a bedtime story or one if you’re considering a pet for the home and it’s also great for nursery settings too. Everyone can have fun with it, including the adults reading it aloud to children or children taking a peek on their own or with a friend.

#Review by Lou of Bus Rhymes and Playtime By Sue Wickstead @JayJayBus @rararesources #blogtour #childrensbook #picturebook #songs #rhymes

Bus Rhymes and Playtimes
By Sue Wickstead

Today I have a review of a book that’s perfect for on the bus or for play. Check out the blurb and review below.

Blurb

Bus Rhymes to sing along with.

Have you got your ticket ready?

Where will you go today?

Why not jump onboard the bus –

Come along to sing and play.

So take your seat as off we go.

What could happen along the way?

Review

Hop on a bus! Where will you go today? Go on an adventure through song and rhyme with Bus Rhymes and Play Times. It’s so much fun for young children. There is a great selection of rhymes and songs, some my be more familiar than others, but all just as entertaining and interactive as the next.
Feast your eyes on the illustrations, they’re all there, big, bright and bold for all to see, just to enhance the experience.

The rhymes and songs are easy for children and adults alike to pick up and you can have fun with the illustrations in imaginative play and discussion.

Hop aboard and have fun today!