Children’s books
They play ‘I spy’ as they walk to familiarise him with his surroundings. Something white and fluffy? A cloud. Something wonderful? A rainbow. The splendid pictures are offset by the curvy typeset, which bounces throughout the story to the pull-out panorama at the end. An endearing story for toddlers.
, by Alf Proysen, illustrated by Hilda Offen (Red Fox; €7.10), is a charming duo of stories about an extraordinary old lady who never knows when she will shrink to the size of a fairy and have an adventure. When her cat takes her on his back to show her something wonderful, their journey is fraught with dangers that normal people would dismiss — such as escaping the claws of two magpies and dodging snowballs thrown by children. The surprise is worth it. In the second tale, Mrs Pepperpot almost becomes a bazaar prize. With adventure, great storylines and delightful, homely illustrations, this is an imaginative read-aloud book for age four and upwards.