Children’s books

PEELY WALLY by Kali Stileman (Red Fox; €7.10). Boldly painted blobs and textured cut-outs form the creatures in this charming story of a mother bird whose precious egg falls from the nest and bounces its way through jungle and lake.

The storyline and naïf style will appeal to two-to three-year-olds.

Sammy Goes Flying by Odette Elliot, illustrated by Georgina McIntyre (Tamarind; €7.10) tells of a small boy who is obsessed with flying. When his big brother and sister announce they’re going to an aircraft museum, Sammy wants to go too, but they tell him he’s too small. To make up for his disappointment Grandma takes Sammy on a surprise trip, which fulfils all his high-in-the sky dreams. Perfect for age four and upwards.

Sophie and the Shadow Woods by Linda Chapman and Lee Weatherly (Harper Collins; €5.92) is a girl’s book, but not at all ‘girly’. Ten-year-old Sophie is a tough little lady with no time for things pink and sparkly. She and best friend Sam are into tae-kwando, difficult obstacle courses and skateboarding. These skills are called upon when she loses an ancient key belonging to her grandfather, the Guardian of the Gateway, who protects the world from evil Shadow Creatures — goblins who have, in fact, stolen the key. With the help of Sam, she must do battle with the goblins to reclaim the key.

Dead Hairy by Debbie Thomas (Mercier; €8.99) tells of a friendship that evolves from the day Grandma Hartley’s false teeth are sucked into the vacuum cleaner. When odd job man Matt Platt and his daughter Perdita come to release the teeth, she bonds with Abbie, who is invited to the Platt home. It’s a castle which contains a Hair Museum, Matt Platt’s lab of Scientific Hair Experiments (on animals and insects), a chatty, live-in shrunken head and a couple of dodgy humans. Perdita’s mum, Coriander, has gone missing and the two girls plan to trace her. The story, interwoven with a wacky cast of characters, romps through the search with exuberance and sparkling dialogue.