Children’s books

NO! by David McPhail (Frances Lincoln, €10.05; endorsed by Amnesty International UK). Set during wartime a small boy sets out to post a letter.

As he walks along the war-torn street he sees the horrors of violence, the rumbling planes above, and the terrors of people when soldiers kick down their doors.

When he himself is accosted by a young lout his fury breaks out with a bellowing NO!

This brings the lout to his senses as he too realises the idiocy and horrors of violence. Superbly illustrated, NO is an extraordinary, wordless book that resonates with the simplicity of one small boy. Suitable for age eight and up.

Brian And The Giant by Chris Judge and Mark Wickham (O’Brien, €8.99.) 

Young Brian Boru and his brothers are horrified by the awful pong that surrounds the whole settlement where they live.

Worse than that, the water dries up, there’s nothing to drink, and the crops are rotting.

Brian and his brothers set off to find the culprit, who turns out to be a giant.

Can Brian and his brothers help to put things right for their village? Beautifully illustrated and a very funny read for age seven and up.

One by Sarah Crossan (Bloomsbury, €13.85). 

The One of the title refers to conjoined identical twins Grace and Tippi and charts their struggle to survive in a world that sees them as different.

Through Sarah Crossan’s characterisation we see them as actual people such is her ability to get inside the minds of her subjects.

This is complemented by immaculate research and presents us with a tale of heartwarming, and at times heartbreaking, love and complex family interaction.

The study of their relationships at home and at school is the novel’s forte, and, in the same lyrical format as The Weight Of Water we meet students, counsellors and a feisty sister.

Though narrated by Grace alone, her empathy with her sister’s needss gives us an insight into a world that can also be shut off for us. An inspiring and beautiful book. Suitable for age 12 and up.