Magical words of wonder: Top 10 books for children of all ages
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This gloriously illustrated collection of rhymes and jingles will resonate with parents and create new memories for the very young. Little gems of wisdom are interspersed with witty verses.
A rather tiny elf puts his tormentor in his place with:
‘I’m quite as big for me’ said he
As you are big for you’
There is one for everybody in the audience; trains, giants, pirates, cats, fish, skeletons, ships, the hokey-pokey, all rounded off with lines from a cradle song by W B Yeats.
This is a magical combination of spelling, sounds and poetry. The silent B in Thumb looks as cheerful as the other letters even though he has no work to do. Every letter and combinations of letters are explained in happy little verses. Silent letters get the full treatment.
The advice is to take your time with your three to seven year old and repetition is vital. Actions to involve your child in creating rhythms in the poems are suggested. Fun all the way.
Beth’s new home, 3 Hawthorn Road, should be an oasis of safety but it isn’t. A troubled boy called Robbie has found a portal which transports him from the fifties to the Dublin of 2019. It is the simplicity of the story that grabs us. Soon Robbie’s family follow through the portal, minus the dad who will remain in 1956.
This is a highly entertaining time-slip story and we see both fifties and present-day Dublin through the eyes of Beth and Robbie. And what a superb ending.
Owl shows best friends Tortoise and Hedgehog that there are other ways to communicate while we wait for the old normal to return: Wave, write a letter, blow a kiss, sing and paint. The expressions on the animals’ faces are a joy to behold especially the high-flying hedgehog as they react to each other. This is an invaluable tool for parents to demonstrate social distancing to the very young. Timely, topical and utterly charming.
This is a sheep who uses his head. The shepherd is an expert knitter and utilises the black wool to add variety to his stock. When a sudden winter storm begins to rage the little black sheep leads the flock to shelter, where they sit out the storm. Soon the shepherd is buying other black sheep and expanding his knitting business. This is a heart-warming story about being different and embracing your difference.
This is a colourful and clever take on being different. Ron usually followed rhino rules: When approached by any animal, charge! He felt there was more to being a rhino and when he saw his grey reflection in a pool he decided a colour change would be good. So mixing plants and fruit he completely altered his appearance. Other rhinos were disgusted but the little animals now came to chat to him. His new rules were: Be yourself, Make lots of friends and above all Have fun.
Young Nicholas wants to know which of Elvi’s two mums is her real mum so she leads him on with totally irrelevant clues: ’She’s the one who can do a handstand on one finger’ or, ‘My mum is a pirate and she can speak gorilla language’. She bats off any question from Nicholas until she allows him to come to the correct answer. ‘She’s the one who tucks me into bed, especially when I’m scared. She’s the one who kisses me goodnight.’ ‘But don't they both do that’ says Nicholas. Game, set and match.
Young Gruffalo has constantly been warned about going into the forest but will she listen? The owl and the fox issue similar warnings mentioning a huge ferocious mouse who terrifies everybody. She does meet a tiny mouse who begs for mercy and asks if she can climb a tree to contact the giant mouse. Her shadow in the moonlight is huge and sends the Young Gruffalo scampering home where, luckily, her father is still asleep.
There's major trouble on Santa’s special planet so the Trubshaw family are sent for to help. Two villains Philpott and Krampus are up to their old tricks. Problem is the tricks can easily backfire as some toy dinosaurs come alive and bite people on the bum. Jake and Sadie are delighted to meet up with their reindeer friends and prove no match for the two rebel reindeer. Funny Christmas fare with loads of laughs.
Welcome Irish language version of this now well-known picture book. The message from all the animals about the missing puffling is ‘chabhraigh sí liom’ so they all help track. But beware the glint in Puffling’s eye. Excellent glossary identifying fish and even seabed plant-life.
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