Moon Bear

Every night, when mummy calls it’s time for bed, Ettie goes through her bedtime routine, enjoying a bath and story time. But then the light goes out, leaving Ettie hunched under the bedclothes with her torch switched on because she is afraid of the dark. But, one night, the moon’s shimmering lights streams through a crack in the curtains. Curious, Ettie reaches out to touch it and is amazed to find that it responds to her touch. Dancing round the round, ‘painting’ in the air with the light, Ettie notices the moon smiling down at her. She joins the dots of the stars to create a bear who bursts into life and the two play together. When Ettie learns that the moon bear is afraid of light, just as she (Ettie) is afraid of the dark, they help each other to overcome their fears.

I love a wordless picture book and the wonderful reading adventure they offer children who can create, embellish, alter and retell the story every time they open the book. ‘Moon Bear’ is almost wordless- the phrase ‘Time for bed, Ettie’ at the beginning transforms to ‘Time for bed, mummy’ at the end, emphasising the change in Ettie’s feelings for the dark- but other than this, the reader is free to interpret the illustrations to tell the story, noticing and developing details which please them most.

Although very different, for me, the story has echoes of ‘The Snowman’. A wonderfully imaginative adventure with two new friends exploring the child’s world and then the sadness of a parting. However, in this story, Ettie realises that Moon Bear is just as afraid of the light as Ettie is of the dark and she gently helps him to understand that he has nothing to fear. Although Moon Bear has disappeared in the morning when Ettie wakes, she knows he will return with the night, leaving the story full of excited expectation and joy.

The illustrations are absolutely gorgeous and children are sure to notice all the little details which hint that Ettie is a bear fan before Moon Bear appears- her toy, her drawings, the book she shares with her mum- perhaps encouraging them to create their own imaginative solutions to help them confront their own fears. The story is perfect for adults to use as an opening for discussions about fears, developing empathy and understanding whilst offering reassurance. There are many pictures to linger over and discuss how Ettie and Moon Bear are feeling and exploring their emotions. The final picture of Ettie and Moon Bear on the very last page offers the perfect starting point for children to create their own stories about these two friends.

Gorgeous!

Moon Bear

Clare Helen Welsh, illustrated by Carolina T Godina

Frances Lincoln ISBN: 978-0711291003

You can read my review of ‘Sunny Side Up!’ here, ‘I Love You More’ here, ‘Never Ever Ever Ask a Pirate to a Party’ here and ‘Slime? It’s Not Mine!’ here.

I Love You More

As mum settles Rae down at bedtime, she tries to tell her just how much she loves her- more than tiny tree frogs love to leap, more than penguins love waddling in the snow, more than dolphins love the boundless sea- more than words can say.

Gorgeous illustrations and beautiful lyrical text combine to make a wonderful snuggle-up story to share with the ones you love. A joy to read aloud, the gentle rhyme follows a comforting pattern which children will quickly be able to join in with- and enjoy creating their own images to express their feelings. It offers the reassurance of unconditional, never-ending love from adult to child- but with Rae getting the last word!

There is a dream-like quality to the illustrations yet these lovely images are sure to inspire children to find out more about the creatures they show.

‘Guess How Much I Love You’ was one of my son’s favourite books when he was little and ‘I Love You More’ offers readers the same cosy feeling, the same sense of shared love, the same precious memories that I will never forget from our bedtime- or anytime- stories. Another winner, Clare- congratulations!

I Love You More

Clare Helen Welsh, illustrated by Kevin and Kristen Howdeshell

Nosy Crow ISBN: 978-1839944192

You can read my review of ‘Sunny Side Up’ here and ‘Never Ever Ever Ask a Pirate to a Party’ here.

Never Ever Ever Ask a Pirate to a Party

‘Never Ever Ever Ask a Pirate to a Party’ is the perfect picture book for having a giggle and engaging children with the joy of a good book! Colourful fun illustrations make the perfect accompaniment to the lively text.

An increasingly bizarre array of guests arrive at a little girl’s birthday party. Although initially fun, their antics eventually lead to chaos and confusion, causing the little girl to send them all home! As each new arrival appears, the text follows a familiar pattern, perfect for encouraging listeners to join in- with plenty to laugh as they do! Children are sure to enjoy thinking of their own characters who might join the party- and the chaos they might cause! They might enjoy designing and writing their own invitations

The illustrations are wonderful- full of fun and details to notice! At the heart of the story is a message of real friendship. Having upset the little girl, her friends are quick to apologise and make amends whilst the little girl in turn realises the importance of having those friends around, despite the disarray and mayhem they caused!

This is the sort of book which would have had my son calling, ‘Again! Again!’ for another read the minute it was finished! It’s sure to become a firm favourite at home and at school!

Never Ever Ever Ask a Pirate to a Party

Clare Helen Welsh, illustrated by Anne-Kathrin Behl

Nosy Crow ISBN: 978-1839942181

You can read my review of ‘Sunny Side Up’ here.

St Austell Festival of Children’s Literature

Yesterday, I had great fun attending the St Austell Festival of Children’s Literature. Originally, I intended to go for the day, but as it’s nearly 3 hours from home, we decided to make a weekend of it, with my husband and son meeting up to walk some of the SW coast path, whilst I enjoyed the festival.

Festival events were being held in four different locations- the library, White River Cinema, Unit 4 and the Pop up venue. Never having stopped in St Austell before, I was delighted to find that the three venues where I had events were all really close together with parking nearby. The Festival Hub was also located in White River Place, using an empty shop, which offered a wonderful space for the bookshop and some creative activities to take place.

The bookshop was provided by Reading Rocks- and what a selection was on offer! It was lovely to meet up with Heather again and enjoy some book-ish chat with her in odd moments when she wasn’t being everywhere and doing everything with her wonderful team of helpers!

My first event was in the cinema! I have heard many, many authors speak over the years, but this was definitely one of the most comfortable locations! Having just reviewed the new Rosie Raja book, ‘Mission to Cairo’ for Reading Zone, I was delighted to have the opportunity to hear author, Sufiya Ahmed, talking about her writing. It was a great event with lots of thoughtful questions from the audience.

My next event was at the Pop up venue, another empty shop which was being used for the excellent purpose of hosting events. Non-fiction author, Isabel Thomas, treated the audience to a fascinating session which generated plenty of excitement. Having written over 250 books (including ‘Moth’ which I frequently use in Y6), she told us she often gets asked to write about things she knows little about and so has to start with questions, silly ones being the best as they often lead to really interesting science! The children in the audience came up with some brilliant ones- and she gave equally brilliant answers!

Next, I headed to Unit 4 which is a dance studio. Here, Rebecca Cobb read some stories, including a new book which she has illustrated for Julia Donaldson called ‘Who Lives Here?’. She showed everyone how to draw Aunt Amelia and shared the story behind her story ‘The Something’!

Back at the cinema, I joined an excited group listening to Clare Helen Welsh reading about Lenny the lemur in ‘Poo! Is that You?’. Illustrator, Nicola O’Byrne, sent a film showing how to draw Lenny and some lovely lemur pictures were created. Clare then read her new book ‘Sunny Side Up’ (review here) and everyone enjoyed making their own sunny-side specs!

There were so many events to choose from that I could easily have attended twice or three times as many had I been able to fit them in! I managed to catch up with Sarah Tagholm, but missed many others like Emma McCann, Justyn Edwards, Anna Wilson, Julie Sykes…there was so much choice! Unbelievably, tickets were only £1 each- I have no idea how the organisers managed it, but this was a wonderfully successful festival and I shall be back next year when I hope there will be another one! Huge congratulations to all concerned!

Sunny Side Up

In this gorgeous picture book, children- and adults!- are encouraged to look on the bright side of life and find the positives in each situation. Using the idea of ‘sunny-side specs’, author, Clare Helen Welsh, offers readers a different way of seeing things- a ‘goodbye’ to one person could be a ‘hello’ to another and a bad mood could easily become a good one. This lovely, simple idea is perfect for encouraging children to develop a sense of having choice in how they react to things and thus a positive impact on the outcome. Schools and families might choose to design and make their own ‘sunny-side specs’ and use these as a reminder when needed. Taking action to make change is also encouraged- families are shown tackling waste in the sea so that they are able to enjoy the water together once it’s cleared- nothing seems impossible when viewed through the sunny-side specs!

However, the book also acknowledges that there are occasions when there isn’t a sunny side, reassuring the reader that it is OK to feel sad at times. I love the line- ‘The more sunny things you find, the sunnier you’ll feel.’- so true and so important to remember and share! It is vital to encourage children (and adults!) to believe that things might not be as bad as they first thought, that with a little bit of ‘reviewing the situation’ they might be able to see things in a more positive light! Clare- one of the happiest, most positive people I have ever had the pleasure to meet- has created a real winner here!

The text is accompanied by Ana Sanfelippo’s wonderful illustrations. Colourful spreads are enhanced by die-cuts and flaps which transform the pictures, just as having a different outlook can transform the world around us. There is plenty to talk about in each picture- perfect for classroom discussions or for sharing at home. This is an inspired- and inspiring- book!

Sunny Side Up

Clare Helen Welsh, illustrated by Ana Sanfelippo

Little Tiger ISBN: 978-1801044172

FCBG Conference 2023 Day 2

Day 2 saw us up bright and early, off to explore Rugby town before breakfast! The town was already alive as the Saturday market was setting up and we enjoyed wandering around, on a mission to find the statues of Rupert Brooke, Thomas Hughes and William Webb Ellis and the bench in Jubilee Gardens which commemorates various authors. As none of these things are signposted, we were helped by the bin men who googled Rupert Brooke’s location for us!

Once fortified by a hearty breakfast, Conference began a-new. Saturday sees new day delegates arriving and the organisers- members of the Executive Committee and the Northamptonshire Book Group- work tirelessly to make sure everything is ready and everyone in the right place for the first session. Each delegate receives a Conference goodie bag, filled with donations from publishers as well as Conference information when they are greeted by those manning the reception desk.

The first session was the wonderful M G Leonard. Sadly, I missed this session as I was distributing information about NNFN to publishers, but people were buzzing about it, filled with enthusiasm by the inspiring energy of her talk. This was followed by a panel discussion with Alison David (Farshore Consumer Insight Director), Emma Dodds (Red Shed Senior Commissioning Editor) and Dr Ronx (doctor, TV presenter and author) about the power of non-fiction to make and inspire new readers. Coffee time celebrated the 10th anniversary of Red Shed!

After coffee, the perfect combination of Phil Earle and Clare Helen Welsh arrived, sharing their picture books which tackle divorce. The books took very different approaches to this sensitive subject, but each is a real gem and sure to support children going through this experience. Phil and Clare each spoke of their own experiences and how these helped them in the writing of their books.

The ‘Fantastical and Magical’ panel was just as it sounds! Three excellent authors, Anna Goodall, Emma Norry and Nicki Thornton, gave readings from their books and talked about the inspiration for their writing, the settings and characters in a truly magical session.

Just before lunch, Laura Baker shared her gorgeous book, ‘All the Wonderful Ways to Read’, a perfect book for so many avid booklovers to hear!

After lunch, delegates were offered a choice of seminar sessions: ‘Celebrate with Me!’ with Laura Gladwin, ‘Explodapedia’ with Ben Martynoga, accessible retellings with Laura Wood or Humour Hooks with Derek Keilty, Jenny McLaughlin and Myles McLeod. It is always so hard to choose which to attend- and there is always lots of discussion and idea sharing afterwards!

From the seminars to the next panel session, ‘Representative Voices’. Candy Gourlay, A M Dassu and Ravena Guron discussed authentic representation, who they write for and their approaches to writing. They each read a section from one of their books- a real treat for people like me who love to hear authors reading their own words!

Just before the tea break, G M Linton told us a little about her new book, ‘My Name is Sunshine Simpson’ and we celebrated with cupcakes!

The FCBG is led by the Executive Committee which organises the groups at a national level and Conference is always when the AGM is held. Tricia, our Chair, led us through the agenda and this was then followed by the group meeting where ideas are shared and discussed. The busyness of Conference then stills for about an hour whilst everyone gets ready for the Gala Dinner.

This year, the Gala Dinner was held in the stunning Temple Speech Room, a very beautiful and historic setting for a lovely occasion! Before dinner, cocktails were served and we all raised a glass to the memory of Judith Kerr who was born 100 years ago. Slides of Judith were shown at this time and Jane made a lovely speech, echoing the feelings of us all about this iconic lady and her work.

Publishers Frances Lincoln were celebrating their 40th anniversary and we took part in a quiz. Guest authors, Mariajo Illustrajo and Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara, joined us for the dinner along with some of the authors who had spoken during the day. The After Dinner Speaker this year was Children’s Laureate, Joseph Coelho, who had us joining in with his poems and laughing as the lovely evening drew to a close.

Some hardy folks stayed on to enjoy the bar, but many of us were worn out by the packed programme of events and headed back to the accommodation to re-charge for another fun-filled day!

Day three to follow!

Slime? It’s Not Mine!

In his latest adventure, Lenny the lemur is having a wonderful time on holiday in California. Whilst swinging from the redwood trees, he suddenly finds himself covered in sticky, icky goo. Determined to find out who slimed him, Lenny sets off to identify the culprit and learns a lot about the other creature’s slimy habits along the way.

Following the format of ‘Poo! Is that You?’ and ‘Wee? It Wasn’t Me!’, ‘Slime? It’s Not Mine!’ is sure to be every bit as popular. Children love to join in with a resounding chorus of ‘Slime? It’s not Mine!’ as Lenny goes from one creature to the next to identify the slime. As he investigates, he learns much about the different uses for slime a whole host of creatures have - and there is additional information at the end of the story offering further explanation and detail. Lenny even tries to question some slime mould which is neither a plant nor an animal, but a mass of simple cells capable of moving- and according to the ‘Facts and Snaps!’, of solving mazes! The story offers an excellent starting point for finding out more about all these creatures and the California redwood.

Nicola O’Byrne’s illustrations are colourful and full of details to enjoy. Lenny’s expressions are wonderful as he finds himself dripping in sticky slime and discovers what the other creatures can do. The information section has a photograph of each creature which not only shows what they look like in real life, but what a talented artist Nicola is too.

These books are great fun and so engaging - I can’t wait to see what Lenny investigate next!

Slime? It’s Not Mine! Clare Helen Welsh, illustrated by Nicola O’Byrne

Macmillan ISBN: 978-1529064452

You can read my review of ‘Wee? It Wasn’t Me!’ here.