R is for Refuge by Anne Booth and Sam Usher
Refuge is the story of Mary, Joseph and the birth of baby Jesus told through the eyes of the donkey. The characters aren’t named but the story is so familiar that we immediately know whose story it is.…
P is for The Princess and the Christmas Rescue by Caryl Hart and Sarah Warburton…
It’s still early to be thinking about Christmas but not if you are thinking about doing some Christmas colouring in preparation for the festive season. This month Nosy Crow has published two beautifully illustrated Christmas colouring books, The Colouring Book of Cards and Envelopes CHRISTMAS and The Colouring Book of Beautiful Gift Boxes CHRISTMAS. …
Age Range: 5 +
We all believe that our childhood toys are real and this is the question that The Velveteen Rabbit struggles with, how can he truly become real? Any child (or adult) with a special toy can relate to this magical story and this beautiful, newly illustrated hardback would make a wonderful Christmas gift.…
The Princess and the Giant is one of our favourite picture books from those that were published last year. Not only does the story have a very independent minded, helpful and determined heroine but it also advocates the enjoyment that stories can bring and the joy of learning to read.…
Which fairytale will you be reading on National Tell a Fairytale Day?
Fairytales and folk tales are an integral part of a country’s traditions and provide a basis for many other stories that we know and love today. We have introduced our daughter to fairytales using books, magazines and other activities but there are still many more fairytales that she is not familiar with. …
The Story: Refuge by Anne Booth and Sam Usher – a retelling of the Christmas story, with an important new angle.
Why is this your favourite Christmas book?
This is a truly touching story, written in a manner which highlights the refugee crisis.…
I would like to propose one poem from the book by A.A. Milne ‘Now we are Six’.
Why is King John’s Christmas your favourite Christmas poem?
I love the wit and pathos of this poem – we find ourselves in sympathy with King John even though he was ‘not a good man’ – which I think is a very good thing – and A.A.…
A few months ago our daughter discovered that our two little men, Christmas and Snowy, had help with the book Advent Calendars that Story Snug has done for the previous two years so now it’s time for something different – a book tree Advent Calendar.…
What would we do without a best friend? June 8th is National Best Friends Day in the USA and we had great fun looking through our book collection to find some of our favourite fictional best friends.
Pip and Posy – Axel Scheffler: We have several Pip and Posy stories and they make a great introduction to the concept of best friends.…