Clown, by Quentin Blake

'Clown' is a picture book – that and only that, as it consists solely of pictures without text. It tells the story of a clown that is dumped in a dustbin along with other unwanted toys. Managing to escape, he is befriended by a little girl, but her mother is less than impressed when she takes him home. She throws him out of the window and he is chased by a dog. Things seem to be going from bad to worse when the dog's thug of an owner tosses him right up into the air. He is in luck, however, as he flies through the window of a poverty-stricken family. After helping the daughter with the chores, he takes her out with her baby brother in a pram to the dustbin where they retrieve the rest of the toys.

I first came to love the illustrations of Quentin Blake through the novels of Roald Dahl that my sons read when they were growing up. I have enjoyed some of his illustrated stories such as 'Mister Magnolia' and 'Mrs Armitage, Queen of the Road', but 'Clown' is the first book of his I have come across that is composed purely of illustrations. Blake has a sketchy, exaggerated style of drawing that may not be to everyone's cup of tea but usually conveys more than enough humour to make it appealing.

In 'Clown', the illustrations are all in full colour; sometimes they fill an entire page with a border, and sometimes they are smaller sketches showing a sequence of events across the page. Blake uses a wide variety of hues in his watercolours, yet they have a subtlety about them. There is, however, one gorgeous full-page picture where the clown, clutching flowers, follows the girl pushing the pram filled with toys and her baby brother. The sky is a shocking pink behind the grey silhouettes of tower blocks and a church spire. The baby, with a wide smile, leans forward in anticipation while the girl is turning back to make sure the clown is keeping up with her. Back home, Blake shows the toys all lined up on the bed; in the same room the table is laid and potatoes are being served in a pan. The iron bedstead, bare light bulb and peeling paint tell us this is a struggling family, yet mum is full of smiles and kisses when she comes home. It is a far cry from the home of the poor little rich girl who rescued the clown earlier; there the room was crammed with ornaments, mirrors and fancy furniture, but there was no appreciation of the clown. Neither did mum seem to care about her daughter's feelings.

'Clown' is a book that could be shared by an adult and a young child in much the same way as a picture book that includes text. If the child is very young, the adult could tell the story as they turn the pages, but a slightly older child could be encouraged to describe what is happening in the illustrations. This would be an excellent way of developing narrative skills, or even basic verbal expression. On the other hand, children that are not yet able to read could enjoy this book alone, following the story without feeling they are missing out on something because they cannot decipher a text.

My own experience of 'Clown' is with pre-school children, but I can see the book being used with children of primary-school age who could write their own text to accompany the pictures. I don't think they would find it too childish; in fact the humour would no doubt attract their interest. It could be an ideal resource for writing character descriptions and dialogue as well as narrative.

'Clown' won the International Bologna Ragazzi Award in 1996. It is not hard to see why. I would recommend it for children of three up to six or seven, older if is used as an inspiration for creative writing.

Clown

by Quentin Blake

Paperback, 32 pages

Red Fox, 1998

ISBN 9780099493617

Price £5.99 (Amazon £4.02)

Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs: Missing Treasure, by Giles Andreae and Russell Ayto

Flinn, a seemingly ordinary boy who likes pirates and dinosaurs, is on a school trip to see dinosaur skeletons at a museum. He and his friends are in awe of the huge skeleton of the giganotosaurus, which the guide tells them was even mightier than Tyrannosaurus Rex. They are also intrigued when the guide shows them an empty glass case from which Captain Rufus Rumblebelly's treasure was stolen the night before.

Flinn and friends follow a trail of feathers and gold coins, thinking that it might hold a clue to the treasure. It leads them into a dark cupboard and, surprise surprise, the back of the cupboard falls away. The children find themselves in the cabin of a pirate ship where Rumblebelly's grandson, Gordon Gurgleguts, has been tied up and left. He admits to having taken the treasure from the museum, but it was then stolen from him.

Gurgleguts appoints Flinn as captain of the ship, and off they set to Bag o' Bones Island in search of the thieves and treasure. The culprits are of course the pirate dinosaurs, who manage to capture Gurgleguts and threaten to barbecue him. Tyrannosaurus Rex, however, remembers his previous encounter with Captain Flinn and brings on his fearsome cousin, Gigantosaurus. This huge monster is terrified of a tiny spider hanging from Flinn's hat. Flinn seizes the opportunity to grab the treasure, free Gurgleguts and tie up the dinosaurs. It's not long before they are heading back on the ship. At the museum, the guide is delighted to see the treasure returned, but there's no way he's going to believe in pirate dinosaurs.

“Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs: Missing Treasure” is Giles Andreae's sequel to Flinn's first adventure when he vanquished Tyrannosaurus Rex. The idea of Flinn and his friends falling through the back of the cupboard not only has shades of C.S. Lewis' “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe”, but is a repetition of the way the children found themselves on a pirate ship in the previous book. The story itself is, however, full of humour and excitement, and the ingredients of pirates, dinosaurs and lost treasure are bound to appeal to many young children.

Giles Andreae has of course invented the giganotosaurus, and has included a friendly note before the story starts on the pronunciation of the name, breaking it down into six syllables. I think a fair few adults will appreciate this. “Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs: Missing Treasure” is a great read-aloud adventure, but with lengthy dinosaur names and insults like “dastardly dunderheads”, it is not an ideal book for a child learning to read. Most of the text is in a large font, in fact some words and phrases are extra large for emphasis, but sometimes the font resembles handwriting. The text is superimposed on the illustrations, and in a few cases the background is a little dark.

Russell Ayto's illustrations are wonderful and definitely bring the story to life. He uses vibrant reds, blues and yellows alongside more muted colours, and really goes to town with the characters. The dinosaurs have huge toothy grins and evil eyes, while Gurgleguts is a round body with stick-like limbs and tiny spotted handkerchief on his head. As in the previous book, there is a colourful cross-section of the pirate ship showing mice in hammocks, a bed with a skull bed-head, and a soppy Gurgleguts hugging one of the children goodbye.

The device of the back of the cupboard falling away to get the children onto a ship was disappointing in the first story and even more so when it was repeated in “Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs: Missing Treasure”. Nevertheless, Giles Andreae has created an adventure story that most children, certainly boys, will love. The group of four-year-olds that I read it aloud to reacted to it with plenty of enthusiasm. One of the boys had the book at home and was able to recite a little song from the book as well as join in with a few other lines here and there. It was obviously a book that he had asked to have read to him again and again. Although not a favourite picture book of mine, the humour and sense of adventure make this a story that three to five-year-olds will not be bored by. Slightly older children may enjoy it too, but a young independent reader will probably find it quite challenging. Recommended for any fans of pirates and dinosaurs.

Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs: Missing Treasure
By Giles Andreae (Author) and Russell Ayto (Illustrator)
Paperback, 32 pages
Puffin, 2008
ISBN 9780141500492
Price £6.99 (Amazon £4.18)

Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs, by Giles Andreae and Russell Ayto

Flinn, like so many other boys his age, loves dinosaurs and pirates. One day at school his teacher sends him to a walk-in cupboard to look for the pens he needs to colour a dinosaur picture. While inside, Flinn hears the sound of a man crying. He is amazed to find Captain Stubble, a pirate, shaking and shuddering on the floor under a curtain. The reason for Captain Stubble's despair is that his ship has been stolen. Flinn offers to help him get it back, and out of nowhere three of his friends appear, all clamouring to join in the adventure.

Suddenly the back of the cupboard falls away and they find themselves on board a pirate ship. Captain Stubble appoints Flinn as the new captain, as he would rather be the cook. Off they sail in search of the lost ship, the 'Acorn'. After a long voyage they spot it through their telescope but are horrified to see that it has been taken over by pirate dinosaurs, with a mighty Tyrannosaurus Rex at the helm. They bravely attack, and soon all the dinosaurs except for T Rex jump overboard. Flinn challenges Tyrannosaurus to a duel, and miraculously keeps going until the dinosaur surrenders. Tyrannosaurus promises to be good from then on, and is so impressed by Flinn that he appoints him as the new captain of the dinosaur pirates.

Flinn, however, suddenly realises he should be back at school. They sail home while Stubble cooks shark's fin stew for everyone. Back on shore the children wave goodbye to Stubble and Tyrannosaurus Rex, then clamber back into the school cupboard. As they creep into the classroom, Miss Pie has just finished reading a story to the class. She wonders what Flinn and his pals have been up to, but they just smile at each other and say, “Nothing really at all.”

Giles Andreae has taken two popular groups of characters in the form of pirates and dinosaurs to create a fast-paced adventure that could hardly fail to be a success, especially among young boys. When I asked a group of four-year-olds which stories they would like to repeat in their drama sessions at the end of the school year, “Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs” was one of their three choices. (The other two were Julia Donaldson's “A Squash and a Squeeze” and “Courtney” by John Burningham.) It is easy to see the appeal. It is, however, hard to overlook the parallel with C.S. Lewis' “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” when Flinn and company fall through the back of the cupboard. Pre-school children of course are unlikely to be aware of this similarity. Even so, whilst there is excitement and a bravely fought duel, the story is neither original nor intriguing. The ending is also somewhat of an anticlimax.

Russell Ayot's illustrations for “Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs” are bold, humorous and highly colourful. Tyrannosaurus in his pirate rig-out has evil eyes and deadly sharp teeth, confronting puny Flinn who bravely wields his silver cutlass with a determined expression. At one point we see a fascinating cross-section of the 'Acorn' with almost toothless pirate prisoners tied up below deck, and Tyrannosaurus Rex grinning in anticipation as he watches Stubble (who has a great deal of stubble) stirring the stew. There's even a bemused little blue parrot. Smoke puffs out from the kitchen against a scarlet sky.

“Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs” is definitely a read-aloud story rather than a book for a child learning to read. The text is superimposed on the illustrations, usually on a light-coloured background but occasionally on red or blue. Some words and phrases appear in a larger font for emphasis, and one or two are in capitals in a font that looks like handwriting. Exclamation marks abound. A lot of young children are familiar with the names of various species of dinosaur that appear here, such as stegosaurus and triceratops, but that does not of course mean that they would find them easy to read. Phrases such as “All hands on deck!” or “Right, me hearties” lend authenticity to the pirate theme, but here again originality is sadly lacking.

“Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs” is a particularly lively book that is more than likely to hold the attention of children, especially boys, aged from three up to six or perhaps seven. It is not the greatest, most imaginative story, but children of that age may not be so critical. One or two of the illustrations could be frightening for a very young child, but on the whole they are amusing and bring the story to life. This is a picture book that may not be the favourite for the adult reader, but could be very popular with a child that loves action with pirates or dinosaurs or both.


Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs
Giles Andreae (Author) and Russell Ayto (Illustrator)
Puffin, 2006
Paperback, 32 pages
ISBN 9780140569216
Price £6.99 (Amazon £4.99)

Courtney, by John Burningham

A boy and girl try to convince their parents to let them get a dog; they say it could guard the house and play with them. Mum and dad protest at first, saying that dogs need to be fed and walked, and they make a lot of mess. The children promise that they will take care of everything, and Mum gives in. The children set off for the Dogs' Home, pushing the baby in the buggy. Their parents stress that they must get a dog with a pedigree.

At the home the boy and girl don't see the right dog at first, so they ask if there is a dog that nobody wants. A man shows them Courtney, an old grey dog, and the children decide at once that they are taking him home. Their parents of course are not impressed by this mongrel; the children are sent off to bed and Courtney settles down to sleep in the kitchen. Next morning there is no sign of him, but he comes back later in the day, dragging a trunk behind him. He appears to be well travelled.

Courtney loses no time in donning a chef's hat and apron, cooking a meal for the family, changing into waiter's clothes and serving the food, playing the violin as they eat and then juggling to amuse the baby. As time goes on, he sometimes meets up with dogs in the park but spends most of his time doing household chores, watching television with the children or dancing with mum. Tragedy strikes one day when the house catches fire with the baby and Courtney inside; Courtney suddenly appears climbing down a ladder with the baby safely under one arm.

Life goes on, but one morning there is no sign of Courtney or his trunk. The parents remind the children that Courtney is a mongrel who cannot be relied on. The boy and girl, once again pushing the baby along, report Courtney as missing at the police station. Needless to say, the officer doesn't expect a dog who can cook and play the violin to be handed in, but he promises to let the children know.

The following summer the family set off to the seaside for a holiday. Every day the children go off in a boat that is tied to a rock by a long rope. On the last day, however, the rope breaks and the boat drifts out to sea. Mum cries for help, and suddenly there is a tug as the boat begins to be pulled back to the shore by something invisible. The family never find out exactly who or what saved the children, but in one illustration near the end of the book the outline of an old dog can be seen on a cliff top, looking down on the family as they hug each other.

In 'Courtney', John Burningham has created a delightful, imaginative story. It's obviously total fantasy, but the children I read it to found the idea of a dog dressing up and doing household chores or dancing extremely funny. Although Courtney is an old and not particularly attractive dog, there is something very lovable about him and you can understand why the children decided they wanted him as soon as they saw him. I have to admit that it was not on first reading that I noticed Courtney's presence on the cliff top in a picture near the end of the book, but when I asked the children how they thought the boy and girl had been saved, they were convinced that Courtney rescued them. Interestingly, Courtney is the only character in the story who is named.

John Burningham illustrates his picture books himself and he is one of my favourite illustrators. He uses a fair amount of colour with line drawings that are usually quite sketchy; the colours bring them to life but are never overdone. Facial features are minimal yet still convey expressions and feelings. Dad obviously hates the idea of his wife leaning against Courtney as he plays the violin, although on the previous page he was delighted at the prospect of dinner cooked by the dog.

Every page has a white background that makes for easy reading. Usually there are just one or two lines of text at the top or bottom of the page, sometimes slightly more. The font is large and clear. 'Courtney' is definitely a book for reading aloud, but it is such a charming story that a confident reader aged around seven might still find it an interesting story.

First published in 1994, 'Courtney' is not the most up-to-date picture book and I'm not aware of a television tie-in, but two groups of children that I have read it aloud to have genuinely loved it. They were aged three and a half to four years old, but I'm sure slightly older children would still appreciate it. It shows us that it's not always the most attractive creature that is the cleverest or most lovable one. It allows children to give full rein to their imaginations, and has an intriguing element of mystery at the end. I wholeheartedly recommend finding a place for Courtney in any home where there are young children.

Courtney
by John Burningham
Red Fox, 1996
Paperback, 32 pages
ISBN 9780099666813
Price £5.99 (£4.11)

Great Picture Books for Reading Aloud

Reading aloud is an ideal activity to follow a free play session when the children are ready to sit still and be calm for a while. It fosters listening skills that are the basis of the learning process, encourages a love of books and instils a desire in the children to be able to read the stories themselves. Whilst the children I read to love traditional tales such as The Gingerbread Man or Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, we usually read contemporary stories. I'm listing some of our favourite books here.

Shark in the Park by Nick Sharratt (Corgi Childrens, ISBN 0552549770) is the story of a young boy, Timothy Pope, who goes to the park with his telescope (which obviously rhymes with his name). Each time he looks through the telescope, he sees something that looks like the black fin of a shark, so he shouts out 'There's a shark in the park!' This is repeated several times throughout the book, and the children know when it's coming and love to shout the phrase out themselves each time. Of course what Timothy sees is not a shark; the first time it's a cat's ear, once it's his father's quiff, another time a bird's wing, and so on. Great amusement. As his father finally decides to take him home, they turn their backs on the park and there in the duck pond appears an ominous black fin. The repetition and the humour both make this a popular story.

Here Comes the Crocodile by Kathryn White and Michael Terry (Little Tiger Press, ISBN 185430979X) is perhaps our greatest favourite, and one which also lends itself particularly well to drama sessions too. The scene is set in the hot, green jungle, and as the crocodile stirs in the river he sends a shiver throughout. He's hungry and on the lookout for his prey. Encountering several animals such as monkeys, flamingos, an elephant and a zebra, he threatens each of them in turn. They each have an excuse at the ready: the elephant claims that he is made of solid grey rock and will break the crocodile's teeth, whereas the zebra says his black stripes are pepper and his white stripes salt. The flamingos insist they are made of candy floss which will make the crocodile sick. Having failed to trap any of the animals, the crocodile is by that time so hungry that he rolls on his back crying' 'Boo-hoo, I want my mummy!' The reader can put so much expression into this that it sounds ridiculous and will have the children curling up with laughter. The animals all take pity on the crocodile, so the monkey shares some bananas, the zebra offers grass and the elephant gives a generous spray of water from his trunk. They are all together and thinking how wonderful life is when suddenly a tiger springs out of nowhere saying 'I am ready for tea!' This is another opportunity for putting plenty of expression into your voice, and as the story ends we discuss who will win the fight: the crocodile or the tiger? The text is in the form of a rhyming poem, and included in the illustrations is an image of what would happen to the crocodile if he ate that particular animal. A wonderful book.

Barty's Ketchup Catastrophe by Sally Chambers (Piccadilly Press Ltd, ISBN 1853404845) is a story that the children never tire of. Barty is actually a sheep who is obsessed with tomato ketchup. He has it on everything: his breakfast cereal, his sandwiches at school, and even on birthday cake, at which point the children always come out with a chorus of 'Uughh!' and we all agree that none of us would eat cake with tomato ketchup. One day Barty is invited to a sleepover at his friend Cedric's house. He is so excited and eagerly packs his overnight bag. Even though the children I read to are only four years old, they do already go to sleepovers and can easily identify with Barty's excitement. When Barty arrives at Cedric's, they play in his room until it's time for tea. Pizza is served, with grass topping of course, and Barty asks for some ketchup. Horror of horrors, Cedric's mum looks in the cupboard and announces that there isn't any. Barty sits quietly for a while, too embarrassed to cry, and has a drink. Eventually he decides to try the pizza and finds that it isn't so bad after all without ketchup. When he returns home his family wonder if he has got over his obsession, but no. Next time he is invited to Cedric's he makes absolutely sure he has packed the ketchup. I'm never quite sure why this is such a firm favourite, but perhaps the children have been through similar experiences of having a meal at a friend's house and finding that it's not quite like it is at home. The text is simple and the illustrations certainly look friendly.

We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury (Walker Books Ltd, ISBN 0774523230) is a story that probably appeals as much to adults as it does to children. A family sets off to look for a bear and has to go through all weathers and settings on the way. They encounter mud, for example, and say, 'We can't go over it, we can't go under it; oh no, we'll have to go through it!' These words are repeated each time they come to a new obstacle, such as a forest or a snowstorm. Then follow onomatopoeic phrases that describe the experience, such as 'swishy swashy' for long grass. When they finally come upon a bear in a cave, however, they are terrified and rush back the way they came, so we see they journey in reverse order. They go into the house, run upstairs and jump into bed, only to realize that they didn't shut the front door. Down they go to shut the bear out and feel safe at last. The bear wanders back to his cave and looks particularly forlorn; we feel that he was so looking forward to some company. 

These are the four books that I would recommend above all others, but there are of course many more that we enjoy. Doing the Animal Bop by J. Ormerod and Lindsey Gardiner (Oxford University Press, ISBN 0192791400) is a lively, rhythmic tale where children could get up and imitate the movements of the animals as the book is being read. Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper (Corgi Children's, ISBN 0552556734) is the story of a cat, a squirrel and a duck that shows how we should share experiences fairly, allowing everyone to have a turn at doing different things in the process. The books in the series about Spot the dog are always popular, especially as they involve lifting flaps to see who is underneath.

The most successful reading-aloud sessions are likely to be those where the reader puts plenty of expression into the voices of the different characters. Rhythm, rhyme and repetition can also play an important part in making listening fun, and of course humour itself will always help children to enjoy following a story right through until the end.

Watch out! Big Bro's Coming, by Jez Alborough

A little white mouse comes running to a frog to ask for help because Big Bro's coming: “He's rough, he's tough, and he's big.” The mouse stretches his arms out as wide as he can to show just how big, then he runs away to hide. The worried frog conveys the same information to a parrot before hopping off to hide as well. The parrot tells the story to a chimpanzee and stretches out his wings to show just how big Big Bro is, but of course his wing span is far greater than the span of the mouse or the frog's arms. By now it seems as though Big Bro really must be a fair size and a creature capable of striking fear in the heart of any other animal. The parrot flies off to hide in his turn, and the chimpanzee rushes to tell an elephant about Big Bro. The chimp can stretch out his arms even wider than the parrot's wings, so the elephant decides that there is good reason for them both to hide.

The animals are all huddled together and the elephant thinks one of them should creep out and have a look around. They are, however, all terrified, but the little mouse bravely offers to go. He soon rushes back, shrieking that Big Bro is on his way and that they must hide. The animals all cover their eyes in trepidation as they hear footsteps. When they finally discover that Big Bro is in fact a mouse, albeit a largish one, they comment on how tiny he is. Not wishing to be made to look a fool, Big Bro takes a deep breath and shouts “BOO!” which really makes the animals jump. The story ends with Big Bro marching his little brother off home while the others remark that he really is rough and tough.

Jez Alborough's “Watch out! Big Bro's Coming” is a simple but effective story that cleverly uses the idea of size and builds the tension up gradually for a young audience. This is a great book for talking about the various animals and how big they are, and how likely they are to be frightened of other creatures. There is plenty of humour and repetition to keep a young child's interest throughout the story.

The text is in a large, clear font that is superimposed on the illustrations, usually on a light blue background so there is no difficulty in deciphering it. On average there are about ten lines per double page, occasionally more but sometimes less. A two-year-old child might be impatient to turn over, but a slightly older child will enjoy taking in the illustrations while listening. A child who is gaining confidence in reading would probably not have too much difficulty tackling “Watch out! Big Bro's Coming”. Rough, tough and chimpanzee may not be the easiest words to read, but there is enough repetition of sentences throughout the book to making reading the story not too challenging.

Alborough illustrates his own picture books, and this one is particularly colourful and appealing. There is always a bright blue sky and plenty of greenery; while the mouse, chimpanzee and elephant are rather neutral colours, the parrot is a beautiful yellow, orange and red plumed bird and the frog is rich green and yellow. The animals usually have wide-eyed, open-mouthed, flabbergasted facial expressions that bring each illustration to life.

“Watch out! Big Bro's Coming” has proved to be one of the most popular picture books that I have successfully used as the basis for a drama session with a group of four-year-old children. Almost all children love pretending to be animals, making the appropriate noises and hopping or flapping their arms like wings. It is an ideal length, and the children enjoy hiding and whispering while waiting for Big Bro to arrive. The story obviously captured their imagine, as they were still saying “Big Bro's coming” during an outdoor play session after the drama. I had suggested that before they go off to school in September we might repeat some of their favourite dramas, and they said that this would definitely be one of their choices.

It is hard to go wrong with Jez Alborough, and if you and your young family have not yet become familiar with his picture books, “Watch out! Big Bro's Coming” would be an ideal one to start with. It is likely to appeal to both boys and girls from the age of two up to five or six. It's great fun for reading aloud, and I thoroughly recommend it.

Watch out! Big Bro's Coming

Jez Alborough

Paperback, 32 pages

Walker Books, 2005

ISBN 0744598346

Price £5.99 (Amazon £5.39)

Small Knight and George and the Royal Chocolate Cake, by Ronda Armitage

A small knight and his even smaller pet dragon, George, live in an old castle. One day a letter arrives from the king, saying that he and the queen will be visiting and would like a party to be arranged. He particularly requests that Big Cook make her special chocolate cake.

Everyone begins to make preparations, with Small Knight and George distributing the invitations. Soon the chocolate cake is ready, and it is huge. However, the delicious smell wafting from it reaches the wild brigands in the dark woods. Indignant that they have not been invited to the party, they creep into the castle in the middle of the night and steal the cake.

Dad Knight orders Small Knight to go in search of the brigands and bring back the cake. Small Knight doesn't feel in the least bit brave, but his love of chocolate cake spurs him on. With George behind him on his horse, he sets off to the wild woods, singing a song. After a while he encounters the band of brigands who declare themselves to be very wild and very hungry. Small Knight bravely shouts at them to leave the cake alone. He cleverly tells them that if they behave, they can come to the party. His idea miraculously works, so that cake is taken back to the palace and the spruced up brigands are allowed at the party. When they have eaten their fill, everyone plays kick-a-ball.

'Small Knight and George and the Royal Chocolate Cake' starts off seeming rather traditional in many ways, but stands out because Small Knight achieved his aim not by fighting but by being friendly and generous towards the brigands. I was at pains to stress this concept to a group of four-year-old children and suggested that they might learn a thing or two from Small Knight's methods, but I think I was being over-optimistic. Perhaps the story needed to be read a few more times to drum the message home. Ronda Armitage is, nevertheless, to be commended for depicting such friendly, peace-loving characters.

There is slightly more text per page than some picture books, but the font is large and the background is always white for the story itself. The letter from the king appears on a pale yellow scroll in handwriting which is easy to read as it is not cursive. There are a few words and phrases that are set in a large font for emphasis, and coloured speech bubbles are interestingly used when Dad and Mum Knight and Big Cook are watching out for the brigands just before the party. The flavour of a medieval manuscript is suggested by a particularly large first letter decorated by George on many pages. Adults might appreciate this detail more than young children. The vocabulary is fairly straightforward, although understandably there seemed to be just one four-year-old boy in my group who knew what a portcullis was. This is definitely a story to be read aloud rather than a book for a child who is learning to read.

The illustrations for 'Small Knight and George and the Royal Chocolate Cake' are by Arthur Robins.

They are full of humour and in a style that will appeal readily to young children. Apart from the first picture of the wild brigands hiding in the woods, they are all very bright and colourful. The fact that they are not my favourite picture-book illustrations is almost bound to be a good sign; I'm too old to appreciate what today's pre-school children are likely to enjoy most.

I am always on the lookout for picture books that can be used as a basis for a drama session, and 'Small Knight and George and the Royal Chocolate Cake' proved to be ideal. Most young children enjoy pretending to be wild brigands and eating chocolate cake at parties. It would probably work well even with quite a large group that need a lively activity.

This is a book that might appeal more to boys than to girls, but the fun illustrations and imaginative story should make it one worth at least borrowing from the library to read to any young child. I particularly liked Ronda Armitage's idea of inviting the brigands to the party rather than fighting against them, so I would recommend adding it to any children's library on that basis alone.

Small Knight and George and the Royal Chocolate Cake

Ronda Armitage (author), Arthur Robins (illustrator)

Paperback, 32 pages

Orchard Books, 2009

ISBN 9781846169137

Price £5.99 (Amazon £4.19)

Oi! Get off our Train - John Burningham

A little boy dressed in his pyjamas is scolded by his mum as he is still playing with the train on the floor at the end of his bed. He is told to go to bed at once, and mum gives him his pyjama-case dog to cuddle. There's no goodnight kiss, however, just an order to “settle down and go to sleep”. The boy obeys.

The next two pages show a double-spread of the toy train chugging off, with smoke billowing out of the engine's chimney. Turn over again, and the boy is seated in the engine, wearing his pyjamas and a cap. The dog, also sporting a cap, is shovelling coal into the furnace. The train speeds along over great bridges, puffing out grey smoke, and the boy thinks they might have time for a picnic. Then he notices that it looks as though it's foggy ahead and says they could play ghosts if it is.

Suddenly, an elephant boards the train, but the boy and the dog say in no uncertain terms, “Oi! Get off our train.” The elephant, however, very politely begs to be allowed to stay on the train as someone wants to cut off his tusks, and soon there will be no elephants left. He stays on and sprays the dog with a huge jet of water when they stop for a swim. It looks like great fun.

After this several other animals try to board the train: a seal, a crane, a tiger and a polar bear. Each one is initially told “Oi! Get off our train.” But each animal has a reason to stay: too many fish are being caught, forests are being cut down, marshes are being drained. Lots of fun is had during the journey, flying kites, throwing snowballs, and messing about with umbrellas.

Suddenly the boy realises that they will have to head home so that he will be in time for school in the morning. We see him tucked up in bed and mum comes to tell him to get up straight away. It must have been a dream, or was it? Mum says there are animals all over the house: an elephant in the hall, a seal in the bath, and so on. She wonders if it has anything to do with the boy.

'Oi! Get off our Train' is a delightful story in which John Burningham cleverly brings in the message that these animals are all endangered species. It is an original way of combining an imaginative tale of a boy and a toy dog speeding off on an adventure with the idea that the animals need help because their numbers are dwindling. Burningham makes sure that there is plenty of play and fun throughout so that the story will have sufficient appeal for a young child.

This is an easy book to read aloud with the text in a clear, large font and just a few lines – sometimes only one – on each double page. Although the vocabulary used is straightforward, I wouldn't recommend it as a book for a very young child who is learning to read by phonics. It could, however, be popular with children up to the age of seven who are independent readers and might enjoy reading the story aloud to a younger sibling.

John Burningham illustrates his picture books himself, and the illustrations contribute enormously to 'Oi! Get off our Train'. They are watercolour/pastel sketches that use a great variety of colours to create different moods, from the sun-filled scene of kite-flying to the black and gold sky of the double page that shows the train steaming home again. The animals take on human qualities as they stand upright, either to tell the latest arrival to get off the train or to hold up umbrellas. At one point we see the dog taking a break from shovelling coal: he has removed his cap and is mopping his brow with spotted red handkerchief. Burningham is one of my favourite illustrators, but I know there are those who prefer the more up-to-date work of, for example, Lauren Child.

I have successfully used 'Oi! Get off our Train' in drama sessions with small groups of four-year-old children. I thought the title might be considered rude and I'm expected to be teaching these little ones how to be polite, so I suggested we say 'Hey! Please get off out train' as an alternative. The story does lend itself well to drama as most children enjoy pretending to be animals as well as chugging round the room making steam train noises. If there are too many children in the group there is no harm in having two elephants, two seals, and so on. To be honest I'm not quite sure how well they understood the idea that the animals were endangered species, but if you are reading the book aloud to just one or two children it might be easier to emphasise this and talk more about it.

'Oi! Get off our Train' may appeal slightly more to boys than girls, as the main character is a boy and boys are perhaps more likely to be interested in trains. It is, however, a delightful story, and the animals and sense of adventure should make it a book that any child will enjoy. For anyone interested in explaining the idea of endangered species to young children, this book is an ideal way of approaching the subject since it weaves the message into a story. I would highly recommend it.

Oi! Get Off our Train

by John Burningham

Paperback, 46 pages

Publisher: Red Fox, 1991

ISBN 009985340X

Price £5.99 (Amazon £3.97)

Romp in the Swamp, by Ian Whybrow and Adrian Reynolds

Harry and his bucket of dinosaurs are not looking forward to going to play with a girl called Charlie. There's no way out, however, as Mum and Nan are taking Harry's big sister Sam to visit her new school. The dinosaurs are hiding because they are afraid that Charlie will manhandle them, but Harry assures them that he won't let her touch them. Into the bucket they go, and Harry gets into the family car. Poor Nan has to sit between Sam and Harry because they don't exactly get along well together.

When Harry is dropped off at Charlie's house, he hides the bucket of dinosaurs behind his back and looks rather glum. The two children go indoors and sit at opposite ends of the sofa with their toys. But Charlie soon gets up and starts filling a big basket with toys, cushions, boxes, string, and even plants. It looks so interesting that Harry and the dinosaurs go after her into the garden to see what she's up to. The dinosaurs realise straight away that Charlie is making a primeval swamp, and the garden hose is hissing away, just like an enormous snake.

Lots of fun ensues, during which Tyrannosaurus has to be rescued from the snake's deadly grip and the basket serves as a cage to capture the snake. The children and the dinosaurs end up having tea in the garden, and by the time he is picked up Harry has decided that he – and the dinosaurs, of course – would definitely like to come back and play with Charlie again.

'Romp in the Swamp' is one of a series of books about Harry and his bucketful of dinosaurs that are hugely popular with young children, partly because they tie in with a television series too. Author Ian Whybrow's books usually deal with situations that children might find very daunting, such as the first day at school or a visit to the dentist, and show that they can turn out to be enjoyable rather than something to worry about. 'Romp in the Swamp' is obviously no exception, as a young child could feel very nervous about going to a strange house to play with another child he doesn't know while the rest of his family have gone somewhere without him. The story is full of fun and might help to reassure a child that going to visit another family should be an occasion to look forward to. It's also a story that shows young children having a great time with imaginative play.

The text is in a large, clear font and there are rarely more than four lines per page, superimposed on a light-coloured area of the illustrations. There are of course names of dinosaurs such as Apatosaurus and Scelidosaurus, but I often find that young children are pretty good at learning these, partly because they just love dinosaurs. Other than these names, the vocabulary used is straightforward, but this is essentially a picture book for reading aloud. Because it involves dinosaurs and is so entertaining, it might still appeal to a confident young reader of perhaps six years old to read independently or share with a younger sibling.

Adrian Reynolds' illustrations for 'Romp in the Swamp' are bold and colourful, mainly using primary colours with plenty of green. They fill the pages and more often than not are double spreads. The dinosaurs always have suitable facial expressions, often open-mouthed, and always enthusiastic when things are exciting and fun. The garden hose 'snake' is a red and yellow striped one that stands out perfectly against the grass and leaves, as well as the blue plastic basket used to capture him.

It is hard to go wrong with picture books about dinosaurs with most young children, and I have always found that Harry and the bucketful of dinosaurs have a tremendous appeal. I have used 'Romp in the Swamp' as the basis for a drama session with four-year-olds, and they love pretending to be dinosaurs, especially when they can 'Raaaah!' This is a book I would definitely recommend, perhaps for children as young as two. It's great fun to read aloud.

If I were You, by Richard Hamilton and Babette Cole

Dad is tucking Daisy up in bed – well actually, he's in bed too and yawning. He says to her, 'If I were you, I'd snuggle down and go to sleep.' Daisy, who looks wide awake, takes this literally and they begin to talk about what would happen if Dad were Daisy and Daisy were Dad.

Daisy would read Dad a bedtime story, and Dad would wake up first in the morning and go and bounce on Daisy's bed. Daisy would dress Dad in a pink tutu and give him porridge for breakfast while she had chocolate fromage frais. Dad would have a lazy time watching television and playing while Daisy did the housework. This sounds good to Dad, but he's not sure about being taken for a walk in a pushchair wearing that pink tutu – what on earth would the neighbours think?

Dad and Daisy would go to the park, but Daisy realises she wouldn't be strong enough to give Dad a piggyback. Dad could have a great time having tea with his friends and playing games, after which Daisy would have to give him a bath. The whole story comes full circle when Daisy says she would tuck Dad up in bed and give him a big kiss. Dad thinks that a day without household chores would be fantastic, but Daisy of course realises that she is better off being herself. After all this thinking, Daisy finally drifts off to sleep and Dad can creep off and relax.

Richard Hamilton has created a fascinating tale based on the reversal of roles in 'If I were you.' It is an ideal opportunity for plenty of humour, especially when they consider the idea of Dad wearing a ballet tutu. There is no mention of Mum in the story except when Daisy suggests Dad could have tea with his friends. Mum is there with Baby, so it seems that in this family Dad gets to do all the chores and look after Daisy most of the time. Dad and Daisy do seem to have a loving and friendly relationship. Hamilton uses rhyming couplets in each situation that the pair imagine; this is an ideal way to develop a young child's feel for rhyme and love of language.

Babette Cole's illustrations make a huge contribution to this picture book. She knows exactly how to portray the humour in each situation, showing Dad with a few spiky hairs on his legs and a six-o'clock shadow when he wears the pink tutu. There are a couple of pages showing Daisy and Dad at the zoo, running along with monkeys in one of them. Here Dad, still in the tutu, clasps a bunch of colourful balloons while Daisy holds an ice cream out to him. When they are playing musical chairs after tea, we see Daisy's blue kangaroo and a pig joining in. Further down the page Dad (in his tutu, of course) gets down on all fours, Daisy balances on his back and they chase after the three bears. Dad has fun spitting out a jet of water while he's having his bath, but doesn't seem to appreciate Daisy shampooing his hair. One of the bears joins him in the bath whereas the cat dashes off at the sight of all the bubbles.

The text is set in quite a large font, and there aren't usually more than two or three lines per page. It isn't always in straight lines, however; sometimes it curves up and down, or individual words appear to jump around when Dad is bouncing on Daisy's bed. Single words are sometimes set in a larger font for emphasis. The text is always printed on a light-coloured background, so there will not be any problems deciphering it. This is definitely a read-aloud book rather than one for a child learning to read. I can imagine that a child of about seven who is a confident reader might enjoy reading it to a younger brother and sister, especially since there is so much humour throughout the book.

I have read this aloud to a group to children aged three and a half to four, who were about the right age to follow the idea of role reversal and appreciate the humour. I'm not sure that two-year-olds would quite understand the concept of the book, but they might still get some fun out of the illustrations.

Richard Hamilton has come up with an original idea for a picture book here, and I cannot think of anyone who would have provided more appropriate illustrations than Babette Cole. This is a book that can be enjoyed by the adult reading aloud as well as the child being read too. I am sure that it will appeal to many families, and I certainly recommend it.

If I Were You

Richard Hamilton (author)

Babette Cole (illustrator)

Bloomsbury Publishing PLC, 2009

Paperback, 32 pages

ISBN 9780747587576

The Star-Faced Crocodile, by David Melling

Before meeting the star-faced crocodile himself, we are introduced to a bear with a banjo sitting beside a lake, singing to the stars. The crocodile loves the song; he swishes his tail to the music and the bear sees his eyes just above the surface of the water, piercing the centre of the reflection of a star. The bear is astounded to see what he presumes is a star-faced crocodile, and every night when he sings, he tries persuade the crocodile to dance. The crocodile, however, knows that if he comes out of the lake he will no longer be star faced and will not impress the bear.

Being a rather imaginative creature, the crocodile makes a hat out of star-shaped flowers, but the petals drop out as he dances. The crocodile slithers back into the water, ashamed. When the bear asks the trees to fetch a star from the sky for him, they bring all the stars down but are so delighted by them they decide to hold on to them on a string. The crocodile manages to pull the string of stars away and plunge to the bottom of the lake. The moon is afraid of being captured too and hides behind a cloud, making the world very dark.

When the crocodile emerges from the lake with the string of stars wound around him, nobody admires him because the stars are no longer shining. The night has lost its twinkling sky, and the music and dancing have stopped too. The crocodile, the bear and the trees realise that they must put the stars back where they belong, and when they eventually complete their task the stars shine again and the moon comes out. Music and dancing fill the air once more, and then suddenly a shooting star falls into the lake, just beside the crocodile, who really does look like a star-faced creature again.

The inspiration for 'The Star-Faced Crocodile' actually came when David Melling was visiting his daughter's school and one of the children suggested a star-faced crocodile as a character for a story. Melling has certainly developed the idea into a delightful tale, where the bear doesn't mind if the crocodile is really just a plain ordinary one and just wants him to be his friend. As for the trees, they are helpful in some situations, but they have their selfish moments too when they are dazzled by the twinkling stars they have plucked from the sky.

The text of the story is set in a clear, good-sized font and is mainly on a white background. On just one page it is a pale mauve colour on a very dark ground, and on a couple of pages the background is orange. There are two sentences at the beginning of the story that are completely in capitals. On the whole there is just a paragraph of text per double page, sometimes less. This is a book that is ideal for reading aloud to a young child, but it could also be suitable for a young independent reader as the amount of text is not off-putting. The vocabulary, whilst being varied, should not pose too many problems either. The writing style goes from being quite poetic when recounting how 'A shy crocodile, drifting by, had never heard such a beautiful song' to the much more down-to-earth 'Oh flip!' exclamation when the crocodile loses his star-flower hat.

Melling illustrates his picture books himself and here he combines imagination and humour to create a visual feast. The watercolours, whether in a woodland or under-water scene, have a translucency as well as a richness of colour. Aside from the two main characters, we see caricatured trees with knobbly noses and spindly arms or tiny birds hopping and jumping around the bear's feet. Once or twice a double-page spread entails turning the book sideways so that we can see the crocodile swimming right down to the depths of the lake, or the crocodile and the bear standing at the tops of the trees as they fix the stars back up in the sky.

When I came across 'The Star-Faced Crocodile' I had high expectations and was not disappointed. David Melling's other picture books, such as 'The Kiss that Missed', 'The Ghost Library' and 'Good Knight, Sleep Tight' have proved to be very popular as read-aloud books for three-to-four-year-olds, as well as providing inspiration for drama sessions. My only reservation with 'The Star-Faced Crocodile' is that one or two of the illustrations are rather dark and those with the trees might just scare very young children. On the whole, however, the pictures are full of humour that children will delight in. This is a book that is full of fun and ideas about friendship against a background of music, dancing and starry nights. Enjoy it with your children.

The Star-Faced Crocodile

David Melling (Author and Illustrator)

Paperback, 32 pages

Hodder Children's Books, July 2009

ISBN 0340930470

Price £5.99 (Amazon £5.39)

Clap Your Hands - Finger Rhymes by Sarah Hayes and Toni Goffe

Poetry is a wonderful way to introduce young children to the idea of rhyme and rhythm. Poems can also incorporate counting and alphabet themes that help children to learn numbers and letters. Read aloud, children can be encouraged to join in as soon as they become familiar with the words. That's something they are likely to do surprisingly quickly.

If you are looking for a collection of short rhymes, Clap Your Hands – Finger Rhymes by Sarah Hayes and Toni Goffe is an anthology of both modern and traditional rhymes, some to be read aloud and some that can be sung. Along with each rhyme comes a series of colorful illustrations that demonstrate actions using the fingers that children can do whilst the rhymes are read or sung. Some involve counting, forwards or backwards, whereas others require using fingers and thumbs to make a circle or a triangle, for example, or to imitate 'incey wincey spider' climbing up the water spout. Here's an example of the kind of rhyme you will find in this book:

'Five fat peas in a pea-pod pressed.

One grew, two grew, so did all the rest.

They grew and grew and did not stop,

Until one day the pod went POP!'

We meet monkey-devouring alligators and witches snapping up pumpkins to make a pie, but even though the pumpkins are personified as little boys and girls sitting on a wall, I never find that children feel threatened by these scary characters that turn up in rhymes and stories. They perhaps enjoy the contrast with the more comforting ideas of baking cakes or cuddling rabbits.

As well as counting forwards and backwards, there are one or two rhymes that could be used to introduce addition and subtraction to young children. (I currently teach a boy approaching his fourth birthday who can count backwards from one hundred and tell me that five plus two equals seven, so don't underestimate pre-school children!) As you read 'Ten galloping horses came through the town, Five were white and five were brown', you can ask the child to put up five fingers on one hand then five on the other and count that they make ten altogether. A few pages later, in 'Chook, Chook...', we meet Mrs Hen; she has ten chickens, four of which are yellow, four are brown, and two are speckled red. So we can deduce that four plus four plus two make ten.

Not all the poems have to be such serious hard work, of course. One simply asks if you would like a cookie, a piece of pie, or a candy stick; another tells us about a turtle who lived in a box and swam in a puddle. The children in the illustrations almost always have beaming smiles, and we see blue-spotted white horses, stripy bees and cats, and stern policemen bowing to each other as they meet in a lane. There is plenty for a young child who is being read to to look at here.

If you want ideas for rhymes and songs, especially those involving numbers, this is an excellent book to use. Unfortunately it seems to be a little hard to get hold of now; I borrowed a paperback edition from the library, but there is a hardback edition available on Amazon Marketplace. Definitely recommended to enjoy with toddlers up to five-year-olds.

Clap Your Hands – Finger Rhymes

by Sarah Hayes and Toni Goffe

Lothrop Lee and Shepard

Hardback, 29 pages

ISBN 074451231X

Price from £3.68 on Amazon Marketplace

ZZZZZ A Book of Sleep - Il Sung Na

ZZZZZ A Book of Sleep is a picture book for the very young, suitable for bedtime, but not an actual story. Il Sung Na begins by pointing out that when it grows dark everyone goes to sleep except for the owl, shown here staring as he sits on a branch in front of a full moon.

Over the next few pages, double-spread illustrations show us that not all creatures sleep in the same way. Koala bears sleep in peace and quiet, whilst elephants snore noisily through their trunks. There are creatures that sleep standing up, and whales that sleep while they are swimming. We see birds sleeping with one eye open (watching what the owl is up to), and fish that keep both eyes open and don't even blink. Giraffes are pictured sleeping alone, resting their heads on cloud pillows, whereas penguins huddle up when they go to sleep to keep out the cold.

The book ends when all the creatures wake up at sunrise, apart from the owl, of course, who then needs to go to sleep until the sun sets again.

Il Sung Na has illustrated his book in a delightful way; my only reservation is that, since the scenes are set at night, the backgrounds are of necessity rather dark and might not be too appealing to young children. To alleviate this, Il Sung Na has decorated many of his creatures in pastel shades and floral patterns. The last two sets of double pages are set in bright sunshine, however. I particularly liked the scene showing all the animals waking up, where a row of birds perch on the giraffes neck, the Koala bear and her baby cling to the elephant's trunk and the penguins slide down the whale's forehead.

The text is in a very clear, large font, and there are never more than four lines to a page – in fact there is only one line on several pages. As well as being perfect for reading aloud to the very young, this could be a suitable book for young independent readers who are still gaining confidence and don't want to be put off by whole pages of text. There is a certain amount of repetition, and the illustrations will give clues to help in deciphering the words.

This is of course an excellent book for learning about the habits of various animals and for discussing the fact that there are so many different ways that a creature might sleep. I read it aloud to a group of three- to four-year-olds and as we went through the book I asked them to pretend to go to sleep with one eye open, then with both eyes open but without blinking. Not as easy as it sounds, they soon discovered.

For very young children this is obviously a picture book that lends itself perfectly to bedtime reading, and parents will hope that with all this talk of sleep their little ones will soon drop off. The paperback is perhaps a little expensive, but there is also a board-book version for £3.99.

ZZZZZ A Book of Sleep

by Il Sung Na

Meadowside Children's Books, 2007

Paperback,

ISBN 9781845392703

Price £5.99

Doing the Animal Bop - J. Ormerod and Lindsey Gardiner

Picture books often have a simple story line with a strong rhythm and plenty rhyming words: Doing the Animal Bop by J. Ormerod and Lindsey Gardiner begins 'If you like to dance and you sometimes sing, Why don't you do the animal thing?' It is hard for children to resist the urge when this is read aloud to get up and try to move in the same way as each animal that appears in these pages, jiggling and jiving, waddling like a duck or stomping like a rhino.

This is not really a story at all, more of a poem that introduces a series of animals, one on each double page, concentrating on the way they move and the sounds they make. As well as rhyme, there is onomatopoeia in the 'Craak, craak, craak' of the penguin song, and alliteration in the 'flim-flam flutter of the ostrich flounce' or the monkeys' 'jive and jiggle'. The hissing of the snake is exaggerated in the line 'you can ssssssing this ssssssong'. The chickens peck and cluck whilst the rhinos roar and rage.

On the final pages the line 'so let's end up with a great big mooo!' (because the cow can only chew) becomes so familiar that children love to join in. There is after that one more double-page illustration of the animals in silhouette dancing off into the night under the pink stars in the dark blue sky. It's as though they are off to party all night.

Both rhyme and rhythm come through in no uncertain terms, creating a lively pace. This is an ideal book to encourage children to get up and move, exercising and trying to stomp, waddle, jive or slither like a snake. You can imagine that it's probably not the best bedtime story, unless you want your child to run off a little more energy before slipping under the covers.

I absolutely love the use of colour in Lindsey Gardiner's illustrations. The backgrounds in particular are striking, and all are different colours. A pink elephant trudges along against an orange background, whilst a pale green lizard moves on a salmon pink ground. The ostrich seems to have borrowed Winnie the Witch's stripy tights, bouncing and flouncing on a deep pink background. In each picture there is a tiny mouse with a yellow tummy and tail; we meet it right at the beginning, and children can have fun spotting where it is on each page throughout the book, as it frequently tries to imitate the other animals.

This is a feast of language and colour, and a delightful way of teaching very young children about the sounds and movements of different animals. Recognising rhyming words is said to be a fundamental precursor to reading, so that is one more reason to make this an ideal book to read aloud, perhaps to children as young as two. It may not be the easiest book for a young reader to tackle, unless a particularly confident one is looking for a challenge. If you are looking for a book that will impart a love of the sounds of words to your children and at the same time get them out of their seats, this could be the ideal one.

Doing the Animal Bop

J. Ormerod and Lindsey Gardiner

Oxford University Press

Paperback, 32 pages

ISBN 0192791400

Price £5.99 (Amazon £4.49)

But excuse me that is my book - Lauren Child

Charlie and Lola are off to the library, and Lola announces that she must borrow her favourite book, 'Beetles, Bugs and Butterflies'. When Charlie comments that Dad took it out for her last time and the time before that, Lola explains that it's the best book because 'the bugs are quite buggy and the butterflies are really beautiful and the beetles are... very silly'.

Once they are at the library, big brother Charlie does his utmost to keep Lola quiet and suggests she look for her special book amongst all the books beginning with B. Lola is quite distraught when she can't find it, and she won't accept Charlie's explanation that someone must have borrowed it. She considers it to be her book. Charlie tries to persuade her to have a look at a few other books, but Lola protests that the one about the Romans has too many big words and the pop-up book with cherry blossom rain just isn't funny. Charlie realises that he will have to find an animal book that will make her laugh, and he shows her 'Cheetahs and Chimpanzees'.

Just then, Lola is shocked to see a girl walking off with 'Beetles, Bugs and Butterflies'. She finds it hard to accept that anyone else can take it out. She has no choice but to give 'Cheetahs and Chimpanzees' a go, and thankfully she finds it to be wonderful. In fact, she says it has the best pictures ever and thinks the chimps are very funny. Charlie must have breathed a big sigh of relief.

This may not be the best or most popular of Lauren Child's Charlie and Lola books, but it is the perfect one to introduce a young child to the idea that when you bring a book home from the library it doesn't actually belong to you. It is also ideal for perhaps persuading your son and daughter to be open minded and try different books or toys, particularly when one they are obsessed with is lost or broken. They might discover something even better when they try something new.

Lauren Child illustrates all her stories herself in her distinctive style. She uses vibrant colours throughout, and the page where Lola talks about her favourite book is dotted with patterned butterflies and a row of wide-eyed bugs marching along. When she finally looks at 'Cheetahs and Chimpanzees', Child uses photo-montage to show her standing in a jungle setting with the book while a friendly grinning monkey watches her from each side.

The text is usually superimposed on the illustrations, and on one or two pages in appears in mauve or pale blue on a black background. Sometimes lines of text curve around the pictures, and the font can vary in size to emphasize particular words or phrases. In some instances, the individual letters of a word jiggle playfully up and down. Lauren Child has Lola speaking at times in an amusing, ungrammatical way that might be typical of a young child, for example when she says that 'Beetles, Bugs and Butterflies' is a 'very great and extremely very interesting' book.

While 'But excuse me that is my book' is an ideal book to read aloud, the creative use of the text does not make it an easy one for a child that is just learning to read. An older sibling, however, who is a confident reader, would probably enjoy reading this to a brother or sister. Many of them are likely to identify with Charlie and not find the book too childish.

I often read picture books aloud to groups of children aged three and four, and if I give them a choice I almost always find that a Charlie and Lola book is asked for. This one is unlikely to appeal to two-year-olds, but might still be approved of by children of five or six. Although it may not be the best in the series, I don't think you can go wrong borrowing a Charlie and Lola story from the library and then deciding if it is worth buying. If I have grandchildren one day, I hope I will be able to enjoy reading 'But excuse me that is my book' aloud to them.

But excuse me that is my book

Lauren Child

Paperback, 32 pages

Puffin 2006

ISBN 0141500530

Price £5.99 (Amazon £3.99)