Old Favourites - Rhyme Books from Ladybird

Some of these titles have been around for quite some time but they have really grown with us. I started using them when Rosie was a tiny baby and even now when she picks them out for me to read to her. I think it's the comforting familiarity of them and the fact that she now likes to shout sing them when we're out and about. I don't think these are in print any more since I couldn't find them on the Ladybird website but they are available on Amazon.

First up is a real classic Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. Weirdly this book is called Twinkle, Twinkle but doesn't have the rhyme in the book. It doesn't really bother us though! It's pretty much a perfect example of this type of book in my opinion - and it's not called a playbook for nothing. It has tactile numbers on each double page and two rhymes, one classic (like Two Little Dicky Birds) and one made up by the author to compliment the rhyme. It also has a raised wavy line along the bottom to follow (in the case of Two Little Dicky Birds you follow the birds flying along). This is great because by helping your child to follow the line you're helping them to develop the fine motor skills needed for writing etc.

The Wheels on the Bus is another great playbook. All the rhymes included are action rhymes and show the actions you can do on each page. It includes the rhyme Dingle Dangle Scarecrow which is one of our favourites! The extra bits are meaningful as well. The touch and feel to follow the bus round and round. The hat that flaps up on the scarecrow. The peapod that flaps up to say 'Pop'.

Another rhyme book I want to mention, although you can now only get it second hand because it's out of print is Hey Diddle Diddle. It's full of bouncing rhymes for babies including Pat a Cake, Little Miss Muffet and Incy Wincy Spider. It's much more simple than the two above but because of that it's very easy to use with a much younger baby. I find myself acting out the rhymes on the page rather than doing the actions with my baby as suggested since it's much easier. So for Hickory Dickory Dock I run my fingers up the clock and then mimic a clock ticking with my hand. For Pat a Cake I just pat the page. But for This Little Piggy I do use Rosie's toes or fingers!

The Alfie books by Shirley Hughes

Ah Alfie! I remember him so well from my own childhood and was prepared for Rosie to turn up her nose at him and think the drawings far too old fashioned for her modern sensibilities. But how wrong I was. She loves the stories and the illustrations and we go in little Alfie circles where the different books reign favourite.

Our current favourite is Alfie Gets in First. I heartily recommend this for anyone with a toddler - mainly for the cautionary element of the tale. Alfie does indeed get in first, in fact he slams the door and no-one else can get in. And everyone in the street has to get involved in helping poor old Mum open the door. I've never left my keys inside the house with just Rosie for company since!

Alfie's Feet is lovely too. It speaks straight to the heart of any toddler who love stamping about in wellies and splashing in puddles (that would be every one of them - yes?!). Alfie buys some new wellies and Dad takes him to the park to try them out. Once at the park Alfie has great fun stomping but he can't quite decide what is wrong with his welly boots. Finally he and Dad realise that he's got them on the wrong feet!

I could go through every Alfie book there is since we've got them all but I'll stop at three! The last one is Alfie Gives a Hand. Alfie is invited to his friend Bernard's birthday party and to stop himself from feeling worried about going there without Mum and his little sister Annie Rose he takes his blanket with him. But his friend Mim is there and she needs his help since she is very nervous. Looking after Mim and his blanket and enjoying the party is a bit too hard. Alfie carefully puts his blanket somewhere safe. It's a lovely story and I really like just looking at the birthday tea laid out on the table. It's just how a birthday tea should look!

I have to give a special mention to An Evening at Alfie's since the whole drama of the water coming through the ceiling and the subsequent to-ing and fro-ing make it one of the most exciting Alfie stories!

The detail in the illustrations is beautiful and I really love the way Shirley Hughes shows how messy a house with children can get. It makes me feel so much better about the state of my house! The relationship between Alfie and his little sister Annie Rose is beautifully portrayed. But I think the thing which is most relevant and important about these books is that toddlers can relate to each story. They have a real universal appeal. Yes they are clearly set in West London and are slightly old fashioned but the stories are of a family with two young children and their day-to-day lives and pinpoints the big and little things that matter to little ones. We love Alfie!

Owls!

I haven't posted for a while, I got swept up in the Christmas fever and it's only really just set me down again! But having received two beautiful owl based picture books for Christmas I decided that they should be the topic of this post.

The first one was Owl Babies written by Martin Waddell and illustrated by Patrick Benson. It's a pretty well known classic but it's one that we didn't have before so I was very pleased to add it to my Rosie's collection!

It's a very sweet story of three baby owls, Sarah, Percy and Bill, waking up in the night to find their mummy has gone. They all wonder aloud where she can be. Sarah and Percy are very brave and reassure their smallest sibling, Bill. Of course Mummy Owl does come back and she soon gathers her little chicks under her wing. It deals perfectly with a child's worry that a parent won't come back and reinforces that they will. It's also a nice look at where owls live for a young child.


The second one was WOW! said the owl by Tim Hopgood. It was bought in the Book Hive bookshop in Norwich, it's a lovely bookshop and they lay books out in a way that just invites you to browse for ages. And the children's section is great!

WOW! is a book about colours and it tells the story of an owl who decides to stay awake during the day and see how it is different to the night time. He sees lots of different colours as he watches the day enfold, even a rainbow. But then night-time falls and he sees the stars come out and decides that night is best after all. It's a lovely blend of whimsy and non-fiction and great for talking about colours with a toddler. Also I LOVE the illustrations. It's very clear why Tim Hopgood won the Early Years Award for Best Emerging Illustrator.

Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell

A true classic of a book! And one that has kept us entertained from when Rosie was really quite little. We have both the standard board book and the pop-up book and I must say I think the pop-up is just brilliant. It really enhances the book. They're simple pop-ups but that's why they work really well with the story - it's simple too!

The premise of the book is straightforward. The narrator has written to the zoo asking for a pet and the zoo keeps sending him animals, lion, snake, monkey etc until at last they send a puppy and all is well. It's silly but lovely and is helpful in getting a young child to learn their animals. Of course you can also supplement the reading with some animal noises. I think it's the book Rosie learnt to roar like a lion from...

This should be part of a child's first library really. And it's suitable from around 12 months so you'd get a lot of use out of it. The pop-up version is pretty sturdy so it should survive, although I probably wouldn't leave them alone with it for too long and if you have a child who enjoys ripping paper then it won't survive!

The publisher, Macmillan have also just launched an iPad app of Dear Zoo and it looks fab! Unfortunately I don't currently own an iPad so I can't test it out just yet!

Biscuit Bear by Mini Grey

I have to dedicate a post to Biscuit Bear by Mini Grey because I've been reading it non-stop to Rosie for the last month. It was every morning and every night but it's calmed down now! She got obsessed with it. Thank goodness it's a brilliant picture book and can stand being re-read so much. The girl's got good taste!

It's kind of a retelling of the Gingerbread Man tale with a clever twist. The artwork's amazing and has some great details that you only spot after the fiftieth reading. I really love the biscuits on the duvet cover and bits like that.

It tells the story of a little boy who makes a biscuit bear with his mother and then isn't allowed to eat it. When all is quiet in the dead of night the biscuit bear gets up and because no-one else is awake he decides to make some more friends. Biscuit Bear's circus is born and they all have a lot of fun... until the dog decides to join in. Biscuit Bear decides to leave and seek safety in the local bakery display window where he will never be eaten. A very satisfying tale!

It reads really well and I love the text nearly as much as the artwork. The only quibble I have with the whole book is the fact that Biscuit Bear makes his biscuit friends out of 'butter, flour and milk'. But I guess he's young and has never made biscuits before!

I think this book works for a two year old who wants to be told slightly more complicated stories but needs something quite simple which will quickly grab their imagination.

We've enjoyed quite a few of Mini Grey's books. She's a fabulous picture book author and illustrator. We love Egg Drop (although Rosie did drop a couple of fresh eggs on the floor the other day and I think I'm blaming the book for that!). And 'The Dish and the Spoon' is classic and worth getting. And the Traction Man series is cool. She's just brill!

We have even made our own biscuit bear to add a little extra curricular fun to the tale! Although Rosie seemed to think it would be fine to eat Biscuit Bear!!


Step 1. Stirring the mix (I used Nigella's Christmas biscuit recipe - mainly because I wanted to try it out. I think there must be much simpler gingerbread men recipes out there!).

Step 2. Making the biscuit bears - a slightly fiddly job which we found a bit hard to agree on!

Step 3. Biscuit Bear is ready to go into the oven - yummy! Can you see which one is the real biscuit bear?!

Step 4. Ok, so Rosie seems to have forgotten about how the real Biscuit Bear actually wanted to stay alive and not be eaten. Oh well (big sigh!).

We bought our biscuit bear cutter from Blackheath Cooks in Blackheath Standard, South-East London. I'm not sure if they do mail order but they're very nice people so give them a call!

My Dad and My Mum by Anthony Browne

We love these books! They're actually perfect presents for father's and mother's day but we got them for Rosie's birthday and have been enjoying them ever since!

It's a pretty simple concept but executed in a very clever way. You wouldn't really expect anything less from Anthony Browne! Both parents are wearing slippers and dressing gowns throughout their respective books and look like they'll give a cuddle and a hug whenever it's required. Dad can do anything and 'he's all right, my dad' whilst Mum is also pretty talented but 'She's really, REALLY nice, my mum'.

The books are told from the child's perspective and how each parent can sing, cook, dance and basically do anything. One of my favourite pages is in the Mum book where she is sitting in a corporate office and is 'the big boss'. It subtly addresses the mum going out to work and having a successful career in a very clever way. The artwork is meticulous and full of clever details, thank goodness since I've now read this a few thousand times!

And maybe, just maybe, these books work really well because they address those crazy ambitions that we all have. I know I still mourn the fact that I'll never play at Wimbledon, perform with the Royal Ballet or become a professional ice skater! Those ambitions have to take second place once you have kids. Otherwise who knows what I might have become?! But the point is that until a certain age your child/children will think you are the best in the world.

Rosie really likes these and it's partly because she's at the age where she finds us fascinating and want to do everything we do (I don't think this stage lasts!). We've got the board book versions so they're prefect to slip under the buggy and whip out when you're trying to keep the wee scrap entertained.

Father Christmas Needs a Wee by Nicholas Allan

A funny, irreverent picture book from Nicholas Allan with counting, Christmas and toilet humour. What's not to like when you're winding your toddler up about Christmas, thinking about potty training and constantly counting things with her?!

I might do a Christmas books post as well but this really deserves its own post since we're reading it a lot at the moment.

The premise is very simple, Father Christmas goes from house to house drinking drinks which have been left out for him. Then he realises he's forgotten to leave the presents and has to go back, counting backwards as he goes. Eventually he's able to return home and rush to the loo but he's lost his key. Will Father Christmas get his wee?!

Lovely text, funny illustrations and a great ending make this a fantastic Christmas picture book. Enjoy!