The Girls by Lauren Ace and Jenny Lovelie

I bought this for my six year old's birthday and it's been a real hit. I think I spied it on Twitter and thought it looked just the sort of thing she would like. Particularly since the requested theme for her birthday party was 'friendship'. Unfortunately I didn't quite manage to deliver on that and just hired an entertainer and booked a hall - her friends were all there though! Just think of the instagramable/pinterest moments I could have captured if I'd properly gone to town on the friendship theme though. Hey ho - time is precious and crammed full of people needing attention so that didn't come to fruition.
Anyway, I've totally digressed from the subject in hand...

The Girls is a wonderful depiction of friendship starting from a young age and going through to adulthood. There isn't a narrative as such but it's captivating reading through and seeing the characters grow and change and the main message is that through it all they stick together and are there for one another. It also shows how everyone is different and has many strengths and that we can all be good at different things and support each other when times are good and bad. This book in particular is lovely because it shows how valuable and deep friendship can be if you nurture it and keep it going. 

I particularly like this book for my six year old who's just gone into Year 1 since I feel that she's at precisely the age where they really start to work out relationships with friends and it can be a huge struggle. It targets the issue is a very soft and likeable way.

The hardback format is very nice, cloth effect and feels very gifty. I love the illustrations too, the colours are slightly muted and I think the palette really works in this context. There is loads of detail to spot and talk about in the illustrations, in particular as the girls grow up and other people are added to their lives. Gorgeous!

Knight School by Jane Clarke and Jane Massey

Knight School has been a very handy book for us recently. It tells the story of two friends Little Knight and Little Dragon who are starting school.
But... they go to different schools! Little Knight goes to school in the daytime and Little Dragon goes to school in the nighttime.

Little Knight and Little Dragon love going to school but they get a bit fed up that they never see each other anymore - until they concoct a plan to have a mini adventure out of school time! They disappear off and find a brand new friend to watch some stars with. Their daddies eventually catch up with them and after the initial worry realise that the friends just want to spend some time with each other again. 

This is a particularly good story for us right now because Rosie has just started school but she is going to a different school from her best friend. They have gone from spending at least two days a week together to virtually not seeing each other. So reading a picture book which helps to explain this, and also points out that you need to make time to see your friends, is very helpful. We just have to hope she won't plan to meet her friend after dark for an adventure!

The illustrations are very sweet and there are lots of gentle funny moments. My two year old has been enjoying reading this with us as well so it bridges the age gap from two to five pretty well. I particularly like the scene at the end where they hold a big fete/summer party. I'm hoping to emulate it for my daughter's birthday party!

Gorilla by Anthony Browne

We read Gorilla while at a friend's house the other night and Rosie fell in love with it so when we saw it in our local library (please support them everyone, we need to use them to keep them, and even then that's sometimes not enough, but I digress!) we checked it out straight away.

We already have one of Anthony Browne's classic gorilla stories Willy and Hugh which is about an unlikely friendship between a lonely chimpanzee and a gorilla but the story in Gorilla is far more poignant and captured Rosie's imagination.

Hannah is a little girl who loves gorillas but she spends most of her time on her own because her father is always too busy to take her anywhere or do anything with her. For her birthday the thing she wants most in the world is a gorilla. When she wakes up in the middle of the night and finds a small toy gorilla wrapped up on her bed she's disappointed and throws it into the corner of the room with her other toys. But then a magical thing happens. The gorilla grows and grows and takes Hannah on a wonderful adventure, to the zoo, the cinema and to a cafe. When Hannah wakes up she runs downstairs to tell her dad all about the exciting time she's had but before she can say anything he asks her if she'd like to go to the zoo. Hannah ends the story a very happy little girl!

The artwork is amazing in this book. The sense of perspective and wry touches in each drawing make it a feast for the eyes for both grown-up and child! Although most of us are probably not as guilty as Hannah's dad for not managing to spare enough time for our children it's a valuable reality check for anyone.