Books We've Been Reading | August 2018

The local library has always been one of my favourite places. A peaceful and quiet haven. A chance to get out of the house but not expose myself to too much social pressure. I have also always found comfort in reading and wanted to share this world of wonder with Iris. We read together daily and have a collection of books at home but we love heading to the library to see what new adventures we can discover. This month we borrowed...

Kicking A Ball by Allan Ahlberg and Sebastien Braun

We love Allan Ahlberg in our house. He has a magnificent way of writing that evokes a bygone way of life. The sort of world we remember when we look back but if you look closely elements of it are still there.

This book is about a boy's love of kicking a ball. It reminds me and Iris very much of her daddy. The little boy loves to play football with his friends and as they grow up, become fathers and embark on their adult lives they still love kicking a ball. It gives me a warm glow when I read this book.
I love the way that Allan Ahlberg uses ryhme in his book, I enjoy the fact that it's written in a more traditional poetic style. My partner finds it a bit formal but I love to read Ahlberg aloud as I believe his work has been written for just that purpose.

The illustrations are perhaps too old fashioned for many children nowadays as they are realistic and the colours are muted, so not the bold, bright things children are used to but I really enjoy this style, possibly because it reminds me of my own childhood. Whilst Iris may not find the aesthetics engrossing she is most likely to fall asleep to the soothing rhythm of this book making it ideal for bedtime reading.

Monty The Hero by Steve Smallman

I loved the look of this book and it seemed to have many elements we like in our stories. A bit of fantasy, some woodland wildlife and a moral tale but for me it just fell a bit short, it felt like everything was rushed and very much 'and this happened' kind of story telling.

The book tells the tale of Monty the Mole and his quest to be a hero. The book also explores themes such as name calling, individual strengths and weaknesses and accepting those differences.

I personally think this book is suited to a classroom setting as there are guidance notes at the back to aid discussion of the themes. It's more about guiding children into a conversation than an enjoyable bedtime story and so it wasn't suited to us. The characters are fun and there are moments of humor in the story and the illustrations are clear and colourful but I think this book would be more suited to a classroom read and would provide material for discussion or activities in an accessible, entertaining way.

Quick Quack Quentin by Kes Gray and Jim Field

Iris loves ducks so this book jumped out at us. Quick Quack Quentin is a fabulous book. It's educational, funny and visually engrossing. There are lots of things to point at and imitate and lots of ways to learn.

This book is about a duck with a broken quack. In his search to repair his quack we meet a variety of farm and zoo animals which provide many opportunities to imitate animal sounds. Our favourite game to play at the moment is 'what sound does a...make?' (all animals blow raspberries according to Iris!) so we can spend quite a while enjoying this book. The illustrations are really bold and attractive meaning Iris can easily point to different animals and learn how each animal looks as well as how they sound. The story is funny and entertaining for all age groups.

On a more advanaced level the book tackles vowel sounds and how they impact on words. As a self confessed 'word nerd' I love this though it maybe a little too much for Iris to grasp at the moment. I love entertaining books that educate children without them realising so for that reason this book has become one of my favourites.

Rhyme Crime by Jon Burgerman

We regularly attend our local library's singing session. We call it rhyme time. Daddy calls it 'Crime Time' as a joke so he thought this particular library book choice was hilarious. This book is about a thief that replaces a word with one that rhymes with it. Each page has a character and something of theirs has been stolen and replaced. I think the layout of the book is clever as you have to turn the page to find out what the item has been replaced with meaning you can spend some time with your child trying to guess the rhyming word. I like books that encourage conversation.

The illustrations and the characters are bold, bright and silly so perfect for keeping little ones interested. The story has a hilarious twist and a mysterious ending for children to work out themselves. This element was far too advanced for Iris but she enjoyed the story and the pictures and I will be getting this book again when she can talk and understand more.

Thanks For Reading,

 Do you love to read? Is there a must have book that you can't wait to share? Why not link your blog review posts up to my Books We've Been Reading blog link up?