Thursday, 31 January 2013
"There are no strong female leads in children's books" apparently (except a couple of billion...)
Elastogirl (sigh) how I love thee!
Twitter was abuzz (well, a few of us were rolling our eyes at least) at a Jezebel article, bemoaning, amongst other things, the lack of strong female leads and role models in children's books. Here's the article in question and probably one...
Eliot Jones, Midnight Superhero by Anne Cottringer and Alex T Smith (Scholastic Children's Books)
Look, up in the sky, is it a bird? Is it a plane? No it's su...oh wait, no it isn't it's Eliot Jones, Midnight Superhero. By day he's a mild-mannered kid who likes to play with his toys and read books - but as soon as the clock strikes twelve he leaps into action, ready...
Billy Monster's Daymare by Alan Durant and Ross Collins (OUP Oxford)
Labels:
Alan Durant,
Billy Monster's Daymare,
OUP Oxford,
Ross Collins
In the deep dark wood, just as the sun starts to rise in the sky, Billy Monster is settling down for a well earned sleep. But Billy Monster is scared. Scared that something's lurking in the bedroom cupboard!
Flipping the world neatly on its head, Alan Durant and Ross...
Wednesday, 30 January 2013
#readitmummiesanddaddies2013 - Are phonics any good to a reluctant reader?
Labels:
learning journeys,
phonics,
reluctant readers
Books are just a complete no-no for some kids
At times, the first faltering steps on the learning journey when a child is beginning to read lull you into a false sense of security. Children often learn at a blistering pace, so when a child suddenly loses all interest in reading themselves,...
The Tale of Jack Frost by David Melling (Hodder Children's Books)
Our quest to catch up with the David Melling books continues - and we luckily spotted one we'd been wanting to read for quite a while at our local library. "The Tale of Jack Frost" is probably one of David Melling's best known Non-Hugless-Douglas books, due in no small...
The Viewer by Gary Crew and Shaun Tan (Hodder Children's Books)
Labels:
Gary Crew,
Hodder Children's Books,
Shaun Tan,
The Viewer
Back in February last year, we reviewed Anthony Browne's dark and disturbing tale, "The Tunnel" and I thought we'd never see a children's picture book that was darker in content than that.
Of course, since then we've been catching up with the Shaun Tan back catalogue,...
Tuesday, 29 January 2013
Penguin by Polly Dunbar (Walker Books)
Labels:
Penguin,
Polly Dunbar,
Walker Books
We've been meaning to try and get hold of this book for what feels like forever. Penguin by Polly Dunbar instantly grabs your attention with its eye-catching cover, and once you start to delve into the story, you'll see why it's such a massive hit with parents and kids.
Telling...
Princess Fairy by Penny Dale (Walker Books)
Labels:
Penny Dale,
Princess Fairy,
Walker Books
It's very easy to read too much into children's stories. Over-analysing them perhaps searching for a hidden agenda, or something woven into the fabric of a book that perhaps shouldn't be there.
When Charlotte picked "Princess Fairy" up from the library stack I inwardly...
#readitmummiesanddaddies2013 - Spotlight on Jelly and Bean, a brilliant range of children's phonics books.
A range of Jelly and Bean Reception Stage Phonics Books
We've looked at several valuable phonics resources already, some from large publishers and some from independent authors, illustrators and publishers introducing their own ranges of characters and books to help children with...
Monday, 28 January 2013
#readitmummiesanddaddies2013 - Phonics, phonics everywhere but which on earth to choose...?
Biff, Chip, Kipper and the whole Reading Tree family
Even before Charlotte started school, she knew who Biff, Chip and Kipper were. We'd tried her with a few phonics books through the excellent Oxford Reading Tree programme, as well as tackling the brilliant My Phonics Kit, also...
A Daddy Review Of "The Last Minute" by Eleanor Updale (David Fickling Books)
The Last Minute by Eleanor Updale (Cover by Richard Collingridge)
In an accident, survivors always describe the moments up to the event itself as happening almost in slow motion. As if time somehow grinds to a halt around a cataclysmic event. In Eleanor Updale's latest novel "The...
Spooky Spooky House by Andrew Weale and Lee Wildish (Picture Corgi)
Labels:
Andrew Weale,
Lee Wildish,
Picture Corgi,
Spooky Spooky House
Last year, we were fortunate enough to be included on the Red House Picture Book Awards Blog Tour, hosting a piece by Andrew Weale - author of this very book!
Now we're finally getting round to reviewing Spooky Spooky House, thanks to the lovely Zoe at "Playing by the...
#readitmummiesanddaddies2013 - When they start to read on their own - A look at Phonics
Labels:
homework,
Jelly and Bean,
National Literacy Strategy,
Oxford Learning Tree,
Oxford Owls,
phonics,
preschool reading
Since Charlotte began school, we feel like we've been snowed in by a swarming blizzard of phonics. It was quite surprising to see homework (HOMEWORK! FOR A 4 YEAR OLD!) being put in her schoolbag, but with the pressure for children to learn to read and attain numerical skills at an...
Friday, 25 January 2013
ReadItDaddy's Book of the Week Part 2: Charlotte's Choice - "The Princess and the Peas" by Caryl Hart and Sarah Warburton (Nosy Crow Books)
For the second part of our "Book of the Week" nomination we are extremely pleased to finally be able to take a look at a book that has received a lot of positive buzz since it first released. Now launched as part of Nosy Crow's "Stories Aloud" range (with added enhanced audio, thanks...
ReadItDaddy's Book of the Week Part 1: Daddy's choice - "Maggot Moon - Enhanced Edition" by Sally Gardner (Hot Key Books)
I make no apologies for banging on and on and on about this book since I first clapped eyes on it a couple of weeks ago, and you've probably seen enough tweets and references to it in the blog to have already guessed it was going to be a book of the week. But why? That's...
Thursday, 24 January 2013
A Small Surprise by Louise Yates (Red Fox Picture Books)
Being small can be annoying sometimes. People barge you out of the way, you always struggle to find clothes in the petite section - and even the simplest action like tying your own shoelaces can be a bit of a pain.
Thankfully there are also lots of advantages to being...
Spotlight on Springboard Stories Issue 3 - Food!
Labels:
Activities,
Book Reviews,
Food,
Learning Resources,
Monkey,
Springboard Stories,
Stimulating conversation,
Teaching Resources
Monkeying around with food in Springboard Stories Issue 3!
Once again we're extremely grateful that Springboard Stories have let us take a look at their fantastic packed-to-the-gills magazine, filled with brilliant ideas, discussion and stories.
This issue revolves around a subject...
Wednesday, 23 January 2013
#readitmummiesanddaddies2013 - When Print and E-Books collide to make something even more awesome!
Labels:
Audio Enhancement,
Augmented Reality,
Moonbot Studios LLC,
Nosy Crow,
Print and Digital Books,
Stories Aloud,
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr Morris Lessmore
Detente is beautiful, isn't it?
Whenever we see the subject of the 'great war between print and digital' coming up in discussions, we like to think about the middle ground in this imaginary conflict. You see, there are ways that both formats can coexist side by side, complimenting...
The Kiss that Missed by David Melling (Hodder Children's Books)
It's officially "We Love Hugless Douglas" week for Mr Melling but having missed out on all the hype, we thought we'd quietly take a look at our favourite DM book (at least our favourite that he's both written and drawn), The Kiss that Missed.
One night, at bedtime, a...
The Grunt and the Grouch by Tracey Corderoy and Lee Wildish (Little Tiger Press)
"Hot Snot
Bogey Pie
Mix it in with a dead dog's eye
Drink it slowly
Eat it quick
Wash it down with a cup of cold sick!"
I thought I'd just share that with you, because if you've got a soon-to-be-five-year-old at home they'll probably find that hilarious, and will endlessly...
Tuesday, 22 January 2013
Spotlight on Lucid Hawaii's great range of marine and wildlife books
As I type with my fingers practically falling off with the cold (our heating is broken again! Gah!) I can only imagine what it's like to don a wetsuit and dip into the beautiful warm and teeming waters of a Hawaiian reef.
Thankfully we were given the opportunity to live...
Hubble Bubble Granny Trouble by Tracey Corderoy and Joe Berger (Nosy Crow Books)
My Nan (Charlotte's great nan) is a witch. We have known this for some time now, and it stems right back from being at school and her eerie insider knowledge of what we'd be having for school dinner, her deep love of cats and bats and lots of other creatures, and her uncanny...
Monsters are afraid of the Moon by Marjane Satrapi and translated by Jill Davies (Bloomsbury Publishing PLC)
Marjane Satrapi's books and graphic novels are mind-blowing in concept and design, so it was really great to discover her gem of a children's book nestling in the library stacks.
"Monsters are afraid of the Moon" starts off with three rather nasty monsters and a poor...
#readitmummiesanddaddies2013 - E-books, MeBooks and making the story your own
Labels:
#readitmummiesanddaddies2013,
e-books,
Made in Me,
MeBooks,
storytelling apps,
The Froobles,
Top That Publishing
The MeBooks Library. Classics old and new
This week's theme for #readitmummiesanddaddies2013 is dipping into technology, and the various ways that new portable devices such as tablets and netbooks are changing the way children enjoy stories.
Some time ago we covered a rather innovative...
Monday, 21 January 2013
#readitmummiesanddaddies2013 - Brilliant post from The Library Mice on 'The gift of reading'
Please take a moment to hop over to The Library Mice blog for a fantastically written piece on 'The Gift of Reading' which was written to support the #readitmummiesanddaddies2013 campaign to get more parents reading to their children.
It beautifully underlines the things we clamour frequently about on ReadItDaddy, specifically those precious moments when you have a child's...
Goldilocks and the 3 Bears E-Book (iPad Version tested - Published by PlayFuel Ltd) - Updated Review
Labels:
Craig Melbourne,
Goldilocks and the Three Bears E Book,
iPad,
Playfuel Ltd,
Victoria Melbourne
Back when we ran an article on how to write the 'perfect' app or e-book for children, we concentrated on various elements that can make or break a successful app.
We were given the chance to take a look at Playfuel Ltd's "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" - a new e-version...
#readitmummiesanddaddies2013 - E stands for 'Enhanced' not just 'Electronic' when it comes to E-Books
Labels:
#readitmummiesanddaddies2013,
e-books,
enhanced editions,
enhanced storytelling,
iPad,
Kindle,
Maggot Moon,
Sally Gardner,
Tablet
Maggot Moon by Sally Gardner - an e-book 'done properly'
There seems to be a war raging between the luddites and the technocrati and it's a war that seems as odd as any other war. Two sides are gathered, with a fair amount of neutrals in the middle, claiming that their favourite method...
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