Underwater Farmyard by Carol-Ann Duffy and Joel Stewart (Macmillan Children's Books)

"As I walked, I dreamt of deep green oceans"

There's something completely intoxicating about imagining life below the waves, far from the rain-lashed landscape we currently dwell in. But what if below the briny there was a farm, complete with aquatic farm animals tended by mermaid milkmaids, chomping on the delicious salty seaweed?

In "Underwater Farmyard" the beautiful poetic text weaves a tale of just such a place. Where sheep gently bob up and down on the undercurrent, circled by gleaming colourful fish.

Sea-cows live there also, and the underwater sheepdog silently watches his wards as day turns into night, and all the underwater animals bed down on their damp straw.

This is a lovely book - and if your mind turns to space instead of the beautiful briny deep, there is a follow-up book set on the moon called "Moon Zoo" which is equally brilliant too!

Charlotte's best bit: The beautiful mermaid milking the sea cows

Daddy's favourite bit: A nice original animal book idea, loved the rhymes and Joel's lovely atmospheric under-the-seascapes. Submarine and sublime!