So sit back, and enjoy a breakdown of our Book of the Week list month by month - Or skip to the end if you want to know what we each chose as our book of the year (Note that our Book of the Year winners would be books published or re-published in 2014).
January
"The Arrival" by Shaun Tan
"The Paper Bag Princess" by Robert Munsch & Michael Martchenko
"Watch out for the Crocodile" by Lisa Moroni & Eva Eriksson
"My Grandfather's Beard" by Joshua Seigal
(39 books reviewed)
February
"Oi, Frog!" by Kes Gray and Jim Field
"Where the Poppies now Grow" by Hilary Robinson and Martin Impey
"Very Little Red Riding Hood" by Teresa Heapy and Sue Heap
"Shackleton's Journey" by William Grill
(48 Books Reviewed)
March
"Princesses are not just Pretty" by Kate Lum and Sue Hellard
"Ronny Rock Starring in Monster Cake Meltdown" by Merryn Threadgould and Bruce Ingman
"Hilda and the Black Hound" by Luke Pearson
"Hermelin - The Detective Mouse" by Mini Grey
"Grandma" by Jessica Shepherd
(49 Books Reviewed)
April
"The Giraffe, The Pelly and Me" by Roald Dahl and Quentin Blake
"The Queen's Hat" by Steve Antony
"William and the Missing Masterpiece" by Helen Hancocks
"Grandma's Gloves" by Cecil Castellucci and Julia Denos
(32 Books Reviewed)
May
"Me and You" by Anthony Browne
"Orion and the Dark" by Emma Yarlett
"My Name is Bob - An Illustrated Picture Book" by James Bowen & Garry Jenkins & Gerald Kelley
"Sir Scallywag and the Deadly Dragon Poo" by Giles Andreae and Korky Paul
"Jack and the Baked Beanstalk" by Colin Stimpson
(39 Books Reviewed)
June
"Klimt and his Cat" by Berenice Capatti and Octavia Monaco
"Hearts" by Thereza Rowe
"The Sheep in Wolf's Clothing" by Bob Hartman and Tim Raglan
"My Teacher is a Monster (No I am not!)" by Peter Brown
(41 Books Reviewed)
July
"The Last Alchemist" by Colin Thompson
"The Complete Rainbow Orchid (The Adventures of Julius Chancer)" by Garen Ewing
"Mr Tweed's Good Deeds" by Jim Stoten
(39 Books Reviewed)
August
"Ten Little Princesses" by Mike Brownlow and Simon Rickerty
"Where Bear?" by Sophy Henn
Digby Dog Delivers" by Tor Freeman
"The Colour Thief" by Gabriel Alborozo
"On Sudden Hill" by Linda Sarah and Benji Davies
(39 Books Reviewed)
September
"The Art of Frozen" by Charles Solomon
"Murilla Gorilla and the Hammock Problem" by Jennifer Lloyd and Jacqui Lee
"Tin" by Chris Judge
"Blown Away" by Rob Biddulph
"A Year of Stories and Things to Do" by Shirley Hughes
"Shooting at the Stars - The Christmas Truce of 1914" by John Hendrix
(51 Books Reviewed - PHEW!)
October
"Sketches from a Nameless Land - The Art of 'The Arrival' by Shaun Tan
"Plumdog" by Emma Chichester-Clark
"The Owl and the Pussycat by Edward Lear and Charlotte Voake
"Detective Paws - An Interactive Who-Done-It Mystery by John O'Leary
"The Usborne Official Detective Handbook" by Colin King
"The Wonder" by Faye Hansom
"The Colour Thief - A Family's Story of Depression" by Andrew Fusek-Peters, Polly Peters and Karin Littlewood
"Bears Don't Read" by Emma Chichester-Clark
(58 Books Reviewed)
November
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"Russell Brand's Trickster Tales - The Pied Piper of Hamelin" by Russell Brand and Chris Riddell
"Over the Hills and Far Away" by Elizabeth Hammill
"Homer Henry Hudson's Curio Museum" by Zack Rock
"Night Post" by Benjamin Read and Laura Trinder
(46 Books Reviewed)
December
"Snow Day" By Richard Curtis and Rebecca Cobb
"Animalium - Welcome to the Museum" by Jenny Broom and Katie Scott
"Minecraft Blockopedia" by Mojang / Egmont
And now (drum roll please) our Book of the Year Winners...
It has been such a tough choice - easily as difficult for us to choose just one standout book each for the entire year as it has been throughout the year to pick a Book of the Week each week. We don't usually try to do this but we thought "What the heck, why not!"
But Charlotte picked a book that she's been absolutely absorbed by and inspired by so her book of the year is:
"HILDA AND THE BLACK HOUND" by Luke Pearson (Flying Eye Books)
Congratulations Luke!
I picked something that we've read, re-read, and re-read and each time we've giggled like drains at. It's beautifully created, utterly hilarious, so much fun to read aloud and best of all, a really neat and original 'take' on a well loved tale bringing something genuinely new and fresh feeling to the book table.
My book of the year (and a good dose of influence from how well received it was by Charlotte too) is:
"VERY LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD" by Teresa Heapy and Sue Heap (David Fickling Books)
Congratulations Teresa and Sue!
We look forward to seeing you all again in 2015 and sharing with you a whole new stack of utterly brilliant books. Huge huge thanks to you, our readers, and to the lovely book folk we've been lucky enough to converse with this year. To the top publishers and PR folk who work so hard to push the bar higher and higher for children's books standards every year and of course to the endlessly creative authors and artists whose spark of brilliance turns the seed of an idea into the most amazing and awesome books.
You're all superstars!