Kicking off with a true feast of glorious natural history facts and figures, curated by Libby Walden and featuring the work of ten amazing illustrators who truly bring the subject to life.
"In Focus: Forests" is a book packed with amazing animals, glorious greenery and all the things that call the forest "Home".
The book talks about some of the most famous forests on the planet such as the Black Forest in South-West Germany, on the border with France. This vast area is a truly amazing biodiverse environment that is protected, and thus is full of life from the forest floor right to the tips of the tall spruce and fir trees that stretch into the sky.
Grace Easton draws an amazing picture of The Black Forest and in turn, other artists examine the Rainforests (Suzanne Washington), The Anatomy of Trees (Julie Colombet), National Parks (Sol Linero), Forest mythology (Irene Montano), Peoples of the Forest (Alessandra Santelli), Produce and Preservation (Jenny Wren), Mangrove Forests (Aaron Cushley), the Amazon Rainforest (Marc Pattenden) and Kelp Forests (Stephanie Fizer-Coleman).
As you can see, this one really does cover a lot of ground and is a nice hefty book to dig into, with great fold-out spreads.
"In Focus: Forests" curated by Libby Walden is out on the 4th April, published by 360 Degrees Publishing.
Wilfred and Olbert are our time-travelling guides on a trip back to the very dawn of time, as the dynamic duo discover a mysterious artefact that allows them to nip through a portal back to any period in history.
By presenting a really cool comic-like story but also seeding the story with amazing and incredible facts about prehistoric life, this is a really excellent approach to helping kids cross over from stories into non-fiction with ease.
With characterful and brilliant illustrations, and a whole host of facts all about prehistoric times, from life that began under the sea, to gigantic creatures that later stalked the earth and soared through the sky, this is a real winner and we absolutely love this approach. Let's hope there are more adventures for Wilfred and Olbert soon!
"Wilfred and Olbert's Epic Prehistoric Adventure" by Lomp is out on the 4th April 2019, published by Little Tiger.
James specialises in interesting and absorbing books on the subject of space, and this is no exception as we learn a little more about humankind's efforts to move beyond our home planet out into the inky blackness of space.
Learn all about space shuttles, rockets, and the International Space Station in this beautifully illustrated and presented guide that will give tiny tiddlers a real head start when it comes to learning more about space science and space exploration.
Really brilliant this. We never get tired of space books!
"The Big Beyond" by James Carter and Aaron Cushley is out on 4th April 2019, from Caterpillar Books
Bee numbers are in decline. For most people this doesn't feel like it's a big deal but bees are a truly vital part of our ecosystem, our pollinators that make sure that all our amazing plant life - and of course our food - can grow and flourish.
The rest of the minibeasts realise the bees have disappeared, so it's up to them to join together and find out what has happened to their buzzy friends.
This is beautifully presented, with engaging "lift the flap" bits to enhance a story that is a great introduction to the importance of bees and other insect life that lives on our planet.
"When the Bees Buzzed off" by Lula Bell and Stephen Bennett is out on 4th April 2019, published by Little Tiger Press.
(All books kindly supplied for review)