"Midge and Mo" by Lara Williamson and Becky Cameron (Stripes / Little Tiger)

This is an adorable new book packed with colour illustrations that once again shows there's definitely a fantastic emerging market for books that successfully bridge the gap between picture books for early years, and chapter books for early readers.

"Midge and Mo" is a wonderful little heartfelt tale of friendship and starting anew, as Midge is anxious about starting a new school in a new town. Midge misses his old school and really wishes more than anything else that things could have stayed exactly the same. He misses his old friends too, and his first day is filled with worry.

But when Midge is given a new school buddy in class, he realises that this fab smiley little girl - called Mo - could be just the new friend he's been hoping for. But Midge is still not sure - and Mo wonders if she's done anything to upset him.

Mo is our kind of girl though, and doesn't give up. She remembers what it was like when she was new at school on her first day - and this helps her to understand Midge's feelings and slowly bring him round.

After all, that's what good friends do, right?

We love this - it shows that kids can cope with 'wordier' books that still keep their plots fairly simple, but convey a lovely little message. This range of early readers from Stripes / Little Tiger are perfect, with full colour illustrations to help drive the stories along, and really fantastically observed characterisations that kids can readily identify with.

Lovely stuff!

Sum this book up in a sentence: An absolutely perfect book for readers transitioning between picture books and chapter books, with a lovely heartfelt message that's perfect for kids on their first day at school

"Midge and Mo" by Lara Williamson and Becky Cameron is out now, published by Stripes / Little Tiger (kindly supplied for review)