Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell - A StorySnug Favourite!

Phew! We've just got time to squeeze in one more entry before bedtime - so here's Day 5 Part 2's entry from Catherine at Story Snug.

ReadItDaddy: Tell us your blog's name / who you are

http://storysnug.com / Catherine


ReadItDaddy: How long have you been blogging (book or otherwise) for?

Five months

ReadItDaddy: What's on your book stack this week (children's / grown up books count)?

Peace at Last by Jill Murphy
Ruby, Blue and Blanket by Jane Hissey
Pip and Posy: The Snowy Day by Axel Scheffler
King Jack and the Dragon by Peter Bentley
Schlaf gut, Paulchen by David Melling (German translation of Hugless Douglas and the Big Sleep)
Bedtime Little Ones! by Claire Freedman
Tom and Small by Clara Vuillamy
The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad


ReadItDaddy: Give a very brief summary of why you think books are important to children...

Books give children the opportunity to escape into a wide range of fantasy worlds and can introduce them to a wealth of weird and wonderful characters. They can expose children to situations or experiences that they may not have had in real life, prepare them for unfamiliar situations and also educate. Books give children opportunities to learn new vocabulary, solve problems and ask questions. Most importantly books can be a source of pure enjoyment, whether they are shared or read alone, and can give children countless wonderful opportunities to escape into whole new worlds.


ReadItdaddy: If you had to name one booky person as your complete and utter book-idol (Writer, Illustrator, Publisher etc) who would it be and why?

Janet and Allan Ahlberg (I can't differentiate between the two really can I?!)

Janet and Allan Ahlberg collaborated on so many of my favourite books – Burglar Bill, Each Peach Pear Plum, The Jolly Postman, Cops and Robbers, Happy Families and Peepo. I think it is a great achievement that they have successfully written and illustrated books across a wide range of ages, from babies and toddlers up to school children. I love the way that they have included traditional fairytale and nursery rhyme characters in several of their books, it introduces children to unfamiliar characters as well as providing them with an opportunity to revisit familiar rhyme and stories. I also find the Ahlbergs' books really lovely to use for literacy based topics in the early years classroom. Basically, I have had a lot of wonderful reading experiences withThe Ahlbergs' books which have given great joy to many children and also to the adults who share the books with them.


ReaditDaddy: Name 5 books you think everyone should have in their book case (children's OR adult book or a mix if you like!)

Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell
The Jolly Postman by Janet and Allan Ahlberg
Paddington Bear by Michael Bond
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Graham

Thank you very much Catherine. That neatly wraps up a fantastic week of book blogger posts and a huge huge thank you to Leyla, Melanie, Loll, Carmen, Anne-Marie and of course Catherine for making our "Brilliant Book Bloggers" week one of the most successful of our #readitmd13 campaign so far.

Child-Led Chaos, showing us how it should be done when it comes to book blogging!

We had such an enthusiastic response to our call for Book Bloggers to join in with our #readitmd13 theme week but how could we possibly resist featuring someone from our home town? Of course we couldn't, so here's Anne-Marie from "Child Led Chaos" to round off what has been a fantastic and very enjoyable week looking at book blogs.



ReadItDaddy: Tell us your blog's name / who you are

"I Like Big Books and I Cannot Lie" - So do we, lovely Rhino, so do we!

Day Four of this week's #ReadItMD Campaign theme of "Brilliant Book Bloggers" and we have a genuine book fairy with us to share her experiences in book blogging. Over to you, Carmen Haselup at Rhino Reads!

ReadItDaddy: Tell us your blog's name / who you are:


Hi, I'm Carmen from RhinoReads where I review big books for little people and play host to Ronnie Rhino. Http://www.rhinoreads.wordpress.com



ReadItDaddy: How long have you been blogging (book or otherwise) for?

I've been blogging for a couple of years now but I only started blogging about children's books with Ronnie in January, so I'm still a newbie on that front. I started the Rainbow Library - a nursery library for disadvantaged children - for International Book Giving Day in February and things have really taken off from there.



ReadItDaddy: What's on your book stack this week (childrens / grown up books count) ?

Well, I technically have more than one book stack. I try to review books from the local library, my own collection and books donated to the Rainbow Library so I have piles everywhere.

In the book stacks this week are:

From the local library:
Not on a School Night - Rebecca Patterson
Dog Loves Books - Louise Yates

From my collection:
Goldilocks and Just the One Bear - Leigh Hodgkinson
The Cloud - Hannah Cumming
The Darkness Slipped in - Ella Burfoot
Oliver - Birgita Sif

And from the Rainbow Library:
Mum and Dad Glue - Kes Gray
Harold Finds a Voice - Courtney Dicmas
Copy Cat - Mark Birchall
No! - Marta Altes
Flip-up Fairy Tales by ChildsPlay

Ronnie and I are going to be busy this week! Extra cake will be required.



ReadItDaddy: Give a very brief summary of why you think books are important to children...


I think books are a vital part of childhood. Children learn so many things from looking at books and being read to. Not just how to hear and see language but how to see the world and their place in it. They learn how to feel and to understand how others might be feeling. They see themselves and the self they could become. They can find comfort, reassurance, inspiration and knowledge. In short, everything they need to thrive in life.

(I'm not good at 'very brief' when it comes to the importance of books)



ReadItDaddy: If you had to name one booky person as your complete and utter book-idol (Writer, Illustrator, Publisher etc) who would it be and why?

I think it would have to be ChildsPlay. I have admired their ethos since I first came across them when I started working in early years education. They were the first publisher I hoped I could get on board with the Rainbow Library, because they believe in, and stand up for, the child. And every child. I am inspired and encouraged by their philosophy and am proud to share their books with the rainbow library children.



ReadItDaddy: Name 5 books you think everyone should have in their book case (childrens OR adult book, or a mix if you like!)

5? 5?!! Ok, 5. Wow, that's a daunting thought. But 5 books that everybody should have, in age order:

A ChildsPlay baby book. It doesn't matter which particular book as they are all wonderful, but every baby should have one.

Martha and the Bunny Brothers I Heart School - Clara Vulliamy

Matilda - Roald Dahl

Skellig - David Almond

Northern Lights - Philip Pullman

Written on the Body - Jeanette Winterson

What do you mean that's six? One, two, three, four, four and a half, five. Job done.

That was fun! Now for some cake.

Oh we've got a treat in store for you this week. A seriously talented bunch of lovely booky folk have kindly offered to join in with this week's #ReadItMD Campaign theme of "Brilliant Book Bloggers" - Six who have set the bar incredibly high for us newbies to follow.

So without further ado, I'll kick off with the first of our lovely blog entries from Leyla at "This Day I Love!"

Take it away, Leyla!


ReadItDaddy: Tell us your blog's name and who you are


I blog at this day I love. My name is Leyla and I am mummy to 2 beautiful girls. My blog aims to capture those precious daily Mummy moments.



ReadItDaddy: How long have you been blogging for?


I started this day I love on the 26th October 2012.



ReadItDaddy: What's on your book stack this week (childrens / grown up books count) ?

Hooray! Our theme this week is "Brilliant Book Bloggers" and as part of our #ReadItMummiesAndDaddies2013 theme weeks I've invited Six (count them SIX!) of the best bloggers in the business to take part.

Being the wonderful folk they are, they've all accepted so you're in for a treat this week - a window into the inner workings of This Day I Love, Storyseekers, The Library Mice , Rhino Reads, and Child-Led Chaos (with Story Snug hopefully following - see edit note at the bottom)

We came up with some pretty tricky questions for them, and they rose to the challenge magnificently. So our first post, by Leyla at This Day I Love is coming up at 10am with the rest to follow during the course of the week.

If you've ever thought about book blogging and you'd like to know how high the bar has been set by these lovely folk, then dip in for the rest of the week, it's going to be fun!

Edit: Unfortunately due to technical difficulties we're sad to hear that Catherine from Story Snug won't be joining us for the theme week. Nasty blog hackers have had their wicked way with her site so hopefully they'll be back up and running very soon. Our sympathetic thoughts and hopes that it's all quickly sorted out.