Many books lay claim to being 'perfect bedtime books' but we both doubt you'll find a book more snuggly and perfect for bedtimes than this...

Good lord, has it really been ten years since we first met those sneaky underpants-stealing aliens? Let's catch up with those knicker-snatching lovable rogues!

A super special preview of a title that's not actually out until March 2017 is our Booky Advent calendar title behind door number 17...

A busy and fantastic little book for your digger-obsessed boys  and girls? Let's take a look at "Beep Beep Beep, Time for Sleep" by Claire Freedman and Richard Smythe...

It's time for an all new pants-tastic Y-Fronted romp with those pants-stealing aliens. This time have they finally met their match in "Aliens Love Dinopants"?

Be prepared to fall head over heels in love with a rather adorable little doggy! "Oliver and Patch" is a delightful tale about a little boy who spots a little lost dog wandering the streets of a busy metropolis. Oliver and Patch hit it off as soon as they set eyes on each other, but Patch's owner is nowhere to be seen. Oliver decides to take the super-cute little dog under his wing, taking him home for warm cuddles and a slap-up meal

Patch and Oliver become firm friends but one day when they're out for a walk, Patch spots someone in the distance and runs after them. What will Oliver do if he has to give up his new best friend to a complete stranger, a rather forlorn little girl?

We devoured this book. It is an utter joy to read, beautifully melancholy in places but with a heart-soaring conclusion that makes you want to cry and cheer at the same time. We loved seeing Claire Freedman put the underpants down for a mo to come up with a truly lovely tale, and Kate Hindley's illustrations are utterly wondrous from start to finish. If anyone wants us to dog-sit patch for the weekend, we'll definitely be up for that!

Charlotte's best bit: She kept talking about how CUTE patch was, and how she wanted a Patch of her own (er, not a chance sayeth mummy!)

Daddy's Favourite bit: Touching and lovely storytelling, super-sweet illustrations in just the sort of style we absolutely adore. A doggy-treat of a book that's destined to become well loved!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Simon and Schuster Children's Books)

Like this? We think you'll love these too!

Monsters Love Underpants by Claire Freedman and Ben Cort

How to Wash a Woolly Mammoth by Michelle Robinson and Kate Hindley

Monsters love underpants and so do we!

By now, hopefully you've already read our rollicking review of "Monsters Love Underpants". To celebrate the launch week for the latest pant-tacular "Underpants" book, we thought we'd ask Ben Cort and Claire Freedman to share some of their top children's book influences with us. They came up trumps, so take it away Ben and Claire!

Ben's fave Five Illustrator/Author Pairings.

"Burglar Bill" by Janet and Allan Ahlberg

1. Janet and Allan Ahlberg

Janet and Allan’s books such as Burglar Bill, Cops and Robbers and Mrs Wobble the Waitress were a huge influence on me when I began illustrating children’s books. Janet’s pictures are full of humorous charm and detail and are the perfect accompaniment to Allan’s hilarious words.

"Harry by the Sea" by Gene Zion and Margaret Bloy Graham

2. Gene Zion and Margaret Bloy Graham.

As a child I loved the Harry the dog books created by Gene and Margaret and they are still amongst my favourites today. Gene’s use of bold line work and muted colour palette convey a fun and cosy world

(Editor's note - We LOVE LOVE LOVE these books and we think it's a bit of a shame that the rest of the stories were never reprinted / re-released but pick up "Harry the Dirty Dog, No Roses for Harry, Harry and the Lady Next Door and Harry by the Sea as they're still available!)

"That Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown" by Cressida Cowell and Neal Layton. Sublime!

3. Cressida Cowell and Neal Layton.

Cressida and Neal’s Emily Brown books are a charming mix of surreal writing and pictures

that make for a really enjoyable read. These were a bedtime favourite for both my children and myself!

Charlie and Willy Wonka from "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" by Roald Dahl and Quentin Blake

4. Roald Dahl and Quentin Blake.

I have always loved Roald Dahl’s stories which are often full of dark humour and peril; and these combined with Quentin’s beautiful, fluid line drawings make for a perfect combination of text and imagery.

"The Incredible Hulk" by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby (with inking by D Ayers)

5. Stan Lee and Jack Kirby

Marvel comics were a large part of my reading material as a child and the comic book artist Jack Kirby with his amazing characters such as Captain America, The Incredible Hulk, The Fantastic Four etc... had a terrific impact on me. His dramatic and dynamic use of composition and exaggerated anatomy created such incredibly exciting images.

Thank you for sharing such awesome influences, Ben! Now it's over to...

Claire Freedman with some of her favourite children's book influences.

"Winnie the Pooh" by A.A. Milne and sublime illustrations from E.H Shephard.

The Winnie the Pooh books

A.A. Milne, illus E.H. Shephard

These books influenced my writing more than any others. The stories are still fresh today, the humour is understated but brilliant ,and the characters sing from the pages. A true classic!

"The Wind in the Willows" by Kenneth Grahame (with illustrations here from Arthur Rackham. Wow!)

The Wind in the Willows

Kenneth Grahame

various artists

A much loved book, I admire the storytelling and immediacy of the well formed characters. The book has been illustrated by a number of artists.

Arthur Rackham's illustrations are especially evocative.

"Dino Baby" by Mark Sperring and Sam Lloyd.

Dino Baby

Mark Sperring, illus Sam Lloyd

This text is so cute and funny and the illustrations are simple but very appealing. The art and words marry up perfectly, which is what I look for in a picture book.

"One Snowy Night" by M Christina Butler and Tina Macnaughton

One Snowy Night

M Christina Butler illus Tina Macnaughton The story is gentle and charming, with characters young readers can identify and bond with. The illustrator has captured the softness of the story beautifully.

"Dragon Stew" by Steve Smallman and Lee Wildish

Dragon Stew

Steve Smallman, illus Lee Wildish

This has a stonking good rhyme with lovely play on words - and good rhythm which I always enjoy. The art is fun and expressive.

Phew! What a brilliant list from both Ben and Claire. You can read our review of their latest underpants epic, "Monsters Love Underpants" - out now from Simon and Schuster Children's Books.

Don't miss the rest of the fantastic Monsters Love Underpants Blog Tour with these awesome folk!

It's "Happy Launch Week" and a whistle-stop blog tour for Claire Freedman and Ben Cort, and you know what that means? It's UNDERPANTS TIME!

Claire Freedman and Ben Cort's massively successful "Underpants" books have been rip-snorting rib-tickling favourites on the blog since Charlotte was a toddler. Claire's perfect rhymes paired with Ben's gorgeous bright and colourful illustrations make the books hugely appealing to little ones. A little pants-based humour never hurt anyone, after all.

Aliens love 'em, Dinosaurs love 'em, Santa loves 'em, Pirates can't get enough of them but did you know even Monsters love Underpants? In this latest story we find out that monsters of all shapes, sizes and levels of squishiness like nothing more than a pair of comfortable undercrackers to slip into and gad about in. Hooray!

With a couple of brill cameos from the pants-loving aliens, and some of the most inventive monster designs we've seen in a long time (those spiky monsters look owchy!), this is another belter of a book by this talented duo! Don't worry if you hear scurrying and scuffling under the bed late at night, it'll just be monsters running off with your Hello Kitty knickers! Eeeks!

Charlotte's best bit: She loved the tiny little detail of the aliens flying off with a whole washing line of underpants in tow from their flying saucer!

Daddy's Favourite bit: Brilliantly bouncy rhyming, ultra-cool monster illustrations and a whole washing-pile full of pants-based humour. What's not to love!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Simon and Schuster Children's Books)

Join the awesome "Monsters Love Underpants" Blog tour with these fantastic blogging folk taking part...!

Those pant-loving aliens are back, and we can't get enough of their crazy adventures. Claire Freedman and Ben Cort have put out quite a few Aliens Love Underpants books now, spanning all sorts of subjects so it's only right and proper that there's a cool christmassy version in there somewhere.

Santa has a dilemma. Everything is going wrong this year, and with the clock counting down to Christmas Eve, it looks like Santa's sled is staying put and poor little children the world over may have to do without christmas presents at all this year.

Thank goodness then for those pant loving aliens, who love Santa just as much as everyone else does. With the aid of their spaceship (and of course lots of pants) they steam in to save the day, helping Santa (and his holly-berry undercrackers) get busy spreading wonderful christmas cheer.

Funny, cheesy, pant-tastic!


Charlotte's best bit: Lots of cool little cameos from other Pants books!

Daddy's Favourite bit: The perfect antidote to receiving yet another comedy pair of Simpsons boxer shorts as a present this year

(Very kindly sent to us by Simon and Schuster Children's Books)

By now, you'd think Claire Freedman would be running out of clever ways to rhyme things with 'Underpants' but in the latest addition to the "Pants" books, we join a jolly crew of pants-loving non-alien pirates on a quest for the ultimate booty - the mythical Pants of Gold.

Hopping aboard their trusty ship The Black Bloomer, the hardy pirate crew can't wait to get hot on the trail of those hot pants.

Through storms, sea serpents, sharks, swamps and slimy crocodiles, the pirates carry on in grim determination.

Will they snag the ultimate pant-booty or will they take a visit to Davy Jones' Locker?

As you'd expect from this winning team, it's a tongue-twisting rhyming romp with lots of lovely detailed piratical artwork to gaze at. I did think the theme would be running a bit thin by now but there's always room for another Pants book in your collection, so give it a try me hearties!

Charlotte's best bit: The beautiful mermaid figurehead fixed to the front of the Black Bloomer.

Daddy's favourite bit: All those lovely little cameo appearances by the pants-loving aliens from Claire and Ben's other books.

(kindly sent to us for review by Simon and Schuster)

Every child has a favourite teddy or soft toy to cuddle up to. Charlotte is currently juggling about 6 or 7 (main favourite seems to be Minnie Mouse though!) but imagine if you could count on a cuddly fur-covered superhero to leap to your aid every time you felt a bit down and in dire need of a hug.

Step forward Cuddle Bear. He doesn't wear a cape, he doesn't wear his pants outside his tights, but he's a superhero nonetheless, leaping to the aid of his animal friends every time they feel a bit blue. See poor Panda? She's fallen over but Cuddle Bear is there in seconds, giving her a cheer-me-up squeeze. Poor Lion is constantly grumpy but no one knows why until Cuddle Bear leaps in and gives the old grumpus a loving hug, and soon he's as happy as can be.

With great rhyming text from Claire Freedman and lovely (and very cuddly) illustrations from Gavin Scott, this book is guaranteed to be a firm favourite with younger children and was certainly a hit with Charlotte who thought Cuddle Bear looked so cuddly, fluffy and warm.

Charlotte's best bit: When rabbit leaped on Cuddle Bear for a big hug

Daddy's favourite bit: A feel-good cuddlesome book, and a great book to squeeze in before that last cuddle at bedtime.

(Kindly supplied to us for review by the awesome folk at Little Tiger Press)

What caused the Dinosaurs to die out? A massive meteorite? The Ice Age? Hacking scandals? No it was underpants, as every child knows - particularly after they've read the latest in the 'Underpants' books from Claire Freedman and Ben Cort. The team have successfully given us instant classic 'Aliens Love Underpans' and 'Santa Loves Underpants', now they turn their focus on the stone age and the most important invention since the wheel, the Y Front. 

Dinosaurs covet mankind's invention, and lots of squabbling ensues. This delicious rhyming tale is a must for any dino-obsessed child, helpfully taking them through a few well known Dino species before their pants-based demise. 

Bouncy fidgety storytelling at its best. Toddlers will love it to pieces. 

Charlotte's best bit: The Diplodocus and his tiny briefs

Daddy's favourite bit: The Triceratops, of course. 

Rating: 3 out of 5

Published by Simon and Schuster Childrens Books



Seriously, we do not have a pants obsession at Maybe Towers, honestly - but this superb rhyming story about what happens to your underpants when they're hung on the line is fun, colourful and hilarious. Aliens come in all shapes and sizes - as do underpants - so this will have your toddlers giggling along with the crazy subversive antics of a bunch of pant-obsessed extra-terrestrials. 

Charlotte's best bit: The baby alien who gets left behind. 

Daddy's favourite bit: Unflattering descriptions of mummy's massive spotty bloomers.