Greetings Earthlings! Today we're very fortunate indeed to have 'borrowed' Anna Bogie for a guest post about her working processes, and of course to talk about her latest greatest addition to the "Happy Hooves" series, "Happy Hooves - Yuk!"

We're back on the farm with a clippety-clop for our latest adventure with the super animal friends and the third in the "Happy Hooves" series by Anna Bogie and Rebecca Elliott.

"Happy Hooves: Yuk" could almost describe mealtimes at home, when poor Charlotte and her mum have to face one of my "oh my god we've got nothing in, I'll have to make something up from the cupboard ingredients" meals.

You see, Pig fancies himself as a bit of a chef and has invited everyone over to dinner.

But what's good for the hog, isn't so good for the gander (or the donkey, or sheep) so some of the fare being served up is distinctly grim!

How on earth can the animals break it to Pig that the party grub is a bit grubby?

It's a fun little story, once again a brilliant jaunt for very young book bugs who will love the rib-tickling antics of the animals, the message of what it means to be a good friend and of course there's a good excuse to get into the kitchen and create your own crazy meal combinations too.

Fish fingers and custard? You never know, it might catch on!

"Happy Hooves: Yuk!" by Anna Bogie and Rebecca Elliott is out now from Fat Fox Books. 

We're always on the lookout for quirky books even if they're a bit 'young' for Charlotte...

Today, Charlotte (and Mummy) take over the reins for a review of a very special book in aid of Children in Need. So take it away, Charlotte (with a bit of help from Mummy!)

"Little Bell and the Moon by Giles Paley-Phillips and Iris Deppe (Fat Fox Books)

We're fortunate enough to have been given the opportunity to check out Giles Paley-Phillip's new book and the man himself stopped by the blog for a quick questions and answers session with us here at ReadItDaddy. Kicking off with three questions from me, and three questions from "The Boss" herself, Charlotte. Take it away Giles...!

From Me:

1) Hi Giles, thanks for talking to ReadItDaddy - so tell us a little
bit about yourself, and your new book "Little Bell and the Moon"

Hey ReadItDaddy, I spent a number of years touring and playing in bands, I started writing after my first son was born and haven't stopped since.
My new book is called Little Bell and the Moon, it's the story of a lonely little girl, who loves the moon and in a flight of fancy she flies off with the moon to see all the wondrous things in the world. Their journeys go on for many years until she is very elderly and can't travel anymore, eventually the little girl who is now very old, passes away and something very magical happens to her.

2) Your previous books have been huge hits with our readers. Tell us a
little bit about your influences, favourite authors and illustrators.

Thank you that's lovely to hear. My biggest influences have been several American writers, in particular Shel Silverstein and Edward Gorey, I love Gorey's dark humour, something I've always try to have in my previous books.
Little Bell and the Moon is very different in tone from anything I've done before I was reading a lot of adult poetry at the time and especially Sharon Old's 'The Father' which I found very inspiring.
I have to say the illustrator Iris Deppe deserves enormous credit for her work on Little Bell and the Moon, they are simply wonderful and I couldn't be more thrilled with them.

3) You obviously have fun telling stories and trying ideas out with
your own family. Are they harsh critics? (Mine are :)

Yes they can be, but it is really helpful to know what things do and don't work.

From Charlotte

1) I love "The Fearsome Beastie" - Does it ever frighten people? He is a bit mean!

He is very mean, but it does tend to be grown ups that are scared of him, children think he's funny! (Editor's note: Charlotte also thinks he's funny but would definitely keep a brave granny to hand if she ever met him!)

2) Are you going to write any more monster books?

I've written two now, and you never know I might, although people might be a bit bored of them now (Editor's note: NOOOOO We're not! More monsters, more monsters!)

3) What's your favourite book at the moment?

Well, my favourite children's book is The Box of Delights by John Maresfield and I'm also currently reading The Human Flies by Hans Olav Lahlum, which is a traditional whodunnit set in Sweden.

Phew! Thanks for whistling by to talk to us Giles. We wish you huge success with "Little Bell and the Moon", out now from Fat Fox Publishing. Find out more about the book on the Fat Fox Website.

We've followed the career of Giles Paley-Phillips for quite some time now, and have loved his rhyming stories. From the gruesome but endlessly gleeful and satisfying "Fearsome Beastie" to Giles' latest story. This time Giles weaves a tale with an almost mournful melancholy air, that begins with Little Bell - a tiny tot who is lucky enough to take nightly trips hand in hand with her friend the moon. They journey far and wide, her hand in his, as they soar into the air and cruise above the mountains and deserts, jungles and seas, with always something new to see and experience.

Little Bell's journeys fill her life with richness and imagination, and the moon adores her.

As the story unfolds, Little Bell moves through all the stages of her life, becoming a teen, then an adult (at this point Charlotte excitedly pointed out that in one of Iris' illustrations, Bell looks like she's having a baby as the story shows her at various ages). Finally as Bell becomes old and frail, the moon realises that soon their journeys together will be at an end. As he sings one last lyrical lullaby to her, and rests her gently down for her final long sleep, the moon is grief-stricken but must say goodbye.

But...

Ah, you see, here's the bit where we rather meanly tell you we're not going to give away what happens next. For in darkness and despair, there's always hope and so we'll leave it up to you to discover Giles and Iris' fabulous touching and heartfelt story for yourselves. It's truly something rather special.

This is dreamy stuff, absolutely perfect as a lyrical story lullaby before you tuck your own kids into bed for the night. Giles' rhymes are nicely written, Iris' artwork is utterly delectable and it's a story that will work wonderfully for the very tiniest of tinies, right up to older children who might be too cool to sit on your lap for story time but will still love hearing this one read out loud.

Stay tuned here on the blog for a Q & A session with Giles himself!

"Little Bell and the Moon" by Giles Paley-Phillips and Iris Deppe is now available from Fat Fox Books.

Charlotte's best bit: The "aging" sequence in the story as we learn that Bell and the Moon have been travelling together for years

Daddy's Favourite bit: A delicate multi-layered story that is dreamy, melancholy and joyful. A perfect bed-time read!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Fat Fox Books)

We're fortunate enough to be included on the fabulous Fat Fox Books Blog Tour for a new author and a new book that's absolutely guaranteed to light your fire. From the moment you spy the gorgeous cover, you're going to fall in love with it!

Meet Lili, she's the flame-haired hero of Wen Dee Tan's first book for Fat Fox. Lili's hair isn't just fiery in colour, it's actually fiery in nature too!

For a carefree little girl with a ton of joie de vivre this isn't really a problem, but soon Lili discovers that a flame-haired lass can have a pretty tough time of it in the real world. Neighbour's sheets are charred on the washing line, and an innocent game of jump-rope can go horribly awry. Soon, it feels like no one wants Lili or her troublesome tresses around.

Lili wanders dejectedly in the woods, and discovers a group of the village children in danger. Can Lili's wonderful hairdo possibly save the day after all?

This book has the most endearing hero as its central character, and we rode a rollercoaster ride with Lili as she seems so happy and full of life - but doesn't always fit in. The message tucked neatly betwixt the glorious pages here tells us that everyone is special, everyone has that certain something about them that may turn out to be their saving grace later on in life.

The story flows beautifully, the illustrations are purposely minimalist with Lili's flame-red hair drawing the eye in every page spread. It's a luscious treat to behold indeed, and a real joy to read to your mighty girls and boys (even more so if they have gorgeous red hair too!)

We love Lili, what an awesome first book from Wen Dee for Fat Fox! May there be many many more!

Charlotte's best bit: Lili unintentionally setting someone's lovely clean washing on fire! Oops!

Daddy's Favourite bit: A gorgeous book from start to finish, an endearing central character and a real feel-good message delivered with aplomb. Wonderful, Wen Dee!

(Kindly supplied in PDF format for review by Fat Fox Books)

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

The Red Tree by Shaun Tan

The Katie Morag books by Maire Hedderwick

Time for something festive! By now you're probably well into your christmas shopping (er, no we aren't!) and are longing for that first mince pie and glug of mulled wine. But before you do any of that, take a look at this yuletide sequel to a brilliant animal book!

Anna Bogie and Rebecca Elliott are back again with their awesome animal gang, the happy hooves - this time with the animals busily preparing for christmas and the imminent arrival of Santa Claus himself!

But there's a lot of fuss and panic, and tidying up to do - and not all animals live somewhere with a chimney! How on earth will Santa be able to deliver any presents?

Thankfully Cow is full of wisdom and insight, and has the perfect solution to the Happy Hooves Gang's problem - Spend christmas together in a riotous celebration!

Brought forward for a timely release to pop right into your christmas shopping list, "Happy Hooves Oh Oh Oh" is out now!

Charlotte's best bit: Charlotte loves Cow's festive jumper!

Daddy's Favourite bit: A lovely cuddly little tale, and a fantastic book to pop onto your christmas shopping list!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Fat Fox Books)

With a good dose of dark humour that put us in mind of David Walliams or Roald Dahl, Andy Seed's first book for Fat Fox Books, "Prankenstein" is a funny and original story that veers between a detective novel and a knockabout chaotic caper.

Soapy Thompson is an ordinary boy, but extraordinary things keep happening to him and his family. Strange things keep going wrong but after Soapy's beloved Granny ends up propelled through the roof of the house after her stairlift is tampered with, it's the last straw.

Soapy and his friends decide to set themselves up as detectives to find out just who is lurking in the shadows, causing mischief and mayhem wherever they go.

Andy Seed has struck a chord here, tapping into a genre that seems to have slipped out of favour, and is woefully under-represented in children's literature - that of the child detective. Growing up with books like the Famous Five and the Secret Seven, and moving on to more grown up fare like the works of Dashiell Hammett and the awesome Malcolm Pryce, I thought that "Prankenstein" set up an envious collection of characters and situations that should attract kids who crave something a little different (even a little more noir) than standard comedy stuff they're used to.

That said, it wasn't for Charlotte. Possibly it was too old for her, possibly it was a bit boy-centric (though Soapy's friends are a good diverse mix as are the cast of characters - and who doesn't love a good monster thrown into the mix). Charlotte passed this one up so it was up to me to take a closer look.

It's obvious that Andy's previous job seems to have stood him in good stead. As a primary school teacher he picked up on and became well-versed in observing child behaviour, tapping into what makes them tick and most importantly what makes them laugh. It shows through in Prankenstein and though younger children might find it all a bit spooky in places, it's a good all-round rollicking read setting up perfectly for more.

Charlotte's best bit: N/A

Daddy's Favourite bit: The sort of noir-ish detective story that takes ordinary everyday kids as its main characters, instantly giving the reader a focus to identify with. Skilfully written with great illustrations courtesy of Richard Morgan, and an impressive start to Fat Fox's broadly appealing and rapidly expanding book catalogue.

(Kindly sent to us for review by Fat Fox Books)

New publishers on the block Fat Fox Books look like a publisher to keep a very close eye on. Though they're starting out small with a couple of titles releasing in September ("Happy Hooves Ta-Dah!" and "Prankenstein") they have an eye for entertaining stories and characters, and high production quality.

They've also got a keen eye for talent too, and one of our favourite author illustrators, Rebecca ("Sometimes", "Zoo Girl" and "Just Because") Elliott, has contributed illustrations to "Happy Hooves Ta-Dah!"

Along with Anna Bogie, creator of a range of animal characters who will go on to star in more stories in the Fat Fox Range, "Happy Hooves" is the first tale and it's an empowering story of friendship, believing in yourself and your abilities, and using teamwork to overcome adversity.

Donkey is a bouncy happy type, and on a bright summer's day he wants to go to the beach. Along with his friends sheep, pig, cow and foal, he can't wait to play in the sand and take a dip in the sea.

There is one slight problem though. Between the animals and the gorgeous beach is a cattle grid.

Now, to an energetic bouncy donkey a cattle grid poses no problem, but the other animals are nervous - and just can't see how they can overcome this annoying obstacle. But with the right amount of enthusiasm and encouragement from their friends, each animal takes a leap of faith - and one by one they get across - all except poor cow, who is well and truly stranded.

How will the friends help cow across the grate? We'll leave that little bit of the story for you to discover. Charlotte loved this story despite it being aimed squarely at younger readers, thanks in no small part to Anna Bogie's gift of using repetition and positive language to tell an entertaining story, with Rebecca's awesome collage illustrations to make a bold and colourful canvas to create a story on.

Charlotte has just begun to read stories like this to her new little cousin, who is only a couple of months old (It's actually quite something to see her doing this, it seems like only yesterday she was wriggling on her playmat while I read stories to her, and now she's passing that on to her little cousin in such a lovely way!) No doubt we'll be taking "Happy Hooves Ta-Da!" along with us next time we visit.

"Happy Hooves Ta-Dah!" published on Sept 1st 2014 (yesterday). You can find out more about the Fat Fox range on their website.

Charlotte's best bit: Her favourite animal was sheep, who had a really neat way of getting over that cattle grid! We approve!

Daddy's Favourite bit: Bright, colourful, full of positive messages and a superb cast of animal characters. A great start for Fat Fox!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Fat Fox Books)