Time for more picture book perfection from Maverick Publishing, who have a couple of new tempting treats for you this month.

First up is our old Twitter mate Karl Newson with a new story that delightfully dances with a few well known (and not so well known) characters, including a family of giants.

In "Fum" by Karl Newson and Lucy Fleming, the family have lost the tiniest member of the family. Little Fum really is thumb-sized, and so the family take a trip through storyland to try and find him, asking various well known characters (including Goldilocks and Little Red Riding Hood) if they've seen the pint-sized fellah anywhere.

It's a lyrical rhyming adventure that's sure to be a read-aloud favourite.

"Fum" by Karl Newson and Lucy Fleming is out now, published by Maverick Publishing. 

Then there's that Gnu!

In "How do you do, Mr Gnu" by Billy Coughlan and Maddie Frost, Mr Gnu has been invited for tea by none other than the Queen herself.

Slipping out of his zoo enclosure, Gnu causes a fuss as he takes a wild journey to the palace, picking up some etiquette and politeness tips as he goes.

But the last person he sees might just see poor Mr Gnu pick up a rather nasty habit instead. Will he make a good impression on Her Maj?

This is a rib-tickling and entertainingly original story - again fab to read aloud with some brill illustrations (and many giggles as we watch the hapless police trying to convince Mr Gnu to get back to his zoo!)

Brilliant stuff!

"How do you Do, Mr Gnu?" by Billy Coughlan and Maddie Frost is out now, published by Maverick Publishing.

(Both books kindly supplied for review)

We're going back to the stone age for our next booky adventure. Here's "Stone Underpants" by Rebecca Lisle and Richard Watson...

Maverick are showing no signs of slowing down as the summer sunshine continues, and thoughts start to turn to the dreaded (or for parents, the blessed relief of the) return to school.

But stop a moment, sit down, curl up and enjoy a good book or three. Maverick have got you covered with three new fantastic picture book titles for tiddlers who love engaging and original stories.

First, well how could we NOT love any book that champions books themselves, and libraries. Oh and bears. In "The New LiBEARian" by Alison Donald and Alex Willmore meet a huge cuddly bear who just LOVES to read.

Miss Merriweather, the usual Librarian has gone missing but when the children turn up for storytime a rather hairy and fuzzy stand-in is ready to read a book or two. This LiBEARian might be a bit scary at first, but his love of books is infectious and soon all the children rather love their new replacement book fanatic.

An awesome and fun book with a touch of magic to it, "The New LiBEARian" by Alison Donald and Alex Willmore is out now from Maverick. 

More fun now, this time of the face-fuzz variety in "Mr Mustachio", a new story from Yasmin Finch and Abigail Tompkins.

Mr Mustachio is the proud owner of the world's most talented moustache. It twists and twirls like a huge extendable pair of extra arms and Mr M couldn't be more pleased with his fantastic top-lip soup-strainer.

But when Mr M is invited to a picnic, disaster strikes. The one problem with a huge long gangly moustache is you never quite know when it's going to get you into a terrible tangle!

Full of hilarious scenes and with gorgeous illustrations, Mr Mustachio is a brilliant romp!

"Mr Mustachio" by Yasmin Finch and Abigail Tompkins is out now from Maverick. 

And one more, this time a perfect story book to usher in the colder weather...

In "The Snowflake Mistake" by Lou Treleaven and Maddie Frost (appropriate name there, Maddie!) meet a young girl who absolutely loves the chilly weather.

Princess Ellie is left in charge of the magical snow machine when the Snow Queen takes a well earned break.

The Snow Queen's amazing snow machine churns out identical snowflakes and scatters them around the world, but Ellie has other ideas. Her snowflakes might not be uniform and identical but they're beautiful, delicate and all distinctly unique.

It's a lovely wintry rhyming tale with the most adorable illustrations full of character and snowy wonder. "The Snowflake Mistake" by Lou Treleaven and Maddie Frost will be released in September 2016 so watch out for it.

For more awesome titles from Maverick, go and check out their website for some sneaky peeks!

We're taking a look at three fantastic new titles in Maverick Publishing's recently announced Junior Fiction Range. Bringing together some of the brilliantly talented authors and artists who have worked on Maverick's winning Picture Book range, these are books designed for the 6 to 9 year age group, attractively formatted with awesome covers and illustrations.

First, there's "Rickety Rocket" by Alice Hemming, with illustrations by Emma Randall. This neat little collection of stories (Rickety Rocket, Jetpack Jelly, and Picnic Planet) are great little space-based stories featuring Spacey Stacey, a space-obsessed little girl not too unlike a certain madame who helps me write this blog.

Stacey has grand ideas for a day out, building a rather wonky space rocket and packing a picnic for an interstellar adventure! Space-obsessed girls and boys are going to love this fizzing, whizzing and exciting adventure. "Rickety Rocket" arrives with a sonic boom this October.

Next in the range we met an old blog favourite who we're DELIGHTED to see again!

"Grandma Bendy" by Izy Penguin was one of the first Maverick titles we reviewed and Charlotte absolutely loved the tale of a flexible granny and her misdeeds - and eventual change of heart into a bendy superhero!

In "Grandma Bendy and the Great Escape", Izy Penguin (we STILL love her name) writes up a storm as Bendy and her grandchildren Lucy and Max leap in to save the town of Pumperton from deadly vipers! Can even Grandma Bendy outslither and outwit a sneaky snake?

Again it's an exciting early reader book that's full of characterful illustrations. If you'd love to catch up with Grandma Bendy's first adventure in picture book form, check out our original review!

"Grandma Bendy and The Great Snake Escape" by Izy Penguin is out in October 2016 also.

The final book in the initial Junior Readers batch is another space adventure...

In "Letter to Pluto" by Lou Treleaven with cover art by Katie Abey, meet Jon who is given a task by his teacher to spark up an interstellar pen pal conversation with Straxi, a strange alien living on Pluto.

It's a very long way for a letter to travel, and Jon initially isn't too sure he likes his Plutonian pal - she's a girl, what could they possibly even have in common?

The story is a delightful observation on childhood with an air of fantasy mixed in for a really nicely original and engaging story. Who knows, it might even inspire you to begin a classroom activity or home activity writing to a pen-pal yourself. We loved Lou's "Professor McQuark and the Oojamaflip" so check out our review if you'd like to see more of her work.

"Letter to Pluto" by Lou Treleaven and Katie Abey is out in October from Maverick Publishing.

Hopefully we'll soon see more from Maverick's brilliant Junior Readers lineup, continuing the solid work they've developed in early readers and picture books. Cool stuff, don't miss 'em in October!

There are a couple of new corkers from Maverick Books ready to grace your bookshelves, both were released on 28th May so we're playing catch up and taking a look.

In "George and the New Craze" by Alice Hemming and Kimberley Scott, you can once again join in with George the Giraffe and his animal pals. This time George is wondering what all the fuss is about when all his friends seem to be completely obsessed with a new card game and at first George feels left out. But as soon as he joins in, he realises that playing with friends - even if you don't always win - can be a huge amount of fun!

A great little tale, nicely observed and full of glorious animal characters. "George and the New Craze" is out now.

There's also a rather prissy and posh madam to contend with in "Not Enough for Queen Fluff" by Rachel Lyon and Catalina Echeverri. Queen Fluff, a rather pompous bunny, has everything she could possibly wish for. The finest clothes, the most amazing palace, and of course the tenderest morsels of food that the world's best chefs can prepare. But Queen Fluff realises she is lonely and decides that she'll go and stay with some of the bunnies in her realm, but only if they can measure up to her exacting standards.

The bunnies are poor though, and they can't possibly meet her ridiculous demands - and they're not sure they even want her to stay with them anyway, so they hatch a cunning bunny plan to put a spoke in Queen Fluff's wheel once and for all! Will she ever see the error of her ways?

A fabulous rhyming tale with a moral lesson for us all! Rather brilliant, and with superb illustrations it's going to win over your demanding kids as soon as they flip the front cover.

"Not Enough for Queen Fluff" is also out now, both published by Maverick Publishing.

We're off to see the animals in this funky little tale, and one animal in particular is almost beside himself with excitement. In "A Gold Star for George" it's awards time at the zoo and all the animals are on their best behaviour, hoping to win a gold star to display proudly on their enclosure.

George the Giraffe thinks he's a shoe-in for at least SOMETHING but as his other animal friends win most of the accolades, George feels a little left out.

Despite that, he's a fantastic and supportive friend. He might be rubbish at the hula-hoop and feel like he has no tricks to his name, but he's always rooting for his pals and genuinely pleased to see them winning.

Perhaps then, as George settles down to sleep that night, he might wake up to a surprise on his own enclosure the next morning?

A fab little tale of friendship, sportsmanship and generally being nice to others even if you're feeling a bit left out and a bit down. We love George, he's our kind of giraffe!

Charlotte's best bit: Those cheeky and rather messy meerkats!

Daddy's Favourite bit: A lovely little tale of friendship and sportsmanship with a fab giraffe character for us to root for. Hooray for George!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Maverick Publishing)

We have seen just about every twist on pirate stories, but we've definitely never seen a nautical tale where the main hero would rather operate heavy plant machinery. A young pirate's dream is not of booty or sailing the seven seas in "Pirates Don't Drive Diggers" by Alex English and Duncan Beedle. Our boy hero would much rather be behind the controls of a big yellow JCB or perhaps smashing down buildings with a ball and chain.

But a pirate's lot is not always a happy one, and the boy is sent to sea by his dad, determined to shake the poor lad of his obsession with diggers.

However, the lazy crew of the ship he's assigned to are utterly pants at finding treasure, so the poor lad is dispatched with a weather-worn map, to search an island for gold and jewels. Perhaps the boy's previous skills can come in handy after all?

This story bowls along at a cracking pace, and we rather like the mashup of story ideas here.

Charlotte's best bit: The little boy gets his wish, and finds out just how useful diggers really CAN be to pirates

Daddy's Favourite bit: A neat and novel twist on a piratical tale.

(Kindly sent to us for review by Maverick Publishing)

Socks! Dads hate them because they're usually the fall-back present whenever birthdays, christmas or Fathers Day (which is coming up soon, hint hint!) come around. But there is nothing quite like snuggling into a pair of lovely hand-knitted socks. A young lamb's granny is a sock-meister extraordinaire and loves to share her warm cuddly creations with the rest of the animals on the farm.

Our young hero decides that he'll help poor creaky granny out by distributing the socks to all the animals - but CALAMITIES! A missed footing, a heck of a trip and those socks and their carefully scribbled labels are scattered all over the place, and sorting out those mis-matched socks won't be easy. Perhaps the little woolly fellah can get some help?

A fun little tale of friendship, helping out and warm woollens. Even though it's sunny outside there's still a bit of a nip in the air, so don your comfy snuggly socks and settle down for a read!

"A Box of Socks" by Amanda Brandon and Catalina Echeverri is out tomorrow, 28th May 2015 from Maverick Publishing.

Charlotte's best bit: When all the animals end up with the wrong socks! Eeeks!

Daddy's Favourite bit: A fun and entertaining adventure that really socks it to you! I am so, so, sorry!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Maverick Books)

The future of parental enforcement is here and you have 20 seconds to comply! Here's "Robopop" which came out on 28th January but we wanted to make sure it made a book of the week slot because it's just SO GOOD!

It's 'Bring your Dad to School' day and everyone's dad seems to be amazing! Two children are rather embarrassed by theirs though. He's a hopeless cook and all he seems to do is invent stupid things.

Dad feels a bit unloved so decides to leave the kids with a rather special babysitter. Enter Robopop!

He's metal, he's mondo and at first the children seem to think he's spectacular...but Robopop's ideas for how to have a fun time soon see the two children tired out (and not at all popular with the neighbours or the children in the local park).

Robopop is a whizz at footie but his idea of a slap-up feast consists of spinach, spinach and more spinach! EW! He's rubbish at bedtime stories too, preferring a harsh regiment of robotic exercise before bed rather than a couple of pages of "The Fearsome Beastie".

Thankfully Dad comes back in the nick of time to rescue the kids from Robopop's craziness.

We can't get enough of this book and it goes without saying it's a fantastic book to read aloud, particularly if you love doing crazy robotic voices (I do!) Not sure about the location of Robopop's on switch though, I think we'd have used a long pointy stick to activate him!

Fantastic mechanical fun, we'd buy that for a dollar!

Charlotte's best bit: Robopop has some pretty funky ideas about pudding. More spinach? Don't mind if we don't!

Daddy's Favourite bit: It's a laugh-out-loud robotic caper that we instantly fell in love with. I wonder if I can convince Robo to look after Charlotte for the weekend..!

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Tin by Chris Judge

Robotslayer by Vince Kamp

Tweaking and twisting one of our favourite old children's stories and introducing a friendly(?) Grandma witch, "The Four Little Pigs" sees the civil-engineering piglet trio joined by a little boy who initially tells his grandma that her bedtime stories are "Booooooo-RING!"

I get this sometimes too, you see Charlotte doesn't instantly love every single book we review - Sometimes I have to insist on a read-through but I don't have Granny's magic powers to help me really immerse her in the story.

But in this tale that's exactly what she does to her grandson Tom. He becomes the fourth little pig, complete with snub nose and piggy tail. Tom arrives just in time to help the first little pig thwart the wolf's first attack and thanks to his inner knowledge of the story, he becomes a bit of a hero.

I love the fact that the real message of this tale has a lovely little two-forked celebration of reading aloud to children, and how awesome our grannies are. My Nan (bless her and rest her soul) always used to be able to predict what we were having for school lunch and claimed she was a witch too (and it took us many years to work out that she just used to lean over the fence and talk to our neighbour - who worked in the school kitchens!)

Charlotte's best bit: Tom comes up with a fantastic plan when it looks like the Wolf is going to make like Santa, and steal down the pig's chimney! OWWWWCH!

Daddy's Favourite bit: A neatly told and illustrated version of a well loved children's classic, given a cheeky tweak. Very cool!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Maverick Publishing)

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Pigs Might Fly (The Further Adventures of the Three Little Pigs) by Jonathan Emmett and Steve Cox

The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig by Eugene Trivizas and Helen Oxenbury

Here's a really lovely little book that really encourages you to dive in - though not literally of course! Preposterous Rhinoceros features a larger than life Rhino who decides to volunteer when Lion has a horribly sore throat, and can't read a bedtime story to the animals as usual. Salamander can read beautifully but she's too shy, so Rhino steps into the breach. There is a slight problem though, Rhino is a little bit confused as to how you actually get a book to do its thing!

"Just dive in, lovey" says Drama Llama (one of my fave characters, she reminds me of my sister!). Rhino takes her at her word and soon ends up with a very sore nose, owch!

"Get Stuck In" others advise, but again Rhino completely misunderstands and books and Rhinos don't really work together when they're covered in gooey sticky honey.

It takes shy salamander to point out that the very best way to get the most from a book is to learn how to READ it! She patiently teaches Rhino to read, and he's ready for his storytelling debut - just in time for Lion to come back with a ROARRRR! Oh no!

Will Rhino ever get to tell his bedtime tale? Join us for a read, and find out!

Preposterous Rhinoceros is out now from Maverick Publishing.

Charlotte's best bit: Rhino covering himself in honey to get 'really stuck in' to a book

Daddy's Favourite bit: Loved the bit where Rhino's shy little Salamander friend is teaching him to read properly.

(Kindly sent to us for review by Maverick Publishing)

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The Really Rude Rhino by Jeanne Willis and Tony Ross

Why? by Tracey Corderoy and Tim Warnes

Those snooping snafflehounds are back for another globetrotting adventure, this time finding themselves not lost in London, but at large in the U S of A!

Jack and Deputy Poco Loco return for a fourth outing and this time they have a new friend in tow. A wonderful little Opossum called Penelope who literally drops in on the pair, lost and a long way from home.

But never fear, the dog detectives are on the case - with Jack absolutely sure he knows a short cut back to Penelope's New York home.

Thus begins a caper across a continent as Jack and Poco Loco's navigational skills and local knowledge of short cuts is put to the test. It's a jolly good job Penelope doesn't have to be home in time for tea!

It's a fantastic excuse to get to know more of America and the amazing cities and landmarks you can find across the pond. Huge fun for kids who love exploring and finding out about other cultures and countries. Just never ever stop to ask Jack or Poco Loco for directions if you're lost!

Charlotte's best bit: Vegas, baby! Vegas!

Daddy's Favourite bit: A continent-spanning caper that cracks along at a fair old pace!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Maverick Publishing)

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The Dog Detectives - Lost in London by Fin and Zoa

Detective Paws by John O'Leary

Yay! It's time for another book in Julie Fulton's awesome "Everso" series, depicting the strange characters and comings & goings in Hamilton Shady. It's a crazy town and there's always something going on. Not the place for a peaceful holiday.

Even more so as we meet the latest character dreamed up by Julie and ace illustrator Elina Ellis. Daniel O'Dowd might look like a fairly ordinary boy, but like most boys he really isn't the quietest little dude. In fact most of the residents of Hamilton Shady need to walk around with cotton wool in their ears when Daniel is around.

The town is in peril though! Out in the dark reaches of outer space, a gigantic asteroid threatens to collide with earth, wiping out Hamilton Shady in the process. Could a loud-mouthed boy possibly save the world?

You'll have to read the book to find out. We have loved each and every one of Julie's books, but Charlotte was a little bit sad. One character was missing from the book, our favourite gastronome Mrs Macready was nowhere to be seen (or did we miss her completely Julie & Elina?)

"Daniel O'Dowd was Ever So Loud" is out today from Maverick Publishing.

Charlotte's best bit: The poor aliens who have to suffer a severe dose of earache thanks to Daniel

Daddy's Favourite bit: Awesome rhymes, perfect comic timing, another cracker from Julie and Elina

(Kindly sent to us for review by Maverick Publishing)

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Mrs Macready was Ever So Greedy by Julie Fulton and Elina Ellis

Miss Dorothy Jane was Ever So Vain by Julie Fulton and Elina Ellis

We've been following Julie Fulton's "Ever So" Series, absolutely hilarious rhyming books usually with a good moral tale woven between comedic moments. "Mrs Macready Was Ever So Greedy" is still a much-demanded bedtime favourite as is "Tabitha Posy Was Ever So Nosy" so can Julie and Jona keep up the momentum with a third book? You bet they can!

Miss Dorothy Jane is - well, as the title suggests, ever so vain and can't bear to leave the house without being topped out in the latest fashions. Her hair must be just so. Her make-up perfect. So when The Queen decides to visit Hamilton Shady for a grand opening, Dorothy-Jane immediately starts thinking about a new outfit. Hamilton Shady's most delightful citizen will get to meet the queen herself and Dorothy-Jane wants to make sure that she's the one chosen!

"Look Daddy there's Mrs Macready!" - Charlotte

You'd expect a self-obsessed fashion victim to be a bit of a bad egg but there's a surprise in store! As we've said, Julie's books are funny but as we follow Dorothy-Jane's attempts to keep her outfit, hair and makeup in tip-top condition on a fairly hazardous trip to the opening ceremony, something happens that  completely changes our perception of Miss Dorothy Jane. We'll leave you to find out what that is, of course.

Julie and Jona are a match made in booky heaven. Julie's rhymes trip off the tongue perfectly, and Jona's artwork is beautiful and colourful and laden with deft little touches of humour (and we loved Tabitha Posy and Mrs Macready making the odd cameo here and there too!)

"Would you have rescued the dog, Charlotte?" - Daddy
"Yes, but I wouldn't want to meet the Queen (!)" - Charlotte

Charlotte's best bit: Miss Dorothy Jane's utterly perfect outfits.

Daddy's Favourite bit: A genuine pleasure to read aloud and a great little moral message woven deftly into the humour. Another triumph for Julie and Jona. 

(Kindly sent to us for review by Maverick Publishing)

We're back and kicking off our happy new year of adventures in children's books we're taking a look at an interesting new title from Maverick Publishing. Maverick have put together some brilliant books and are a great place for debut authors to hone their craft.

With Alice Hemming and Kimberley Scott's "Black and White Club" The Heavenly Hippo Wildlife park is a paradise for all kinds of animals big and small, cuddly and cute. George the Giraffe lives in harmony with his fellow animals until one day, a group of penguins set up a new and rather exclusive club. Gathering together for fun and games, George wonders what he's missing out on and decides to try and sneak in. But a beautifully patterned giraffe does stick out like a sore thumb amongst the penguins, the lemurs and the zebras - so poor George is left out.

George and some of the other animals come up with a plan. If they can't join the Black and White Club, they'll do their own thing...!

The book was great for generating lots of discussion and questions. Charlotte wanted to know why the penguins were so mean, and why they wouldn't want George in their club! We discussed why the other animals rallied round and how having fun without excluding anyone was so much better than setting up boundaries and limits.

"Why didn't the penguins want George in their club, Daddy?" - Charlotte

Children are brilliant at seeing the world through eyes without such boundaries. I fear it's usually the influence of the adult world that begins to introduce them.

Charlotte's best bit: George's solution to the exclusive Black and White club.

Daddy's Favourite bit: A great book to kick off the new year, prompting lots of interesting discussion and debate!

(Kindly sent for review by Maverick Publishing)