These books stretch back, far back, way back to the very origins of this blog and in fact by the time we got round to reviewing these (just after we'd started up) we'd already been reading them to C almost on a nightly basis for two years.

Yes, they're that good. In fact these books are rare in that they're picture books that both my wife and I would read to C independently of each other.

You see even from when she was a tiny, tiny baby, barely able to make out the pictures and words in the books we'd read to her, we would take it in turns on alternative nights to pick a book out of our shelves and read it to her before bedtime. Nowadays it's just me, still clinging on on there with the bedtime book, even though we both suspect C loves them now more as a method of spending some time with us, and dragging bedtime out a bit longer than for a real desire to hear the books again and again.

Back to "Pants" though by Giles Andreae and Nick Sharratt. If ever there was a book that felt more like a song (in fact in the version we own, Lenny Henry does a VERY good job of "singing" the book) it's this.

It's a daft, cheeky and surreal look at our underwear. It's also one of those rhyming books that if we think hard enough, we can actually trot out by heart. I guess that's purely because we read it so many times.

"Pants to pick a daisy, pants for being lazy, PANTS ON YOUR HEAD WHEN YOU'VE GONE CRAZY!" (typed without cheating so possibly wrong).

The follow-up is equally brilliant and also appears on our keepers list...

Pretty much the same deal as the first but with a few new cheeky bits and new laughs, "More Pants" followed swiftly in the original book's wake.

We later picked up "Socks" (which wasn't written by Giles, instead penned by Elizabeth Lindsay) from the library but by then the magic had died. That fleeting moment of perfection in two books was lost, and in fact I was moderately surprised to find that "Socks" wasn't where the story ended, and there are now even more pants books than ever before. It's such a successful formula though, a brilliant combination of bold and colourful illustrations underpinned by the most pitch-perfect bouncy rhymes, the perfect way in fact to draw a tiny little girl into a love of books.

Original Review Links: 

Pants

More Pants

Socks by Elizabeth Lindsay and Nick Sharratt (David Fickling Books)

It's "Happy Birthday Dirty Bertie" day on ReadItDaddy today, and along with the children's picture books there's a range of early chapter readers featuring the boy with a billion dirty habits, Dirty Bertie himself.

The range now comprises 100 books covering a wide range of stomach-churning topics such as "Pants", "Bogeys", "Loo!", "Fleas!", "Germs!" and a whole host of other subjects dear to our favourite little flatulent fellah's heart.

We dipped into a few titles that Little Tiger Press were kind enough to send through for review - and though they're pitched at children slightly older than Charlotte (let's face it, grim and gross subjects NEVER get old for kids!) they're brilliantly written by the talented fella behind CITV's "Horrid Henry" series, Alan Macdonald.

With original illustrations peppered throughout the books by Dirty Bertie's creator, David Roberts, there's a whole host of giggles and guffaws to be had. The range is very reasonably priced so it won't wear too much of a hole in your pocket either!

Happy Birthday Bertie! Long may your nose be picked!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Little Tiger Press)

"I'm a Dingle Dangle Scarecrow" by Anne Kubler (Child's Play)

The earliest books we enjoyed with Charlotte were books where song and rhyme were key to enjoying the stories. For a long time, my usual choice of music in the car was replaced by all manner of story and song CDs (Mr Tumble, I think I know your songs better than most 4 year olds) and again at home we'd continue the theme.

It's always more enjoyable when your children start to want to sing along themselves, or join in with rhymes. Children are brought up on a whole range of popular nursery rhymes that have stayed more or less the same (despite various attempts to "politically correct" some like Baa Baa Black Sheep), and Child's Play's brilliant range of sing-a-long books are utterly fantastic. Big bold illustrations, chewable versions (not sure what Child's Play put in the 'recipe' for their card books but babies seem to love the taste of them) and even some that introduce sign language for added fun.

As Child's Play say themselves on their site, singing along with children as well as reading to them helps develop a strong parental bond, and even if you think you have the singing voice of a squashed crow, your child really won't mind (at least till they're 5, then they'll just tell you that you're rubbish but don't take it personally :)

Another book that was regularly demanded, mostly for its sing-a-long qualities was "Pants" by Giles Andreae and Nick Sharratt

New Pants, Blue Pants, One, Two, Three

Even now this book is a firm favourite (along with its sequel More Pants). We never quite got the hang of socks but both 'Pants' books are excellent for a bit of crazy sing-a-long action - particularly if you pick up the version with the musical CD accompaniment, by Lenny Henry. Ever sung about undercrackers in a reggae stylee? No? Well he has!

Words are gifts when freely shared

"We're going on a Bear Hunt" by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury (Walker Books)

The genius of this book is how interactive it is for young children. Before they can even begin to form words properly, before they can understand what words mean - they can get a lot out of a book that has such deliciously addictive alliterative sounds in it. Squishing, squelching, swishing, stumbling. Lots of 'S' words that trip off the tongue and for babies and toddlers, the chance to bounce in their seats and attempt to match what mummy or daddy are saying. 

"Pants" by Giles Andreae and Nick Sharratt

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. 

Amazon Link: £1.50








Ever wondered what secrets lie in a monarch's smalls drawer? Now you can find out with this tongue in cheek irreverent look at royalty's undergarments. The Queen's Knickers is cheeky and cheerful with plenty of amusing illustrations showing a day in the life of her majesty as she goes about her daily knicker-related business. Even though my toddler doesn't really understand who the queen is or what she does, she found this amusing and fun. 

Charlotte's best bit: The queen's funeral pants. 

Daddy's favourite bit: The washroom at Buckingham Palace. 

Rating: 4 out of 5

Amazon Link: £3.99









Probably one of the most popular books in Charlotte's library, Pants has been read so many times I can pretty much recite it off by heart. Two versions of the book are available (with and without an accompanying CD with versions of the story "sung" by Lenny Henry) and there's a sequel but the original Pants is excellent. 

The rhymes are bouncy and fun and of course there's something slightly naughty about a book full of pants so kids instantly seem to like it. Nick Sharrat's illustrations can be found in dozens of excellent books but the drawings in this and the animal characters appearing throughout the book are brilliant and every child will find a favourite. 

Charlotte's best bit: Identifying all the pants at the end of the book

Daddy's best bit: "Fairy Pants, Hairy Pants, Run away from Scary Pants!"

Rating: 5 out of 5