Lawks-a-Lordy! When Charlotte asked me who Russell Brand was, I had a bit of a quandary. How could I describe an actor, writer and comedian whose antics (on and off the pages of the red-tops) are not usually child friendly? (For info, I had to refer to him as one of the voices in "Despicable Me" and that still didn't really satisfy Charlotte's curiosity, so a little help here...?)

I've been intrigued by how Russell's first book for children would turn out, and when news leaked that Chris Riddell would be illustrating his set of "Trickster Tales" I was even more intrigued. An anarchic wit paired with an illustrative uber-meister? What could possibly go awry?

Nothing, is the short answer...and forgive me for being slightly more periphrastic with my language than usual for these reviews, I thought I'd try and emulate Brand's narrative in the retelling of the classic fairy tale, given a dark tweak of the neeps or two under Brand's locquacious pen.

The familiar tale of Hamelin begins with a description of the perfect town, where nothing goes wrong, everything is neat and tidy and ordered, and the townsfolk have little else to do all day but engage in fruitless competition over an atmosphere of tedious ennui. Everyone strives for perfection, so when a child is born who is 'less than perfect' in the eyes of the townsfolk, they reveal their hidden foulness, wanting to cast the child out. But his mother loves him, calls him Sam and defends him to the last, and so they make a life in Hamelin surrounded by scoffers, sneerers and ne'er do wells.

One particular ne'er do well is the biggest fattest bully-child in the town - who delights in picking on poor Sam. Along with the bully's compatriots (who are equally insidious), Brand really lets rip with his descriptions of these nasty tykes, sailing as close to the wind as the editors allowed (and boy oh boy, wouldn't you like to have seen the pitch meeting and the first draft of this book, if the final version is anything to go by?)

As the Townsfolk become more and more obnoxious, preparing for the "Prettiest Child" annual competition and parade, a plague of rats descends on Hamelin, ready to skitter amongst the perfection to wreak awful, terrible havoc. For a short while the rats rule the roost, but a mysterious stranger arrives - a Piper, with a simple remit.

"I can rid you of the rats" the Piper vows. "But I want paying in gold!"

I think it's worth pausing a moment here because you're probably more than familiar with the story, but I wanted to draw attention to Brand and Riddell's depiction of the Piper. Imagine if you can a cross between Alex from A Clockwork Orange, Noel Fielding and possibly even a smidgeon or two of Brand himself. Clad in pointy boots, a harlequin-esque jumpsuit, with hair as black as a crow's backside and a hat to match. He's exactly as you'd want the Piper to be orally and visually described. A saviour? Perhaps, but with the darkest blackest judicial heart beating silently under his cloak.

As the story unwinds, the Piper does as he is bid and rids Hamelin of the scourge. The Townsfolk (who, as we've already ascertained, are a nasty bunch bar Sam and his Mum) try to wriggle out of payment - offering the Piper a sandwich and nothing else. Needless to say, this isn't exactly a good move for a bunch of brainless nitwits and the Piper will be paid - or exact his terrible revenge!!

I'll leave you to discover the ins and outs of how the story plays out in Brand and Riddell's version of events, suffice to say that both of us could not put this book down. It's long for a children's book but we wanted to read it through - twice - before bed.

A note of caution though. Of all the celebrity-penned children's books we've seen while we've been compiling posts for this blog, this is the one that you can close your eyes for a second after reading a paragraph or two, and imagine Russell Brand himself writing it, reading it aloud and then arguing vociferously with editors and probably even with Chris over how exactly this book should look, feel and sound when it hits eager hands after purchase. Because of that, it's something that you'll probably want to read through yourself before letting your little ones loose on it. I can take or leave Mr B, but I do get pretty uppity about 'celebrity' books, and the veiled assumption that writing for kids is a piece of cake - anyone can do it. Of course, dear children's book blog reader, you and I know different.

There is also slight irony in the fact that Brand's latest "Grown Up" book Revolution is being described as long-winded, rambling and smug when this first Trickster Tale is also being slammed for similar reasons in the broadsheets.

It's not particluarly long winded, doesn't ramble and gets to the core point of the tale with a fair amount of style and aplomb. It's certainly not smug either, in fact it's easy to see how the whole idea of letting Brand put a modern spin on classic fairy tales could've suffered adversely under the wrong editorial hand.

And that, dear reader, is an impressive achievement for any author. It's actually quite tricky and delicious to read aloud, it's quite rude in places (not too much, but I would probably aim it squarely at children a couple of years older than Charlotte who can probably stomach all-too-descriptive passages about pierced nipples and slick poo) but it's undoubtedly stamped with Brand through and through.

Writing aside, Chris Riddell's illustrations are (as you'd expect) utterly and completely brilliant so if you really can't stomach the thought of Brand having his wicked way with your favourite fairy tales, at least let Chris's visuals talk to you in their anarchic inky tones instead. Some of the page spreads in this are truly glorious.

The only real 'no getting away from it' negative points I'd have to raise about the book are the fact that certain words are explained throughout the story in little box-out clouds - and there's also a glossary of terms at the back. Personally I'd have let children ask the meanings of the words of their parents - no better excuse to dig out a dictionary and increase your own vocabulary but a big fat hooray for at least leaving those lengthy complicated words in! There's also the fact that Brand played it fairly safe, merely adapting (an eventual set of) traditional tales rather than coming up with his own stories. Not such an easy gig after all, writing for kids!

Charlotte's best bit: There are several wordless spreads in the book as the piper weaves his musical magic, first on the rats and then on the townsfolk and they're just utterly brilliantly illustrated (though she also rather loved the 'roundabout language' (as she described it) in the story.

Daddy's Favourite bit: I'll be perfectly honest, I expected to hate this. "Yet another celebrity cashing in on what they think is an easy gig" was my first thought but I was won over in a matter of pages. It's ribald, rude, it's funny and it's hugely entertaining. Brand's writing is hectic, chaotic but always expertly constructed and beautiful to read aloud (you can definitely visualise the man himself reading it in your head!) Chris Riddell's illustrations are (as ever) utterly and completely perfect too. A belter! More please Mr Trickster sir, more please!1

(Kindly sent to us for review by Canongate Books)

I know you'll probably accuse us of playing favourites on the blog from time to time. Certain authors and illustrators hit our Book of the Week slot with consummate ease and Emma Chichester-Clark recently found her way into our hearts with her awesome "Plumdog" book.

We're currently marvelling at her latest children's book which is just so good that once again it's deserving of our Book of the Week accolade. In "Bears Don't Read" we meet a rather large but thankfully quite placid grizzly bear named George who isn't really satisfied with his life. "Is this all there is?" he muses as he stares out across the wonderful scenery of the valley where he lives, watching his brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews all seemingly happy with their grizzly bear lives.

Everything changes when the bear finds a book that someone has lost in the forest. A book, showing the most wonderful things - and suddenly the bear realises that there is indeed more to life, and more books out there. From that moment on, George is determined to track down the owner of the book and see if they will teach him to read too. His family think he's crazy and sadly wave George off as he embarks on the long long journey into town to find people, and hopefully a willing teacher.

The next scene, once George hits town, is Charlotte's favourite spread in the whole book. You can imagine the scene as a giant grizzly pops up. Poor George doesn't know why everyone's running (including a couple of very familiar looking dogs that made Charlotte quite literally clap with glee!) - but he manages to ask a passer by where his book might've come from. The school, of course the school! The school is attended by a little girl, Clementine. Could she hold the key to fulfilling George's dearest wish, to learn to read himself?

I'm trying not to gush about the rest of the book, there are scenes in this that are so expertly handled by Emma - for instance when George is confronted by a rather menacing set of riot police, the scene is actually quite scary for little ones. Thankfully there are no guns, no violence - and in reality the rather loud and pompous police chief might not be such a bad egg after all.

OK no more spoilers. This book celebrates the sheer joy of reading, the possibilities it opens up - and one bear's ultimate wish to join those of us who know the greatest pleasure of wrapping ourselves up in fantastic books - books such as this in fact - and losing ourselves in their brilliant worlds.


Charlotte's best bit: That fabulous scene where George hits town. Look very closely to see a few rather special canine guest stars!

Daddy's Favourite bit: Love the twist, the brilliant brilliant twist - and George is just such a wonderful creation. If your children already love Blue Kangaroo they are going to REALLY love this. Utterly and completely sublime, and we cannot wait for you to read it!

(Kindly sent to us by HarperCollins Children's Books)

We've had our eye on this book for a long time. Charlotte, because "Jack and the Beanstalk" is one of her favourite fairy stories, and she can't resist re-tellings of this classic tale. Me, because I'm completely in love with the warm fuzzy 40s/50s Americana type of artwork that Colin Stimpson and quite a few other children's illustrators are so expert at working into brilliant children's books.

The story opens with Jack and his mum running a successful snack van in the busy heart of a huge sprawling metropolis. People come from miles around to sample their delicious burgers, fantastic fries and damned fine coffee. But changes are afoot, the city is undergoing huge growth and soon a flyover is planned - that will mean folk will bypass Jack and his mum's snack van completely.

For a while things aren't too bad as the builders and construction crews bring regular business in until the flyover is complete. But then, once it's done, no one comes around any more - and Jack and his mum get down to their last few pennies.

Mum gives Jack the money and tells him to go and pick up some coffee and bread, after all people might still want to stop by for a breakfast or something. But a mysterious old man convinces Jack that he'd be better off spending his money on a magical can of baked beans instead.

Jack knows the classic fairy story just as you do, and when he gets home he's disappointed to find that mum has no faith in the old legends, and throws the tin of baked beans out of the window (where it bursts, scattering juicy beans all over the place).

What happens the next morning? You've guessed it - a giant baked beanstalk springs up, and not only is it covered in a gorgeous crop of the best beans Jack has ever tasted, the beanstalk snakes up into the sky leading to...fortune and glory perhaps?

What Jack finds at the top of the beanstalk after a hearty beany breakfast, we'll leave for you to discover. There is a giant but he's not the sort of evil fellow who will grind your bones to make his bread. There is a hen that lays golden eggs, but instead of a harp you'll find something a bit more swinging.

OK no more spoilers. As I said at the top of this review we've been hoping we'd get a copy of this - but our library came up trumps instead and we've been wrapped up in this fantastic tale ever since. Colin has produced a brilliant version of the old story, updated with a kicking 40s / 50s vibe. The art is simply stunning (if there's one thing you can rest assured of with Templar, it's that they really do attract the best author-illustrators in the business) and I'm actually thankful that, for once, here's a book about baked beans that spares us all that parping and windy nonsense that usually accompany any kids book where the delectable tinned side order features heavily.

I'm now on a mission to track down anything else Colin Stimpson has done, and we'll be picking up our own copy of this book as soon as we can. It's utterly fantastic.

Charlotte's best bit: The world's biggest and tastiest looking omelette - so good in fact that you could almost live in it!

Daddy's Favourite bit: An utterly fantastic retelling of a classic tale, with some of the best artwork you'll ever see in a children's book. It's "bean" worth the wait :)

My lovely other half is such a huge fan of "A Streetcat named Bob" by James Bowen - that I thought I'd hand over the reins and let her take over for this week's Book of the Week.

So take it away StrollingMum!

I've been given the chance to take over read it daddy's blog for one post, nothing to do with days out but because of a lovely cat book.

My name is Bob landed on the door step and the moment readitdaddy saw it he knew I had to be the first to get my paws on it (sorry), as a few years ago my mum loaned me "A Streetcat Named Bob" and I loved it.

This illistrated book is equally well written and goes back to the time before James (Bowen) and Bob met. The start of the book is fictional (you would only know this
if you had read the original book) but it draws on the point of two lost souls finding each other at just the right time in their lives.

The rest of the story summaries the paperback book into a few pages of James nursing Bob back to health (which Charlotte thought was lovely and she loved the art work that went with this) and how they go about their days together.

Near the back are some lovely photos of James and Bob busking together and on the last page is a short summary about James and Bob for those who wish to know a little more about their touching story.

Its a lovely book, extremely well illistrated and prompted a few questions from Charlotte about nursing a cat, what do you think happened to the old lady, why are some
street cats scary and not Bob. She loved James' guitar but didn't ask many questions about busking. Even the cover is well thought out and she loved the paw print facts
on the back. I think Grandma is going to enjoy looking at this book too.

Here's a wonderful YouTube Link of James reading the book to Bob (who seems suitably impressed!)

Here's another brilliant video about the book, this time showing Gerard Kelley producing the gorgeous artwork for the story (I want that Cintiq - Daddy!)

Charlotte's best bit: When Bob is hurt but James is making him better, also the picture of Bob in his tuxedo.

Mummy's Favourite bit: The way the book introduces homelessness in a way that adults would probably pick up on but not younger children, explaining how Bob is homeless through no fault of his own, how lonely life is and how you struggle to make friends.

(Kindly sent to us for review by Red Fox Picture Books - and thank you Mummy for writing such a cracking post!)

Goldilocks is one of Charlotte's favourite traditional stories. I think it's because Goldilocks is a bit of a subversive devil-may-care character who is a little naughty, and gets away with it too (depending on which version of the story you read).

When you hear that Anthony Browne has reworked the story and given it a poignant contemporary message, you sit up and take notice. Not just because Anthony Browne's artwork can sometimes carry some of his less impactive books, but because he is a writer who can truly deliver on a promise like that.

So Goldilocks in "Me and You" isn't really a character from the wrong side of the tracks, she's not really naughty either - Goldilocks here is a poor girl separated from her mother during a trip to town, whose curiosity leads her to the bear's house. The 3 bears in the story seem to have a privileged life, comfy surroundings, a house full of light and colour and plenty of food on the table. This is definitely not the impression you get about Goldilocks' home life at all.

The beauty of this book is that the story unfolds largely thanks to the reader. Your interpretation of what you're seeing, and your interpretation of what you're reading (and reading into Anthony Browne's subtle theme woven between the threads of the traditional story) is so utterly clever and thumbs the heartstrings rather beautifully. Not least of all when the story reaches a climax that wasn't in the original, but works absolutely perfectly.

This book is a few years old now but it so deserves a lot more attention. If you think you've read every single take there is on Goldilocks, make room for one more, this is superb.
Charlotte's best bit: The great 'reaction' when Goldilocks realises the three bears have come back home

Daddy's Favourite bit: One of the best retellings of Goldilocks, proving that Anthony Browne engages and works with the reader in such subtle and wonderful ways. An important book this, and it so deserved a lot more attention. Go find it in your library or pick up a copy if you can.

I really wish we had the opportunity to review Walker Books more often (hint hint massive hint!). I'd never heard of "Grandma's Gloves" before, but like quite a few of our library picks, we were both completely entranced by the cover of this one and grabbed it straight away.

I didn't preview the book before taking it home but had an inkling that it would be a book rightly celebrating fantastic grandmas.

There is a lot more to it than that though, in fact I half wish I had previewed it because it had such a powerful effect on Charlotte - even more so when she next saw her own Grandma.

The little girl in the story narrates the book, and introduces us to Grandma, who is always pottering around in the garden with a huge pair of flowery gloves on, who always knows the right thing to say, and who dishes up the most scrumptious fare. The little girl loves her very much, so part way through the book when Grandma is taken ill, is not herself and eventually dies, it's like a thumping great big whump in the heart.

The book thoughtfully and sensitively deals with the loss of a loved one through gentle text and the most sublime illustrations, delicate and beautiful. The impact of Grandma's loss is felt by both the girl and her mother, and as friends and family gather to remember Grandma, each has their own particular special memory or reminiscence of a truly wonderful lady.

Children think about mortality (their own, and those they love and cherish) more than we give them credit for and in some ways parents (particularly softies like me) try to protect them from grief and loss as much as possible for as long as possible. Books like this help hugely, and particularly help us to impart to our children the importance of enjoying our elders, celebrating them whenever we can and ensuring that we never forget them when they pass.

What a truly wonderful book to find amongst the library stacks.

Charlotte's best bit: A book that made her think about her own grandparents, and love and cherish them even more than she already does.

Daddy's Favourite bit: Thoughtful and sensitive handling of an uber-tough subject. Absolutely in love with Julia's illustrations in this, they're just so fantastic.

It's a hard life sometimes, being an international cat of mystery. One plans a holiday but before one can even pack a pair of kipper slippers, one's special services are required.

Helen Hancocks has an uber-sharp wit, a fabulous eye for a canny pun or two and in this cheese-fest of a story, William - the aforementioned detective cat - is called upon by Monsieur Gruyere to solve the most dastardly crime of the century, the theft of the Mona Cheesa.

Monsieur Gruyere is at his wits end, but William jets to Paris to get right on the case. It's not long before he realises that National Cheese Week, a mysterious stranger and an art contest are all somehow tied in with the theft.

We've had quite an arty week, soaking up Helen's fabulous reworkings of famous paintings in this book (The wonderful Book Sniffer let us in on a secret - lift up the flyleaf cover of the book for a surprise!) It was actually great fun diving onto the Internet to show Charlotte the real paintings that Helen based some of her mogtastic versions on (particularly loved the cat version of Edvard Munch's "The Scream" and a rather nifty homage to fromage in her version of "Dejeuner Sur L'Herbe")

Back to the case and William decides on a stake out, with an eye on the art contest, surely the dastardly thief is sure to show his or her colours. Will William solve the crime and be back home in time for a brie baguette?

Everything about this book tickles our fancy, from the brilliantly funny story to the cheesy works of art. Charlotte also loved the various cameos by a certain black-and-white flippered chap (You know who we mean!) and I had a ball spotting the myriad art references Helen has worked into the story (see how many you can spot!)

Utterly, completely brilliant, and actually a really nice jumping off point if your child is interested in art, enjoys the story and wants to discover more. By the way, we think the real William is as dapper as his book counterpart - and we hope Book William is ripe for more cheesy adventures in the not too distant future.

Charlotte's best bit: Spotting all the different cameos by a very well loved character from Helen's other book (no spoilers!)
Fave cheese: Big fat Mozzarella!

Daddy's Favourite bit: So many giggles and guffaws, and absolutely loved all the classic art reworked in Helen's own style. Dare I say "Brie-lliant!"
Fave Cheese: Shropshire Blue on a nice crusty sourdough roll

(Kindly sent to us for review by Templar Publishing)

We had to double up on our Book of the Week nominations for this week, simply because there was no dividing our two choices and we couldn't wait to share both with you with as much enthusiasm as possible. So you've seen our Hermelin review, it's now time to shift gears to focus on a book that's like a huge big sledgehammer-sized whump in the heart to read, and one that we've shared between family members, each coming away from it with something subtly different.

"Grandma" by Jessica Shepherd, like "Really and Truly" deals with a subject that's extremely difficult to explain to a child, but this book does so in a sensitive, thoughtful and patient way.

Jessica Shepherd's book is borne of years of working in care situations, experiencing first-hand situations like the one so touchingly described in the story. Oscar talks about Grandma, and how she's an amazing energetic person full of joie de vivre. She loves to play, she loves to read stories, and always makes time for Oscar.

Grandma becomes ill, and has to move into a sheltered home in order to be looked after properly. It takes a while for Oscar to adjust, but with lots of help on hand, and lots of other people to talk to, Grandma gets the sort of care and attention she needs.

Oscar doesn't understand why Grandma gets angry sometimes, or doesn't recognise him, but knows that deep down in his heart Grandma is the same person, still well loved and a part of a loving family.

My wife commented on how fantastic this book is, and how it helps Charlotte understand the situation with her own two great-grandmas (Great Nanny and Great Grandma) who suffer from dementia. This year has been particularly tough as the marked change in both of them has been rapid, taking most of us (including Charlotte) by surprise with how quickly things can change. Child-friendly illustrations add to the sensitive and thoughtful text, and there's a reference at the end to explain some of the terms used in the book so that children can read and refer to them to gain a greater understanding (though the story conveys things so fantastically on its own).

Jessica's book is quite rightly championed by everyone who has read it so we really needed to experience it for ourselves. (Please drop by Carmen's "Rhino Reads" blog for her review of both Grandma and "Really and Truly"). Child's Play very kindly sent us a copy and it's been read and re-read ever since.

It's often difficult to adequately describe what dementia is to a child, or what it means when a well-loved family member begins such a rapid spiral into such a horrible disease. This book has helped us a lot, and if you're in a similar situation we seriously cannot recommend it highly enough.

Charlotte's best bit: Finding out about Grandma's new home (with a brilliant floor plan drawn to show where everything is)

Daddy's Favourite bit: A book that took us all on an emotional roller-coaster, but has been a hugely valuable book to help Charlotte (and us) understand what it feels like to be in this situation

(Kindly sent to us for review by Child's Play Books)

We tried not to make yet another Hilda adventure "Book of the Week", after all Luke Pearson has already scored a hat-trick with the previous three Hilda books - but it was impossible, truly impossible not to. If you're the sort of person who reads book reviews and hates it when the reviewer(s) gushes on in a fanboy/girl deluge of praise, then I guess you'd better tune out now.

If you're new to the Hilda books by Luke Pearson I envy you. No, really I do - because you've yet to discover why they're so brilliant. Though Luke Pearson is as Scandinavian as a packet of Ryvita, he's managed to perform the minor miracle of tapping into Nordic folklore in a way that has won him an army of fans (quick - come up with a snappy name for them? Ooh how about "Hildafolk!" - Naw, think that's been used before somewhere...hmmm).

If you're an old stager, you'll already know how great the Hilda comics are and how they have a broad appeal to both boys and girls (and even grown up people too!) It's the exciting mix of having a girl hero who is gutsy, fearless and interesting combined with that aforementioned flavour of nordic spruce, plus the sort of supporting cast that has crafty folk throughout the land cracking out their needles, threads, knitting materials and crochet hooks to knock up likenesses of their favourite characters.

Hilda's fourth (and in our opinion her best) adventure sees her still living in Trollberg, resorting to camping out in her room rather than risk venturing out into the sprawling city. Hilda's (poor put-upon) mum comes up with a grand plan - to enrol Hilda in the local scout troop to stop her kicking her heels around the house.

Hilda (as ever) has her own ideas about what being a scout is all about, and can't wait to go on a camping expedition. But while out with mum she runs into a Nisse, a mysterious (and rather hirsute) house spirit who has a dark secret.

When Hilda encounters Tontu (the spirit) again on her camping trip, a mystery begins to unravel regarding a spectral hound that has been haunting Trollberg's streets, gobbling up the residents!

The story is wonderfully paced, and despite sounding a bit scary for youngsters, it's beautifully told and gorgeously illustrated just as all the other Hilda adventures have been.

As ever, you'll enjoy the tiny little details Luke Pearson crams into every comic frame, and the peerless way he has of inventing crazy characters and plots that just. plain. work.

We've been through "Hilda and the Black Hound" several times now, and it's given us the incentive to go through all the other Hilda books again, just to soak up the brilliance of a comic genius who is consistently fabulous at drawing us into his amazing make-believe world, and making us feel like staying there forever.

So it's four "book of the week" nominations for Luke and his glorious creation. Thoroughly well deserved.

If you're a parent looking for that first set of comics to get your child interested, you really ought to investigate Hilda, she truly does rock our socks off!

Charlotte's best bit: Worryingly, Charlotte really enjoyed the knockabout section where two Nisse come to a disagreement over who should live at Hilda's place!

"Black Hound" is by far our favourite Hilda adventure. It's funny, smart, chock full of gorgeous detail with a wholly original storyline and an absolute ton of Hilda fan service. We do miss that wooden guy but Tontu is an ace 'replacement'

(Kindly sent to us for review by the truly awesome Pip at Bounce Marketing / Flying Eye Books)

The very worst thing about being on a healthy eating kick is that you find yourself suddenly assaulted with gorgeous images of cake wherever you look. When we picked up "Ronny Rock Starring in Monster Cake Meltdown" from the library, we had no idea that we'd fall prey to the very thing that the book mentions in its first few pages. Rivers, nay oceans of drool as we read with mouths watering.

Ronny Rock is the rather cool-sounding hero of a book about a boy and a bakery. Imagine living with your dad in a bakery, knowing that all day every day the shop would be filled with tempting treats, sumptuous desserts and dreamy birthday cakes.

Ronny Rock's life is sweet indeed.

One night Dad opts for a night out at the cinema, and leaves Ronny's best friend (and slightly wonky teenage role model) Kieran to look after Ronny. While larking around in the bakery, the troublesome twosome find something that completely ruins their evening. A missing letter, requesting a birthday cake! Ronny's dad has gone to the cinema, and a monster cake absolutely MUST be delivered on time for the following day! Calamity!

But what can a boy and a teenager do? Can they possibly rise to the challenge of the great babysitting bake-off?

Trust us, you will need something to mop up the dribble as Bruce Ingman's gorgeous illustrations expertly mix with this entertaining story by Merryn Threadgould. All the ingredients are there for a bounteous book of the week. Cast your diet aside, and dive in!


Charlotte's best bit: The Red Racing Car Cake. Vroom Vroom!

Daddy's Favourite bit: A fantastically original story, but those illustrations, arrrgh it's enough to make us throw off our diet and nip down to the bakery! CAKE!!!

It's not easy being a parent at times, particularly if your little girl is slightly obsessed with princesses. You have to try and balance that with ticking all the "right-on parent" boxes by encouraging your little girl to seek better role models than pink coiffured pretty princesses with perfect complexions and ridiculously unrealistic body shapes.

We don't really put as much effort into achieving this balance as others do, if we're brutally honest. Children are children for such a short time that we don't actually mind Charlotte buying into the onslaught of Disneyfication or pinkness, as long as she's enjoying herself, having fun - and of course being a kid.

So when we find books that help us out a little with this balancing act, we embrace them enthusiastically. Bloomsbury's range is always full of interesting and diverse books and none more so than a range of Princess books with a difference.

Kate Lum and Sue Hellard's "Princess are not just" range are fantastic for several reasons. They do actually feature pink-clad princesses with wonderful dresses, cool accessories and cute little pets that appeal to Charlotte's girly side - but they're also princesses with huge hearts as you'll see in this tale.

Princess Allie (my favourite, she's got red hair and freckles like Charlotte's mum, who is also called Ali!), Princess Libby and Princess Mellie live in harmony until one day Princess Mellie boldly announces that she is the prettiest princess of them all. Naturally Allie and Libby disagree, but there's really only one way to settle the argument - Hold a royal beauty contest!

Four judges are rounded up, and long-suffering housekeeper Mrs Blue is rushed off her feet preparing for the big day.

Allie, Libby and Mellie put a huge effort into their costumes, their makeup and their beauty routines (this is actually one of the funniest bits in the book - did you know royal princesses bathe in vast tubs of greeny-brown goo? You do now!)

As the three make their way to the contest, things go a little awry as the good townsfolk need help. Are the princesses too pretty and proud to pitch in?

We'll let you read the book and find out! Kate Lum and Sue Hellard's "Princess are not" range are absolutely fantastic (Check out Princesses are not Perfect and Princesses are not Quitters - We really want to read these too!)

"Princesses are not just Pretty" is out on March 27th 2014. Don't miss it!

Charlotte's best bit: Princess Libby the expert swimmer, saving a gorgeous kitten from drowning!

Daddy's Favourite bit: They're pink, they're beautiful, but they've got big brains and huge hearts! That's how we like our princesses!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Bloomsbury Publishing)

Muhahaha! I get to choose a Birthday Book of the Week this week, but thankfully despite a very tough choice both Charlotte and I agreed on this one.

Flying Eye Books hit our "Book of the Week" slot consistently during 2013 with a series of fascinating and brilliant books. It looks like they're set to do exactly the same in 2014 too. We've had our eye on "Shackleton's Journey" for quite some time, presenting a factual account of Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton's ambitious expedition to cross Antarctica from sea to sea via the South Pole. Presenting history in a way that children will both understand and engage with is a very neat trick if you can pull it off. William Grill's approach is to effectively present the expedition and the run-up to Shackleton's departure in a deconstruction of the mission, the preparation and the eventual fate of Shackleton and his crew.

The Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition was a huge undertaking, requiring funding and sponsorship, and vast quantities of resources - let alone a trusty vessel capable of making the long journey far south. In this centenary year of the beginning of the voyage, it's a great opportunity to read a book that can spur the imaginations of children to think about what life must've been like in an era where there were still one or two places left unexplored in the world.

Setting sail on the Endurance (Images © William Grill / Flying Eye Books)

Though previous expeditions (including those by Robert Falcon Scott - a mission Shackleton was sent home early from on health grounds, and Roald Amundsen) had already reached Antarctica and the South Pole, no one had attempted to cross the entire continent. Already a veteran of several polar expeditions, Shackleton gathered his crew and a sturdy vessel, the Endurance, and set sail.

William Grill's book provides brilliant illustrations to draw children in, and then sets out an exciting pace as each stage of the expedition unfolds.

99 dogs were needed for the expedition. We swiftly skipped past one or two of the names! (Images © William Grill / Flying Eye Books)

As with all books of this nature, they satisfy an enquiring mind up to a point, so it's been great to dive onto the internet and find out a little more about Shackleton and the mission itself, and the hardships involved 100 years ago when embarking on such a perilous quest.

It's an amazing book and it's going to be one of those books that we come back to again and again. Testament to how brilliant this is for a range of ages is that my mother in law asked to borrow it once we'd finished reading it!

Charlotte's best bit: Completely fascinated and bewitched by this book, really immersive and fantastic for her. 

Daddy's Favourite bit: Such a beautifully presented book detailing a fascinating glimpse of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition

(Kindly sent to us for review by Bounce / Flying Eye Books)

In the Centenary year of the outbreak of World War 1, children's authors and artists have dug deep to come up with many brilliant children's books to ensure that our youngsters never forget the conflict, or the sacrifices made by their ancestors. It's not an easy subject to tackle for children Charlotte's age, though we've looked at several excellent non-fiction books that examine the history to provide facts and figures about the war itself. This is the first fictional title we've encountered, and it's an astonishingly beautiful book.

"Where the Poppies Now Grow" tells the tale of two childhood friends, Ben and Ray, who grow up together, play together - and then go to war together. Hilary Robinson's story slowly builds in prose to tell the boys tale as they deal first hand with the horrors of war. Sensitively written and beautifully illustrated by Martin Impey, we read and enjoyed the story (but I really had to fight hard to keep the tears at bay).

The book triggered deep discussions about the conflict, and what it meant to families to see men - and sometimes boys - heading off to the front, to fight in a war that had such a terrible toll.

It feels like a fitting homage to some of the classic war poems by Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen. A timely reminder to us all that the many, many people who died in "The Great War" did so in order that we could live in peace.

It's been asked for again and again by Charlotte, who now wants to find out a little more about members of our family who fought in the First World War (my great great grandfather for instance, who was a gunner and survived the conflict to become a policeman afterwards).

Charlotte's best bit: The boys as old men at the end. So touching.

Daddy's Favourite bit: A hugely important piece of work, absolutely vital to help children learn about and understand the sacrifices made in World War 1

(Kindly sent to us for review by Strauss House Productions)

Without libraries, we might struggle to find wonderful books like this week's "Book of the Week". Though Robert Munsch's books are near legendary in the US, I've never come across them before here in the UK. The copy we found in our local library was "well loved" (book speak for "I really hope the librarians don't think WE spilled that junk on the book while reading it") but we couldn't resist its lure.

You see, we love a gutsy, smart and brave princess. Though Charlotte will coo over Ariel or squirm with delight over Princess Jasmine, she loves it when book heroines take no nonsense during the course of their story. Even more so if they aren't into all that horrid smoochy "marry the first prince that comes along" stuff.

Initially our hearts sank. In "The Paper Bag Princess" Robert Munsch pulls a bit of a double-switch, fooling the casual reader into believing that Princess Elizabeth has gone all goo-goo over the rather vain, incredibly stupid and intensely annoying Prince Ronald. In fact, when Ronald is kidnapped by a destructive death-dealing dragon, who leaves poor Princess Elizabeth without a stitch of clothing, we were a bit upset that Liz trounced off after him so readily. But read on, dear heart, read on.

You see, it doesn't take Elizabeth very long to find the dragon and the kidnapped prince. It also doesn't take her very long to get the measure of the nasty beast, who may be fast and strong and fearless, but is also definitely a few brain cells short of a smartie tube.

Clad in a paper bag, Princess Elizabeth takes on the dragon, setting him a series of challenges to prove his strength and cunning. The dragon readily accepts, but Liz has a superb plan in mind that the dragon is too vain to see through.

"Did she just call Ronald a bum? Hee Hee!" - Charlotte

Everything about this story made us feel giggly and great by the end. Princess Elizabeth joins the ranks of our other favourite storybook princesses, showing that sisters are doin' it for themselves and nasty little vain picknose princes had better watch out!

Charlotte's best bit: Princess Elizabeth taking about all she can take of Ronald's rudeness. The silly little oik!

Daddy's Favourite bit: For those who have loved "The Worst Princess" and "Princess Smartypants" - definitely don't miss out on The Paperbag Princess. She rocks!

Our first book of the week of 2014 is a book we've been meaning to get around to for a very long time. Shaun Tan's "The Arrival" is a book that so many people have praised and recommended to us that we couldn't ignore the clamour of positive voices any longer. Naturally everyone was right, this is by far one of the most amazing children's books ever produced and one that cements Tan into place as one of our favourite children's author-illustrators.

But is it even fair to label this as a children's book? Certainly it's not an easy subject to tackle and it's an extremely difficult book to 'read' to a child for several reasons.

Firstly, it's wordless. Secondly, it deals with a fairly grown up subject (or an entire set of subjects actually, it's that granular) and thirdly it's quite long and involving so definitely not a quick bedtime read by any measure.

But it's an astonishing piece of work. Breaking slightly away from his usual style, Tan claimed he felt uncomfortable illustrating "The Arrival" with its semi-photographic style, and the use of live models throughout to ensure that the human characters are absolutely spot on (and they are).

"So the giants are killing every one with the fiery hoovers on their backs? That's horrible!"- Charlotte

A man leaves his wife and child, and his home country behind as dark dragon-like shadows stalk through their city. Wrenched from his family, the man embarks on a long and difficult journey to a new land where nothing is quite as it seems, where the familiar and unfamiliar rub shoulders and the language barrier is just one of a number of obstacles set to make the man's new life as tough as possible.

The new world is vibrant, surreal and full of wonder. As the man struggles through immigration (chilling scenes here that echo what most refugees have to put up with at border controls) and adjusts to the customs of his newfound home, he thinks of his family and what he must do to earn enough to get back to them.

Kindly (and not so kindly) strangers are met, and in one particularly harrowing set of pages, another refugee tells his own story.

Pause for a moment. If you've ever seen movies like "War of the Worlds" where the alien killing machines make that sort of horrific half air-raid siren / half fog-horn noise, that's the noise you'll have in your head as the stranger recounts the tale of the giants who destroyed his land (and in such a horrific way too. This bit was probably a bit too disturbing for Charlotte and in subsequent readings we've hurried past it briskly but right there is one of the darkest scenes in any graphic novel let alone children's book).

The richness, the cleverness of Tan's visual mind spills onto every page. If anything, it's almost too detailed - you can get lost in the pages of "The Arrival" for hours as you pore over every tiny little stroke rendered with such attention and care.

"I would like a pet like that!" - Charlotte

"The Arrival" is worthy of all the praise we can heap on it and more, and others who have recently experienced it will probably feel the need to do as we did when we first read Shaun Tan's books, hunt down the rest and read them all.

Wordless picture books allow us to interpret their granularity in our own way. For me, obvious allegorical comparisons to the plight of the Jews in Nazi Germany as World War II broke out are unavoidable. For Charlotte, the beginning of understanding what it must be like to be a stranger in a strange land, forced to emigrate to feed your family or just to stay alive.

Stunning, scintillating, vital. Do not miss it.

Charlotte's best bit: The man's rather engaging lizard-dog-fish-pet and all the other wonderful hybrid creatures Shaun Tan is so expert at drawing. 

Daddy's Favourite bit: An absolute belter of a first Book of the Week for us. One that will stand up to being pored over for years to come and establishing Tan as a supreme storytelling and illustrative talent. Can the man do no wrong?