No Booky Advent Calendar could possibly be complete without at least one version of this classic tale!

"The Night Before Christmas" by Clement C. Moore and Roger Duvoisin has been described by many as 'the definitive version of the story' and it's difficult not to agree with that.

In a stocking-filler-sized long narrow format, the book opens with jolly St Nick about to make his rounds, alongside his faithful reindeer Dasher Prancer, Donner, Blitzen and of course Rudolf!

We love this edition - gorgeously reprinted in its original format by Scallywag Press - mostly because Roger's illustrations are always fab, mischievous and of course packed to the gills with detail (including a certain escapee lion making a guest appearance, much to the delight of C who absolutely loves that book to bits!)

Absolutely fantastic, and as we said, perfect for sliding into your christmas stocking!

"The Night Before Christmas" by Clement C. Moore and Roger Duvoisin is out now, published by Scallywag Press (kindly supplied for review). 

David Bowie once asked about it, and we've become increasingly obsessed about it too ever since the Curiosity Rover started making its trepidacious way across the rocky surface.

"Life on Mars" by Jon Agee is a brilliantly fun book that begins in the not too distant future, when a young astronaut decides to visit the red planet to answer the question once and for all.

So is there life on Mars? He brings a box of cupcakes just in case, but after a long wander around the (seemingly) barren landscape, the astronaut loses heart.

His friends were right, there's just nothing there.

But we, the readers, are in on the gag as a huge martian creature silently and surreptitiously follows the astronaut as he wanders, gets lost, then finally relocates his spacecraft - and his box of cupcakes, and jets off for home.

But hang on a minute, there's a twist...!

We, of course, won't tell you what it is - but it's a brilliant little moment and once again it's great to see Jon's titles coming back into print courtesy of Scallywag, this is a short but sweet little book perfect for bedtime astronautics.

Sum this book up in a sentence: A fab space adventure with a twist in the tale right at the end.

"Life on Mars" by Jon Agee is out now, published by Scallywag Press (kindly supplied for review). 

Time for more fun in the garden, from the author of "I Saw a Bee!"

Rob Ramsden's awesome eye for colour and illustration, and his gentle storytelling encouraging kids to get outdoors once again comes to the fore in "We Found a Seed".

A little boy and girl are playing in the garden one day when they find something interesting. A tiny little seed. 

Our second Picture Book of the week this week is a fabulous reprint of a classic children's picture book story that has delighted generations of kids for over 50 years. Yes, that's right, it's nearly as old as me!

"The Happy Lion" by Louise Fatio and Roger Duvoisin is an absolutely fantastic lesson in picture book creation.

Not only is it a simple but amusing story that has more layers than an onion, it features the sort of illustrations that make you want to climb into the book.

Louise and Roger were one heck of a creative team, collaborating on many books together but none finer than this classic example of storytelling.

Though he spends his life in a zoo, the Happy Lion is indeed very happy. Lots of people come by to say "Bonjour Happy Lion!" every day, and he greets them with a smile and a wag of his long tail.

But one day, a clumsy zookeeper leaves the door to Lion's enclosure open. So Lion, missing his friends, decides to go walkabout in the town to see if he can find the kindly folk who stop to wave to him every day.

The only problem is, when Lion does find them, they greet him with an "AAAAARGHHHH!!!" or a "YIKKKKEEEEES" rather than "Bonjour".

Things come to a head as a grand attempt to recapture the Happy Lion is made, but perhaps one very special little boy - and Lion's best friend - might coax the magnificent creature back into his cage without the need for bloodshed or violence.

There's something about this one, something that is eminently pleasing - and solid enough to keep an 11 year old "on the wane" with picture books completely and utterly enrapt in this fantastic little story.

As we said, it's the perfect example of not overcooking a story, not being scared of a bit more of a word count than the usual "500 words or DIE" rubbish that so many picture books are (mistakenly, in our opinion) beholden to.

Just so good. Don't miss out on this one.

Sum this book up in a sentence: Picture book perfection, reprinted in a hugely attractive new volume, a masterclass in picture book storymaking.

"The Happy Lion" by Louise Fatio and Roger Duvoisin is out now, published by Scallywag Press (kindly supplied for review). 

Are you scared of bees? Do you worry that they might sting you?

In "I Saw a Bee" a little boy isn't sure what to make of bees - and reacts aggressively at first.

But bees are hugely important to our ecosystem, in fact without bees we'd be in a whole heap of trouble - as our pollinating friends are vitally important to the world's plant life, busying themselves by ensuring that plants can reproduce and proliferate across our planet.

Using simple but effective repeating text to reinforce the message of how important bees are, the little boy in the story realises that looking after bees, providing them with lots of lovely flowers to gather pollen and nectar from, and helping his own garden to thrive can be hugely satisfying, as can doing every little bit you can to help maintain our planet's important species. 

More awesomeness from Scallywag Press, who are becoming a publisher to watch.

"Me and my Sister" by Rose Robbins is a hugely impressive debut, a story of sibling relationships but much, much more than that too.

The two main characters spend most of their day together. They eat together, they play together - but life isn't always easy when your sister has Autism. Life, in fact, can be extremely tough and challenging. 

Our first Book of the Week this week probably should find its way onto the desk of a certain Brillo-Pad-Haired President...

We really love Satoshi Kitamura's gift for creating fantastic characters in uproariously funny situations...