Here's a trio of fantastic books from a new range of historical and educational stories, published by Scholastic.

The fabulous "Voices" range combines real-life history with the stories of three exceptional children who lived in different eras, but each with an amazing story to tell.

In "Son of the Circus" by E.L. Norry you'll hear the story of a young mixed race boy named Ted who joins the circus at the tender age of 12. Ted's story is tinged with sadness, but also some incredible adventures as he becomes wrapped up in circus life alongside his father, the first black circus owner in Victorian Britain.

There's also "Now or Never" by Bali Rai, a story from the 2nd World War about a young conscript fighting on the hell beach of Dunkirk in one of the most decisive battles of the war. Fazal travels a long way from his homeland in India to fight in Company 32. Fazal looks after the animals that the company uses for transport and utility, but his world is changing, and despite his loyalty to the British Crown Fazal begins to question why, when they're treated so badly by British troops, that the Royal Indian Army Service Corps are fighting at all.

Finally there's the superb "Diver's Daughter" by Patrice Lawrence. Shifting the focus to Tudor times, it's the story of a young West African girl, Eve, living with her mother in the Southwark slums of Elizabethan London.

When they hear from a Mary Rose survivor, George Symon, that one of the African free-divers who salvaged its treasures is alive and well and living in Southampton, mother and daughter agree to try to find him. But will the pair survive when George arrives to claim his 'share' of the riches?

Will Eve overcome her fear of water to rescue her mother from the sea?

Each of these novels offers fascinating insights into history, and does so without the need for endless fart and poo gags (unlike a certain other history series that seems to be popular at the moment). These are authentic, sometimes gritty but absolutely absorbing tales, fabulous for kids who will be covering these historical eras in school but equally brilliant just to read for pleasure at home too.

"Voices" books are out now, published by Scholastic (kindly supplied for review). 

It struck me as I was reading this to Charlotte that Louise Bourgeois is just one of those artists whose works surreptitiously work themselves into your subconscious, and whose influence you see in so many of the works of art you love.

As we respectfully mark the centenary of The Battle of the Somme, one of the most terrible battles of the First World War we explore a book honouring the often unsung animal heroes of the terrible conflict. Our first Book of the Week this week is "Flo of the Somme".

Astonishing architecture abounds in this brilliant fold-out book and wall chart. Let's dip into Design Line: Pyramids, Pillars and Palaces

Little Toby is on a journey of discovery through an ice-covered world. Our world 15,000 years ago. Let's slide into the picture-perfect "Toby and the Ice Giants" by Joe Lillington...

Welcome to the Museum - Again! You loved the majesty of the animal kingdom explored in the glorious "Animalium", now explore amazing artifacts in the stunning "Historium"

Here's a fantastic new book range that is diminutive in size but filled to the brim with fascinating facts on a range of subjects. Pavilion's new "Cool" range is excellent!

Brimming with enthusiasm, and with so many great ideas, we were extremely lucky to receive a lovely parcel of books and goodies from self-published author Carole P. Roman, all the way from the USA.

Carole began writing as a dare from her two sons, and has since become a Kirkus Reviews award-winning author. Turning her hand deftly to fiction (with her fabulous pirate creation "Captain No-Beard" - a character based on her grandson, with grand-daughter as first mate on the Flying Dragon) and non-fiction (with her fascinating range of books examining life in other countries with the "If you were me and lived in..."), Carole's books are colourful and engaging.



We first took a look at Captain No-Beard. Tapping into a child's vivid and wonderful imagination is a neat trick if you can pull it off, and Carole does with aplomb. Captain No-Beard imagines amazing adventures aboard his ship The Flying Dragon. Aided by Hallie, his first mate, they set sail for adventures on the high seas without leaving the comfort of their bedroom.

The captain's adventures are gently underpinned by moral tales that aren't preachy or pushy, but help children understand their behaviour and perhaps develop a better understanding of others and the world around them. This rhyming range is perfect if your little ones (like mine) are obsessed with all things piratey!



Moving on, we next took a look at Carole's range of books examining the life and culture of other countries. "If you were me and lived in..." picks countries around the world, and takes a look at their language, day to day life, and all the amazing things that give us a fabulous insight into what it would be like to live in Mexico, or South Korea, or France. Charlotte is at an age where she loves discovering more about other countries (and loves travel!) so this range has been a roaring success. We liked the fact that the books share some commonality (for instance, you get to find out what "school" or "Mummy" or "Daddy" is in other languages), but highlight the amazing differences in our lives across the globe, and the things that may seem ordinary and every day to some, but are amazing and fantastic to others.



Lastly we dipped into Carole's fabulous book "I want to do Yoga too!" - Anyone familiar with Barefoot Books' excellent Yoga Pretzels range will love this story of a little girl finding out about Yoga, accompanying her mum to classes, and learning how to stretch and bend, how to adopt the core poses in Yoga. Again this is a book that you could easily see expanding into other activities (dance, sports etc) - and one that might even switch children on to a more healthy and active lifestyle through this engaging story.

You can find out much much more about Carole and her fantastic range of books via her website: http://www.caroleproman.com/