Peals of cackling laughter. On measure, I'd say more funny books hit our "Book of the Week" slot - after all, laughter is the best medicine. We've been laughing long and loud at Kes Gray and Jim Field's new book "Oi, Frog!" - A book that starts off relatively quietly but builds into a frenzied cacophony of laughter and rhyming.

In "Oi, Frog" Cat has a bit of an issue. Frog is sitting in the WRONG PLACE and Cat wants to make sure that the balance of the universe is restored. Frogs, you see, sit on logs. Everyone knows that - just as they know that cats sit in mats.

Frog is puzzled, and soon wants to know what all the other animals in the world sit on. For instance, how on earth would a frog know that fleas sit on peas? Apes comfortably park their bums on grapes and hares get the comfy option of sitting in chairs.

This book is fab for introducing youngsters to the concept of rhyming, but Charlotte couldn't wait to throw some real curveballs my way.

"Alright Daddy, what does a Tiger sit on?" - Charlotte

I must admit, I was stumped (Jim Field helpfully suggested on Twitter a Large Hadron Collider but it wouldn't fit on a page spread!).

Similarly I got into trouble with meerkats. Beermats was the best I could come up with but Jim Field managed admirably!

A Meerkat on a Beermat (image - © Jim Field)

...and caterpillars (aw come on!)

For days, Charlotte has dug this book out and rhymed her socks off (Zebras most definitely sit on Debra. Poor Debra!). Great writing that's had us twisting tongues to come up with even more animals sitting on things - and it was rather nice to see the press release could handily be turned into a jumping frog, thanks to an attached diagram showing us how to make an origami one.

I can guarantee you that I'll pick Charlotte up from school today and she'll have a dozen more animal rhymes she's come up with (I just hope it's not distracting her from school work too much!). Fab and funny, a well deserved book of the week. Watch the hilarious book trailer below!




Charlotte's best bit: So what do dogs sit on? Hilarious!

Daddy's Favourite bit: Fab way to introduce your youngsters to rhyming, but they will drive you quite, quite mad by coming up with new animals who need a place to sit!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Hodder Children's Books)

Vive La Difference! Here's a book that contains two characters that make our hearts sing with delight. We're partial to a dragon story, in fact we love dragons more than we love any other monsters. Meet Marmaduke, a decidedly different dragon!

All his friends and family are purple, with huge wings - but poor Marmaduke feels left out. He's orange and daren't show off his wings - they're just too...well...different!

Other dragons get the chance to become royal escorts, sworn protectors of beautiful princesses. But who on earth would want a rather small orange dragon to look after them?

Despite his heart of gold, no one's interested in Marmaduke - until the day a rather different princess arrives on the scene. She's not prim and proper (Yay!), she doesn't particularly want to spend all day gazing lovingly at pretty dresses (double yay!) and she wears converse boots and has scruffy hair (triple yay with a side order of yay!)

Could it be that Marmaduke has at last found someone to protect? Or perhaps something better, a friend?

This is a lovely little story celebrating difference, in a way that won Charlotte over completely. We've often had chats about what 'different' means, and how sometimes it can be dull and boring trying to be the same as everyone else (something that's a pretty tough sell to a five year old trying to fit in at school). This book shows that the unusual can also be exciting and...well, different - and that's no bad thing.

Charlotte's best bit: The amazing wow-moment 'reveal' half way through the book (no spoilers!)

Daddy's Favourite bit: Another great character to add to the list of fabulous non-prissy primped princesses. Love her!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Bloomsbury Publishing)

Mog? Do something bad? Surely not! I was slightly surprised to find that we hadn't read this particular chapter of our favourite book-moggy's life. Judith Kerr's books are (quite rightly) some of our favourites - the Mog series were the books we started reading to Charlotte when she was a tiny baby and it's great that she still enjoys them now.

So what did Mog do? What was Mog's bad thing?

It all started out with the rather bizarre scenario of Mog's family setting up a tent in the back garden for a cat show (I'd love a garden that big!) Mog's helpful friend and neighbour puts up a huge marquee. The only problem is that the great white monstrosity covers up one of Mog's favourite places. The place Mog goes to when Mog needs to do something secret.

I'm sure you're beginning to get the picture of what Mog's Bad Thing was (typically the incident is Charlotte's favourite bit in the book, and the bit that made her hoot with laughter!) Suffice to say that Mog (like most cats) knew she'd done something very naughty indeed, and before the Cat Show can get under way, Mog promptly hides in the attic until the fuss dies down.

Prim and proper pampered moggies soon arrive for the show. Some are scruffy, some are beautiful, one in particular is a big fat spoiled (and slightly vicious) cat. But there's no sign of Mog and her family begin to worry about her.

Will Mog put in an appearance at the last minute to steal the show?

As ever, Judith Kerr's keen cat-loving observations are a joy - and this is a worthy addition to your bookshelves if you love Mog's adventures (and who doesn't!)


Charlotte's best bit: Where Mog chooses to do her bad thing. Ew!

Daddy's Favourite bit: Mog is fantastic, and this book's a great little observation of cat behaviour.

Here's a book I've heard an awful lot about in the past, but until now, haven't actually had the pleasure of reading. Excited squeals from Charlotte as she picked this out of the library stack made me sit up and take notice. "Look at this poor boy, everything's got cracks in it!"

As we read, Charlotte's understanding of the story grew beyond her initial elation to feeling sorry for the boy. "Mum and Dad Glue" tells the story of a boy who is desperately searching for a solution to what's wrong with mum and dad. They don't love each other any more, they argue and fight instead of cuddle and kiss - and the poor lad heads to the local hardware store for a pot of "Mum and Dad Glue" to try and mend what is broken.

In his world, the huge cracks that Charlotte spotted are dotted all over everything. Wise words come from an unexpected source, showing that although mum and dad don't love each other any more - their love for him is not diminished.

A touching and extremely sensitive way of helping children cope with separation / divorce. It's nice to be able to find out what all the fuss is about, and also join others in thoroughly recommending this beautiful little book.

Charlotte's best bit: At the end, after the boy hears some encouraging advice...his world changes.

Daddy's Favourite bit: A touching and sensitive way of helping children overcome divorce / separation anxiety.

"Troll and the Oliver" by Adam Stower (Templar Publishing)

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/

It's crazy, it's whacky, it's also one of those rare things - a book that features a Dad who's not a complete dunce, glutton or wet-end! Hooray! In "Send for a Superhero" a dad is reading his children's favourite bed time story. It's a fast-paced exciting comic story about giant invading monsters who will not stop until they've polluted the earth or vacuumed up all the riches (no knowing nods to Rosen's political leanings there, nosiree!!)

We loved the way the book dances between the warm fuzzy glow of dad reading to Emily and Elmer, and the story of young Brad 40 - a schoolboy superhero who reacts quickly once Filth and Vacuum (the story's horrid monster baddies) roll into action. Summoning superheroes from all over the world, can the monsters be brought to justice?

The book deftly celebrates things we hold dear. Reading to your children before tucking them up for the night, and plenty of nods to exciting action-based comic goodness, we'll be reading and re-reading this one.

Charlotte's best bit: Oh no, it's Incredibly Boring Man! ZZZZZZZZZ

Daddy's Favourite bit: Fab dad reading to his kids, fab comic book nods, full of excitement and wonderful art. Don't miss this one!

Did anyone have an imaginary friend? Mine was called Pooki, and lived in the boiler cupboard at home in our house in London. Charlotte maintains that she doesn't have any imaginary friends but if she did, she'd want a fairy who could wave her wand and grant wishes (Smart kid - Pooki just spent a lot of time grumbling about the cramped living quarters).

In "There's a Dinosaur in my Bathtub" by Catalina Echeverri, Amelia's imaginary friend is a dinosaur. He's a rather natty french chap called Pierre, resplendently accompanied by the world's most brilliant twirly moustache. Though he lives in the bath, Pierre is expert at hiding away whenever mum or dad need to use the bathroom.

Pierre and Amelia have the most wonderful playtimes, they're always happy and always there for each other.

Catalina's fab illustrations add to the fun of her bouncy and brilliant little story.

We'd love to hear about your imaginary friends. Drop a comment below, we love to hear from you!

Charlotte's best bit: Charlotte innocently asked what Pierre does when Amelia's dad needs a poo. Er...not covered by the book thankfully!

Daddy's Favourite bit: Love the illustrations, particularly Pierre's masterful 'tache!

(Kindly sent to us for review by Bloomsbury Publishing)

Aye-Ayes have to be one of the weirdest looking creatures you could ever come across. I mean, take a look...!

A baby Aye-Aye - A face only a mother could love!

Despite this, we love them - they're just the right kind of bizarre that crosses over into 'cute' territory. Perhaps that's the reason we enjoyed "This Book Belongs to Aye-Aye" - because it features one of our favourite animals, and also celebrates the wonders of a really good picture book.