As the school year rolls around again we wanted to share our top picks for September with you!
Honey For You, Honey For Meby Michael Rosen and illustrated by Chris Riddell
Flying pigs, wobbling plates of jelly and a giant with a terrible fear of mice: welcome to the topsy-turvy world of nursery rhymes. Inspired by his lifelong fascination with these wonderful, riddling rhymes, Michael Rosen has placed familiar playground songs beside forgotten gems for a seminal new collection, which Chris Riddell has brought to vivid life with his magnificent, exuberant pictures. Expect familiar faces, from little Jumping Joan to Miss Mary Mack-Mack-Mack – but also plenty of mischievous surprises. With over thirty rhymes to choose between, this is a book for families to share and treasure.
Norse Tales: Stores From Across the Rainbow Bridgeby Kevin Crossley-Holland and illustrated Jeffrey Alan Love
Enter an ancient world of green glades and glaciers, where gods and goddesses spread their magic whilst rock-giants and mountain-trolls roam. This astonishing new collection of Norse tales from the award-winning Kevin Crossley-Holland – with Jeffrey Alan Love’s arresting illustrations – will enthrall readers of all ages.
We
Found a Hat
by Jon Klassen
Evoking hilarity and sympathy, the shifting eyes tell the tale in this perfectly paced story in three parts, highlighting Jon Klassen’s visual comedy, deceptive simplicity and deliciously deadpan humour. Available at last in a stylish, sturdy board book format, this bestselling story is perfect for sharing in a lap with the smallest of hands.
Now out as a board book!
The House
by the Lake
by Thomas Harding and illustrated by Britta Teckentrup
Thomas Harding first shared this remarkable story in his Costa-shortlisted biography The House by the Lake – now he has rendered it into a deeply moving picture book for young readers. On the outskirts of Berlin, a wooden cottage stands on the shore of a lake. Over the course of a century, this little house played host to a loving Jewish family, a renowned Nazi composer, wartime refugees and a Stasi informant; in that time, a world war came and went, and the Berlin Wall was built a stone's throw from the cottage's back door. With words that read like a haunting fairy tale, and magnificent illustrations by Britta Teckentrup, this is the astonishing true story of the house by the lake.
Inch and Grubby Alastair Chisholm and illustrated by David Roberts
Inch and Grub are cavemen. Grub’s cave is bigger, and he says that makes him the best. So Inch adds a water feature to his cave. But Grub has made fire! So Inch makes a chair. And a house. And a CAR. Grub, meanwhile, has made a castle and a train and a radio! And so the contest spirals and spirals … until they each have a HUGE wobbling pile of STUFF. But what happens when the piles collapse? A funny story about being competitive and how STUFF is not what matters in life.
Pick a Pumpkinby Patricia Toht and illustrated by Jarvis
It’s Halloween! Which means it's time to dangle cobwebs and bats from the windows, put on costumes, and – most important of all – visit the pumpkin patch and pick out that perfect pumpkin! Then cart it home, scoop out the insides, carve a scary face, and finally light a candle inside, transforming it into a one-of-a-kind, glowing jack-o’-lantern.
With warm, autumnal art, and a rhythmic read-aloud text that captures all the excitement and familial feeling of Halloween, this is the perfect book to share by flickering candlelight on the spookiest night of the year.
Now out in paperback!
Small
in the Cityby Sydney Smith
Being small can be overwhelming in a city. People don't see you. The loud sounds of the sirens and cyclists can be scary. And the streets are so busy it can make your brain feel like there's too much stuff in it. But if you know where to find good hiding places, warm dryer vents that blow out hot steam that smells like summer, music to listen to or friends to say hi to, there can be comfort in the city, too. We follow our little protagonist, who knows all about what it's like to be small in the city, as he gives his best advice for surviving there. As we turn the pages, Sydney Smith's masterful storytelling allows us to glimpse exactly who this advice is for, leading us to a powerful, heart-rending realization...
Now out in paperback!
Inch and Grub
by Alastair Chisholm and illustrated by David Roberts
| Inch and Grub are cavemen. Grub’s cave is bigger, and he says that makes him the best. So Inch adds a water feature to his cave. But Grub has made fire! So Inch makes a chair. And a house. And a CAR. Grub, meanwhile, has made a castle and a train and a radio! And so the contest spirals and spirals … until they each have a HUGE wobbling pile of STUFF. But what happens when the piles collapse? A funny story about being competitive and how STUFF is not what matters in life. |
Pick a Pumpkin
by Patricia Toht and illustrated by Jarvis
It’s Halloween! Which means it's time to dangle cobwebs and bats from the windows, put on costumes, and – most important of all – visit the pumpkin patch and pick out that perfect pumpkin! Then cart it home, scoop out the insides, carve a scary face, and finally light a candle inside, transforming it into a one-of-a-kind, glowing jack-o’-lantern.
With warm, autumnal art, and a rhythmic read-aloud text that captures all the excitement and familial feeling of Halloween, this is the perfect book to share by flickering candlelight on the spookiest night of the year.
Love is Powerfulby Heather Dean Bever, illustrated by LeUyen Pham and contributed to by Mari Diop
Mari is getting ready to make a sign with crayon as the streets below her fill up with people. “What are we making, Mama?” she asks. “A message for the world,” Mama says. “How will the whole world hear?” Mari wonders. “They’ll hear,” says Mama, “because love is powerful.” Inspired by a girl who participated in the January 2017 Women’s March in New York City, Heather Dean Brewer’s simple and uplifting story, delightfully illustrated by LeUyen Pham, is a reminder of what young people can do to promote change and equality at a time when our country is divided by politics, race, gender and religion.
