by Maurice Sendack

***** (5/5)

Children’s Fiction / Children’s Picture Book

Click to buy this book (free delivery)

Book Synopsis:

Where The Wild Things Are is about a little boy called Max dressed up in his monster suit who gets sent to bed without any supper for making mischief. He defiantly created a forest in his bedroom, travels by boat and ends up where the wild things are. The wild things are monsters who gnash their teeth, but Max stands up to them and therefore becomes their king. But he misses home, and his mum, so he gives up being king of the wild things and makes the long journey back home.

Why I love this book:

Where The Wild Things Are is a classic children’s book about an imaginative boy who conquers and makes friends with monsters. If you have or know a child who is scared of monsters in the cupboard or under the bed, this book may help them see monsters in a different way and empower them to face their fears.

Where The Wild Things are has recently been made into a motion picture by Spike Jonze, in which a friend of mine played a Wild Thing!

x Julie

Children’s Book Reviews

- Reading Like Rabbits

by Ronda and David Armitage

Click to buy this book (free delivery)

Book synopsis:

Three kids can’t find any clean clothes to wear. Mum’s gone to work, so it’s up to Dad to do the washing. Dad piles all their dirty clothes into the washing machine. But something goes wrong…. What will Mum say when she returns?

Why I like this book:

When Dad did the Washing must have been written by Ronda and David Armitage after a washing incident of their own.

Valuable, albeit domestic, life lessons can be learnt in this book:

• If you don’t want pink clothes, don’t wash red jump suits with white skirts

• Some mistakes are blessings in disguise, it just depends on how you decide to take it.

When Dad Did The Washing is a nice book about an incident that is bound to happen at least once in your life, so kids might as well learn about it now.

x Julie

Children’s Book Reviews

-Reading Like Rabbits-

by Shirley Hughes

Children’s Fiction, Picture Book

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Book Summary:

Alfie’s Feet is a charming book primarily about… Alfie’s feet. He counts his little sister’s toes with the rhyme ‘This little pig went to market…’, he wears his old brown shoes to splash about in puddles, but discovers that his feet, shoes and socks get all wet. So his mother buys him a shiny new pair of yellow wellington boots. This will help him keep his feet dry, but why do they feel so uncomfortable?

Why I love Alfie’s Feet:

I still have fond memories of reading Alfie’s Feet. Shirley Hughes’s expressive illustrations of the cubby-cheeked children are magnetic, and there is so much to look at in her drawings. Alfie’s Feet will help children learn vocabulary to do with well…feet…but also what goes on your feet, some movement verbs and adjectives, as well as the importance of left and right.

x Julie

Children’s Book Reviews

-Reading Like Rabbits-

by Shel Silverstein

***** (5/5)

Children’s Fiction

Click to buy this book (free delivery)

Book Cover Synopsis:

“Once there was a tree…and she loved a little boy. So begins a story of unforgettable perception, beautifully written and illustrated by the gifted and versatile Shel Silverstein.

Every day the boy would come to the tree to eat her apples, swing from her branches, or slide down her trunk…and the tree was happy. But as the boy grew older he began to want more from the tree and the tree gave and gave.

This is a tender story, touched with sadness, aglow with consolation. Shel Silverstein has created a moving parable for readers of all ages that offers an affecting interpretation of the gift of giving and a serene acceptance of another’s capacity to love in return.

Why I love The Giving Tree:

The Giving Tree is my absolute favourite children’s book. Its a children’s book, but it’s content is sophisticated and will touch the heart of any adult.

It is a love story between a boy and a tree. The tree possesses unconditional love for a young boy, and the boy, like all of us, grows up and wants more and more from life and the tree. With its simple black and white drawings, The Giving Tree is extremely moving and has powerful messages relating to the environment and the nature of love.

When my mother read The Giving Tree to my sister for the first time, she ended up in tears. It is a heartbreaking, but beautifully told story, that gently teaches us valuable life lessons.

This is the most powerful children’s book I’ve ever read. It would be perfect as a gift or as a teacher’s resource.

x Julie

Book Reviews – Reading Like Rabbits