reviews


Under 5s/PreSchool/Infant/Nursery continued Lubna and Pebble


HHHHH


Wendy Meddour, ill. Daniel Egnéus, Oxford University Press, 32pp, 978- 0-19-27714-0 £11.99 hdbk


On the title page we see a boat laden with people, and then the story starts with Lubna’s huge eyes looking at a pebble. She had found it when she and her father arrived on a beach in the night, and she takes it with her into the World of Tents, feeling that Daddy’s salty arms and the pebble will keep her safe. With a felt-tip left in the tent, she draws a face on the pebble, and Pebble now smiles at her. She tells it everything about the war, her home, and her brothers, but we are left to imagine what happened. Daddy tries to keeps her warm as winter arrives, but Lubna, red-nosed with cold, is worried that Pebble might catch cold, so Daddy finds a shoebox and a tea-towel to keep it warm. A little boy appears, with no words at first: he just blinks and stares, but Pebble’s smile makes him smile, and he introduces himself as Amir. They become friends, and play together, though Lubna tells Pebble, ‘You are still my best friend’. One day Daddy tells Lubna that they are leaving for a new home, and she is happy, but sad for Amir. That night she thinks about what she must do, and next day she gives Pebble, the shoebox and the pen to Amir, so that he can draw the smile back on, and tell Pebble when he misses her. Again we see two huge eyes looking at the Pebble, but this time they are Amir’s eyes. This is a beautiful book, all rich and


colour some clever unusual angles, with touches. When Amir


first appears, he is standing on a representative tree with very dark green leaves, but when he is given Pebble in the shoebox, his tree is full of red blossom, showing that he himself has blossomed. It is to be hoped that this book will


enable younger readers to empathise with displaced


people, and to


understand that children caught up in the ongoing refugee crisis are just children, but it also a lovely book to share and to think about what friendship means. DB


This Love HHHHH


Isabel Otter, ill. Harriet Lynas, Caterpillar Books, 32pp, 978 1 84857 801 2, £11.99 hbk


Colour is a major theme of this lovely picture book – the colour of people, of places, of lives, of seasons – and most of all, the colour of love. Love is such a difficult concept for very young children, but the illustrations here show us how people interact with each other no matter who or where they are in the world. The rainbow cut- out on the cover and on each page as the book progresses, becomes


smaller and smaller but always shows us something about the place where we are. Whether in the West, or the East, or the Middle East, north in snow or south in heat, whether in a single-parent family, two girls with two dads, a traditional mixed race family, or with a grandparent, we know we are loved, and the colour around us helps to prove that love. This is a truly colourful book in every way which will give children the sense of wonder and magic that is so important in learning that people are people and are to be loved no matter what they look like or the place they live. The rhyming text will appeal too, and this story will be read over and over and enjoyed for its detail and vibrancy. ES


Little Bear’s Spring HHH


Elli Woollard, ill. Briony May Smith, Macmillan, 32pp, 978-1-5096-0790-1 £6.99pbk


Little Bear wakes up after his long hibernation to find snow still on the ground, and no-one in sight, though he does find a little round stone which looks rather sad, so he picks it up and tucks into his fur, and goes ‘lippetty-


flowers, and of course the ‘stone’ kept warm in his fur has hatched: a little duck is cheeping at him. Finally he has a friend to play with, and that’s what they do for the rest of the day, in ‘the magical wonderful joy of the spring’. The last double spread sees him finding his own family of bears, and the final page shows him with his mother, and, in the background, the duck reunited with its own family. Briony May Smith has used a rather


retro style for this book, which matches Elli Woollard’s rhyming language, especially


in the descriptions The Go-Away Bird HHHHH


Julia Donaldson illus Catherine Rayner, Macmillan, 32pp, 9781509843589, £11.99 hbk


The Go-Away Bird lives up to his name. Whenever he is approached by any of the other birds keen to be friends, to talk and play, he tells them to go away. So they do. But everyone needs friends. What will happen when the Go-Away Bird is faced with a situation that will not go away? Here Julia Donaldson is on the top


of her form, delivering a crisp rhyming text with the satisfying chorus of ‘Go away, go away, go away’ where the audience can join in. And there is plenty more repetition for


the


presenter to enjoy. It is presented in a bold clear font that is a pleasure to read, beautifully placed on the page against an uncluttered, unobtrusive ground. However, the text is only one


element. Bringing an added


loppetty’ off down the track. He is looking for someone to play with, but the birds are too busy, as spring’s on its way. He asks ‘What is spring?’ and they reply: ‘the sun shimmers out through the cold winter’s gloom, and the buds open up and burst forth into bloom’. He tries and fails to build a successful nest, and moves on to a family of hares racing about, also too busy – they too say that spring is a beautiful thing: ‘the air throbs and thrums with the hum of the bees, and the sky comes alive in the arm wafting breeze’. He tries and fails to leap, and moves on to a family of wolves. For them spring is wonderful thing, ‘After long hungry months we find nice things to eat. Now come nearer, my dear, you look ever so sweet,’ but Little Bear is aware of the danger and runs off, still with only the stone for company. He climbs a tree to escape, and the stone falls out and cracks. Coming down, he kicks it away and settles down to sleep. In the morning, the meadow is a riot of colourful


dimension and life to the narrative are the illustrations by Catherine Rayner. Her spiky outlines capture the difficult character that is the Go-Away Bird, his expression one of disapproval and annoyance. Her palette is clear and colourful – never dull or muddy; her characters fill the page (look at the looming presence of the eagle). From the moment we, the reader opens the book, we find ourselves in the leafy world of the birds, both end covers decorated with the feathery fronds of the tree that is the home of the Go-Away Bird. This is a perfect marriage


of word and illustration,


author and illustrator and should become another triumph for both. An outstanding addition to any library whether home, school or public. FH


Tiny T. Rex and The Impossible Hug


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Jonathan Stutzman, ill. Jay Fleck, Chronicle Books, 48pp, 978-1-4521-7033-6, £10.99 hdbk


Cuddly dinosaurs - this will be popular! Tiny T. Rex’s friend Pointy, a stegosaurus, is sad and doesn’t want to play. Tiny’s research tells him that one way to make someone feel better is to give them a hug, but he has very


of


spring. This is a pleasant book, but not outstanding. DB


tiny arms, so that’s going to be difficult. He looks for help, but his Father thinks Math (the only Americanism in this book) might be more helpful. Tiny knows that Pointy does not like Math, and that happiness cannot be calculated on a blackboard. His aunt suggests balance and freshly squeezed cucumber juice, and his mother tells him that he is kind and creative and it really doesn’t matter if he can’t hug. His brother and sister are playing table tennis and tell him that practice is the answer, and that he should plan ahead. A double page series of sketches of the ways in which Tiny could plan to avoid Pointy’s spines is rather fun, and off he goes to practice. Hugging an ice cream cone proves messy, and hugging a cactus is definitely a bad idea. Clutching what looks like a tree, Tiny finds himself airborne with a pterodactyl, and everything below looks tiny: he could hug anything he wants. The reader turns the page sideways as he falls down, down, down… and lands on Pointy’s head. He explains how he has practiced, and tells Pointy that he is his very best friend so he wants to do his best for him. Pointy is very grateful to have his head hugged, ‘the biggest hug ever’, and off they go to play together. The dinosaurs are very cute with


large squarish heads and huge eyes, so not at all scary – in fact they’re not drawn to scale, as the ice cream cone is only slightly smaller than Tiny, and Mother can sit at what looks a fairly normal desk. The colours are bright and attractive, and this is a lovely heart-warming story for young dinosaur fans. DB


Cloud Forest HHH


Victoria Turnbull, Frances Lincoln, 32pp, 9781786031778, £12.99 hbk


Umpa’s garden was filled with flowers and fruit trees. With Umpa the child learns about how to grow something, about the power of stories, of words and the sharing they bring. What happens when one day Umpa is no longer there? Victoria Turnbull’s pastel palette and delicate


lines capture the gentle


message of the story – the death of a loved ‘Umpa’ and how to help a child cope with loss. The text and the illustrations emphasise the connection between the old and the very young; a connection through stories that take them on imaginative shared journeys against the background of the birth and growth of the seeds that have been planted. I do have slight reservations in the portrayal of the characters – what are they? Also in the final spread which the literal child might find confusing in its message. These are quibbles – beautifully packaged and presented this should find a place among other titles that deal with this situation, making a valuable contribution that is both attractive and accessible. FH


Books for Keeps No.236 May 2019 21


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