This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
10


youngest children. It helps them begin to understand what being fair to everyone means, and they will be entertained by the little mole peeping out through a hole in the book cover.


The Magna Carta Chronicle: A Young Person’s Guide to 800 Years in the Fight for Freedom


Christopher Lloyd & Patrick Skipworth and Andy Forshaw (ill.), What on Earth Publishers, 978-0-99301-991-3, £8.99 pbk, 9+


This comprehensive and imaginative book has great visual appeal with a range of illustrations including many that are hand drawn. The scope is wide: after beginning with King John’s sealing of the Magna Carta, it charts key points in the fight for important freedoms to the present day. It includes newspaper articles, a wall chart and a timeline and would be a splendid resource for teachers and children to use at the upper end of the primary school and the lower end of the secondary school.


What Are You Playing At?


Marie-Sabine Roger and Anne Sol (ill.), Alanna Books, 978-1-90782-502-6, £12.99 hbk, 7+


Here is a playful book that makes the point that your gender shouldn’t limit what you do. Each double spread has a large print statement, for example ‘Boys don’t play in kitchens’ and ‘Girls do not play with cars’ and then a large flap opens to show a picture that contradicts the statement: we see a male chef in the kitchen and a female driver in a crash helmet racing a car. This would be a good starting point for projects looking at the mismatch between toys and clothes assumed to be appropriate for each gender (often fed by marketing) and what individual children actually prefer.


Amazing Grace


Mary Hoffman & Caroline Binch (ill.), Frances Lincoln, 978-1-84507-749-5, £5.99 pbk, 6+


When the other children say Grace cannot be Peter Pan in the school performance because she is a girl and black she determines to prove them wrong. Her mother and grandmother, both good role


Margaret Mallett taught in primary schools and in the Education Department of Goldsmiths College. She writes books on all aspects of Primary English and is Emeritus Fellow of The English Association.


models, help her challenge gender and racial stereotyping. This book reminds us that a story is sometimes the best way to reflect on important issues.


Made by Raffi


Craig Pomranz & Margaret Chamberlain (ill.), Frances Lincoln, 978-1-84780-596-6, £12.99 hbk, 5+


Raffi is shy and does not like noisy games. He is a kind boy and makes a scarf for his father’s birthday. But he is teased about his liking for sewing and knitting. Things improve dramatically when he makes a cloak for the prince in the school pageant. The other children now perceive him in a positive light and everyone wants something ‘made by Raffi’. The book has a light touch but it emphasises the right to be different. And it encourages children to put themselves in someone else’s shoes and to understand how teasing, which can be a form of bullying, can make someone sad.


Let’s Talk About Where Babies Come From


Robie H Harris and Michael Emberley (ill.), Walker Books, 978-1-40635-786-8, £11.99 pbk, 8+


This non judgemental book is a family resource to be shared, and perhaps used in response to children’s questions. Children have a right to know about their bodies and about reproduction and this book provides detailed information. Some of the topics covered may not be suitable for children at the younger end of the recommended age range to read on their own. There is a valuable chapter, chapter 19, entitled ‘OK Touches’ – ‘Not OK Touches’ which could be a helpful starting point for discussion about keeping safe. n


Books for Keeps No.212 May 2015 9


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32