Books Children’s Spotlight 0–5
Fiona Watt, Rachel Wells (illus.) That’s Not My Unicorn
Usborne, 1st July, £6.99, board, 9781474935975
The 50th title in the iconic board book series. How Usborne got to 50 without a unicorn I’m not sure, but it feels suitably celebratory and will be backed by an anniversary PR and marketing push.
Picture books
Richard Adams, Alex T Smith (illus.) The Adventures of Egg Box Dragon
Hodder, 5th October, £9.99, hb, 9781444938401
ONE TO WATCH
From the Water- ship Down legend, who sadly died in
December, comes an
“enchanting” picture book starring a mischie- vous homemade dragon employed by the Queen to find a missing dia- mond. Illustrations are by the fabulous Alex T Smith, who has a busy season ahead: the Claude creator launches a new young fiction series, Mr Penguin (Hodder, September), and a slapstick comedy/ mystery/adventure that is described as “Indiana Jones meets Hercule Poirot”.
January his much-loved bear returns in Good- night, Mr Panda.
Rob Biddulph Kevin
HarperCollins, 27th July, £12.99, hb, 9780008207410
No visuals yet but expect a “timeless” story of imaginary friendship, kindness and stepping up. Publishing alongside in paperback is Sunk!, the joyous return of Penguin Blue.
Lauren Child A Dog with Nice Ears
Orchard, 5th October, £12.99, hb, 9781408346136
In the sixth original Char- lie and Lola adventure, the inimitable, ever- curious Lola is in search of the perfect dog. Cue a “silly, surprising, thought- ful” tale, packed with canines of every shape, size and colour.
Ross Collins This Zoo is Not for You
Nosy Crow, 3rd August, £11.99, hb, 780857638953
A wonderfully funny ani- mal rhyme with a gentle message of inclusion and acceptance. Com- panion title to There’s a Bear on My Chair, which won the Amnesty CILIP Honour and was short- listed for the Kate Greenaway Medal.
Julia Donaldson, Lydia Monks (illus.) What the Ladybird Heard on Holiday
Macmillan, 29th June, £11.99, hb, 9781509837328
Akala, Sav Akyuz (illus.) You Can Do Anything
OUP, 6th July, £6.99, pb, 9780192747808
Written by a MOBO award-winning hip-hop artist, this is first the Hip and Hop series of books, aiming to build emotional intelligence and encourage a sense of social responsibility. Upbeat, bright visuals are married with rhythm, rhyme and repetition.
Steve Antony Unplugged
Hodder, 7th September, £12.99, hb, 9781444934151
When a power cut strikes, Blip discovers the joy of being outside and offline. Told with characteristic humour, this will appeal to parents’ concerns about screen time. In
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Can the resourceful lit- tle Ladybird protect the Queen’s crown in her third rhyming adventure? In April, Puffin publishes Donaldson’s collabora- tion with Helen Oxenbury, The Giant Jumperee.
Julia Donaldson, Axel Scheffler (illus.) The Ugly Five
Scholastic, 7th September, £12.99, hb, 9781407172880
Inspired by the real-life “ugly five” safari animals— the wildebeest, wart- hog, vulture, hyena and marabou stork—here the quintet swagger proudly across the savannah in a “jubilant” comic adven- ture. The paperback of Zog and the Flying Doctors also comes in September.
Tom Fletcher, Greg Abbott (illus.)
There’s a Monster in Your Book
Puffin, 29th June, £10.99, hb, 9780141376097
ONE TO WATCH
Fletcher scored one of 2016’s biggest hits with
his young fiction adven- ture The Christmasaurus, illustrated by Shane Devries, shortlisted for the British Book Awards’ Childrens Book of the Year prize, and soon to become a stage musical and animated film. Here, he’s teamed up with Greg Abbott for an interactive bedtime story that invites readers to shake, wiggle and tickle a mis- chievous creature out of the book. Great to read aloud, the cover is bold and commercial. Another monster hit, no doubt.
Pippa Goodhart, Nick Sharratt (illus.) You Choose in Space
Puffin, 21st September, £10.99, hb, 9780141379296
You Choose has been a consistent bestseller since publication in 2004, a wonderfully interactive book encouraging kids to use their imagination imagination and build stories. Few details yet, but this new title takes the concept intergalactic.
Kes Gray, Jim Field (illus.) Oi Cat!
Hodder, 7th, September, £12.99, hb, 9781444932515
A very welcome return to the joyfully silly and exceptionally funny world of Frog and Dog. These read-aloud favourites are fast becoming modern comedy classics, and Oi Dog! is shortlisted for the British Book Awards’ Chil- dren’s Book of the Year.
Sue Hendra, Paul Linnet (illus.) Cake
Macmillan, 8th March, £6.99, pb, 9781509827435
The duo make their Mac- millan début with a typi- cally bright, bold and laugh-out-loud story about a little cake off to his first party. Other titles include Run Veggies Run! (S&S, May) and Simon Sock, illustrated by Nick East (Hodder, October).
Alison Jay Looking for Yesterday
Old Barn, 1st August, £10.99, hb, 9781910646212
How can tomorrow ever be as good as yesterday? Boy searches science for the key to time-travel, but Grandpa shows him there’s always something to look forward to. This will be Jay’s first text—the early spreads I’ve seen look beautiful.
Pip Jones,
Sara Ogilvie (illus.) Izzy Gizmo
S&S, 24th August, £12.99, hb, 9780857075123
The first collaboration for a duo I heartily approve of—and what a treat. Feisty young Izzy loves to invent, even if things don’t always go to plan… Jones also launches fiction series Piggy Handsome (Faber), illustrated by Adam Stower, in August.
Jackie Morris, James Mayhew (illus.) Mrs Noah’s Pockets
Otter-Barry, 7th September, £12.99, hb, 9781910959091
As Noah builds his ark and decides which ani- mals to save, Mrs Noah sews a coat with very deep pockets… A text from Morris is accom- panied by a striking new style from Mayhew, using collage, shape and printmaking.
Michelle Robinson, Tor Freeman (illus.) Ten Fat Sausages
Andersen, 7th September, £11.99, hb, 9781783445424
Based on the popular rhyme, “Ten fat sau- sages sizzling in a pan…” An infectiously funny countdown book, set to become a read-aloud favourite. Andersen’s other picture book lead is Fearne Cotton’s Yoga Babies, illustrated by Sheena Dempsey.
Sean Taylor,
Jean Jullien (illus.) I Want to be in a Scary Story
Walker, 7th September, £11.99, hb, 9781406363463
The duo behind the bril- liant Hoot Owl reunite for a new comedy, this time a clever narrative between a little mon- ster and his author, with hilarious consequences. Also in September is Jul- lien’s Imagine (Frances Lincoln), set to the lyrics
of John Lennon’s song.
Emma Yarlett Nibbles the Dinosaur Guide
Little Tiger, 7th September, £12.99, hb, 9781848696914
The book-chomper is back and causing chaos in a book of dinosaurs. Crammed with peep- through holes, lift-the- flaps and fold-outs galore, it’s a joyfully engaging read. The paperback of Nibbles the Book Monster comes in April.
Fiction 5–9
Dermot O’Leary, Nick East (illus.) Toto the Ninja Cat and the Great Snake Escape
Hodder, 21st September, £6.99, pb, 978144939453
O’Leary’s first chil- dren’s book is an illus- trated animal adventure inspired by his own cat. Hodder’s other celebrity children’s book launches include Miranda Hart’s The Girl with the Lost Smile and Danny Baker’s picture book Lucie Goose, which is illustrated by Pippa Curnick.
Anthony McGowan, Chris Riddell (illus.) I Killed Father Christmas
Barrington Stoke, 22nd October, £6.99, pb, 9781781127100
Pamela Butchart, Thomas Flintham (illus.) There’s a Werewolf in my Tent
Nosy Crow, 4th May, £6.99, pb. 9780857639066
Are Izzy and friends doomed on their camp- ing trip? No one does primary school com- edy like Butchart. Look out, too, for picture book Never Dance with a Dinosaur (September, Bloomsbury). Illustrated by Marc Boutavant, it follows the very popular Never Tickle a Tiger.
Helen Cooper The Hippo at the End of the Hall
David Fickling, 2nd November, £10.99, hb, 9781910989753
A young boy discovers a mysterious museum in the début novel from the Greenaway-winning illus- trator. David Fickling says it has the charm of Pad- dington and the magic of Blyton; it features Coo- per’s atmospheric pencil drawings throughout.
Andy Griffiths, Terry Denton (illus.) The 91-Storey Treehouse
Macmillan, 24th August, £5.99, pb, 9781509839162
My eight-year-old (and friends) are fanatical about Treehouse, and the word is spreading: Janu- ary’s 78-Storey Treehouse sold 10,000 copies in six weeks. This is book seven, and will be followed by The Treehouse Fun Book in January.
New in the Little Gems range, a “witty and ten- der-hearted” seasonal story about a selfish boy who learns the true meaning of Christmas. For YA readers, McGowan returns to brothers Nicky and Kenny in Rook, a companion novella to Brock and Pike.
Sibeal Pounder, Jason Cockroft (illus.) Bad Mermaids
Bloomsbury, 1st June £5.99, pb, 9781408877128
Stylish mermaids, evil piranhas and magical mysteries in a fabulous and very funny new series. In October comes Witch Snitch, illustrated by Laura Ellen Anderson, a spin-off title taking read- ers behind the scenes of the Witch Wars world.
Fiction 9–12
David Baddiel, Jim Field (illus.) (untitled)
HarperCollins, 7th September, £12.99, hb, 9780008200473
No details yet, but this follows three bestsell- ing novels, the most recent of which sold just shy of 40,000 hardbacks last autumn. AniMalcolm comes into paperback in June.
Peter Bunzl Moonlocket
Usborne, 1st May, £6.99, pb, 9781474915014
Lily, Robert and the magnificent Malkin the mechanical fox return in the sequel to one of 2016’s standout débuts. Bunzl has such a vivid storytelling style, and
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