Bunny Loves To Learn - Parragon Book Buddies

After a short break (a dinosaur book that I simply couldn't get Squeaky to be interested in - though her new boyfriend over the road was much more impressed, and a month off), we're back with the Parragon Book Buddies, and our latest new story, Bunny Loves To Learn by Peter Bently.

Squeaky, as a new-ish schooly (the description they use at the nursery/out of school provision we use) really loves this book. The idea of school, learning, and dressing up tick almost all of her boxes.  If there were mermaids or chocolate ice cream, that's probably the only way she'd be any more excited.  It was very well timed as well, as her class in school have been looking at castles, knights, princes and princesses, so she was able to compare a little with the things they had learned at school and how they had dressed up in costumes as well.

I loved the illustrations, they had a huge amount of realistic texture (though it's not a touchy-feely book), and I really liked the use of books and computers within the pictures to share the information the animals were learning, and make their classroom more like the one Squeaky spends her days in.

One question Squeaky had for me, that I simply couldn't answer was "Why is it called Bunny Loves To Learn, when the rabbit is called Buster?".  Do you know, I'd asked myself the same question.  Buster, the bunny of the title, along with his friends Max, Sam and Francine are all small and furry (except for Francine the frog), but there is no mention of their animal status, and they are just referred to throughout the book by their names, not their animals.  So why is the book called Bunny Loves To Learn and not Buster Loves To Learn?

If you can answer that, I'll buy you an ice cream.

Disclosure: I was provided with a copy of the above book free of charge for the purposes of this review. I was not told what to write and all opinions are my own. Links are provided for convenience only, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme and will not receive reward for their use.

Muddypaws' New Friends - Parragon Book Buddies

I love being a member of Parragon's Book Buddies, it's introduced Squeaky and I to all sorts of books that we may not otherwise have found, and they've matched so well with her interests it's like they can read our minds.  In fact she took last month's book, Everybody Loves Butterflies in to school a couple of weeks ago for a book day where the children all shared their favourite bedtime stories & the teacher declared it the prettiest book in the class.  That might be because she hasn't yet seen this month's book - Muddypaws' New Friends.

 Muddypaws, our hero, is an adorable Labrador or Golden Retriever type puppy (I'm never too sure), and the book follows his adventures with his best friend, Ben, when Ben takes him to Puppy School, where he meets two more very cute and cheeky puppies.  Mischief and hilarity inevitably ensue.

What really surprised me about this book was how accurate the illustrations are.  Full page illustrations throughout the book, and they are far from the cartoon style pictures you usually expect from children's books, the dogs look real.  Not photography real, but like actual art type illustrations, I can't think of another way to describe them.  I almost thought this might put Squeaky off a little, maybe being a bit too old for her, but I was wrong. She loves Muddypaws and his friends, and we've spent even more time than normal playing puppies and puppy training.  It's a great book for lighting up her imagination, and she adores imaginative and pretend play

The only drawback I can see with this gorgeous book is the increasing demands for a puppy of her own. It's certainly helping her get over her fear of dogs, and helping her understanding that different people (puppies, etc) learn at different paces, and that's just fine.  The difficulty with bringing up a bright spark is they can struggle to understand why others can't keep up, and it's led to a few uncomfortable questions about why so-and-so can't do this when she can and it's really easy.

I am learning so much from being a parent, and reading with Squeaky. As a child, I believed almost all books, with the exception of very obviously non-fiction books, were just for entertainment.  Now I'm sharing books with Squeaky I can see how the vast majority are a learning opportunity, not just learning to read, but learning about different subjects, relationships, people. Where it's hard sometimes to spark a conversation on a subject, there's undoubtedly a book on the shelf that will help.  One of Muddypaws' friends is a Bassett puppy, so we had a chat about how I had a Bassett Hound just like that when I was a little girl.  Cue questions about "where was I when you were a little girl, Mummy?"  Ah well, that was inevitable I guess.  Stick to easier subjects next time, Mummy!

(Oh, and a quick explanation for some slightly looking photos this time around.  I got a new phone last week, I'm still working out how it all works, but it certainly seems to have some interesting ideas about what shape a photo should be.  Any experts on LG phones, please help!)

Everybody Loves Butterflies - Parragon Book Buddies

Everybody Loves Butterflies.  That's actually true, you know.  Last summer, in Spain, we were lucky enough to visit a butterfly sanctuary, where they nurture and protect butterflies from all over the world, and help educate visitors in the lifecycle and importance of butterflies.  Squeaky was fascinated, especially when one butterfly decided to be her friend and landed on her arm for a photo.  She was fascinated, albeit a tiny bit frightened to start with, but when she realised that the butterfly's feet only tickled and didn't hurt she was much happier and had a chat with her new friend.  I'm not sure the butterfly understood, but it did waggle its antennae in a happy manner, so that was good.

Aside from making friends, we had the opportunity to see all the stages of the butterfly lifecycle, from eggs underneath leaves, to crawling caterpillars, cocoons (I can't work out the plural for chrysalis), hatching butterflies, and then flying away to enjoy the butterfly version of a really good time.  This handsome fella had just hatched, and was busy drying out his new wings

Tanis Taylor's book, Everybody Loves Butterflies was a great reminder for Squeaky of our holiday, and the butterflies that she had seen and fallen in love with.  The book follows Little Caterpillar, who doesn't want to become a butterfly, because he's too happy being a caterpillar.  He consults with his friends, but nothing can convince him that life as a butterfly will be just as much fun. Until nature takes the upper hand...

The book contains information about the life cycle of butterflies at the end, which Squeaky was possibly even more interested in than the story, and insists that we read 2 or 3 times each time we read the book.  I'm not sure what's so fascinating, but she's loving it.

Evverybody Loves Butterflies, by Tanis Taylor and illustrated by Masumi Furukawa is available from amazon and other retailers.

Disclosure: I was provided with a copy of the above book free of charge for the purposes of this review as part of the Parragon Book Buddies scheme.  I was not told what to write and all opinions are my own.  Links are provided for convenience only, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme and will not receive reward for their use.

The Night Before Christmas

Twas the night before Christmas and like each night that week
Not a creature was stirring, not even a Squeak

Tucked up in her bed, with a new picture book
I couldn't help myself but to take a quick look

An old rhyming tale, about meeting Saint Nick
With bright colourful pages, she fell in love quick

Words from Clement C Moore, drawings by Henry Fisher
Each page illustrated with a beautiful picture

Santa and reindeers, she knew each one's name
And asked me "where's Rudolph", I had to explain

He was feeling quite poorly, nose snotty and red
When Henry drew these pictures, he was sleeping in bed

Now after that rest, Rudy's feeling alright
Ready to guide Santa's sleigh through the night

She started to yawn, her eyes closing too
A fabulous sight for a parent, it's true

So I tiptoed away, and left on the nightlight
Merry Christmas to all, and to all a Good Night!

Disclosure: I was provided with a copy of this book free of charge as part of the Parragon Book Buddies programme. I was not told what to write and all opinions are my own, as is the very poor rhyming, inspired by Clement C. Moore's poem, as featured in the above book.  Links are provided for convenience only, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme & will not receive reward for their use.

Parragon Book Buddies - Wakey Wakey Big Brown Bear

This month's arrival, courtesy of Parragon's Book Buddies, is Wakey Wakey Big Brown Bear, by Tracey Corderoy, and illustrated by Rachel Swirles.  (And I just have to say what brilliant names they both are!  It's not important, but it's true)

Autumn is fun for the animals of the forest, except for Big Brown Bear, who sleeps through it all until springtime, and misses out on all the excitement.  His friends try to wake him up to make sure he doesn't miss out on any of the seasonal fun in this lovely bedtime book, perfect as the nights are drawing in.

This is a great book to share, there's loads to talk about, with the autumn and winter, what children enjoy and dislike, why some animals hibernate, the changing of the seasons, and the way Big Brown Bear's friends try to make sure he gets to enjoy the autumn and winter without missing out on his precious sleep.  Squeaky was absolutely FULL of questions for me, though not always the easiest to answer at bedtime, admittedly.

Not exactly a happy model this month.

I quite like the idea of hibernating, if I'm honest, and I wouldn't be all that upset to miss out on the puddles or the snow that Big Brown Bear is so eager to experience.  I can kind of see where he's coming from about the crunchy autumn leaves though, they're my favourite part of this time of year, aside from the excuse to wrap up in big jumpers & scarves, and judging by the pile of fallen leaves, conkers, acorns & general discarded bits of tree in the corner of our living room, I'd say Squeaky feels much the same.

Wakey Wakey Big Brown Bear has jumped way up the list of current bedtime reading requests, and is a great seasonal read.

Wakey Wakey Big Brown Bear is available from Amazon and other retailers.

Disclosure: I was provided with the above book free of charge for the purpose of this review. I was not told what to write and all opinions are my own.  Links are provided for convenience only, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme and will not receive reward for their use.

Parragon Book Buddies - The Adventures of the Owl & the Pussycat

This month's Parragon Book Buddies book is The Adventures of the Owl and the Pussycat by Coral Rumble.

The Owl & The Pussycat in the story aren't the ones you remember from the Edward Lear nonsense verse, these are a young boy & girl, dressed up, having an imaginative adventure in their own little boat.  Beautifully illustrated by Charlotte Cooke, it's not quite the story you expect.  I won't spoil it for you, but be ready for a cheeky seagull, and lots of fun.

Squeaky loved the story, once she stopped asking me where the owl was, and arguing that it was just a little boy dressed up (she didn't seem to have the same issue with the pussycat), and loved pointing out the various things the children had found in their adventures as the story went on.  The rhyming scheme is awkward in places, if I've got my English Literary critique hat on, but it's bouncy, lively and funny, and that matters far more than a strict iambic pentameter!

I think maybe she likes it more because she hasn't yet encountered the Edward Lear poem, though I can see that ode raising a whole lot of questions of its own when we do finally come to read it.  For me, I liked the winks to the original (the children's boat is called Petit Pois, though it isn't pea green), but there's always a little bit of the first version of something you encounter being your personal benchmark against which everything else is judged. (I can't watch a lot of movie remakes for just this reason).  Don't get me wrong, we love it, it just gives me a little shake when it doesn't go in the direction I expect it to - there's no honey, money or Five Pound Notes to start with, though they do sail away for a year and a day.

Squeaky loves this book a little more than I do, and it's a welcome addition to our bedtime collection.

The Adventures of the Owl and the Pussycat is released on 13 October 2013, and is available from Amazon and other retailers.

Disclosure: I was provided with the above book free of charge for the purposes of this review. I was not told what to write and all opinions are my own. Links are provided for convenience only, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme and will not receive reward for their use.

Parragon Book Buddies - Children's Books Summer 2013

Way back in the height of summer, when the days were long, and I had a suntan, I went to BritMums Live.  And I met the lovely people from Parragon Books, who asked me if Squeaky & I would like to be part of their Book Buddies group, and help them reviewing new books.  Yes, they asked me. As if I'm going to say no to the offer of New Books, with that lovely New Book Smell.

So, we received 2 books for Squeaky to look at, and we'd like to tell you a bit more about them, once she's finished reading, naturally.

The first book is the utterly adorable Things You Never Knew About Dinosaurs, by Giles Paley-Phillips.  I won't spoil the story for you, but suffice it to say that dinosaurs didn't really die out, they're all around us, doing amazing things.  We love this book, the rhymes, the pictures, the silly story, it's just so much fun.  So much so, that when I was chatting to a story-telling librarian last week, I recommended it to her to add to both the library's collection, and her story-telling selections.  Even Daddy has enjoyed reading this one, but I've been told I have to read the last page quietly and not in a silly scary loud voice like I'd rather.

No nail polish, again!

The second book we received was Goodnight Little One, by Margaret Wise Brown.  This is a more traditional bedtime story book, a rhyming story as the little donkey on the cover, and his various baby animal friends settle down to sleep, and encourage your little one to do the same.  Squeaky settled down really quietly with this one, and cwtched up with me, but if anything it finished slightly too soon for her. She's at that awkward age where the easy to read bedtime stories are too short to be read to her, but she can't read them herself yet.  Soon, though.  Soon.

The simplicity and repetition of the rhyme is great for early readers, and young listeners, and given a couple of readings, Squeaky will happily join in with the "Little Donkey, close your eyes" refrain.  The illustrations are beautifully soft and restful, and you almost want to stroke the animals, to ease them off to their dreams.  (No inside photos of this one, I'm afraid. I can't disturb her beauty sleep).  You know what I think this book would be really great for?  Older brothers & sisters reading to their little siblings with parental help.  It's great to share that kind of experience, and the words are easy enough to do that, as well as the message of the story.  Reading practice and sibling bonding in one.

Things You Never Knew About Dinosaurs is definitely our favourite of these two books, and a regular on our bedtime story list, but we love them both.  Both books are published by Parragon, and available from amazon and other retailers.

Disclosure: I was provided with copies of both of these books free of charge as part of the Parragon Book Buddies programme.  I was not told what to write and all opinions remain my own.  Links are provided for convenience only, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme and will not receive reward for their use.

Hello Kitty and Friends - The Friendship Club - Review

One of the items in my BritmumsLive goodie bag was a very special book.  Hello Kitty & Friends, The Friendship Club.  The Friendship Club is the first in a series of 6 books, about everyone's favourite Sanrio Kitty and her friends and their adventures.

I settled down to read it with Squeaky.  OK, I didn't have a choice, she spotted it in my bag as soon as I got home & demanded we start reading straight away.  Hello Kitty is just one of those characters that somehow speaks to the psyche of small girls, and demands their attention.

In The Friendship Club, Hello Kitty and her twin sister Mimmy are starting their new school, with all the worries that go along with it, making new friends and finding their own identities in the school.  It's not without its difficulties, as in everyday life, but there's a great message about how to be a good friend, and what friendship is about.  Squeaky will be starting the nursery class in school in September, so this is well timed for her, and she loved the story.  Even I was quite engrossed towards the end, and I must confess to reading a chapter ahead to find out what was going to happen next!

The book is split into 6 chapters, between 10 to 20 pages each.  This makes each chapter about the right length for a bedtime story for a younger child, or for an independent reader to manage before getting tired & losing concentration.  The independent readers shouldn't struggle too much with the words, as the book is written simply to match with the target age group (5+, according to the back cover).  It's filled with black & white pictures, to maintain interest, and after the story finishes, there's a collection of activity suggestions to tie in with the book, and a teaser for the second book in the series - The School Trip.  There's even a competition in the back of the book, where the first 1000 readers to enter the secret code on the Harper Collins website can win a special prize.

Hello Kitty & Friends - The Friendship Club is released on 4 July 2013, published by Harper Collins.  It is available from Amazon and other retailers, with an RRP of £4.99.

Disclosure: I received this book free of charge in my BritmumsLive goodie bag. I was not obliged to review it, but by doing do, I have the opportunity to enter a competition.  I have not been told what to write and all opinions are my own. Links are provided for your convenience, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme and will not receive payment for their use.

A Matter Of Life And Death - Book Review

I was sent a copy of Paul Carroll's debut novel, A Matter Of Life And Death, earlier in December, and I thought I'd give you a little book review.

It's weird writing that phrase. I feel like I'm back in secondary school (I'm OLD, they weren't called High School when I went. And mine's a flaming "academy" now), and I'll have to write 200 words on the main character's motivation & feelings, and what the author was trying to tell us.  And basically retell the entire story to prove that I've read it, or Mrs Jones will have a go at me.  But in real life, book reviews aren't like that. If I did that, I would have comments of SPOILER!!SPOILER!! there would be no point in you reading the book, and no-one would like me any more.  So this is a real world book review, not a GCSE.

Paul Carroll's A Matter Of Life And Death is, well, all about death.  It's a dark comedy, taking on the public mourning that seems to be growing ever more commonplace since the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, and just takes it to the seemingly inevitable extreme.  Sideswipes at the government, reality tv, twitter, and celeb-crusaders keep it light, despite the subject matter.

For a debut novel, I was actually really impressed.  The style of writing, and the approach to the subject matter was very reminiscent of Ben Elton, and the way of bringing a seemingly unconnected selection of characters to a joined up finish was really well written.  I love that way of writing, and spent a lot of my reading time trying to second guess how the characters were connected, and the significance of certain events.

I might be devoted to my kindle, but there's something about an actual printed book that feels so much better.  And with a real book, I can share it with Squeaky Daddy so much easier.

If you're intrigued, and want to a copy of your own, A Matter Of Life And Death is available on Amazon, or if you're all spent out after the sales, you could win yourself a copy on this very blog. Go win a book! But be quick, the draw closes on 31/12/12!

Disclosure: I was provided with a copy of the book free of charge for the purposes of this review, and further copies for the linked giveaway. I was not told what to write and all opinions are my own. Links are provided for convenience only, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme & will not receive reward for their use.

CLOSED A Matter of Life And Death - Book Giveaway

WIN A SIGNED COPY!

BUYING THE PERFECT CHRISTMAS PRESENT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE…

A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH

If, by Christmas Day, you’ve had enough ‘festive cheer’ for one year, then fill your stockings with presents with a darker edge.

If woolly jumpers, over-indulgent hampers and a box of old-lady soaps are not your thing, then how does ‘A Matter of Life and Death’ sound?

This must-have debut novel by Paul Carroll is a satirical reflection of contemporary Britain. A witty, black comedy with a thought-provoking core.

Paul draws upon the age-old saying: “Everybody should be famous for fifteen minutes. After they die” and questions if society has gone too far.

Both entertaining and shocking, this book is a perfect present for those looking to add a bit of depth to this year’s Christmas stocking.

For a chance to win a signed copy of A Matter Of Life and Death, simply tell us the name of the debut author in a comment below, along with a way to contact you (email or twitter):

1. Paul Carroll
2. Caroll Paul
3. Lewis Carroll

For a bonus entry tweet: "Stuff the tinsel & glad tidings, I wanna #win a copy of A Matter of Life & Death with @meedja & Squeakybaby http://squeakybaby.blogspot.com/2012/12/a-matter-of-life-and-death-book-giveaway.html" and leave me a second comment to let me know. Max 2 entries per person.

For more information visit www.amolad.co.uk

Closes 31/12/12, at midnight - as the fireworks go off!  3 copies to be won.  Standard terms & conditions apply, see the above tab.

Disclosure: I have been provided with a copy of this book free of charge, review to follow!

50 Shades of Grey?

There’s a certain irony that the summer’s big blockbuster book seems to share its name with the way most of this summer has turned out, isn't there? I’ve seen at least 50 shades of grey clouds of late. I know the sunshine has finally made a very welcome appearance, but until the last couple of days, I thought we'd skipped straight through to November.  I meant to post this last week while the weather was still all miserable, but I've been busy, so here you go now.

I saw something recently about 50 Shades of Grey, suggesting that because seemingly the entire female population of the country is engrossed in reading a rather mucky book and, well, getting a bit jiggy, there’s going to be a baby boom in about 8 months time. Hmmm. The entire female population except me, obviously. I honestly have no interest in reading about someone else’s made up sex life, I read the first couple of chapters as a free download, and I prefer my reading matter to be a bit better written. If you want to read it, that's your choice, but I've never been one for over-hyped bandwagons - I still haven't read Harry Potter for the exact same reason.

Anyways, I then spotted something else while I was randomly clicking around the outer regions of the internet, saying that a deficiency in vitamin D can affect men's sperm counts, and as we all know, vitamin D is the sunshine vitamin, made by our bodies on exposure to the sun, something there's been a lack of this summer thanks to the 50 shades of grey clouds. So, is there going to be a baby boom or not then? Maybe mother nature is just making sure that even if the women of the UK are getting a bit frisky, there’s no real risk of a population explosion because the blokes are all shooting blanks due to the weather!

Well, I can't do much about your fella's little fella, I'm afraid. Tell him to pop to the shops & buy some supplements if you're worried that all your jiggy might go to waste. But there's a more serious side to all this cloud. The months of April - October are the only time in the UK that our bodies have chance to make vitamin D, which we store up for the rest of the year. In adults, that's one thing, but in children, with their growing bodies, it can present a major health risk.

Leanne Olivier, nutritionist and spokesperson for growingupmilkinfo.com, comments: “Vitamin D is known as the sunshine vitamin. The cloud cover on rainy days has an obvious effect on sunlight, making the sky dark and grey; however, what are less obvious are the knock-on effects of a miserable summer’s days on our toddlers’ health.

“It doesn’t just mean less time playing outdoors; this reduction in exposure to sunlight can be really significant - especially between the ages of one and three years, when toddlers experience a huge period of growth and development and need essential nutrients to support this.”

With the poor weather we’ve been experiencing, it’s more important than ever that toddlers get enough vitamin D from their daily diet.

British children’s vitamin D-poor diets¹, combined with low uptake of supplementation, a lack of knowledge amongst parents about their specific nutritional needs, plus a typically British summer, mean toddlers could really be missing out. All toddlers are considered to be vulnerable to low vitamin D in the diet while those who rarely play outside, don’t eat oily fish, don’t take supplements, or who have darker skins² or cover up for cultural reasons are thought to be particularly at risk.

In the absence of summer sun, nutritionist Leanne recommends a simple combined approach parents can take to ensure toddlers are meeting their vitamin D needs:

· Take a daily children’s supplement of vitamins A, C and D

· Give two 150ml beakers of Growing Up Milk daily providing about 70 per cent of a toddler's daily recommended nutrient intake of vitamin D

· Include food sources of vitamin D in the diet: oily fish once a week and fortified margarines and breakfast cereals, egg and liver!

· Enjoying the summer (April-Oct) sun safely, while taking care not to burn, can provide the benefits of vitamin D

Statistical information in this post comes from the Toddler Census, a survey of  over 1000 mothers carried out in July 2011.  

References:

¹.  Bates B et al. National Diet and Nutrition Survey 2008/09-2009/10

² Advisory Committee on Nutrition. Update on Vitamin D. Position statement by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition. London. TSO, 2007

200 Healthy Feasts Hamlyn All Colour Cookbook - Octopus Books Review

One of my guilty secrets is the number of recipe books I own, considering how infrequently I actually seem to use them.  Amongst them is a Hamlyn All-Colour cookbook dating back to the mid 80's that I "liberated" from my mum's house when I first left home, featuring such interesting gems as "Liver and Watercress", not a combination I'd've ever thought of, and a Sausage Plait that may or may not be the one made famous more recently by TOWIE's Nanny Pat.  I was quite chuffed then, when Octopus Books chose me to review the new 200 Healthy Feasts Hamlyn All Colour Cookbook, not least because I might be able to give my mum her book back after all these years!

On first sight, I was surprised how small the book was, particularly for 200 illustrated recipes.  My old one is HUGE, and I was anticipating something similar.  However, this book appears to have been designed with my kitchen in mind - I don't have the space for an A4 sized book, open, on my worksurface, and so the pocket size of this book is much more practical.

(Nails, OPI Gone Gonzo)

Each page has the recipe on the left, and a picture of the finished dish on the right, the simplicity and consistency of the design really appeal to me, I like to know where I'm looking!  The recipes are divided into easy to follow sections for Breakfast & Brunch, Starters, Soups & Stews, Fish, Meat, Vegetarian and desserts.

As you can see, I decided to make a bean chilli.  Unfortunately, we enjoyed it so much it got eaten before I took a comparison photo, and I'm just not organised enough for avocado salsa.

Old meets new

The recipes are easy to follow, with clear instructions, and a great range of classics and modern recipes from around the world, and the pictures are colourful and inspiring.

I wonder, when Squeaky looks back at this book, 20-odd years from now, which recipes she'll be freaked out by?  Will it be the feta-stuffed plaice? The pesto and lemon soup? The chicken and pickled walnut pilaf?  One thing I know, it won't be liver & watercress, that didn't make the cut this time around!

200 Health Feasts Hamlyn All Colour Cookbook is available  from Amazon.co.uk for £3.69.  (Amazingly, the 1986 book, pictured above, has a cover price of £6.99.  And they talk about inflation?)

Disclosure: I was provided with a copy of this book free of charge for the purpose of this review.  I was not told what to write, and all opinions are my own.  Links are provided for your convenience only, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme & will not receive reward for their use.

My Red House

MyRed House is a recently launched website from RedHouse, the children's book publisher.  It's an interactive website, designed to provide an online home for parents who want to encourage a love of reading in their children.

That sounded like my kind of thing, to say I'm a book lover is an understatement, books take up an awful lot of my house (and time), and I really want to encourage Squeaky to enjoy books in the same way.  I try to mix up the books that we read together, so there's new books, modern classics, and older stories that stand the test of time (or sometimes don't!)  Variety is the spice of life, so they say, and it keeps me amused to move from Peppa Pig to Hans Christian Andersen!

MyRed House is a little bit of everything.  There's live interviews with children's authors, including big names such as Jacqueline Wilson who is joining them on 7th February, and the opportunity for children and parents to send in their questions to the authors.  The interviews are streamed live, and available to watch on demand if you miss them on the day.  There's a blog, a what's on guide for book events in your area, a forum to share your own questions, thoughts & experiences, and the chance to ask the Red House team for suggestions of books for you & your children, whatever their interests or reading levels.

My favourite section though, is Learn, a whole online resource of advice & information for every stage of your child's reading journey, with activities, advice, recipes (yes, recipes) and book suggestions for both parents and children. There's even suggestions relating to specific life events that children may be going through at that age (potty training & fussy eaters are both very relevant in this house!)

The site is still fairly new, so elements such as the forum are quite sparse at the moment, and the number of events local to you varies depending on where you live - you're fine in the South-East, but as is often the case it's a bit quiet over in Wales, Northern Ireland and the South West.  That said, again, as the site grows events will come up.  Keep checking!

MyRed House is a site that will continue to grow, but an interactive resource is only as good as the users who interact with it.  I posted recently about parents turning to the internet for advice rather than more traditional sources such as family & reference books, My Red House is a link between old and new. Sometimes a book is more rewarding, but it can't have the answer to everything, which is where the interactive element comes in.

The Book People - Piccadilly Picture Book Library Review

Anyone who works in an office knows all about The Book People.  That nice man (or sometimes a nice lady, but ours is a man) who comes round every month or so with a random selection of books & you somehow always find something you want.  That's TheBook People.  They also have a website, www.thebookpeople.co.uk, which has a much wider range than your local distributor can carry in their car, with books for all ages & interests.

The nice folk at TheBook People sent Squeaky the PiccadillyMini Picture Book Library to review.  It's aimed at children between 2-5, and contains 10 books covering fairies, mermaids, animals, friendship, and toys.  The books may appear to be slightly more slanted towards girls, with the fairies and mermaids, but I know plenty of boys who'd still enjoy these books (and the rest of the set), as well as a certain Squeaky girl that likes pirates & cars just as much as pink & sparkles.  I'd maybe have liked to have swapped one of the two "girly" books out for a more boy orientated story for balance, but it's not a big issue.

Squeaky spotted the books straight away, before I got them out of the box, and knew they were for her.  The box that the books are stored in is bright and colourful, with pictures of the books' covers, and a snug fit to keep the ten books safe from harm.  I was actually quite surprised how big the books were, considering the name was a Mini Picture Library.  Mini compared to, say, our town library (still closed for renovations, reopening next week according to rumours), so mini in that sense, but when I see Mini in terms of books, I think buggy-book/Little Book of Calm sized.  These are pretty much standard sized books, hardback, but with paper pages, not board books.  That makes the box quite heavy when it's full of the books, as Squeaky discovered when she tried to carry it across the room & she dropped it, right on her foot. Poor mite. That said, 5 minutes of cuddles and Mummy kissing it better, and she was right as rain and demanding "My Books" again, carrying them a bit more carefully second time around.

Squeaky loves trying to read at the moment, or pointing out the pictures to me and telling me what's going on.  She curled up on the sofa quite happily with One Clever Creature, which is definitely our favourite so far, the big print and short length of the story make it ideal for keeping her attention. Some of the stories are a little longer, and they'll engage her more over the coming months, making the set something that will have a long lifespan.

We went through a phase not so long back of not being interested in stories, but we're firmly back in the Bedtime Story Zone at the moment, somewhere I hope we stay.  The Piccadilly Mini Picture Library is already well established in our collection, and gives me a good variety of choices, keeping my attention as well as Squeaky's.

The Piccadilly Mini Picture Book Library is RRP £79.90, but is available from TheBook People for the bargain price of £9.99, and would make a lovely birthday or Easter gift (I'm not thinking about Christmas again for ages!)

Disclosure: I was provided with the Piccadilly Picture Book Library free of charge for the purpose of this review.  I was not told what to write, and all opinions are my own.  Links are provided for your convenience only, I am not a member of any affiliate scheme & will not receive reward for their use.

Magpie Monday - Returning to the fold

Miss, I've got a note from my mum. It says I couldn't do Magpie Monday because the bank man was very cross with me because I got paid early in December and that meant I had no money.  S'True Miss.

Well, it's been almost two months since I did a Magpie Monday post, according to my archive. You'd think I'd be overwhelmed with things to show you.  Well, nearly.  There's a couple of bits I picked up last week, that will form part of a present for a friend who I know reads my blog, so they can't go on here just yet.  I think I need another trip to Caerphilly, as I found a big basket of upholstery remnants in one of the shops, but couldn't think of anything to do with them. Then I saw hand stitched & embroidered Kindle cases on Etsy, and had a flash of inspiration, so I need to go back!

But I have had a few little treats.  Shopping just before Christmas, we decided to be eco-minded and get the train, rather than driving and trying to park in Cardiff.  Only trouble is entertaining a bored & grumpy Squeaky for the 50 minute journey home.  However, there's a lovely nasty, dirty little strip of shops, featuring no less than 3 charity shops, just outside the train station, so we popped in before our train & I found this little set of 6 Fifi lift-the-flap books for 50p.  We don't even watch Fifi, but they did the trick.

Next shop along, I needed something to entertain me on the same journey.  I'll be honest, there's no way in a MILLION years I'd've paid full price for this, and it's already in the pile to go to the charity shop on my next donation session, but for £1.50 to Macmillan, I didn't really mind, and the guy behind the desk was so helpful, opening the door for me while I pushed Squeaky's buggy, I was sold.  I found a shiny Celtic lattice bookmark in the third of the three shops, so it was clearly meant to be.  I had to stop myself buying a huge number of baubles I didn't need, just because they were shiny, but luckily I remembered we only had a tiny tree this year and had more baubles than we could use anyway.  So I was a good person.  Really.

And so we come to 2012.  As I said, the bank manager's in a bit of a mood with me, and I'm not allowed to go shopping at the moment.  Don't tell him, but I did pop my nose round the door of BHF in town last week, and I found something lovely on the bricabrac shelves, while I was convincing myself not to buy a LeapPad for £10.

Look at it!  Gaze in wonder!  Be astounded at the beautiful things that people give to charity here.  And be even more amazed that I paid less than £1 for it.

Then trust me, as I turn it over, and it doesn't say ANYthing on the base.  Seriously, you didn't think I'd picked up a real Le Crueset for a quid, did you?

And just to make you feel even better, a perspective shot next to a bottle of nailvarnish.  That's right, a tiny weeny mini pretend Le Crueset.  Just the right size for baked brie, or some sort of hot dipping sauce, but probably not for a ginormous casserole.








Pop on over to Missie Lizzie's place and see what else people have been buying!

Magpie Monday - NCT Round Two

Part two of my Magpie finds from last week's NCT sale insanity.  My bruises have just about healed, I almost considered a second run at the Albany Road charity shops over the weekend (common sense & bank balance won out in the end) and I can now get my head around the all-important question "errr, what the heck did I buy then?"

First out of the starting stalls today, a pair of grey Next skinny jeans.  I'm a sucker for skinnies, and La Squeak is all length and no width, so they look better on her than chunky trousers.  There's a bit of a grass stain on the left knee, it's faded now after a wash with the Vanish, but hey, even if it hadn't, for £1 I'm not about to argue. There'll be grass stains on both knees by the time Squeaky's finished wearing them.  (I left the price stickers on the first couple I took photos of, then decided it was too much work to take sellers' names off & just took the whole tag off the others, in case you were wondering)

Nothing special these, I broke one of my golden rules - check the labels. They're only Tescos, but again they were only £1.  It's so much easier for nursery and when Daddy's on Squeaky Wrangling Duty to dress her in trousers, they're more practical than skirts & tights (much to my dismay), and these are in good nick, a sensible colour to hide the dirt, and have lots of pockets.  Squeaky has just developed an obsession with pockets.  She doesn't tend to put anything in them, but she likes to have them, and look inside them a lot.  Maybe I should hide small but interesting things inside them to surprise her?  Raisins, perhaps?

And while I'm breaking my golden rule of label-checking, I spotted these in the boys section while I was in the queue to pay, and to quote Little Bo Peep on Show Me Show Me "Oh My Woolly Word, I just gotta have it!"  We had a pair of khaki cropped trousers last summer, which turned out to be a wardrobe staple for ages, and these are just FABulous.  I have absolutely zero qualms about dressing Squeaky in boys' clothes, if they fit & look cute, I don't care.

Then I grabbed this very festive stripy t-shirt. The photo doesn't do it justice, there's a sparkly gold thread in amongst the stripes there.  I'm looking forward to dressing her up over Christmas in this, it's so soft & cosy, and it'll hide cranberry sauce stains nicely.  That's right, I have a child that refuses to eat dinner, but will eat yorkshire puddings, gravy and cranberry sauce. Hmmmmmm...

I foolishly ventured upstairs to the toy section.  I was actually very good, they also have bedding & things upstairs & I resisted the temptation to grab an In The Night Garden sleeping bag, partly because it was £8, which was WAY over my budget, and mostly because the last 2nd hand one I bought cost me 50p and I'm spoiled now.  I did grab this noisy shape-matching game though.  The puzzle is a bit (OK, lot) simple for Squeaky, but the noises are very entertaining & she's enjoying learning what the animals are, and copying the noises.  I'll probably get sick of this very soon & donate it somewhere, but right now it's doing OK.  (I also bought a Waybuloo Fuzzy Felt set, but that's upstairs in my wardrobe hiding out with the Christmas presents, so no photos for you just yet.)

And a last minute, bonus entry to today's bargain bonanza!  We went to the carvery for Sunday lunch, and when I took Squeaky for a change, through the connecting doors into the Travelodge next door, I spotted a table of books, on sale raising money for Cancer Research.  Well, internet, you know me by now, I'm not one to turn down a book.  There were 3 or 4 Enid Blyton books there, all short stories, and in varying conditions.  Squeaky actually chose this one, and I asked her if she wanted any of the others as well (I was feeling generous), but no, she only wanted the Watering Can book.  The stories include such gems as "The hole in the mackintosh", "Mr Binkle's Boots", and the intriguing sounding "Mr Pink-Whistle and Santa Claus". I'm not sure I want to find out how Mr Pink-Whistle got his name.

Well, if you've got your breath back, that's all from me for today. See what everyone else has been finding, over at Missie Lizzie's place. 

Magpie Monday - End of the Year?

Yep. It might be the first week in November (just about), but according to my local car boot, it's the end of the year, and they're finishing now til about April.  I can see their point, it was a quagmire yesterday, and I really wished I'd got my wellies on.  Now I've got to take the car through the carwash (sorry, I'm lazy), and clean the buggy wheels.  In fact, can I do that at the car wash too?

Right. Well.  Anyway.  There's getting less stalls now as well, so nowhere near the chance of finding something lovely as earlier in the season.  I've been really jealous of people who've found lovely vintage Ladybird books for pennies, because I only ever see them in Hay-on-Wye with crazy price tags.  So when I spotted a pile of books today with those distinctive matte cardboard covers, I had to have a closer look.  Sadly most of the Ladybirds were newer, and the few vintage ones were dull and/or badly looked after.

The stall didn't disappoint though.  Someone who knows far more about these things than I was haggling out a bargain on a vintage early 70's Sindy doll, still in her box.  I wouldn't have known where to start with that, so I was glad to be out of it.  I did spot a pile of other old children's books, and took a closer look.  TBH I was hoping for The Eagle, Beano or Dandy, but my luck wasn't quite that good.  I couldn't leave the Enid Blyton Bedtime Annual of 1978 behind though, could I?  Sadly the binding's a bit shaky & there's a page missing out of the middle, but these things happen.  I'm particularly amused by the title of the last page "I Love Little Pussy"  (Oh dear, the google hits I'm going to pick up from that don't bear thinking about.)

And in addition to our old friend Enid, I also found a gorgeous pop-up fairy tales book, which I simply couldn't leave behind.  Sorry about the flash flare at the bottom, it's a really really yellow-tinted book, and all the rest of my pics were coming out looking like they had jaundice. It was 75p back in 1982 when it was printed, so the fact I paid 50p for the pair is a bit of a bargain.  This reminds me of the kind of books my cousins & I used to share at my grandparents' house when we were little.  I wonder if the Rupert Bear annuals are still there?

Do you know how difficult it is to take photos of pop-up books, by the way?  I didn't, but I do now.  There's only 3 stories in the book, but each one has a pop-up scene, and this one is my favourite.  (Any secret nail-bloggers reading this, I'm wearing Revlon's Facets of Fuchsia)

So, that's the car boots over for another year. Good job I've got a stash of finds I haven't shown you yet!  What have you found? Pop over to Missie Lizzie's place & tell the world. 

Magpie Monday - Snooker Loopy

"Snooker Loopy, nuts are we, me and him and them and me.
We'll show you what we can do, with a load of balls & a snooker cue!
Pot the reds and screw back, for the yellow, green, brown, blue, pink and black.
Snooker Loopy, nuts are we, we're all snooker loopy!"

And I didn't even need to look that up!

Snooker is probably the biggest obsession in my life.  No probably about it, it is.  Fact.  I've spent too much money, and too many hours sitting in darkened theatres watching men in tight trousers bend over a table in the name of sport, that I really shouldn't admit it in public.  And this week, as I haven't had any luck whatsoever in new finds, I'm sharing some of my favourites instead.

These 6 are about a quarter of my collection of "classic" snooker books of the late 70's - late 80's, including my most recent find in the top centre (Many of the others are inaccessible due to bookcase "issues").  I'm pretty sure these are all charity shop/boot sale finds, but I do pick them up on eBay as well from time to time, though they're a bit more expensive there.  It's amazing how popular & mainstream snooker was in that era, even Marks & Spencer published a snooker book!  I can't see them publishing a football book now, though I'm happy to be proved wrong.

But the real reason I'm sharing these books today is to show just what sort of treasures you can find.  The bottom centre book of this collection is one of my very favourites.  Not because of the content, but what's just inside.

Signed by the late Ted Lowe, a man I was never lucky enough to meet, though he was still commentating when I first started going to live matches. 

6 times world champion Ray Reardon, one of the nicest players I've met (and without bragging, I've met a LOT)  A genuinely lovely, lovely guy.

And 4 times world champion, albeit from a very different era, the late John Pulman - helpfully with an arrow pointing him out!

I don't know who James was, or how the signatures were obtained (the date is just after the end of the 1981 world championship), it's all just part of the mystery.

Maybe next week I'll have some new finds for you, maybe...

See what the other magpies have found

"It's only a game so put up a real good fight,
I'm gonna be snookering you tonight.
I'm famed for my aim so you'd better believe I'm right,
I'm gonna be snookering you, snookering you tonight. BIG BREAK!"

(sorry)

Magpie Monday - Choo Choo

Last week's Magpie Monday, I mentioned that I'd spent a couple of days on a training course.  It was run by a charity (not the one I work for), and charities have a tendency to grab almost every opportunity they can to raise a bit of cash.  Over in the corner of the training room was a table I found myself drawn to in the first of many coffee breaks.  Second Hand Books - 50p!  I'm one of these people who *need* something to read if I'm sat still for any length of time, and I plough through newspapers & trashy magazines at lightning speed, so two days of hour long train journeys each way was looking expensive.

Until the table came to the rescue.  I love travel books, the kind that tell a story, rather than the ones that recommend an assortment of historic places & expensive restaurants.  This was the former, well written, though a bit too convenient for my liking, every turn the author seemed to accidentally meet someone else who'd played a major role in the Hippy Trail of the 1960's.  Yeah, I'm sure the tedium of finding people & meeting no-bods wouldn't make such interesting reading, but it would be that bit more convincing.  Travel IS boring in places, anyone who's set foot in an airport will attest to that.  This one took me home from training, and back there & back the next day, with a few chapters left for bedtime reading.

The second book kept me going in the car on our little trip to Banbury & Oxford last weekend.  Silly, slightly reminiscent of The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Nighttime, and not just because of the dog in the title.  A nice trashy bit of 50p fun.  These books are more Magpie Monday, in my mind, than the majority of my charity shop book finds, because these actually saved me money.  By spending £1 on two books, I didn't buy 2 newspapers, plus a couple of trashy magazines, a bottle of diet coke & a packet of crisps while I was in the shop, just because they were there.  Spending a little to save a lot more, that's what it's all about.

Oh yeah, and Oxford?  No finds in Oxford, but I did see a street sign that made me smile.  I've seen a few town centre High Streets so full of charity shops they should change their name to this.

Who else has been bargain spotting this week? Find out here