Books To Treasure

Don't you just LOVE picture books. Weird stories, peculiar artwork - some of the oddest books that have crossed our threshold have been in this section (more on those in another post), but equally some of the most beautiful and wonderful too.

This is new.

There Are Cats In This Book by Viviane Schwarz.

Quirky, fun and makes me laugh and smile every time I look at it. I love the bright colourful artwork, and the fun way it makes you turn the page to see whats next. The interaction between reader and book is engaging and stimulating. The cats inside are friendly and want to play, they talk directly to you....there is wool, and flaps and .....well its generally just wonderful. If it can make this bookseller go back to read it time and again, it has to be good. You'll have to go get one. and to see what I mean.

Sadly, many picture books come and go, and are barely noticed. Others stand the test of time and are read by several generations.

If you live in the UK then you'll probably know, have read, or own picture book classics such as The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Where The Wild Things Are, and The Gruffalo, as well as character books like Kipper and Spot. Surely, there can be few people who remain unaware of Thomas the Tank Engine and his various friends.

And talking of small, easy to carry around books, (for those all important moments when your child is building up to a full scale screaming fit and you want to distract them), who hasn't read at least one of the Mr Men or Little Miss series.

One of my all-time-favourite picture books to recommend is The Kissed That Missed by David Melling.

The King blows the little Prince a kiss goodnight, but the kiss misses and flies out the bedroom window. Prince cries, Queen calls King, King calls Knight. The clumsy knight is sent to track it down and after some mishaps and misadventures, catches the kiss, makes an unlikely new friend and as with all good stories, everything ends happily. In The Kiss That Missed every time you look at the pictures you will find something new. If you know anything about David's illustrations in other books, then you see what he has cleverly included! Published in 2002, I still read it occasionally, am still finding new things in the illustrations, and as you may have guessed, recommend it often. I adore it. I've been privileged to see the sketches he made for this and his Jack Frost book. David's artwork is beautiful, engaging and worth a book on its own.

Come back for more Books To Treasure, but in the meantime, what is your favourite picture book? Tell me below.

Shortlist for the Hans Christian Andersen Awards 2010

The shortlist for the 2010 awards have been announced by IBBY (the International Board on Books for Young People),

The authors are:

David Almond (UK)
Bartolomeu Campos de Queiros (Brazil)
Louis Jensen (Denmark)
Ahmad Reza Ahmadi (Iran)
Lennart Hellsing (Sweden)

The illustrators are:

Carll Cneut (Belgium)
Roger Mello (Brazil)
Svjetlan Junakovic (Croatia)
Jutta Bauer (Germany)
Etienne Delessert (Switzerland)

The Hans Christian Andersen Award is considered one of the most prestigious in international children’s literature and is given every two years to a living author and illustrator whose complete works have made lasting contributions to children's literature.

The 2008 Jurg Schubiger won the Author Award and Roberto Innocenti won the Illustrators Award. Previous winners have included authors Eleanor Farjeon, Astrid Lingren, Scott O'Dell and Aidan Chambers, and illustrators Maurice Sendak, Robert Ingpen, Anthony Browne, and Quentin Blake.

The 2010 winners will be announced on Tuesday 23rd March at the Bologna Children's Book Fair.

Review: Meteorite Strike by A.G. Taylor

Waterstones Children's Book Prize

A meteorite hits earth, unleashing an alien virus; its victims falling into a deep coma. On their way to join their father, Sara and Robert’s plane crashes in the Australian desert but they survive, and later begin to display some extraordinary powers. There is of course an unscrupulous agency (HIDRA) who capture, study, experiment and exploit those with new-found super-powers. Escape they must, but what awaits them in the world outside?

This is one of those adrenalin-rush, high impact books that teens love so much, but a great read nevertheless. With its dramatic start, high speed pace, and edge of the seat action, readers are hooked from the start and taken on a whirlwind flight to an ending that leaves you wanting more.

What a ride!

Reveiw: Flyaway by Lucy Christopher

Waterstones Children's Book Prize

When thirteen year old Isla’s father goes into hospital, she meets a boy there called Harry; the first to understands Isla and her love of the countryside. Although he is ill, they form a friendship, and together discover a swan detached from its flock. Isla is convinced that if she can help the swan, she will help Harry, and so the magic begins.

A little slow to start, but none the worse for that, with a good balance between the real and the fantasy. This lovely tale, laced with beautiful imagery, is about love and loyalty, friendship and family, and made a pleasant change from the usual fare of hormone, adrenalin charged teen stories.

Review: The Great Hamster Masscare by Katie Davies

Waterstones Children's Book Prize

A most awful crime has occurred; Anna’s hamsters have been attacked, leaving them dead or injured. Along with Tom, her little brother, and Suzanne her best friend, this is a crime Anna is determined to solve. A pet-hating Dad, a suspect cat with a history of violence, are just two of the cast of fabulously funny characters, helped to life by the great illustrations that accompany the story.

This story for younger readers deals with the delicate subjects of death and loss, yet it does so in a quirky and humorous way. It certainly made me giggle, but I would bear in mind that a sensitive child might find the hamsters’ deaths upsetting.