Are You an Alien? By Sam Banfield-Keller and Rosemary Banfield

 

2025      

Makhosi is curious about aliens.

She looks everywhere for them and she asks everyone she meets if they are aliens. She gets to know many other earthlings.

On her quest Makhosi meets all sorts of animals which may or may not be familiar to the reader.  We learn something interesting about each animal. Here is an opportunity for the adult to discuss what the child sees in the pictures.  

Both Makhosi and her grandfather are curious and optimistic. But in the end Makhosi cannot find the alien she wants to befriend … except just at the last moment she meets a strange little green creature.       

As we would expect there is more story in the pictures.

The text uses a plain font with simple ‘a’s and ‘g’s.

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Coorie Doon by Jackie Kay and Jill Calder

2025      

Like Jackie Kay herself, protagonist Shona is adopted and her skin is a different colour from that of her parents. It is quite uncanny that Kay tells us the father in the book looks just like her father and the garden is similar to the one where she lived as a child in Glasgow.

Shona’s father sings ‘Coorie Doon’ to her as she settles down to sleep.  There are other songs: ‘Wild Mountain Thyme’ ‘The Riddle Song’ and ‘Tree Love Song’. As the book progresses we enter Shona’s dreams.

Then in a thought-provoking twist at the end of the book sixty-year old Shona sings ‘Coorie Doon’ to her ageing parents.

Jill Calder’s’ illustrations are quite delicate, particularly in the dream scenes.   As ever more story appears in the illustrations.

At the beginning of the book is a QR code that takes you to an interview with Kay and the songs.

At the end of the book there is a letter from Kay to the young reader and simple biographies of both Calder and Kay.

There are sixteen double spreads in the book. The text uses a serif font with difficult ‘a’s and ‘g’s’. It is meant to be read aloud by an adult. Some Scottish dialect may be a challenge for some English readers.  

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 Note, this is an affiliate link and a small portion of what you pay, at no extra cost to you,  may go to Bridge House Publishing. 

    

Spalt! by Vanessa Horn and Georgia Przygocki

2025           

There is a problem at Muddlepuddle: the geese keep dropping poo on the village.

Emma and her mum and dad, Mr and Mrs Chatterbustle try to solve the problem.

Using umbrellas isn’t enough.  Giving the geese mirrors doesn’t put them off.  

Then Emma realises they are very good at fertilising the soil. They all set to and create targets for the geese. The goose poo now lands in the right place and the crops grow well on the allotments of the Muddlepuddle residents.

A little fanciful, yes, but full of fun. 

The book is a typical picture book with additional story in the pictures. There are twelve double spreads. The font is without a serif but has difficult ‘a’s. The last spread gives information about the museum of poo on the Ilse of Wight and some general information about animal poo. 

 

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Sigrid is Unique by Lotta Lundh and Nils Melander

2024           

Sigrid is indeed unique but she needs to work out why

She likes her room in a certain order. She finds it difficult to sit still in class.  She likes to read on her own. She’s good at drawing. There are only a few places she feels comfortable visiting. She doesn’t cope with noise well.  She isn’t all that comfortable with other people. There are only certain foods she likes. She needs help with many tasks that other people find easy. Her own thoughts bother her sometimes. She is very kind.

Is it any one of these qualities that makes her unique or is it all of them?

This book goes to great lengths to describe Sigrid’s predicament.

The illustrations work here as they would in a picture book for younger children: they show more of the story.

The text is set ragged right which makes it easier for an emergent reader. It also uses a font that resembles print and has simple ‘a’s and ‘g’s.   

There is information at the end of the book about the writer and the Illustrator.      

 

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Dim Sum Palace by X. Fang

 

2023               

Liddy’s family are planning a visit to the Dim Sum Palace the next day. Liddy dreams of following a delicious smell and ending up at a sumptuous palace where she is made in to a dumpling and almost eaten by the Empress. However, the grand lady realises just in time that Liddy is there and then the two of them share the feast. Within the dream, Liddy falls asleep and is carried back to her own bed. The family visit the Dim Sum Palace the next day; it’s just an ordinary restaurant in an ordinary street. But the food is delicious.    

This is a conventional picture book in that more story is put into the pictures. In particular there are some interesting illustrations of the kitchen at the palace in the dream, the street in the town in real life and the actual Dim Sum Palace. These are all very busy pictures with a lot that the child and adult might discuss.

The end papers show all sorts of Dim Sum treats.  It is an education and the book is likely to make you hungry.

There is a little bit of a joke for the grown-ups; they will no doubt know what a real Dim Sum Palace looks like and may smile at the little girl’s expectation.

The text is printed in a serif font which has difficult ‘a’s and ‘g’s.  This is reasonable as the text will most likely be read by an adult.  The font size is large so reading glasses may not be needed.  

 

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Note, this is an affiliate link and a small portion of what you pay may go to Bridge House publishing.