Halibut Jackson by David Lucas (Andersen, 10.99, ISBN: 1-84270-218-1)
We gradually find out about Halibut Jackson's talent as a tailor through the changing background scenes. Halibut Jackson ensures he is dressed in stupendous outfits that perfectly match each scene, so he is camouflaged.
This allows him to avoid his shyness. It's a shame that the character is pretty much in the same position each time, so children can find him fairly quickly. The text is minimalist, and carefully crafted so that it is easy to read out. There are some nice repetitions and build-ups, and because of the detailed illustrations with their discrete themes and settings, the book works on several levels too. For example, in the library (which is the kind of library most of us would like to spend time in) you can compare the different types of visitors and imagine what books they might be reading, including Halibut Jackson, of course. And in the park there are some distinctive and amusing looking birds and tree-fruits to name. You may want to develop a pattern and camouflage activity with children, using the themes in this book.
You Choose written by Pippa Goodhart and illustrated by Nick Sharratt (Doubleday 10.99, ISBN: 0-385-60176-X)
This large format book invites the reader to choose from a mind-boggling range of options put into neat categories like: homes, modes of travel, clothes and pets. The speech bubbles work well in delivering the jokes - for example, on the shoe-themed page, where a woman in stiletto heels spikes a man wearing Roman sandals next to her. On the clothes-themed pages the main boy decides his preference is wearing nothing at all and his pink bottom can be seen sneaking off the page. I didn't find the speech bubbles of the girl, boy, and cat characters particularly helpful otherwise, since they tend to interrupt discussions about personal favourites. The book characters often only make one firm decision on preference each time, but because of the many exotic and irresistible options, children may opt for several choices. On the bed-themed spread, with useful lead-in text - 'And when you got tired and felt like a snooze, where would you sleep? You choose' - we end up with most of the options picked. These include a sleigh-shaped bed with a sleeping Father Christmas, an exotic Eastern bed with a decorative pineapple on top, and a bundle of pink petals for a fairy bed. The end papers give a myriad of suggestions for drawing the preferences together into a personalised narrative.
Little Yellow Dog Says Look at Me written by Francesca Simon and illustrated by James Lucas (Hutchinson, 8.99, ISBN: 1-84255-287-2)
I like the verve and passion of Little Yellow Dog, whose child-like inquisitiveness and enthusiasm leads him into a spot of trouble, but doesn't get him down. Little Yellow Dog sees a long wooden thing on wheels and identifies it wrongly as a bone. First he hopes the 'bone' will chase him, then when it doesn't, he chases the bone... and so begins a startling skateboard ride with Little Yellow Dog clinging on for dear life. Little Yellow Dog soon masters the art of skateboarding, he thinks, until splat! But he doesn't give up and the last picture shows him getting back on the skateboard and looping the loop. We aren't sure whether Little Yellow Dog lands on his feet, but we are sure that he will try and try again if it doesn't work out. This is a good message for children faced with new challenges.
Tanka Tanka Skunk by Steve Webb (Hutchinson, 10.99, ISBN: 0-09-188489-6)
This is an unusual book, all about rhythm conveyed through percussion instruments. The character Tanka is an elephant, and Skunk is a skunk. They love to play the drums. This provides the perfect invitation for children to join in with the text. Words are broken up into syllables and played by Tanka and Skunk - there's one beat for one syllable. So, for example, when a kan-ga-roo comes along, Skunk plays three beats on his drums, while Tanka plays four beats to represent the furry green creature crawling up her trunk - a cat-er-pil-lar. The pictures of the drums incorporate the image of the target creature each time. Words are also revisited in different contexts. For example, when a 'big gorilla' comes along, his name is said alongside 'cat-er-pil-lar', both to four beats. All the beats are initiated through images of new creatures appearing, and a chorus of 'skunka-tanka'
contributed by the main characters runs through. You should have a really up-beat time with this book, which will work well with a large group.
