- Have You Ever Seen a Sneep? By Tasha Pym and Joel Stewart
Doubleday, hardback, £10.99
Oscar is trying to enjoy his day out but the moment his back is turned, the Sneep and its mischievous friends sneak up and spoil his fun. It's time, he thinks, to move to somewhere free from sneeps and snooks and loons and knoos.
A funny and original story with simple rhyming text and an array of quirky characters. Great fun!
- Box of Tricks by Katie Cleminson
Jonathan Cape, hardback, £10.99
For her birthday, Eva receives a box - but what looks like an ordinary cardboard box becomes magical once she climbs inside. Eva becomes a magician, conjuring up a longed-for pet, which turns out to be an enormous polar bear, as well as party food and musicians. And with a click of her fingers all vanishes - except the bear.
A whimsical story, beautifully illustrated, largely in black and white but with wonderful splashes of reds and blues. A magical debut.
- First the Egg by Laura V Seeger
Frances Lincoln, hardback, £10.99
This is a book about transformations ... from tadpole to frog, from caterpillar to butterfly. But it is also about creativity, as paint becomes picture and word becomes a story. A cut-out on each page gives the reader a peek at the transformation to come.
Seeger is an Emmy Award-winning artist and animator and is author of the wonderful Lemons Are Not Red.
- Captain Small Pig by Martin Waddell and Susan Varley
Andersen Press, hardback, £10.99
Old Goat, Turkey and Small Pig head for the lake and set off in a little red boat, with Small Pig as Captain Commander. But Small Pig soon tires of rowing and falls asleep, and before they know it, the boat is drifting across the lake, and grumpy Turkey and Old Goat are in for a soaking.
A gentle and comforting book, with the 'adults' determined not to spoil Small Pig's day and carrying him all the way home to the comfort of his bed.
- Amina and the Shell written by Deborah Alexander and illustrated by Kim Hartley
Tamarind, paperback, £5.99
Amina's island home is battered by storms that destroy everything in their path. After one wild and windy night, Amina wakes up to find the garden in ruins. Even the rocks have shifted. She steps through a crack in the mountain and into another world ... A tropical fairytale.
