Another month filled with picture-book-goodness.


Hot Dog, Cold Dog by Frann Preston-Gannon
I do have a soft spot for canine picture books.
But let’s be honest- there are approximately 65 billion* rhyming books about dogs.
So what sets this one apart from the rest?
A number of things…
– It celebrates the sausage dog (dachshunds).
– It is a book that teaches about opposites in a fun, engaging way.
– The illustrations are delightful.
– The author won The Sendak Fellowship. She got to work and live with the author of Where The Wild Things Are. That’s a seriously impressive accolade, don’t you think?!
* clearly I have just made this figure up.

Mitford at the Fashion Zoo by Donald Robertson and Kimberly Gieske
Look at that end paper!
This is the Animal Kingdom’s version of The Devil Wears Prada.
Mitford the Giraffe is hired by Non-Human Relations at Cover magazine to be assistant to formidable Editor, Panda Summers.
It is New York Fashion Zoo Week and the pressure is on Mitford to cater to the demands of his new boss.
How will Mitford deal with the egos of designers like Zap Possum, Shark Jakobs and Mikael Bors?
This book is laugh-out-loud funny.
It is sassy, on-trend and faaaabulous, dah-links.
Interestingly, the author is the Creative Director at Estee Lauder, was a founder of MAC Cosmetics, and has worked at Conde Nast.

Zoo Train by Sally Sutton and Daron Parton
This gorgeous book brings together two of The Little Ladybird’s current obsessions- transport and the zoo.
A little boy climbs aboard a train at the zoo. We travel with him through the zoo, marveling at the antics of the animals.
He arrives at the lunch spot only to discover that all of his things are missing.
Back aboard the zoo train and retracing his steps, he discovers which cheeky members of the Animal Kingdom have stolen his belongings.
Lots of onomatopoeia make this book a delight to read aloud.
The illustrations have a gorgeous Golden Book-esque vibe.
Perfect for the 4-7 age group.
An Alphabet in Silhouette by Natalie Jarvis
ABC books are a hot favourite with the 2 year-old at the moment.
She is also fascinated by her shadow.
My husband and I attempted to show her how to make shadow puppets on the wall but had forgotten all the tricks.
Luckily we found this gem at the library.
Each letter is assigned an animal with a diagram to show how to create that shadow puppet.
It comes with a fabulous instructional poster.
You can make all kinds of animals- a yak/ vampire bay/ llama- to name just a few.

It Might Be An Apple by Shinsuke Yoshitake
A boy walks into a room and sees an apple on a table.
Is it really an apple?
Maybe it’s his grandma in disguise?
Maybe it’s a star from outer space containing a space ship of aliens?
How many alternative uses can you come up with for an apple?
This book encourages us to use our imagination and promotes deep questioning.
This wild and wacky tale encourages readers to be curious about the world around them.
It’s a visual feast with a limited colour palette and super cool layouts.
After reading it for the first time, I went back and re-read it 3 times.
A book that can be used across age groups. Younger children will find it amusing.
It could be used for older children for discussions around philosophy and lateral thinking.

Being Agatha by Anna Pignataro
This is a gorgeous book about celebrating differences.
Agatha, with her bear daddy and pig mummy, is different from the other kids.
This is reinforced when she begins kindergarten.
Miss Tibble leads a discussion on what makes each one of us special.
As each student highlights their own unique qualities, Agatha employs very impressive avoidance strategies to get out of the discussion.
With a little help from her friends, Agatha realises that being Agatha is what makes her special.
There is no one else more Agatha than Agatha.
A gorgeous and gentle story accompanied by beautiful, whimsical illustrations.
This is the special book that will be waiting under the Christmas tree for The Little Ladybird.
A River by Marc Martin
“There is a river outside my window. Where will it take me?”
And so begins our imaginary journey from the city to the sea, and back again.
We follow our protagonist in her boat through exquisitely illustrated landscapes.
The text is lyrical and the illustrations are magical.
(There are not enough adjectives to describe their magnificence.)
This book is an adventure, an artwork and an exercise in imagination.
This book is worth buying for it’s cover alone.

A Lion in Paris by Beatrice Alemagna
In the book collage at the top of the post, you will see this book laid next to My Baby Bear.
The baby model was needed to illustrate the sheer size of this over-sized book.
A lion leaves the grasslands in search of a job, love and a future.
He arrives in the City of Light and is perturbed when the busy Parisiens take no notice of him.
For most of us, we crave to be noticed, to belong.
What will it take for the lion to be noticed?
As is expected, Beatrice’s mixed media and collage illustrations are divine.
A masterpiece.

Pretending to be organised for Christmas, I bought all the above books for presents.
Really it was just an excuse to buy gorgeous books. Justifying it as “being organised” makes me feel better.
Booktopia are having their last Free Shipping Offer for 2015.
Just use the Free Shipping Code of SMART at checkout for free delivery (in Australia and NZ until November 11th.)

I love preparing these posts each month. When I purchase my books, I use Booktopia. Their prices are competitive and their delivery is prompt. The titles and images of each book will take you to the Australian based online bookstore Booktopia. As a Booktopia Affiliate, purchases clicked through from my blog result in a small commission. You do not pay any extra for your books! Commission is used to maintain Oh Creative Day and a portion of commissions made is donated to the Touched By Olivia Foundation. Happy Reading!