Children's book review : Granny Marmalade & Uncle Tractor - Julian Warrender

We recently received a copy of Granny Marmalade & Uncle Tractor : A Celebration of Food & Farming to review. It's a beautifully presented, hardback book of 56 pages that is written by Julian Warrender and illustrated by Gavin Rowe.

Pierre picked it out at bedtime earlier in the week so I read him a chapter - it's much too long to read the whole thing in one sitting so it may be better suited to slightly older children. He loved looking at the pictures and listening to the goings-on at the farm, even if I had to stop and explain some things to him. It's a book that we will be able to come back to many times throughout the year, to discover the changing seasons in the book at the same time as watching nature reveal its secrets outside the window.

I read the introduction, which presents Granny Marmalade, based on the author Julian Warrender who really did start her 'jam factory', Ouse Valley Foods, from the cottage where she lived with her son, Jamie, a farmer who is represented by Uncle Tractor in the book. (They're based just up the road from my hometown of Hastings in Lewes, Sussex.) From there, we jumped straight forward to the pages covering October, where we learnt about the apples being picked, the wild mushrooms growing, the sheep being dipped and the pigs being let loose in the orchard to eat the last of the windfalls. 

Even as a grown-up, the book offers a fascinating glimpse into life on a farm, revealing things that I certainly didn't know. It's packed with fascinating facts but is presented in a very child-friendly, approachable way.

There is so much going on in the pictures that we frequently had to stop and point out all the details, discussing what was happening and what we could see.

If your children are more used to seeing fruit and vegetables in cellophane packs from the supermarket than fresh from the ground, it's also a great introduction to the different crops that are harvested throughout the year in Britain.

I was delighted to discover that there are even some recipes at the back of the book, for Orange Marmalade and Orange & Mandarin Marmalade. Another little bonus is a free copy of the Granny Marmalade & Uncle Tractor song that you can download at www.hareandheronpress.com.

It's slightly ambitious for 4-year-old Pierre at the moment (although he loves looking at the pictures) but for slightly older children, it's a lovely story that is very educational. We'll definitely be coming back to it throughout the year as a companion to the changing seasons.

star rating : 4.5/5

RRP : £12.99

• Hardcover: 56 pages
• Publisher: Hare and Heron Press (18 Dec 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0957473001
• ISBN-13: 978-0957473003
• Product Dimensions: 25.6 x 21.2 x 1.2 cm

Disclosure : We received the book in order to write an honest review.

Other reviews you may be interested in :

Children's book review : Pinkabella Dress Up Sticker Book

Children's book review : Don't You Dare - Sharky & George

Picture Book Review : Cupcake and the Princess Party - Mandy Archer & Kirsteen Harris-Jones

Children's book review : Pinkabella Dress Up Sticker Book

You can immediately tell by her face what Juliette thought of the Pinkabella Dress Up book that she received to review recently! Not only is it very pink and shiny, it also proudly boasts that it comes with over 200 stickers. What's not to like? (Especially if you're a little girl.)

Visiting Madhouse Nanny was put on sticker duty and they both played nice and quietly for at least half an hour - I'm not sure who had the most fun, to be honest !

The stickers were easy to unpeel, unlike some badly cut sticker sheets where they end up ripping when you try to tear them out, and Juliette particularly liked the special gems and bows. The books are made with high quality paper and a glossy thick cover and the sticker sheets can be pulled right out, making it easier to see what you've got as you work through the book.

Pinkabella is a lovely character. She's very girlie-girlie, loving fashion and - you've guessed it - the colour pink, so much so that she's even got pink hair ! She features in a whole range of Pinkabella activity books so I'm pretty sure Father Christmas may have to bring a couple more as stocking fillers in a couple of months !

I was a bit put off by the RRP of £8 which is much more expensive than similar books but a quick look at Amazon reveals that you can find them for as little as £1.99 and The Works have them for £2.99. They are lovely quality and really appealing so I suggest you go and grab yourself a bargain or two while you can !

star rating : 4.5/5

• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Parragon Book Service Ltd (19 May 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1472311728
• ISBN-13: 978-1472311726
• Product Dimensions: 26.4 x 7.2 x 0.6 cm

RRP : £8

Disclosure : We received the book in order to write an honest review.

Other reviews you may be interested in :

Children's book review : Don't You Dare - Sharky & George

Picture Book Review : Cupcake and the Princess Party - Mandy Archer & Kirsteen Harris-Jones

Children's book review : My First Nature Activity Book

Free personalised ebook for every child to celebrate Children's Book Week

A quick heads-up about a lovely freebie for the kids but get in quick, it ends tomorrow !

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www.itsyourstory.co.uk are giving away a free personalised e-story book to every child who comes and creates one during Children's Book Week (ending Friday 11th of October).

Each e-story book incorporates the child's face into the illustrations and their name and information about them into the storyline making them the star of the story.

Aimed predominantly at pre-school children and early readers, these beautiful personalised books are designed to immediately engage young children and help foster a love of reading from a young age.

Making a personalised e-story book with Itsyourstory couldn't be easier - simply upload a digital photo to their website, fill out some information about the child and Itsyourstory will do the rest using the latest digital print technology.

Each book also includes a message from the creator at the front, making it more than a book but a keepsake for life!

To create a free e-story simply visit www.itsyourstory.co.uk/categories/22-e-stories before the end of Children's Book Week and use the code ESTORY at the checkout.

Other blogposts you may be interested in :

Booktrust's Ultimate List: 100 Books to Read Before You're 14

Help change the story for the UK’s poorest children #EducationMatters @savechildrenuk

Join Little Mix in this year’s Sketch Santa competition

Booktrust's Ultimate List: 100 Books to Read Before You're 14

The charity Booktrust is celebrating Children’s Book Week this week by announcing their definitive list of 100 books every child should aim to read before they're 14.

Drawing from over 90 years' experience of recommending children’s books, Booktrust experts selected the final 100 from an initial list of 500 books. They are asking everyone to join the debate and vote online for their favourites from the list (at www.booktrust.org.uk/cbw), – with the nation’s top books announced on November 25th.

How many have you or your kids read? We've always got a book on the go here at The Madhouse so I was surprised to see that we haven't read that many of them ! I've marked in red the ones that we've already read.

The 100 selected titles:

Title /Author / Age range

The Cat in the Hat - Dr Seuss - 0 - 5 years

Where the Wild Things Are -Maurice Sendak - 0 - 5 years

The Tiger Who Came to Tea - Judith Kerr - 0 - 5 years

The Very Hungry Caterpillar - Eric Carle - 0 - 5 years

The Elephant and the Bad Baby - Elfrida Vipont - 0 - 5 years

Meg and Mog - Helen Nicholl - 0 - 5 years

Dogger - Shirley Hughes - 0 - 5 years

Each Peach Pear Plum - Allan Ahlberg - 0 - 5 years

Would You Rather? - John Burningham - 0 - 5 years

The Snowman - Raymond Briggs - 0 - 5 years

Not Now, Bernard - David McKee - 0 - 5 years

Where's Spot? - Eric Hill - 0 - 5 years

Dear Zoo - Rod Campbell - 0 - 5 years

Gorilla - Anthony Browne - 0 - 5 years

Hairy Maclary From Donaldson's Dairy - Lynley Dodd - 0 - 5 years

The Jolly Postman - Allan Ahlberg - 0 - 5 years

Princess Smartypants - Babette Cole - 0 - 5 years

I Want My Potty - Tony Ross - 0 - 5 years

We're Going on a Bear Hunt - Michael Rosen - 0 - 5 years

I Will Not Ever Never Eat a Tomato - Lauren Child - 0 - 5 years

Room on a Broom - Julia Donaldson - 0 - 5 years

Lost and Found - Oliver Jeffers - 0 - 5 years

Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears - Emily Gravett - 0 - 5 years

Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes - Mem Fox - 0 - 5 years

I Want My Hat Back - Jon Klassen - 0 - 5 years

Pippi Longstocking - Astrid Lindgren - 5 - 7 years

Winnie-the-Pooh - A. A. Milne - 6 - 8 years

The Story of Babar - Jean de Brunhoff - 6 - 8 years

Little House in the Big Woods - Laura Ingalls Wilder - 6 - 8 years

The Enchanted Wood - Enid Blyton - 6 - 8 years

Five on a Treasure Island - Enid Blyton - 6 - 8 years

Finn Family Moomintroll - Tove Jansson - 6 - 8 years

My Naughty Little Sister - Dorothy Edwards - 6 - 8 years

Charlotte's Web - EB White - 6 - 8 years

A Bear Called Paddington - Michael Bond - 6 - 8 years

Asterix the Gaul - Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo - 6 - 8 years

Flat Stanley - Jeff Brown - 6 - 8 years

The Worst Witch - Jill Murphy - 6 - 8 years

Mister Magnolia - Quentin Blake - 6 - 8 years

The Queen's Nose - Dick King-Smith - 6 - 8 years

The True Story of the Three Little Pigs - Jon Scieszka - 6 - 8 years

Amazing Grace - Mary Hoffman - 6 - 8 years

The Adventures of Milly Molly Mandy - Joyce Lankester Brisley - 6 - 8 years

Horrid Henry - Francesca Simon - 6 - 8 years

The Sheep-Pig - Dick King Smith - 6 - 8 years

Clarice Bean, That's Me - Lauren Child - 6 - 8 years

That Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown - Cressida Cowell - 6 - 8 years

Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Jeff Kinney - 6 - 8 years

The BFG - Roald Dahl - 6- 8 years

The Arrival - Shaun Tan - 6- 8 years

The Adventures of Tin Tin - Herge - 9 - 12 years

Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome - 9 - 12 years

Ballet Shoes - Noel Streatfield - 9 - 12 years

The Hobbit - J R R Tolkien - 9 - 12 years

The Little Prince - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry - 9 - 12 years

The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - C. S. Lewis - 9 - 12 years

The Borrowers - Mary Norton - 9 - 12 years

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase - Joan Aitken - 9 - 12 years

Stig of the Dump - Clive King - 9 - 12 years

Carrie's War - Nina Bawden - 9 - 12 years

Goodnight Mr Tom - Michelle Magorian - 9 - 12 years

The Witches - Roald Dahl - 9 - 12 years

Matilda - Roald Dahl - 9 - 12 years

Truckers: The First Book of the Nomes - Terry Pratchett - 9 - 12 years

The Story of Tracy Beaker - Jacqueline Wilson - 9 - 12 years

Flour Babies - Anne Fine - 9 - 12 years

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - J. K. Rowling - 9 - 12 years

Skellig - David Almond - 9 - 12 years

Holes - Louis Sachar - 9 - 12 years

Artemis Fowl - Eoin Colfer - 9 - 12 years

Journey to River Sea - Eva Ibbotson - 9 - 12 years

Private Peaceful - Michael Morpurgo - 9 - 12 years

Millions - Frank Cottrell Boyce - 9 - 12 years

Once - Morris Gleitzman - 9 - 12 years

A Monster Calls - Patrick Ness - 9 - 12 years

I Capture the Castle - Dodie Smith - 12 - 14 years

The Fellowship of the Ring - J R R Tolkien - 12 - 14 years

The Owl Service - Alan Garner - 12 - 14 years

Watership Down - Richard Adams - 12 - 14 years

Forever - Judy Blume - 12 - 14 years

The Ruby in the Smoke - Philip Pullman - 12 - 14 years

Northern Lights - Philip Pullman - 12 - 14 years

Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging - Louise Rennison - 12 - 14 years

Witch Child - Celia Rees - 12 - 14 years

Coram Boy - Jamila Gavin - 12 - 14 years

Kite Rider - Geraldine McCaughrean - 12 - 14 years

Mortal Engines - Philip Reeve - 12 - 14 years

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time - Mark Haddon - 12 - 14 years

Looking for JJ - Anne Cassidy - 12 - 14 years

Stormbreaker - Anthony Horowitz - 12 - 14 years

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas - John Boyne - 12 - 14 years

Noughts and Crosses - Malorie Blackman - 12 - 14 years

The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman - 12 - 14 years

The Knife of Never Letting Go - Patrick Ness - 12 - 14 years

Revolver - Marcus Segdwick - 12 - 14 years

Life: An Exploded Diagram - Mal Peet - 12 - 14 years

Maggot Moon - Sally Gardner - 12 - 14 years

Junk - Melvin Burgess - 12 - 14 years. At top end of age band

How I Live Now - Meg Rosoff - 12 - 14 years. At top end of age band

The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins - 12 - 14 years. At top end of age band

Now the summer has come to an end, we'll be going to the library more so I'll see how many more we can tick off over the coming months. How many have you read?

Other reviews you may be interested in :

Children's book review : Don't You Dare - Sharky & George

Picture Book Review : Cupcake and the Princess Party - Mandy Archer & Kirsteen Harris-Jones

Children's book review : My First Nature Activity Book

Children's book review : Don't You Dare - Sharky & George

  When we received a copy of Don't You Dare to review over the summer, I glanced at the cover, spotted the tagline "Over 100 Fun Things To Do" and thought I knew exactly what to expect inside. How wrong was I?! It's much better and funnier than I ever imagined (even though, as an adult, I'm sure I'm supposed to do the death stare and say "Don't You Dare" for some of the activities suggested !).

The tone of the book is set from the opening pages. The very first page declares "OFFICIAL WARNING. The rules of this book are : There are NO rules ! [...] This is NOT a book that minds getting a bit roughed up. Draw on it, spill on it, get it muddy ... it won't care!". A few pages in, you get a prankometer which shows you how "serious" each prank is. They are rated from blue ("Victim is highly amused, no harm done - you might even get a pat on the back") through green and orange ("Less amused this time and already planning revenge") to dark orange and red ("Don't wait around to find out, just run - run and hide")! It's all tongue in cheek though, there's nothing really naughty or offensive in there.

The book suggests lots of "old-fashioned" activities that I remember from being a child but that modern kids, brought up on a less hands-on diet of video games, DVDs and ipads, have probably never heard of before. Creating a flick book, stone skimming and playing games with a pen and paper like squares and making pictures from dots are just a few examples. Other fun suggestions take a well known activity as a starting point (rock-pooling or playground games like Stuck in the Mud) and take them to a new level (Rock Pool Top Trumps or the much more hilarious Bog Flush It, where you have to pretend to be a toilet when you are caught and can only be released by being "flushed" !).

There are some serious pages too, for example a double page spread on Great British Battles, but even then, the tongue-in-cheek sense of humour continues in the captions under the photos.

Other pages invite you to get creative, such as this "draw a scene" page or the coin rubbing activity on the back page (something else I used to do as a kid but had never thought of showing to the Madhouse Mini-testers).

Other activities invite you to get active and use strategic planning, such as Bedroom Minefield, which challenges you to cross your bedroom without touching the ground.

Other are just so silly that you can't help but laugh even just by reading them, let alone playing them. Butt Darts, played by clenching a coin between your bum cheeks and trying to drop it in a cup, for example, closing followed by a Guff-O-Graph fart log !

The Madhouse Mini-testers took the book and hid themselves away in an indoor den that they'd built. I didn't hear a peep out of them for the rest of the morning, except for regular squeals and bursts of laughter ! It's a great book for children with a slightly naughty streak who don't mind silly games that will make them look a bit ridiculous. I personally can't wait to get involved in playing some of them myself !

star rating : 4.5/5

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Egmont (3 Jun 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1405258292
• ISBN-13: 978-1405258296
• Product Dimensions: 25.4 x 20.2 x 1.8 cm

RRP : 12.99

Disclosure : We received the book in order to write an honest review.

Other reviews you may be interested in:

Picture Book Review : Cupcake and the Princess Party - Mandy Archer & Kirsteen Harris-Jones

Children's book review : My First Nature Activity Book

Children's book review : My First Bicycle Book

Picture Book Review : Cupcake and the Princess Party - Mandy Archer & Kirsteen Harris-Jones

Don't you think it looks like Pierre has done a magic trick and disconnected his head from the rest of his body in this photo?! Anyway, the important thing is the book that he's holding, Cupcake and the Princess Party - another in the Fairies of Blossom Bakery series. You may remember we already reviewed two other books from the collection - Plum & The Winter Ball and Cookie & The Secret Sleepover. Well, we should actually have started with this one because it's the first book, presenting the grand opening of Blossom Bakery.

As in the other titles from the series, the book looks at friendships and gives little readers valuable life lessons. At the grand opening of the bakery, a royal footman appears and announces that the princess wants a magical cake for her garden party. Cupcake gets into a flap, wanting to be in control of everything and to make sure it is absolutely perfect. When she has a bit of a meltdown, her fairy friends flutter round and show that "six hearts are definitely better than one". It's a lovely story with an important message.

Speaking of hearts, look at these little beauties. One of the loveliest things about the Fairies of Blossom Bakery books is that they have a recipe at the end that ties into the story so when you've finished reading, the fun continues in the kitchen.

You can see how excited Pierre gets about cooking ! Big sister Sophie likes stepping in to help keep things on track too.

I'm actually very impressed with how Pierre's cookery skills are coming on. He's only four and he's already a pro at cracking eggs without getting any shell in the bowl !

Time for a bit of counting and colour matching - once a teacher, always a teacher !

There's a little bit of fairy magic (or should that be Pierre magic?!) going on behind the book !

Purple icing and oodles of multi-coloured sprinkles - what more could a little baker ask for?

Ta da - time to eat them now !

Disclosure : We received the book in order to write an honest review.

Other reviews you may be interested in :

The Lunch Less Ordinary Blogger Challenge #2 : Put the kids in charge of lunch for a week

Pierre makes Peppa Pig Muddy Puddle Cupcakes !

Kids' app review : Henri le worm - The Missing Cookbook

Children's book review : My First Nature Activity Book

You may remember that we reviewed Cico Kids My First Bicycle Book over the weekend. Well, we also explored the second book that they had sent us -  My First Nature Activity Book. Just like the bicycle book, it is the perfect combination of educational explanations (how to grow flowers, hows seeds grow, etc) and fun hands-on projects that kids of all ages can enjoy.

This project for using old outgrown or worn-out wellies as funky planters really appealed to the Madhouse Mini-testers and I'm pretty sure we have some old wellies in the garage so this one has been earmarked for the springtime.

They also liked the idea of creating a Natural Garland to decorate the patio.

As it's autumn and the leaves have started changing colour and falling from the trees, we also loved the idea of crafts projects using those - Pierre always picks up a pretty red or orange one on the way home from school so we're getting quite a collection !

But the project that most inspired them was this one, making cute little men from seeds and twigs. There was also a similar project making animals from pine cones.

I kitted everyone out with a box and we headed off to the park, ignoring the play area for once and heading down to the back end which is more wooded, to see what we could find. We had great fun (and burnt off a few calories !) jumping and throwing sticks to collect conkers (it seems to be a bad year for conkers - out of five chestnut trees, only one had any conkers at all and the leaves on the others looked all spotty and sick - it'll be sad if they die.) We came home with lots of bits and pieces - twigs, pretty leaves, berries, conkers, pine cones, rose hips, sycamore helicopters, dried pine needles ...

We managed to make a little man and a butterfly/fly, but it was hard to keep the bits and pieces in place while the glue dried !

Sophie had the great idea of making 2d pictures on paper instead, which worked really well.

And to finish off they made some "nature plates", glueing all their favourite finds on to cardboard plates.

It was a great fun activity that combined getting out in the fresh air, discovering nature and learning about seeds and autumn then partaking in some lovely messy play. We'll definitely be coming back to this book for more inspiration when we want to find something to do. There are projects for all seasons so it will keep us busy all year round.

star rating : 4.5/5

RRP : £9.99

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: CICO Books (14 Feb 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1908862726
• ISBN-13: 978-1908862723
• Product Dimensions: 0.9 x 21 x 27.9 cm

Disclosure : We received the book in order to write an honest review.

Other reviews you may be interested in :

Children's book review : My First Bicycle Book

Liv It's My Nature Hayden doll

#KidsGrowWild Gardening Challenge Even Without A Garden !

Children's book review : My First Bicycle Book

Cico Kidz recently sent me through a few of their My First books to review - if you look closely, you might be able to work out what the other two titles are. If not, you'll just have to wait for the reviews coming up next week !

The first title that we explored was My First Bicycle Book. All three of the Madhouse kids - 12-year-old Sophie, 8-year-old Juliette and 4-year-old Pierre - own a bike and love whizzing around the big car park opposite our house on them. They've never really thought about how a bike works though, or even how to look after one properly, so I was interested to see what the book would teach them.

Well, the first thing that leapt out is that this is a really fun, entertaining book that aims to be as enjoyable as it is informative. The kids were instantly attracted to the sticker page at the back of the book which is there for you to use to decorate your bike.

The book has the perfect balance of serious, educational pages and fun activities to try out. There are sections on adjusting your saddle height, using your gears, pumping up a tyre or mending a puncture, keeping your bike clean as well as a whole chapter on the science of bikes, which looks at concepts such as friction, momentum and streamlining which can be taken beyong bike-riding into the world at large.

But it's not all scientific theory and "how to" guides. There are also cool ideas for things to do on your bikes such as creating an obstacle course.

The butting bottle and ducking gate idea uses nothing but common household items - empty bottles with lids, a cane and some string. It gets kids involved in a fun arts and crafts activity painting the bottles before getting outside in the fresh air on their bikes and actually trying it out.

Juliette is desperate to make some handlebar streamers out of old plastic bags now too !

If I hadn't received the book for review, it's not a title that I would have gone out of my way to buy. The Madhouse Mini-testers love riding their bikes but I didn't really think they'd be interested in reading about them. However, I've been proved totally wrong. The book is packed with fun projects and interesting facts that have had them reading it cover to cover.

star rating : 4.5/5

RRP : £9.99

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: CICO Books (11 July 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 178249037X
• ISBN-13: 978-1782490371
• Product Dimensions: 27.4 x 20.4 x 1 cm

Disclosure : We received the book in order to write an honest review.

Other reviews you may be interested in :

Kixi Razor Balance Bike review

Tidlo My First Motorbike review

Splats in action !