Jessica Griffin

We Can Be Mermaids is the story of the very special bond between a Dad and his five-year-old daughter Silver. Dad would do anything for Silver, even facing his biggest fear and learning to swim.

Won’t Go is about a familiar problem for parents of young children – what to do when a toddler does not want to leave the house.

Young children love learning about the world around them and tidying up is an integral part of a young child’s day. This book gives the child an opportunity to learn about and do these exciting jobs that they often must watch an adult do such as vacuuming the floor and cleaning the countertops.

As Aldo and his young friend set out to sail the sea with no fixed destination in mind, A Little Sailing Lesson is a testament to the journey being as important as the destination. Stefanini’s artistic and storytelling ability make this book a compelling read that fosters resilience and inspires creativity.

This story has captured perfectly the challenge a young child has of understanding a relative getting sick and passing on. The sporadic visits continue, till an empty bed remains. Charissa Coulthard has infused the book with positivity, from the sharing of familiar memories, to the repetition of phrases that demonstrate the joy the child has brought to her Nana’s life. Her lyrical, rhyming text is both tender and resonant, capturing the love and warmth that defines the central relationship in the story.

Exploring a tiny world full of life in an ingenious and enticing way for young readers, the strength of this book is the clever combination of illustrations and text used playfully to create an adventure that represents what a child experiences when exploring the outside natural world.

With chunky board pages and large peek-a-boo flaps that are easy for young hands to hold and manoeuvre, At The Farm is perfect for introducing babies and toddlers to books.

Melinda Beck’s board book is bright, colourful and very inviting for younger readers. Simply and clearly, it introduces basic shapes such as a square, rectangle, triangle and circle and their properties (the triangle has three sides and is very pointy). It also gives the similarities and differences for the shapes (the rectangle and square have four sides and the circle has no sides). The illustrations make it a joy as the children see how shapes can be used to form pictures together.

Sedgwick tells the story of Libby, her best friend Wulfie, her absent-minded dad, her evil stepmother Veronika and her horrible stepbrother Rex. Wulfie is a magical creature that looks like a dog with purple fur and yellow eyes. He has amazing supernatural powers such as the ability to stop time when he sneezes or to smell like honey and marshmallows. Veronika and Rex love to make Libby’s and Wulfie’s life a misery.

Sedgwick tells the story of Libby, her best friend Wulfie, her absent-minded dad, her evil stepmother Veronika and her horrible stepbrother Rex. Wulfie is a magical creature that looks like a dog with purple fur and yellow eyes. He has amazing supernatural powers such as the ability to stop time when he sneezes or to smell like honey and marshmallows. Veronika and Rex love to make Libby’s and Wulfie’s life a misery.