| September 2000Baby books: *18 months and over*
THIS MONTH'S FAVE RAVE: With ten stories and a full-length tape containing music and sound effects, and with various character voices including a child's (rather than having just one narrator doing everything), this is good value for money. Published by Frederick Warne, £8.99 HONOURABLE MENTION:Rosie and Tortoise, by Margaret Wild, illustrations by Ron Brooks  This will
make a lovely gift for the older sibling in a family with a new baby.
The main character in the story is Rosie, a hare, who is shown leaping
around excitedly at the thought of having a baby brother. But Bobby is
born too soon, and only weighs as much as an onion. Rosie is afraid of
hurting the weak baby, and won't go anywhere near him.
This book breaks the linear approach of some picture books, and explores, via a story Dad tells Rosie about a tortoise and a hare, the child's inner fears. It also provides a tangible hope for Rosie to focus on, and that night Rosie holds her brother for the first time. There¹s a high "tingle" factor, helped along by the beautiful illustrations. Nursery carer for babies comments: "It makes me want to cry, in a hopeful kind of way. The two year-olds enjoy cuddling up on my knee with it." Published by Viking, £9.99 For more books in this age range see our baby books archive. Also see this month’s books for babies: |
The
good thing about this cassette tape and book pack is the way the two
elements interact. The book is illustrated with two big pictures per
page, which makes the telling of the story incremental, and therefore
easy for even quite young children to follow while listening to the
tape - for example on a car journey. 
