Blog Tour: How to Make a Story by Naomi Jones, illustrated by Ana Gomez

Cover illustration by Ana Gomez, published by Oxford Children’s Books

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for How to Make a Story, a book which has enraptured me since my review copy arrived. I have been looking forward to reading this picture book since hearing about it at an online launch event for another of the author’s books in 2022, and the finished copy is even better than I had imagined.

Naomi Jones has a genuine understanding of young children’s imaginations and their anxieties and has used this knowledge to craft a story which both sees their experience, and engages them in finding a practical solution. The joyous artwork by Ana Gomez works perfectly with the text to bring the story to life in beautiful colourful spreads that are totally relatable. This is a picture book that cries out to be shared in homes, nurseries and early years classrooms.

On the pages, we meet Milo, who wants to make up his own story but is not sure where to start. His mum offers guidance, explaining the basic three-part structure and reassurance that he can’t get it wrong. She helps him with the opening phrase and then he’s off; drawing inspiration from his multigenerational family, his home and garden and mixing these familiar elements with the unfettered imagination of a young child. Dad is on hand to give advice on the middle section, Nana supplies motivation and Milo’s younger twin siblings appear to influence the inclusion of slimy, dribbling monsters into the storyline.

Every element of this picture book works to make it as precious as the golden treasure of Milo’s imagination. The vibrant artwork beautifully depicts Milo’s creativity as he turns objects and situations that are familiar to most children into a story. There is so much detail to study on every page that I am sure youngsters will want to return to the book often and I can imagine them comparing many of the pictures with their own families and homes. I loved the way that Milo’s supportive family helped him break the story-making process into small, manageable chunks and the way that Lego bricks became a visual metaphor for constructing the story from its individual pieces. This is such a valuable model for children, many of whom can struggle when faced with the prospect of writing a story when little or no scaffolding is provided. I know from personal experience how challenging a blank page can be for a child who has dyslexia for example, and I am sure that this celebration of the creative process will act as a gentle guide to help so many youngsters translate the brilliant machinations of their brains into stories that they will be proud to share in the same way as Milo.

I wholeheartedly recommend How to Make a Story to anyone who is lucky enough to know a child of 3-6; I will certainly be buying copies for young relatives. My thanks to Liz Scott and Oxford Children’s Books for inviting me to participate in the blog tour and I urge you to read reviews written by my fellow book review bloggers outlined in the graphics below.

Picture Books from Farshore: Amazing Mum by Alison Brown and Pick a Story by Sarah Coyle & Adam Walker-Parker

I have been very fortunate to receive two beautiful picture books published by Farshore this month, both of which will be a delight to share with young children.

Amazing Mum is a wonderfully inclusive celebration of mums in all their guises, written and illustrated by Alison Brown. This book is so clever and so appealing, I can see it being requested over and over again as a book to snuggle up with. The very simple rhyming text consists of only a few words per page, which will encourage the youngest children to join in with the “reading”. Alison Brown’s illustrations are absolutely gorgeous. She sweetly captures mums of every kind through her anthropomorphic menagerie and the over-riding impression is one of loving relationships, no matter what the mum looks like, what her occupation might be or what her particular talents are. Every child will recognise aspects of their mum and reading this as a mum to now grown-up children, many spreads provoked nostalgia and the mum retrieving lego from under a bed made me laugh out loud! I am looking forward to sharing this with a young relative very soon, and I highly recommend it to families, nurseries and early years classrooms.

Pick a Story A Dinosaur + Unicorn + Robot Adventure is a great way to encourage young children to let their imaginations wander and construct their own version of a story. The glittery, sparkly foiling on the title and colourful cartoonish illustrations are visually appealing, ensuring that this will be selected from the bookshelves. This is definitely a book which needs to be shared with an adult as it requires discussion and assistance to move to the correct pages (especially when some alternate storylines are on adjacent pages), but it gives children agency over the direction of the story. This interactive element is an excellent opportunity for children to learn the joy in playing with stories and experimenting with different story arcs. Sarah Coyle’s text presents children with the task of tracking down which character has taken Gwen’s birthday cake; as well as deciding which option to follow there are plenty of questions throughout to engage young minds and ecourage observation of the pictures. Adam Walker-Parker’s graphics reminded me of computer games which will hopefully lure children away from their screens, with lots of activity to explore and enjoy on every page. A novel book choice to share with an individual child or perhaps a small group in a nursery or early years classroom.

I would like to thank Farshore Books and publicist Antonia Wilkinson for my review copies of Amazing Mum and Pick a Story A Dinosaur + Unicorn + Robot Adventure.

Blog Tour: Little Gordon Grape by Arnold Dixon

image created by @literallyPR and used with permission

Welcome to the first stop on the blog tour for Little Gordon Grape, a Christian children’s storybook written by an author of faith.

This story was first written over 20 years ago by Arnold Dixon, who is a Methodist Minister, and the son of Windrush generation West Indian parents. It is now published in paperback as he feels that the time is right to bring his tale of hope to the current generation of children. It is simply written, to appeal to children in the early years and reflects the author’s firmly held Christian belief that even when events don’t seem to be going the way you wish, God is always there and you have a place and a purpose in life. In a few short pages of text Little Gordon Grape provides the allegory for a tale of ministry, an individual picked out from the depth of his misery, to spread a message of hope and love to those around him.

The book contains full page, watercolour illustrations, Gordon himself is portrayed with huge cartoonish eyes to appeal to a young audience.

This book is likely to appeal to Christian families, church schools and nurseries, Sunday Schools and the book boxes that many churches provide for families to borrow from during the service; it will be a welcome addition to their religious collection. It has clearly been written by someone with a sincere Christian faith, who wishes to spread the message of hope, faith and love to a wider audience.

I am grateful to Helen at LiterallyPR for providing me with a copy of Little Gordon Grape in exchange for an honest review and for inviting me to take part in this blog tour. Do check out the other blogs on the tour to learn more about the life-changing adventure of Little Gordon Grape.

Methodist Minister and Author,
Arnold Dixon

Picture Book Review: Into the Wild written by Robert Vescio, illustrated by Mel Armstrong

Illustrated by Mel Armstrong, Published by New Frontier Publishing UK

Into the Wild written by Robert Vescio and illustrated by Mel Armstrong is an absolutely joyful book to share with young children as it follows the adventurous wanderings of a young boy named Roman. It celebrates the wonder of nature and the comfort of finding someone special to share your precious moments with.

The illustrations by Mel Armstrong are beautifully rendered in all the vibrant colours of nature. The expressions on the young protagonist’s face completely capture the absorption displayed by children as they witness the marvels of the natural world.

This book is beautifully designed, with some pages having multiple illustrated panels, encouraging your eyes to naturally follow Roman on his expeditions through the woods, fields and shoreline surrounding his house. The minimal text by Robert Vescio is very simple, often just a few words per double page spread and in my opinion they are in poetic harmony with the pictures, projecting the story whilst leaving plenty of space for discussion between adult and child readers.

As we progress through Roman’s journey of discovery, we glimpse the tantalising fluttering colours of something just to the edge of his vision and when Roman finally discovers the owner of the coloured scarf we share his joy at finding a soulmate with whom he can share nature’s treasures.

This is an utterly beautiful book which I would highly recommend for sharing with any child from the age of 2 to 6. Not only are the text and illustrations completely absorbing, it is one of those picture books which will stimulate hours and hours of conversation and inspiration to get outside and investigate the plants, insects, birds and animals to be found wherever you live. It is so important for younger children to have access to books which will help them build the hinterland of vocabulary and knowledge needed for learning and I strongly encourage you to add Into the Wild to your bookshelf or library collection.

You can find teaching notes and activity sheets linked to Into the Wild here.

I am most grateful to New Frontier Publishing for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

If you wish to explore other books by this author and illustrator you can read my reviews of Under the Same Sky by Robert Vescio here and A Home for Luna illustrated by Mel Armstrong here.

Encouraging Exploration 1: Gregory Goose Adventures by Hilary Robinson, Illustrated by Mandy Stanley

Cover image by Mandy Stanley, published by Catch a Star

Cover image by Mandy Stanley, published by Catch a Sta

With so much evidence based research pointing to the positive benefits of reading on mental health, educational outcomes and development of empathy it is so important to encourage a love of books in children from a young age. These two latest titles in the Gregory Goose series are perfect for sharing with toddlers and pre-schoolers to help develop an intrinsic love of books. As with everything from Catch a Star/New Frontier Publishing they are made with the highest production values; printed on quality thick card, with eye-catching shiny highlights on the covers and made to a perfect size for a pre-schooler to hold comfortably.

I had the privilege to meet both the author Hilary Robinson and illustrator, Mandy Stanley earlier this year and I know how much effort they put into their collaboration to perfectly combine the simple rhyming text and pictures so that they perfectly complement each other. Hilary’s text is written with precise rhyme and rhythm and I love the way that she does not compromise on vocabulary so that children are introduced to words such as chalet, clinging and zooming. Mandy’s illustrations are full of colour and energy and feature the most sartorially elegant fowl in fiction! The end result are books which will give endless hours of pleasure to children and adult readers alike.

The pictures are full of detail, in stunningly vibrant colours blending simple shapes with more detailed artwork. For example in Gregory Goose is on the Loose Up the Mountain the pine trees are portrayed as both simple green triangles and also as beautifully detailed branches of pine needles and pine cones. Triangles are in evidence throughout this book, as flags on the ski slopes, the rooftops of chalets and of course Gregory’s beak. This gives opportunities for discussing shape and number as well as the huge opportunities for chat about the action taking place on every page. In Gregory Goose is on the Loose At the Fair the pictures are full of circles: lights on the rides and attractions, round windows on the rocket ship ride, toffee apples and the Hoopla hoops. Finally, I should mention that these are “seek and find” books with the challenge to discover Gregory’s whereabouts on every page – there are hints in the text, but it is not always easy! With so much detail to observe, Gregory Goose certainly encourages children to concentrate on the page, thus building a stamina which will be required to develop reading skills.

If you are the parent, grandparent, Godparent or in any way related to pre-school children, do put these on your Christmas/birthday shopping list, you will be making a hugely positive contribution to the future of any child with whom you share these books.

For my reviews of other books in the Gregory Goose is on the Loose series, please click here.

I am grateful to New Frontier Publishing/Catch a Star for sending me copies of these titles in exchange for an honest review.