Skip to content

Author: The Dolphin

Published on

When something huge comes clumping through the forest, all the animals are scared. But it's only their friend Blue Monster. But Blue Monster doesn't know what it feels like to be scared. So the other animals, the fox,wolf, racoon and rabbit, teach him.

Blue Monster is lovable – but a bit scary. What can possibly scare him? Surely nothing ... but Blue Monster and the readers are in for a surprise.

 Super new book from the well known award winning author and illustrator Petr Horáček who was born in Prague and studied at the Academy of Fine Art. After graduating in 1994, he moved to live in England. His first two picture books were published in 2001, winning the 'Books for Children' Newcomer award. Since then he has won a string of other international prizes and distinctions,

He has a wealth of amazing children's books in his portfolio and Blue Monster is a great new title.

Otter- Barry Books is an exciting children's book publisher aiming to make a difference, push boundaries and publish books that children will love.

This is a great picture book to have, you will read it over and over with children and it helps them to know that being scared does not really need to be so scary!

Sue Martin Children's Literacy Specialist

Part of Books Go Walkabout, Stories across the world.

 


Dolphinbooksellers.co.uk is part of SmithMartin LLP

A retail resource for the best children's books, entry point into our children's and community library procurement and supply service. Offering a miscellany of news and featured authors for all our readers, whatever their age.


Published on

 

First in an absolutely new and original series from Charlie and Lola creator Lauren Child, starring Lola and her friend Lotta.

Meet Lotta and Lola! They are small and very chattery. TODAY, they are chattering about kindness and how to have goodish manners…

There's ‘hello’ and also ‘thank you’. There's ‘please’ and also ‘you’re welcome'.

And why isn't it goodish manners to say: ‘Pudding now please!’?

Well, maybe Lotta and Lola can help with that…

  • First in a new and original series from award-winning author-illustrator Lauren Child
  • A funny, delightful, distinctive picture book that explores the question of manners with humour and imagination.
  • The perfect way to start a conversation with young readers, the books in this new series celebrate the power of communication.
  • Lauren Child, former Children's Laureate comments, " These new books focus on friendship and comunication; the conversation, the giggles, and the imagination. Sharing picture books with a young child ia=s about far more than just the text; it is an intimate time for questioning, pointing things out and discussing ideas. This builds vital connection, confidence and understanding."

Simon Schuster Children's Books have a great portfolio and this series is a wonderful addition.

Sue Martin Children's Literacy Specialist


Dolphinbooksellers.co.uk is part of SmithMartin LLP

A retail resource for the best children's books, entry point into our children's and community library procurement and supply service. Offering a miscellany of news and featured authors for all our readers, whatever their age.


Published on

 

The Flying Machine of Dreams

Come Aboard for a Magical Poetry Ride!

by Kate Wakeling and illustrated by Viviane Schwarz

Kate Wakeling's first picture book collection for younger children is bursting with colour and fun – a hugely enjoyable book to share with the 3-plus age group.

A beautifully illustrated book of wonderful poems for young children, perfect for reading aloud or for taking to a quiet corner.

I love the one called, Bubble.

'I'd like to be a bubble

just for a bit.

What a lot of grins a bubble brings

A million rainbow twinkles winking in the sun...'

A host of ideas for the imagination to in the exciting illustrations. A great book for home and school.

Sue Martin Children's Literacy Specialist

 


Dolphinbooksellers.co.uk is part of SmithMartin LLP

A retail resource for the best children's books, entry point into our children's and community library procurement and supply service. Offering a miscellany of news and featured authors for all our readers, whatever their age.


Published on

Super in the moment book!   

'I want to whizz and trush and run, but they keeep saying NO!!'

A visit to the playground should be fun. But one little boy finds his two dads are over-protective: "Careful!" "Stop!" It's no fun at all until he has a brilliant idea. They should plays together! Suddenly the playground with it s ropes, swings and roundabout is a space for superheroes. Humour, inclusivity and empowerment are the essence of this lively and zestful story from an LGBT+ author-illustrator team.

But he, Dad and Daddy just get to have all the excitement when they let go of their worries.

A ' just right' book to read for anyone seeking adventures! (Me included|!)

Otter-Barry Books adds this beautiful book to its portfolio and author Ian Eagleton and illustrator Hayley Wells make a super hero combination.

Sue Martin Childrens' Literacy Specialist


Dolphinbooksellers.co.uk is part of SmithMartin LLP

A retail resource for the best children's books, entry point into our children's and community library procurement and supply service. Offering a miscellany of news and featured authors for all our readers, whatever their age.


Published on

 

Bart the spider has always been different. He's not like the other spiders though he looks just like them. He runs about, he jumps, he doesn't listen at school and is scolded by the teacher.

Bart is a dreamer, creating amazing patterns with his thread. But nobody wants to play with him and he stands at the edge of the playground, lonely and misunderstood.

Then his only friend, the wind, changes everything. "Have confidence and be yourself," the wind tells Bart. And, helped and inspired by the wind, Bart discovers that he has an incredible, unique talent...

When he shows his very first picture "Smiling in the Wind", his family and classmates are astonished - Bart has found his true self and happiness, and when he grows up he becomes - a famous artist! Yes, Bart is truly different!

 Barroux, author and illustrator was born in Paris and grew up in North Africa. After studying at the Ecole Etienne and Ecole Boule he has worked in France, Canada and the USA and has an international reputation for his children's book illustrations

I read this book with my grandaughter aged 6 and we shared so much conversation about friendship. A beautiful book!

Sue Martin Children's Literacy Specialist


Dolphinbooksellers.co.uk is part of SmithMartin LLP

A retail resource for the best children's books, entry point into our children's and community library procurement and supply service. Offering a miscellany of news and featured authors for all our readers, whatever their age.


Published on

 

From social media superstar, and Sunday Times bestselling author and gardener, Jamie Walton, this charming picture book uses plant friendships to show how cooperation, kindness and growing together help everyone. Jamie  is an ecological horticulturist and conservationist, growing food, flowers, and microbes in North Yorkshire, UK. His mission is to support others on their gardening journey, regardless of their circumstances.

From cheery sunflowers and shy little carrots to brave (but smelly) onions, each plant has its own strengths that help the vegetable garden thrive.

But when Squish the squash plant sprouts and can't stop growing, the garden faces new challenges: can she find the right friends to help her fit in? And when sneaky beetles creep into the patch, munching leaves and causing trouble, will the helpful herbs come to the rescue?

With teamwork, understanding and a little bit of magic from Mari the Marigold, the plant friends discover that everyone has a role to play and that plants, like people, need friends to be able to grow!


Plants Need Friends Too! is a heartwarming adventure with companion planting techniques at its core.

Complete with wonderfully whimsical illustrations by Rose Gerrard, this book teaches lessons from nature and shows that being a good friend – just like a good companion plant – means helping others. 

Sue Martin Children's Literacy Specialist


Dolphinbooksellers.co.uk is part of SmithMartin LLP

A retail resource for the best children's books, entry point into our children's and community library procurement and supply service. Offering a miscellany of news and featured authors for all our readers, whatever their age.


Published on

Move the slider mechanism to answer funny questions about baby farm animals and lift five flaps to find hidden creatures! 

Explore farm life in this interactive and playful board book, which places the child at the centre of the action. Each spread is packed with fun and includes an engaging question about the scene. Decide and slide to choose your answer!

Inside you’ll discover:

  • Six multiple choice questions explore different farm scenes.
  • Vibrant, bold and funny illustrations from Susie Hammer will keep little ones entertained and engaged.
  • A multi-sensory reading experience, with a slider and flaps to lift.
  • Spot the Quizzy Bean characters on each spread and lift the flaps to find out who’s hiding.
  • Encourages active engagement and interaction, and helps children to express their knowledge and preferences.
  • Each title in the series explores key Early Years concepts across the questions, for example: shape, colour or size.

Super book for toddlers!

Sue Martin.  Children's Literacy Specialist

 


Dolphinbooksellers.co.uk is part of SmithMartin LLP

A retail resource for the best children's books, entry point into our children's and community library procurement and supply service. Offering a miscellany of news and featured authors for all our readers, whatever their age.


Published on

Exciting debut by Samareh Azadi- a diverse and inclusive picture book exploring an important early years milestone .

Max is going for a haircut – but Wendy’s Hairdressing Salon is too bright and noisy. He doesn’t like the cold water spray, the too-tight cloth round his shoulders or the spiky hair clips.

It’s all just too much for Max and he shouts, “STOP!” But Wendy has a wonderful idea. Maybe a cat, a soft cushion and some bubbles could make a haircut fun after all?

This beautiful, sensitively told story is perfect for any child anxious about having their hair cut.

The book is beautifully produced by Otter-Barry Books and is a wonderful resource for nurseries and schools.

Author and illustrator Samarah Asadi is an Iranian-British illustrator and picture book maker based in London, UK. She finished her masters in Children’s Book Illustration from Cambridge School of Art recently and won the second place illustration prize from FAB Prize 2021.

This book really appeals to me with  such a problem for many children and the images that are created around impossible hair cutting situations show huge imaginative talents.

Sue Martin. Children's Literacy Specialist


Dolphinbooksellers.co.uk is part of SmithMartin LLP

A retail resource for the best children's books, entry point into our children's and community library procurement and supply service. Offering a miscellany of news and featured authors for all our readers, whatever their age.


Published on

What a remarkable book!  I was totally mesmerised after the first page and then it just became better. It's a beautiful story about whale migration and some of the perils of the vast oceans. On every page there is a fact, which are easy to remember, such as...

' Humpback whales can make calls and songs at such low pitch that predators such as Orcas are unable to hear them. Scientists call this' whispering'.

An excellent early years book from Charlotte Manning  and Otter-Barry Books.

Be brave, little Uki, be brave,” calls Grandpa Yuka. But Uki doesn’t feel brave at all!

Uki is a young Humpback Whale. Every year his beloved grandpa Yuka leads little Uki and the whale pod from tropical seas to the icy waters of the Arctic. But this time is different – this time Cousin Amka will be the leader….


There are dangers ahead for the whales, terrible storms and hungry sharks. And when sharp-toothed Orcas attack, Amka becomes trapped deep down, in an old fishing net. Can Uki remember the song of peace his grandfather taught him? Can he save the pod and will he now be brave enough to lead the whales to safety?

This exciting story with richly coloured illustrations, is inspired by the real lives of Humpback Whales, and includes fascinating facts about the whales and their amazing journey.

Sue Martin Children's Literacy Specialist

 


Dolphinbooksellers.co.uk is part of SmithMartin LLP

A retail resource for the best children's books, entry point into our children's and community library procurement and supply service. Offering a miscellany of news and featured authors for all our readers, whatever their age.


Published on

This cheery book of play rhymes from Otter-Barry Books is perfect for parents and teachers with young children. It's full of inspiring and easy to use action rhymes which will be remembered.

Find hamsters and dogs, robins and unicorns, little cars and big diggers. Stomp like a dinosaur or fly like a big red dragon in this brilliant collection of 15 action rhymes for young children and babies

Rhymes celebrate festivals and special events, such as Easter, Halloween, Diwali, Christmas and Chinese New Year. With clear instructions to parents and carers, there are fun activities and lots of joining in for every rhyme, for babies, toddlers and older children too.


This book is a perfect companion to Jane Newberry’s very popular first collection, Big Green Crocodile, which was shortlisted for the CLiPPA award. At home, playgroup or nursery, the rhymes provide fun while also nurturing children’s responses to language, rhyme and images. Carolina Rabei has created some beautifully colourful illustrations which are alive with action.

Sue Martin Children's Literacy Specialist

 


Dolphinbooksellers.co.uk is part of SmithMartin LLP

A retail resource for the best children's books, entry point into our children's and community library procurement and supply service. Offering a miscellany of news and featured authors for all our readers, whatever their age.