Skip to content

Tag: children’s book illustrations

Published on

Picture Books with style, meaning and love. New books from Otter-Barry Books are why I love picture books for young children. Through wonderful illustrations and engaging text they express deep meanings.

The Fussy Flamingo

By Jonnie Wild and Illustrated by Brita Granström

A fourth exciting adventure featuring the Five Flamingos.

"I don't like flingo weed," says Baby. "I'm going to find a family that eats something delicious."

Baby Flamingo is a very fussy eater! He visits the monkeys, the bats, the giraffes and the anteater, but he doesn't like ANY of their food. So he goes to the river to see what Crocodile likes to eat!

Each page is full of spectacularly coloured illustrations and make wonderful reading.

 

 

 

 

As this book is about conservation and Reforest Africa,  the author's royalties will be donated in support of wildlife habitat conservation projects in Africa.

And...

I Love You ,Blue

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I Love You, Blue

By Barroux

A touching love story with an important message about ocean pollution through plastics.

When Jonas the lighthouse-keeper is rescued from the stormy sea by a whale, they become friends. But soon Blue the whale is in great danger too, and now he needs help from Jonas...

This touching love story from world-renowned picture book creator, Barroux, beautifully highlights the urgency of saving our whales and our oceans.

Such a moving book, says so much in a few words, but the illustrations are so expressive. We all need to look after our seas and oceans.

Living close to the sea, I enjoy walks along the shore, seeing the shells and stones brought onto the sand banks, but saddened by the pieces of plastic.

Watch this amazing video from Barroux. Jonas and the whale respecting each other.

I love both of these books and highly recommend for home, nurseries and schools.

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
A beautiful book packed with pastel illustrations...

Once the ocean was full of friends, but lately, things have been changing...

 A beautiful book packed with pastel coloured illustrations amidst the text. This is more than just the story of Luna the jellyfish. She discovers that her friends are finding life harder in the ocean.  This is an ocean, once home to many creatures on the coral reef, but they have vanished, an ocean which is full of odd shapes and floating objects, like the plastic flip flops and sweet wrappings,  gradually dropping to the ocean floor.

A bloom of jelly fish comes along to help, and together they 'gang up'  on things  humans have put in place, like blocking up the vents by the power station. They knew the children on the beach would be friends and a vast number of jelly fish appear on the water's surface.

A stunningly beautiful book written and illustrated by Julia Seal, UK author and illustrator. Julia has written and illustrated books which have already been shortlisted for awards .

Sunbird books are the publishers, part of Phoenix International Publications and they specialise in innovative and original books for children, representing strong, lively, and diverse voices , reflecting children’s realities and feeding imaginations, while nurturing up-and-coming writers and illustrators from around the world.

Definitely one of my favourites this month!

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

When you have a heart as big and brave as a wolf but everything around you makes you feel small, then is the time to dress up like a wolf and feel free. This is a beautiful book about overcoming shyness and finding yourself. The illustrations are exquisite and you really feel you're in the forest with trees and snowflakes, how Sophie plucked up courage just to speak to her friends when she felt so desperately shy was wonderfully illustrated.

Sophie tries to fit in at school, but everyone laughs and whispers behind her back. One day something extraordinary happens, she is whisked away to a snowy land and meets a wolf and her cub! They have the best time together, rolling around and howling in the snow. Sophie has finally found friends and nothing can ruin her day, until a big angry bear bear appears. But Sophie has found her voice now and she's found the courage she's been looking for all along.

Joe Loring-Fisher is an illustrator storyteller and mum of four. She lives in bath with her family, loves the natural world and enjoys creating images using a range of materials producing wonderful illustrations her other picture books include taking time and just like you.

Frances Lincoln Children's Books part of the Quarto Knows group are the publishers. They have a wealth of beautiful and meaningful children's books. Wolf Girl is a fantastic addition to their publications.

From the depths of the cover illustrations with wolf girl, a wolf, snowflakes and an owl you and any children will be intrigued and keep turning the pages.

It is  a wonderful book to have,  to read and to share.

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 Katha Chest - cover image
A wonderful book about families...

A wonderful book about family and stories, tales of people in the past who are woven into the magic of the sari material into katha quilts.

Six-year-old Asiya loves to go to Nanu's house. Best among all of Nanu's treasures is the big old chest filled with quilts that tell the stories of the women in Asyia's family.

With gorgeous, fresh and beautifully colourful illustrations inspired by Bangladeshi katha quilts and traditional West Bengali pattachitra panel illustrations, The Katha Chest is a beautifully woven tale about the bonds of love, culture and memory.

Radhiah Chowdhury is the author, and she is passionate about stories that reflect all the magnificent, different facets and experiences of our community, and has been an advocate for representative publishing in her work as both an editor and an author. She lives in southwest Sydney, where she recreationally grows mutant potted plants, and is currently outnumbered by her cats.

Lavanya Naidu is an animator, designer and award-winning children's book illustrator, born and raised in Kolkata, India. She has illustrated for numerous children's books.

Allen and Unwin are the Australian publishers with a global reach and The Katha Chest is available in the UK and across the world.

 

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
Christmas - with a little help from the toys...

A beautiful, gold foiled Christmas story about Father Christmas making sure each child has the right gift - with a little help from their toys!

It is Christmas Eve and Noah’s toy elephant Fanfan has gone missing!

But Fanfan has an important place to go to. Every year he and other toys travel to the same place in a clearing in the woods where a very special person is waiting to see them all.

This person who wears red clothes and has a large white beard is writing a list for all the toys’ children.

The illustrations are truly beautiful with a far away feel to them, perfect for the story of The Toys Christmas. Genevieve Godbout has a unique style, excellent for children’s books and has captured the essence of this story.

The author Claire Clement has written the story which is a delight and so good for a Christmas bedtime tale.

Genevieve lives in Montreal where she works as a children's book and fashion illustrator. She studied traditional animation in Montreal and at the prestigious school of Gobelins in Paris. Genevieve was born and raised in Quebec, but spent seven years in London, UK, after her stay in France.

Frances Lincoln Children’s Books, part of the Quarto Group have a wonderful flair for publishing amazing children’s books with high quality illustrations and text.

The Toys’ Christmas is a beautiful hard back picture book which will make the perfect present for children aged from 2- 6 years.

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

 

Big Green Crocodile - cover image
A beautiful book with rhymes and actions...

Rhymes to Say and Play

A beautiful book full of rhymes with actions, easy to say and fun to do. A star book for Early Years Settings and homes. A new and original rhyme action book to help creative play with babies and toddlers.

A great big crocodile lay down for a nap.

I lay down beside him until he went …SNAP!

Sixteen original play-rhymes, devised and tested to entertain the very young, but also to help develop vital cognitive skills and prevent dyslexia. They cover the events of a child's day from breakfast to bedtime, on themes like animals, bees, crocodiles, tractors, and many more.

My favourite page is Here Comes the Farmer… the red tractor has a load of hay and on its way to the horses, and then the cows and pigs. There are actions and suggestion on every page, easy to do and  easily remembered by the toddler. Learning will flow, discovering which action goes with which page.

Jane Newberry is the author and creator of the rhymes, she lives in Cornwall and has many years experience of working with children, creating play rhymes and songs for early years.

The illustrator who magically brings the rhymes to life is Carolina Rabei, who has a BA in Graphic Design from Moldova and a distinction from the Cambridge School of Art in the Children’s Book Illustrations course.

Otter Barry Books are the publishers and Big Green Crocodile is an engaging book, part of their delightful poetry collections for children. They are an insightful and creative publishers who excel at bringing a uniqueness to children's books with colour and imagination, making a difference in children’s lives.

Greatly recommend A Big Green Crocodile for Early Years Settings and anyone who reads, laughs and has fun with young children.

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
Charles Dickens - book cover image
A great story-teller...

A brilliant book which describes the challenging early life of Charles Dickens and his meteoric rise to fame as an established author and an amazing story teller. As a little boy, Charles was fascinated by everyday challenges and life in Victorian Britain, He loved to make up stories based on people he had met.

 

When his own father was sent to a debtors prison he left school and started work in a factory, full of grime and hard work. The video tells more about the way Charles Dickens moved from working in a factory to becoming a written publisher.

Through determination he became one of the most inspiring writers of all time and tells of life in all its downside and glories. He always used inspirational characters with unforgettable names such as Mr Micawber  and Ebenezer Scrooge.

The Little People, Big Dreams series is published by Frances Lincoln Children's Books and written by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara, illustrated uniquely buy Isobel Ross. The text is stunningly created for children around 5-8 years and provides much information for project writing and inspiration about life in Victorian Britain.

I thoroughly recommend Charles Dickens, in Little People, Big Dreams for children  in school and at home.

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

When a bouncy little squirrel named Hazel loses her tail, her dad decides to make her a new one. But first he has to venture out into the dark dangerous night to gather everything he needs... 

Hazel climbed so high, she thought she could touch the clouds. As her tummy started rumbling she knew it was time to go home. But a branch had broken and then disaster struck. Why did some animals think she looked like a hamster!

Inspired by a bedtime story originally created by the author to comfort his daughter, who underwent a series of operations when she was very small. This vibrant picture book celebrates both the extraordinary strength of children as they face life’s challenges, and the tireless devotion of their parents. With a touching father-daughter relationship at its heart, the story takes place in the Great Forest, a magical world teeming with colourful creatures and dazzling lollipop trees, beautifully brought to life by illustrator Alex Beeching.

The Squirrel's Tail  is a truly beautiful book in hardback with delightful illustrations. Hazel immediately makes you feel she is the animal image of your own child, finding ways to comfort and support at times of need are so important. Even a crisis of losing the most beautiful part of her body for Hazel can be overcome.

Publication date is 15th October 2021 and to buy go direct to The Squirrel's Tail  

The author is Julian Reisz, an Anglo-French father of three now living in Sweden. His daughter was very tiny when she was diagnosed with hip problems resulting in major surgery, traumatic in the extreme. The Squirrel’s Tail was the story they shared together and created by Julian, at that difficult time.

Watch the amazing video above to show the real life Hazel, aged 11. An incredible good news story to bring you joy and to help other children and families too,

I love this book and I highly recommend it for reading aloud with young children, and also as an 'early reader' for children around 4-6 years. I am now taking the book to a little girl, who is very important to me, and we will sit and read and think, which is perfect!

Sue Martin

 

 

 

 

 


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

If you have ever felt so shy that you couldn’t even walk into the classroom or go and talk to new friends, you will totally understand how Nook feels. She is small and shy, and she likes to sit in the comfy space of a hollow tree. It was her favourite space, and she could lean back into the hollow and feel very space. Her friends would try and coax her out, but she just stayed there. 

But one day that all changed  as Badger had taken her place.

Nook's friends stood beside her and helped her to move away and start to play with them. From then on Nook would join in all the games and her space in the hollow tree would be empty as Nook chose not to sit there.

Nook is a gentle story which explores shyness and sensory needs,  inspiring kindness, inclusion and friendship. It is a beautiful story and a great book to have in a nursery at Early Years Settings, school and home.

Written and illustrated by Sally Anne Garland who grew up in the Highlands of Scotland and even at the age of four was good at drawing. Sally went on to study Illustration and Graphic Design at Edinburgh College of Art. She now lives in Glasgow with her partner and her son. Nook was inspired by a hollow tree at her son’s school, a place of quiet thinking and feeling safe.

SunBird Books are the publishers who have innovative and original books for children. From board books to storybooks (and everything in between!). Titles represent strong, lively, and diverse voices that reflect children’s realities and feed their imaginations while nurturing up-and-coming writers and illustrators from around the world. You can download excellent free Activity Sheets too.

There is a special feel about this beautiful hard back book and I would thoroughly recommend for children at home and in Early Years Settings.

Sue Martin


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

Have you ever thought about the length of time that rocks and boulders have been around?

From the beginning of time in effect and its only in recent years, geologically speaking, that people have been around to walk to the highest mountains and climb indomitable peaks.

Rock and Roll are two boulders looking happily onto the world. However, when the people come and award them with gifts and adornments, they become jealous of each other. They complain to the wind and the clouds who are unhappy to hear about the feud between them. In fury they make a storm,  boulders fall from their perch, losing all of their possessions.

The boulders, now broken into rocks and stones, finally realise that what they own is not as important as who they love.

The author and illustrator, Hazel Terry, lives in Edinburgh and her style is eclectic and inspiring. Each page of this beautiful picture book is inspired by fossil patterns such as ferns or clams. Hazel wants to show that all life is interconnected, precious and important. By talking through the boulders, Rock and Roll the book  has a sense of the length of time that rocks have been on this earth and the short time that humans have been involved.

Tiny Owl are the publishers and have an amazing portfolio of books,  packed with meaning, full of inspirational illustrations and text. Rock and Roll is a wonderful addition to their new books with publication on 9th September 2021

This is a Picture Book appropriate for all ages and is a great way to be reflective and concerned for how we live on this planet.

 

Sue Martin

 


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.