0-5 years
The Day the Crayons Quit
Drew Daywalt / Oliver Jeffers
9780007513758
£11.99
Big, original ideas make for smashing picture books: this is one such. One morning avid little artist Duncan finds a small bundle of letters all addressed to him. It turns out they're from his faithful crayons, each airing their particular grievances: Red feels overworked, Pink feels neglected, and Black longs to do more than just outlines. Meanwhile, Yellow and Orange are at loggerheads about who best represents the colour of the sun. They're all at it, so there's only one thing for it: Duncan draws a massive blow-out panorama picture which makes use of the whole lot of them.
As you'd imagine, this stand or falls on the illustrations – and happily they're by Oliver Jeffers of Lost and Found fame, one of the most distinctive and recognisable children's artists working today. The result is charming and funny, a beautifully-judged tale that's just as likely to inspire big drawing sessions as endless repeat reads. You could put money on it winning awards, not least Best Picture Book Told in Epistolary Form (2013).
5-9 years
Daisy and the Trouble with Burglars
Kes Gray
9781849416818
£4.99
Cheeky, incorrigible Daisy has been getting into scrapes ever since Kes Gray's beloved picture-book Eat Your Peas back in 2001. These days she stars in an ongoing series of The Trouble with... tales and even has a 'Daisy Club' website.
On this occasion, Daisy sets out to investigate a series of local burglaries single-handedly. Inevitably, her quest for justice doesn't entirely run smooth. In fact the complex scheme involves icing sugar, Doritos and a chip shop. It's all told in the first person by Daisy, whose zest for adventure (aka mischief) and hare-brained schemes make for a nigh-on irresistible combination. The text is kept simple, and it's very heavily illustrated, so it's never too taxing.
There's a sprinkling of neat additional touches too: a 'trouble index' at the back lists Daisy's assorted hurdles along the way ('Mum going the colour of tomato sauce, p118; 'Mrs Pike needing to go to the loo, p217) whereas a sequence that takes place at night-time has dark-tinted pages. It's smart, fizzy, accomplished story-telling for early readers.
9-12 years
The Great Unexpected
Sharon Creech
9781849396592
￡5.99
Creech is one of America's most acclaimed contemporary children's authors, with a particular reputation for narrative daring. Her latest novel concerns two young orphan friends, Naomi Deane and Lizzie Scatterding, who live in the oddball town of Blackbird Tree. But their relationship is turned upside down when a charming boy called Finn falls out of a tree right in front of them. The shockwaves from this event are told in tandem with another story entirely, about the machinations of two mysterious Irish sisters. They too have encountered young Finn...
It wouldn't do to divulge too much of the plot here. It's not for nothing that 'the word 'unexpected' is there in the title, although it's the finely-drawn characters, and the vivid tone, that really make it, rather than any narrative fireworks. But let it be said that this is a strange, remarkable little book, timeless and highly original. Along the way it touches on friendship, coming of age, bereavement and generational differences: even the very nature of reality itself. In doing so it strikes a light, beguiling, almost lyrical tone far closer to grown-up 'magical realism' than your standard issue young adults' dates-and-classrooms fare. With tremendous skill, Creech blends contrasting elements together: high emotion and humour, and the two separate narrative strands. This certainly demands a degree of concentration, but rewards it richly, too.
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