It's that time of year again and every child is starting to prepare a very special list but with three children all of a similar age, our house already seems overloaded with toys and that is before Santa has made his deliveries! So with that in mind, we thought we would share a few ideas that may inspire others to "think outside the (toy) box" this Christmas. Here are our top Christmas gifts for little bookworms...
1. Book Subscription
A book subscription is a fantastic way to encourage a love of books throughout the whole year. The Mini Reviewers, like most young children, are thrilled whenever they receive post, so to get a package of books by post every month would be incredibly exciting!
The Happy Book Club kindly sent us one of their beautifully wrapped Christmas packages, they assure us that not all the bundles are the same, so we are not spoiling the surprise by sharing it with you today but if you are worried then look away now! As you will see Mini Reviewer, Izzie (5), took her unboxing role very seriously. You can watch her in action here and we apologise for the background noise and wobbly camera in advance!
The Happy Book Club kindly sent us one of their beautifully wrapped Christmas packages, they assure us that not all the bundles are the same, so we are not spoiling the surprise by sharing it with you today but if you are worried then look away now! As you will see Mini Reviewer, Izzie (5), took her unboxing role very seriously. You can watch her in action here and we apologise for the background noise and wobbly camera in advance!
We will definitely enjoy reading these stunning books in the run up to Christmas and Izzie, of course, has grand plans for the star already!
Update: Sadly The Happy Book Club no longer offer book subscriptions. Is you are looking a for a book subscription service try those on offer from Books & Pieces.
For the Storybook Subscription, members get 3 books every month. There are four different ages to choose from - under 2s, 2-3s, 4-5s and the family package. Subscription costs £14.99 on the flexible monthly plan (no tie-in whatsoever), or as little as £12.08/month when you pay for 12 months in advance. The RRP of the books is typically £18-25. There are no charges for postage, and members can add any other products to their subscription order each month.
For the Storybook Subscription, members get 3 books every month. There are four different ages to choose from - under 2s, 2-3s, 4-5s and the family package. Subscription costs £14.99 on the flexible monthly plan (no tie-in whatsoever), or as little as £12.08/month when you pay for 12 months in advance. The RRP of the books is typically £18-25. There are no charges for postage, and members can add any other products to their subscription order each month.
2. The "Perfect" Present from Books & Pieces
"Dear Zoo" is one of our favourite stories and you will see from the photo below that our copy of the book is starting to look a little worn round the edges! When we came across the gorgeous range of Dear Zoo toys available from Books & Pieces, we knew the puppy would be "perfect" for Mini Reviewer, Poppy! True to the classic story, the cuddly chap comes in his very own carry case, which is great for little hands to carry around. I'm sure you will agree he would make an adorable gift for your littlest of bookworms this Christmas. Poppy has been absolutely delighted with him!
Books & Pieces is an online bookshop, set up by book-loving mum, Amanda. Amanda offers an amazing range of children's books and book inspired gifts at an affordable price. The Dear Zoo puppy retails at £15 (plus postage), he will come boxed with a copy of the board book included. Books & Pieces also stock the monkey, elephant and lion from the Dear Zoo range, as well as, character toys from The Gruffalo, Bear Hunt, The Tiger Who Came to Tea and Room on the Broom. You can view their full range here. There are also very competitive offers on bundles of books.
Books & Pieces is an online bookshop, set up by book-loving mum, Amanda. Amanda offers an amazing range of children's books and book inspired gifts at an affordable price. The Dear Zoo puppy retails at £15 (plus postage), he will come boxed with a copy of the board book included. Books & Pieces also stock the monkey, elephant and lion from the Dear Zoo range, as well as, character toys from The Gruffalo, Bear Hunt, The Tiger Who Came to Tea and Room on the Broom. You can view their full range here. There are also very competitive offers on bundles of books.
3. The Gift of Imagination from Story
Story specialise in storytelling maps and prints to engage both children and adults in creating stories of their own. Adventure to the Woods is an award winning Walk-In-Book designed for children aged 4 years and upwards. We received our own Walk-In-Book some time ago now and still think the concept is brilliant! It is a truly unique product that really encourages children to use their imaginations and the inclusion of the map allows them to visualise the journey they are making as they tell their story.
The Walk-In-Book consists of a map, a bundle of story cards, a felt character mask and a plush character in a delightful canvas bag. First you name your character, then you pop on your mask, pick up a Story card, grab your map and off you go. If you need a little prompt during your story, you can pick up a Quest card for a little inspiration.
Photo Credit: Story |
The Walk-In-Book retails at £25.00. You can view the full range of Story prints or buy your own Walk-In-Book here and there is also the chance to win your own Walk-In-Book at the end of this post.
4. A One-Of-A-Kind Gift from Wonderbly
If you are looking for a one-of-a-kind gift, why not consider a personalised book? One of our current favourites is The Incredible Intergalactic Journey Home from Wonderbly (RRP: £16.99). This book is aimed at children aged 3+ and over the past few weeks, Mini Reviewer, Theo, has been thoroughly enjoying his very own personalised story.
This rhyming story follows your child and his robot friend, Hubble, as they blast off into space. They zoom past planets, go round the sun and even write your child's name in the stars - Theo loves this part! After having "bucket-loads of fun", it is time to head home but this proves to be a little difficult after the Space Nav is destroyed by lemonade! Following an alien encounter and a narrow escape from a pride of hungry lions, the duo eventually make it back to (in our case) the UK. They then manage to locate the right city, road and house to get home safely.
We thought this adventurous story was incredibly clever as not only does is it personalised to include Theo's name, it also includes references to the UK; a photograph of our nearest city, which Theo is very familiar with; as well as an aerial photo of our actual road so we could even spot our house! The door at the very end of the story has the correct number and our address is included at the end making this a great tool to teach little ones their address and where they live in relation to The Universe!
This exciting personalised story would make a very special present, especially as there is the option to include your own message at the front of the book. You can view the whole range of Wonderbly books including the newly released Christmas book, The Christmas Snowflake here - there really is something for everyone!
5. A trip to remember
Last Christmas the Mini Reviewers received some theatre tickets from their Grandma and Grandpa to see Room on the Broom and it was fabulous - both as a gift idea and the show itself. You can imagine that for little ones a trip to the theatre is an extremely exciting experience but it was actually good fun for the whole family with three generations all enjoying the same show. Plus I was delighted as there was less clutter for the playroom! Following our successful trip, over the past twelve months we have seen quite a few amazing short theatre performances aimed at families with young children including: What The Ladybird Heard; The Gruffalo; The Scarecrows Wedding; and The Tiger Who Came to Tea.
This week we saw the Northern Ballet's delightful version of The Ugly Duckling in Leeds. The live music and fabulous dancing kept all three Mini Reviewers captivated throughout the performance and the arts and crafts activities before and after the show were lots of fun too.
We would definitely recommend checking out any of these shows. We are crossing our fingers that Stickman, which is currently showing in London, will be touring the UK in 2018!
Getting ready to see The Tiger Who Came to Tea! |
Do let us know what's at the top of your little ones' Christmas list this year and please do share any toy alternative gift ideas, especially if they are book related! For lots more Christmas book recommendations visit the Christmas section of our Amazon store now (affiliate link).
Until next time... HAPPY READING!
Until next time... HAPPY READING!
Kate and the Mini Reviewers xx
*Disclaimer: With the exception of the Walk-In-Book and theatre tickets, these products were given to us for the purpose of review. All opinions are our own. This post contains affiliate links. Find out more here.
Love all of the ideas, I know my girls would be thrilled to receive them! Thanks for sharing with #readwithme
ReplyDeleteThank you Chantelle, I'd love to know what your girls are all asking Santa for :)
DeleteThese are all great ideas. We always include books in Xmas stockings along with toys, but I like these taking it a bit further #readwithme
ReplyDeleteBooks is stockings are a must :) Thank you for stopping by!
DeleteThis is a fabulous list of suggestions. I would absolutely love to see Stick Man on stage, I love that story!
ReplyDelete#ReadWithMe
Stick Man is one of my favourites too Catherine, fingers crossed for a tour!
DeleteThanks for the opportunity to win! Some great suggestions for Christmas gifts x
ReplyDeleteGlad you like the ideas Steph and good luck!
DeleteI loved reading this post. Always great to get gift ideas. Little One enjoys puzzles and memory games connected to stories she's enjoyed. We have both of those for The Very Hungry Caterpillar and they have proved popular. Filza #readwithme
ReplyDeleteWe have a lot of Gruffalo themed stuff too - always goes down well :)
DeleteGreat recommendations Kate! I want more bookish toys like that Dear Zoo puppy. #readwithme
ReplyDeleteThe puppy is lovely ��
ReplyDeleteI love the ideas :) Both my girls love books so they are going to expand their collections on Christmas Day :)
ReplyDeleteBooks are always a must within the christmas present piles x x x
ReplyDeleteRoald Dahl is top of the list for our 10 year old but not sure about my younger grandchildren of 6,5 & 3. Love your suggestions though
ReplyDeleteThe are some great ideas my weeone always enjoys learning playing and reading I know she will love puppy ..good luck to everyone for chance to win this generous prize giveaway
ReplyDeleteDear zoo was a my children's favourite for years together with the guffalo books.
ReplyDeleteYay - I've got kids who love books. Thanks #kcacols
ReplyDeleteSome fab ideas here - I really love the look of the Gift of Imaginattion. I think my boys would love that.
ReplyDeleteThank you for linking up to #KCACOLS I hope to see you back again next week. x
I love the dog from Dear Zoo! All of these look really lovely presents, my daughter would like the walk in book!
ReplyDelete#KCACOLS
Jenny - Accidental Hipster Mum
My girls absolutely love reading and listening to story books. I love the Dear Zoo book x #KCACOLS
ReplyDeleteSome fab ideas. I keep meaning to look at personalised books for my two, you’ve just reminded me to get a move on with it! X
ReplyDelete#kcacols
Really good for presents and great ideas too. I love giving a book to children as they can get so much out of them for a long time.
ReplyDeleteMainy
#KCACOLS
These are all such adorable gift ideas! I can't wait to get my hands on some of these.
ReplyDeleteWe love the Dear Zoo books in this house too that dog is such a lovely present - we also love The Tiger Who Comes to Tea - both of my children as getting a Mog teddy for Christmas :) Thanks for linking up to #KLTR
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness i think my eldest would be in her element if she were to receive the puppy from Dear Zoo #KLTR
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