A New Baby' Discussing those "Tricky Topics" with BookTrust #TimeToRead

As most of our regular readers are aware, this year has been a particularly challenging one in the Along Came Poppy household. The Mini Reviewers, now 4, 5 and 8, have had to deal with some huge changes and as a result there have been lots of big emotions flying around. The children have all experienced disturbed sleep, outbursts of anger as well as increased crying. These three things, according to the parents of 4-11 year olds recently surveyed by BookTrust, the UK's largest children's reading charity, are the most common signs of young children being worried or anxious. 

I am a firm believer in being honest and open about my feelings and always encourage my children to be the same, as they say "a problem shared is a problem halved". However, BookTrust's latest research highlighting the importance of reading for children's mental health, indicates that only just over half of children aged between 8-11 talk to their parents when they are feeling stressed, sad or worried. 39% of children in this age range even admit to finding it difficult to talk about their feelings or emotions.*

Blog Tour: Sign Here

Today is the last stop on the Sign Here Blog Tour and it is finally our turn so welcome to Along Came Poppy and we do hope you enjoy our post.

Sign Here is a truly unique book for children containing 22 "unofficially official" forms to be ripped out, filled in and of course signed! The forms cover all sorts of childhood issues from dream and pet requests, to tooth collection and thank yous. These humour-filled forms also provide a lighthearted and imaginative way for children to communicate some bigger issues for example when they are scared, sad, angry or simply want to say sorry.

The book, which is a collaboration between two milliners, author Gabrielle Djanogly and illustrator, Adele Mildred, is designed with children age 6-10 in mind. It is perfect for those creative and imaginative little beings who thrive on writing notes, creating charts and making lists. So when Mini Reviewer, Izzie, first got her hands on our copy of Sign Here, she could not wait to get started!

Books of the Month: September

Hello, today we are sharing our favourite books from September. Whenever I sit down to write our monthly favourites post, I am amazed that it is that time again but here we are already more than a week into October. It will be time to go Trick or Treating before you know it!

Speaking of Halloween, you may have already seen our post about our favourite Chapter Book this month, Harry Potter and the Philospher's Stone. As our choice is already such a well known book, instead of doing a standard review, I shared our experience of reading Harry Potter to the Mini Reviewers . You can read the full post here: When to read Harry Potter to your Little Bookworms.

As well as a favourite Chapter Book, we have picked our favourite Non-Fiction Book and Picture Book from last month too. We do hope you enjoy our choices!

Books of the Month - July & August 2018

The Mini Reviewers have been back at school and nursery for a few weeks now and that combined with the distinct change of weather, means that Autumn has most definitely arrived! You may have noticed we were a little quiet over the Summer months, this was mainly because we were too busy reading as well as having a few bookish adventures of our own. Poohsticks anyone? Or perhaps a spot of Gruffalo Orienteering?

Books of the Month - June 2018

It has been rather tricky to choose our top books for June. Not only did we go on a bookshop spending spree, we also borrowed many summer themed picture books from our local library and were lucky enough to be sent several new releases from publishers too! However after very careful consideration, we have made our final decision and these are our picks...

Festive Delights: The First Christmas

It's time for our next selection of Festive Delights and today we are sharing two incredibly special books about the First Christmas. 

It is our aim to read a new Nativity book each Christmas and last year our choice was Room for a Little One - A Christmas Tale by Martin Waddell and Jason Cockcroft, which is a beautiful portrayal of the Christmas story, you can read all about our thoughts here. This year we are including not one but two beautiful Nativity stories in our count down to Christmas selection. The first is The Christmas Story, an Exquisite Pop-up Retelling,  by Robert Sabuda, and the second is Make & Play Nativity illustrated by Joey Chou.

Everything Unicorn

It's official, we have got unicorn fever in this house but there's no need to panic, this is not some sort of tropical disease, no, this is the unicorn craze that seems to have been sweeping the nation for some time now. So this week we are embracing everything sparkly, cute, shiny and even gooey that this magical, horned creature has to offer!

Something Sparkly...

Add some sparkle to storytime with these two fabulous unicorn-themed books. Sugarlump and the Unicorn is written by one of our favourite authors, Julia Donaldson. The cute and whimsical illustrations are the work of the extremely talented, Lydia Monks. Together Julia and Lydia have created several other brilliant children's books together, including The Singing Mermaid; The Princess and The Wizard; and the What The Ladybird Heard trilogy.

Read with Lottie - Review & Giveaway

Lottie Dolls have been on our radar for a while now. We first came across Fossil Hunter Lottie in the shop at The Natural History Museum in London and loved the concept of dolls that are fun yet educational. Then we discovered that Puffin had released a series of books featuring Lottie, Finn and some of their friends. So, when we were asked to review Lottie Dolls, we happily agreed because we just couldn't wait to read with Lottie!

If you take a look at the full Lottie Doll collection you will see that there are boy and girl dolls, as well as dolls with different hair and eye colours and skin tones. There is also a whole range of different accessories, so your doll could be anything from a ballerina to a fossil hunter. He or she could go fishing, ride a scooter or even gaze at the stars. The vision behind the dolls is that childhood should be an inclusive place and Lottie Dolls are designed to empower children to be themselves. The tagline Be bold, be brave, be you! is therefore very fitting.

366 Books in 366 Days: Getting Creative with Nosy Crow

Advent is here and in our house a big part of preparing for Christmas is getting creative. Unfortunately I am not artistically gifted (in the slightest) but I have always enjoyed making things and I am very lucky that the Mini Reviewers share my enthusiasm in this department. I am always on the look out for activities to do together and, during my search for festive inspiration, I came across this stunning set of activity books from publisher, Nosy Crow. Just imagine my delight when a set appeared on our doorstep to review! Would you like to find out what we thought of this beautiful collection? I thought so...

Very exciting post!

Press Out & Colour Birds £9.99

This beautiful spiral bound book immediately caught our attention and was the one Izzie (5) was most excited to try out. It contains 10 highly decorative press out birds created by illustrator Zoe Ingram. When assembled they make fantastic hanging decorations. They look great even without being coloured in due to the intricate silver designs but obviously we had to add our own touch! We had such fun doing this together and it kept us entertained for a very long time. We used marker pens and were delighted with the results. This book would certainly make a great present for any colouring fans regardless of age.

The Colouring Book of Cards and Envelopes A YEAR OF CELEBRATIONS £9.99

This book is packed full of year-round greeting cards and envelopes. Rebecca Jones' designs are beautiful and even the envelopes are decorated to match each card. What I love most of all is the versatility of this book. It is perfect to have in the cupboard as there is something for nearly every occasion, from Birthdays and Christmas, to Valentine's Day and Easter. The 24 cards and envelopes tear out easily and are ideal for the whole family to colour. The book, which has been published in association with The National Trust, even contains coordinating stickers to seal the envelopes. Everything has been thought of, now if they would only post themselves!

The Colouring Book of Cards and Envelopes CHRISTMAS £9.99

This book is similar to the previous book but is a collection of Christmas cards. The 24 festive designs are great for the whole family to enjoy. Matching envelopes and stickers are provided making this the perfect creative package for this time of year.

The Colouring Book of Beautiful Gift Boxes CHRISTMAS £9.99

Finally we received this beautiful book of 24 pull-out gifts boxes. Just tear out, colour and assemble then fill with your favourite treats. If you need gift inspiration there are even recipes at the back of the book for snowball truffles, gingerbread stars and peppermint creams. They are the perfect size for jewellery, make up and small gifts. Izzie filled this one with a necklace she has made for her Grandma! The instructions were easy to follow and the boxes are relatively easy to assemble. Again stickers are provided to seal the boxes. A truly lovely collection.

I cannot express just how beautiful these books are, the photographs really don't do them justice! So if you are looking for some crafty ideas and inspiration this Christmas, why not try one for yourself?

*Disclaimer: We received these books for the purpose of this review. All opinions are, as always, our own.