A Review by Frances

Iris and Isaac are two Polar Bears, normally inseperable who have a disagreement.  They each go off in a huff.  After a while each one realises that seeing things and finding things are much more fun with a friend than alone, and at the end they are really pleased to get back together again.  A beautiful book about the importance of friendship which is sure to become a classic.

Some Reviews by William, aged 5

The Magic Tree House series, by Mary Pope Osborne

 This is a really delightful series of children’s books aimed at 5-8 year-olds. Two children, Jack, thoughtful and bookish and his young sister Annie, impulsive and confident find a tree house, high in the forest near their house. They find that the tree house is full of books that have the power to transport them back in time. They embark on a quest to travel time and collect the world’s great, but lost stories. In the process they make their own discoveries about the life in different cultures, places and times. They travel to the time of the dinosaurs, get trapped in medieval castles, meet St Patrick in his early monastery, get philosophy lessons from Plato and see the fright of the Roman gladiators first-hand. Always gripping, offers lots of great historical information – but somehow never too ‘schooly’. Here are 5 year-old William’s thoughts on two books in this extensive series.

 ’Voyage of the Vikings’ A Review by William, aged 5

I loved this story about Ireland and the Vikings. Jack and Annie are really brave and their adventures are very interesting. I read the story with my mummy, I read a bit, and then she read a bit. There are lots of words that were exciting to read like ‘sea serpent’ and ‘jewels’. Brother Patrick was friendly and the monastery was not like anywhere I had been. I thought that the Vikings were a bit scary. Mummy thinks that they would be less frightening if you got to know them, but I am still glad that Jack and Annie got away from them. When we finished the book, I asked if we could go to Ireland to see where Brother Patrick came from because I wanted to know what happened to the Monks after the Vikings landed. I hope there are still sea serpents in Ireland too.

‘Olympic Challenge’ A Review by William, aged 5

If I could go somewhere in the Magic Tree House I would want to go and see the Olympics too. The Chariot racing was fantastic and I liked the bit when the winged horse from the lost story came and rescued Jack and Annie. The pictures in the book were good and helped me imagine what it would have been like in ancient Greece; they dressed in long robes and some of the people wore armour for the Olympic Games. I didn’t like it that girls couldn’t play in the Games because my friend Nieve is a girl and she is a very speedy runner, much faster than me. I liked the ending when Jack and Annie see all the creatures from the lost stories in the stars, but I was a bit sad that they might not go in the Magic Tree House again. I think they will sneak back there when they are supposed to be in bed.

Emily Brown, Stanley the bunny and Matilda the elephant are busy going on adventures, but every time they get to a particularly exciting part …Ring! Ring! goes the Emergency Telephone and it’s Matilda’s mummy on the end worrying that Matilda isn’t wearing her wellies, or eating properly or almost anything. How can Emily Brown persuade her that sometimes adventures are good? This brilliant new title from this award-winning team is a witty and poignant book about the importance of spending quality time with your children and allowing them to explore the world around them.

How do you play with an elephant? Well, if you’re Tiger, Cheetah, Monkey and Peacock, you don’t. Tiger growls that Arthur is too heavy for hopping, and Cheetah is very unkind when Arthur asks to hold the string on his beautiful new kite. But when it starts to rain, suddenly everybody wants to be Arthur’s friend – as long as he will do as he’s told and shelter them from the storm.

This is a beautifully crafted picture book complete with a gentle an satisfying moral.

Harry and his dog Hopper have done everything together, ever since Hopper was a jumpy little puppy. But one day the unthinkable happens: when Harry comes home from school, Hopper isn’t there to greet him. Hopper will never be there again, but Harry isn’t ready to let him go…