Grobblechops Elizabeth Laird and Jenny Lancaster

Many young children imagine monsters under the bed and sometimes use their fear of them as a tactic to delay bedtime.

In this story based on a Rumi fable it appears that young Amir is genuinely scared in case there’s something lurking in the darkness of his bedroom – a terrible huge-toothed, hungry something that growls like a lion.

Dad’s advice is to reciprocate but be even more alarming. This precipitates even more fears – suppose the monster’s dad has an even bigger frying pan for whacking than his own dad; suppose his mum’s umbrella isn’t sufficiently scary and the end result is that the entire family become targets for monster consumption…

Perhaps it’s time for a different approach. Dad suggests he leaves the hostilities to the parents (human and monster) while Amir and the little monster play with toy cars together. It might even lead to a peaceable discussion between the grown-ups.

Now that sounds like a very good idea… but there’s one thing Amir is determined not to share with any little monster and that is his precious Teddy.

Finally, having safely tucked the boy into bed with ted, there’s something Dad wants to know and that’s the name of Amir’s monster – the clue is in the title of this smashing book.

Elizabeth Laird puts just the right amount of scariness into her gently humorous telling.

Her perceptive observations of the parent/child relationship underscore the entire tale and her dialogue is spot on, ensuring that adult sharers as well as their little ones will relish the story.

Jenny Lucander employs a fine line in her richly coloured, textured illustrations. Their wonderful quirkiness, especially in the portrayal of the monsters makes them endearing rather than frightening while her human figures give the book a contemporary look.


Wisp Zana Fraillon and Grahame Baker-Smith

The only world Idris knows is a shadowy one of tents and fences; this is the world he was born into.

Dirt, darkness and emptiness are everywhere surrounding the inhabitants of tent city and completely obliterating their memories of their former lives.

One day, into this desperate life a wisp of light appears. With the whisper of a single word, the Wisp brings a smile, a reawakened memory and a ‘hint of a hum’ to an ancient ma; to a woman, a memory and a lessening of her sadness.

Days go by and more Wisps are born in on the wind with their whisperings of ‘onces’ that release more and more memories.

One evening a Wisp lands at Idris’s feet but the boy has no memories save that surrounding black emptiness. Instead for him, it’s a Wisp of a promise that brings light and joy to his world as it flies up and up, infecting not just the boy but all the people in the camp until light, not dark prevails.

Told with such eloquence, this heartfelt story brought a lump to my throat as I read it first, but ultimately, it’s a tale of hope, of compassion and of new beginnings.

Eloquent too are Grahame Baker-Smith’s shadowy scenes, which as the story progresses, shift to areas of brightness and finally, to blazing light.

A book of our times when all too many people are advocating walls and separatism, this needs to be read, pondered upon and discussed by everyone.


When Sadness Comes To Call Eva Eland

Sadness can come at any time, right out of the blue and no matter how hard you try to avoid it or want to hide it away, it can become so overwhelming that you feel as though it has completely taken you over, mind and body.

In this, Eva Eland’s debut picture book she portrays Sadness as an amorphous physical entity, that comes a-knocking at the front door of a child.

Better that shutting it away and letting it frighten you, is to acknowledge it by giving it a name, then let it be for a while. Perhaps there are things you can enjoy doing together – drawing, listening to music or drinking hot chocolate, or venturing outside for a walk.

Changing your response to this feeling is what’s required, rather than trying to change the feeling itself – be mindful of it for things will get better.

Children’s mental well-being has become headline news of late with more and more children, even young ones, having problems with mental health.

There are plenty of picture books about anger and how to cope with it, but far fewer on the topic of sadness or melancholy so this book is especially welcome.

It’s sensitively written, empathetic and ultimately uplifting.

Eva’s hand-drawn illustrations for which she uses a three-colour palette effectively portray the child’s changing emotions. Her endpapers too show two different responses – in the front people are ignoring their sadness and look depressed, while the back endpapers show the same characters interacting with sadness and feeling better.

A book to share and discuss at home or in school. Armed with the knowledge offered therein children have a tool to use with own sadness next time it comes visiting.