Weekend reads: 12 October 2025

Penelope Rex and the Problem with Pets. 

Written and illustrated by Ryan T. Higgins. 

Disney-Hyperion, 2024. 

The latest in the Penelope Rex series. I love Penelope. I want a Penelope tattoo. So, of course I'll say I love it!

Bruce Saves the Planet. 

Written and illustrated by Ryan T. Higgins. 

Disney, 2025. 

Like Penelope, I love Bruce. This topical read brings home an environmental message without hitting you over the head with it. 

Little Bad Wolf: Before the Fairy Tale. 

Written by Abie Longstaff. Illustrated by Leire Martin. 

Happy Yak, 2025. 

Who is the real villain the fairy tale? This will leave you sure of the villain, but not the ending. 

I Am Big. I Am Small. 

Written and illustrated by Vicky Woodgate. 

 Scholastic, 2025. 

A great comparison book, and early non-fiction. 

Jonty Gentoo: the Adventures of a Penguin. 

Written by Julia Donaldson. Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. 

Alison Green Books, 2024. 

Rhyming text tells the story of a zoo-born and raised penguin, who wants to go to his ancestral home. 

I am not Santa Claus!

Written and illustrated by T. L. McBeth. 

Walker Books Australia, 2025. 

Australia. 

Are you sure you're not Santa? A fun read-aloud for older preschoolers. 

No, I'm a... Flamingo!

Written by Catharine Robertson. Illustrated by Ana Gómez. 

Happy Yak, 2025. 

A great read about choices and childhood favourites. 

My Grandma and Grandpa Rock! 

Written by Pat Benatar and Neil Giralda. Illustrated Tiffany Everett. 

Jabberwocky, 2025. 

Yes, Pat Benatar and her husband have written a book about being rocking grandparents. 

World Kid Lit Month: Bingo for 0-6: Europe

Love Around the World and Love Is Love

Written by Fleur Pierets. 

Illustrated by Fatinha Ramos. 

Six Foot Press, 2019 and 2020. 

In 2017 Fleur Pierets and Julian P. Boom started a performance art piece, to marry in every country that legalised same-sex marriage. 

These two picture books are the virtual culmination of this project as, sadly, Julian passed away in 2018.

The couple travel to 28 countries, symbolically marrying, and learn about their traditions. Although they travel the world, 14 of the countries are in Europe, and the creators are from Europe. 

Weekend Reads: 28 September 2025

Peggy Goes Gardening. 

Written and illustrated by Tonka Uzu. 

Post Wave Children's Books, 2025. 

A lovely introduction to gardening - or not - from a child's point of view. 

Saturdays at Harlem Grown: How One Big Idea Transformed a Neighbourhood. 

Written by Tony Hillery. Illustrated by Hartland, Jessie. 

Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books, 2024. 

Written by one of the founders of Harlem Grown - a charity which has created gardens and farms throughout Harlem. 

My Grandparents Were Dinosaurs. 

Written by Anne Brusatte and Stephen Brusatte. Illustrated by Enrico Lorenzi. 

Magic Cat Publishing, 2025. 

Rhyming text tells the story of a fearless chicken, who uses their family tree to warn off predators. Stephen Brusatte is Professor of Palaeontology and Evolution at the University of Edinburgh. 

World Kid Lit Month: Bingo for 0-6: A Language with a Non-Latin Script

Senses series in English-Urdu. 

Original Turkish text by Erdem Seçmen. 

Illustrated by Chris Dittopoulos. 

Translated to English by Alvin Parmar and adapted by Milet. 

Milet Publishing, 2013. 

These books are an example of the global nature of publishing.

Simple concept books, originally in Turkish, translated to English, and into many languages:

• Bengali.
• Chinese
• French.
• German.
• Italian.
• Korean.
• Polish.
• Portuguese.
• Russian.
• Somali.
• Urdu.
• Vietnamese.

I am, however, disappointed that the translator into Urdu isn’t noted in the publication information. 

World Kid Lit Month: Bingo for 0-6: The Americas

We All Play Kimêtawânaw. 

Written and illustrated by Julie Flett. 

Translations into Plans Cree (y-dialect) by the Cree Literacy Network. 

Greystone Books, 2021. 

A little delight of a book, with boundless fun and energy.

From the author’s afterword:

[W]e are all connected [land, plants, beetles, etc], living in relationship and in care to one another, in kinship. In Cree, this is called wâhkôhtowin.