Perfect Picture Book Picnics

As my mother fondly calls them 'pic-in-ics' are the perfect way to enjoy the outdoors ... or as we learnt on Thursday evening at Walker Books picture Book Picnic they are the perfect way to enjoy any space for a picnic can be held anywhere, including in the lovely lofty space Walker Books are lucky enough to have in their building. So it was that librarians, booksellers, bloggers and representatives from many groups with an interest in picture books gathered on a balmy Thursday evening for Pimms, sparkles, nibbles, strawberries & cream, as well not forgetting the ice cream with a flake - traditional British picnic fare and of course we were in the company of some of Walker Books rising stars - Viv Schwartz and others, watching them sketch on the picnic grass, chatting to them about a new range of floor mats and more ...

It was the perfect way to spend a lovely evening, the perfect way to celebrate picture books and remind ourselves that just a a picnic can be held anywhere there is a picture book for any place and any time ... picinics are the perfect way to enjoy the outdoors ... or as we learnt on Thursday evening at Walker Books picture Book Picnic they are the perfect way to enjoy any space for a picnic can be held anywhere, including in the lovely lofty space Walker Books are lucky enough to have in their building.

So it was that librarians, booksellers, bloggers and representatives from many groups with an interest in picture books gathered on a balmy Thursday evening for Pimms, sparkles, nibbles, strawberries & cream, as well not forgetting the ice cream with a flake - traditional British picnic fare and of course we were in the company of some of Walker Books rising stars - Viv Schwartz and others, watching them sketch on the picnic grass, chatting to them about a new range of floor mats and more ...

It was the perfect way to spend a lovely evening, the perfect way to celebrate picture books and remind ourselves that just a a picnic can be held anywhere there is a picture book for any place and any time ...

The Great British Weather!

This weekend I was not expecting much from the weather having looked at the forecast but it is hard to imagine that we are now in May - perhaps we were spoilt during April with all the sun. I have to say though the rain was quite pleasing, my vegetable beds and flowers were needing some... trouble is now everything is growing and going a bit mad - the raspberries are certainly beginning to take over and following the advice of author Julia Green I now have a redcurrant bush which looks as though it is going to provide us with plenty of fruit this summer - thanks for that Julia!

The weather however has, in some ways been fortunate for it has given me an excuse to stay indoors and keep warm whilst reading some great new books. It seems a long time ago now but the FCBG conference in early April left me with a large selection of excellent books to read and enjoy, one of which I picked up just yesterday not really sure what to expect. I have to admit that my own cute little rabbit - Socs -was a draw for this book had little bunnies on the front but then there was the title too - The Terrible Plop! - written by Ursula Dubosarsky and illustrated by Andrew Joyner. Was this going to be funny, rude or just a strangely named book? It turns out not to be rude - sorry to disappoint - but very funny, cute and with a great message.

It is the story of a group of bunnies, who, frightened by a loud 'PLOP' whilst picnicing by the river run off in fear and are joined by a variety of other animals. When they meet a big brown bear who, along with the smallest of bunnies returns to the source of the fear a rather surprising turn of events will bring smiles to the faces of children and knowing nods from all those adults sharing the story. This is a brilliant book with a title to draw in every reader and a story with great appeal not forgetting bright and simple illustration.

Along with this I found a very appropriate title in my post - The Day the Rains Fell. This title by Anne Faundex and illustrated by a friend of mine Karin Littlewood, (published by Tamarind Press) in her free and generous style is an African creation story explaining how Linidwe visits Earth with her daughter to show her all the wonderful plants and animals she has made. The visit show them how a lack of water has made their beautiful world dusty and lifeless, its animals tired and thirsty, as they set out to change this they work together with nature to restore life to a wonderful world and make it well again. Not only is this a beautiful creation story, it was appropriate for this weekends rain and its effect on my garden and also an important message about caring for the world around us.

The remainder of the weekend is not looking like bringing any sun so I shall continue with some great reading and perhaps even my latest project - a dinosaur height chart for my nephews!

The Terrible Plop by Ursula Dubosarsky, illustrated by Andrew Joyner, Egmont, 9781405251372

The Day the Rains Fell by Anne Faundex, illustrated by Karin Littlewood. Tamarind, 9781848530157