Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
KS1/FSThis picturebook that set the standard for all future picturebooks. A story about Max, a very naughty boy, who is sent to his bedroom without supper. In his anger he sails off to the land where...
View ArticleThe Watchtower by Gary Crew and Steven Woolman
Year 6Nobody in Preston could remember when the watertower was built but it casts it shadow across the town and those who enter it never come out the same again. Creepy, haunting and gripping without...
View ArticlePuffin Peter by Petr Horacek
KS1 & FSWhat Peter's best friend Paul goes missing in a storm, he goes on a journey that spans the oceans and lands until he finds him. Friendship and Perserverance are some themes explored...
View ArticleThe True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka Illustrated by Lane...
Y2, KS2This is a post-modern twist on the fairy tale. Set in a 1950s American backdrop, the wolf claims that he was framed for the destruction of the pigs' homes and killing the pig was a complete...
View ArticleGoldilocks and the Three Bears and the 33 Bears and the Blim and the...
KS1 & LKS2Alright, this is technically a Pop-Up book but it's too delicious to not put in. It is a book which plays with variations of the story and the fairy tale mode. Lift the flaps; plays and...
View ArticleInto the Forest by Anthony Browne
KS2Browne goes back to his fairy tale roots in this book in what he does best. Plenty of intertextual links and nice to see a picturebook about a bond between father and son. Plenty of fairy tale...
View ArticleUp & Up by Shirley Hughes
KS1 & FSThis is a gorgeous wordless picture book about a little girl whose wish to fly comes true. The story though comes in Hughes' wonderful capture of the adults and children in the story -...
View ArticleLittle Mouse's Big Book of Fears by Emily Gravett
KS2I've used this as a whole-school text when exploring our own fears and made a whole school book. Readers love the play that Gravett has with the format of a book & the collage approach to its...
View ArticleZoo by Anthony Browne
UKS2Mum, Dad and two sons go to visit the zoo for the day. While there, we find that looking through the cages we find that trapped animals are more humane than many of the visitors. Browne send a deep...
View ArticleThe Mirrorstone by Michael Palin Illustrated by Alan Lee & Richard Seymour
UKS2This book is a gem but never made it big for reasons beyond me. I'm a little hesitant to call it a picturebook as the images complement the text rather than add to it but in terms of scope and idea...
View ArticleToys in Space by Mini Grey
FS & KS1A wonderful, storytelling adventure. When a group of toys are left out in the garden at night, Wonderdoll finds that she must spin a story to help entertain her fellow toys. As with all of...
View ArticleVoices in the Park by Anthony Browne
KS2This is a complex narrative book in the four key characters each tell their version of a trip to the park. It asks questions of the differences between class as two different families meet. Browne's...
View ArticleWeasels by Elys Dolan
LKS2As the narrator guides us through the Weasels quest for world domination, we are treated to a hilarious insight into the actions of these adorable characters as together they solve what's gone...
View ArticleCan you catch a Mermaid? by Jane Ray
LKS2A story about a need for friendship so strong that it can smother and constrict. Ideal for LKS2 since balancing friendships can be difficult. Beautifully illustrated. Eliza, alone when her father...
View ArticleIt's a Secret by John Burningham
FSEver wonder where your cat goes at night? I suspect many children do so one night, Marie Elaine decides to follow her cat and she stumbles across a grand party and celebrations. A lovely...
View ArticleCan I Come Too? by Brian Patten Illustrated by Nicola Bayley
FS & Year 1This is a wonderful accumulative tale about a mouse who wants to find the biggest creature on earth. On its way, it encounters a range of larger and more exotic animals. Lovely...
View ArticleThe Lost Thing by Shaun Tan
UKS2A boy discovers a bizarre-looking creature and sensing that it is lost, he tries to find out who where it needs to be, What is sad that this creative and incredible creature goes unnoticed by...
View ArticleTraction Man by Mini Grey
KS1 & Y3Grey's layout, use of different fonts & backgrounds for speech and ability to celebrate the idea of creative play makes Traction Man a wonderful story. Children will want to continue to...
View ArticleShackleton's Journey by William Grill
KS2This is beautiful non-fiction picturebook that follows the true story of William Shackleton's expedition to the Antarctica and their epic survival. The layout and soft illustrations bring the story...
View ArticleLook Back by Trish Cooke and Illustrated by Caroline Binch
KS1 & LKS2I think this is a wonderful, Dominican folktale of a mysterious creature called the Ti Bolom who follows you through the forests and in the shadows. A lovely story from the Caribbean...
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