Best children books for 5-7 years old.

A good book is more valuable than money. Below are classic children story books and two of them have been reincarnated into box-office movies.
Excerpt from The Guardian.co.uk , Tuesday, 11 May 2010 online resource:

The Sheep-Pig: Dick King-Smith

Brave Babe, born a runty little piglet, who is brought to the farm for fattening-up, cheats his destiny by learning new skills from his adoptive mother Fly, the sheepdog. Babe's sheep-working skills are all his own and soon his unique technique of speaking respectfully to the sheep brings him fame as well as saving Farmer Hogget's sheep from harm. Funny and touching.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: Roald Dahl

Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory is one of fiction's most tantalising locations and Charlie Bucket's adventure a mouth-watering rollercoaster of a ride. Along with four other children, Charlie wins a golden ticket to be shown around. While Charlie blossoms on the trip, his four companions reach suitably sticky and disgusting ends as punishment for their revolting behaviour. Mr Willy Wonka dispenses prejudiced and violent justice, which children adore.

The Legend of Captain Crow's Teeth: Eoin Colfer

The sometimes horrible but always fascinating way in which brothers treat one another lives on in this hilarious story of how Will's older brother Marty spooks the daylights out of him with a terrible tale of the deadly pirate Captain Crow. The thought of what the bloodthirsty pirate might do sets off a chain reaction of disasters for Will but also a just and delightful comeuppance for Marty.

Best children books for 2-4 years old.

Ordinary books make the greatest impact on children's lives.
Excerpt from The Guardian.co.uk , Tuesday, 11 May 2010 online resource:

Not Now, Bernard: David McKee

The only person who pays attention to Bernard is the monster in the garden – who eats him up, "every bit". Unfortunately, when the monster goes inside, Bernard's parents ignore him, too. The image of the chastened monster plodding glumly up to bed, trailing Bernard's teddy bear behind him, is priceless.

Gorilla: Anthony Browne

The children's laureate's deepest, most yielding book, about a lonely girl's consolatory fantasies. Hannah's father is depressed and withdrawn, so one night she dreams up a gorilla to take his place and escort her to the zoo. Artful references to Magritte and King Kong vitalise the backdrops, and the ending is delicately ambiguous.

Once There Were Giants: Martin Waddell and Penny Dale

This beautiful book tells the story of a little girl surrounded by giants – father, mother, uncle, siblings. She ages through the pages until she too has a daughter, and realises she has crossed over into gianthood herself. Warning: do NOT attempt to read without a tissue to hand.

Best children books for 2-4 years old.

Three more books to shape a better reading habit in the year 2011:
Excerpt from The Guardian.co.uk , Tuesday, 11 May 2010 online resource:

My Friend Harry: Kim Lewis

James takes his elephant, Harry, everywhere: on holiday, on the farm, into bed. As Harry grows more battered, James simply grows – until he has to leave Harry behind and go to school. Lewis smartly underplays the scene when James's mother waves him off at the school gate, but it's a subtle tearjerker.

Where The Wild Things Are: Maurice Sendak

Sendak's classic fantasy sees Max, sent to his room for "making mischief", imagining his way into the kingdom of the Wild Things: twisted, toothy and strange. He leads them in glorious "wild rumpus", but tires of rebellion and goes home to find supper waiting for him, "still hot".

Dogger: Shirley Hughes

When Dave's beloved toy dog goes missing, there seems little hope of recovering him – until he turns up at the school fair and big sister Bella helps reunite them. This simple lost-and-found story is deeply satisfying – and Hughes' comfortable, chaotic sketches of late-70s family life will hook parents who lived it first-hand.

to be continued...

I WANNA IGUANA.

Communication can be difficult sometimes as the generation gap widens. Learn from Alex as he uses 'letter-writing' to influence and negotiate with his mum to keep an unusual pet in his room.

Book Code PB011: I WANNA IGUANA
by Karen Kaufman Orloff & David Catrow
RM15 (including p&p, via Pos Ekspress)

To place an order of this book, email to bookwormzmal@gmail.com the following details:
1. Book Code(s) :
2. Name :
3. Address :
4. Contact. no. :
5. Payment: Maybank
6. Notes/ Special Instructions:
I will advise on payment process after an order has been made through email.

Best children books for 2-4 years old.

Three more books to shape reading habit in the year 2011:

Excerpt from The Guardian.co.uk , Tuesday, 11 May 2010 online resource:

The Goodnight Moon: Margaret Wise Brown and Clement Hurd

A pyjama'd rabbit tries to delay lights-out by bidding goodnight to everything in his room. The story unspools in soft, sleepy half-rhymes: "a little toy house and a young mouse"; "a comb and a brush and a bowl full of mush". A bedtime classic (brace yourself for the inevitable "what's mush?").

The Elephant and the Bad Baby: Elfrida Vipont and Raymond Briggs

A larcenous elephant and his diminutive passenger gambol down a high street, merrily shoplifting as they go, and collect a train of fist-waving vendors in their wake. Briggs' airy illustrations perfectly balance the clatter of the pair as they go "rumpeta, rumpeta, rumpeta, all down the road".

The Snail and the Whale: Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler

Forget the Gruffalo. The finest book to emerge from the pens of Team Donaldson-Scheffler is this rich, rewarding tale of a snail with wanderlust and the whale who takes her on a round-the-world cruise. Size isn't everything, the message goes: when the whale is beached, the tiny snail saves the day.

to be continued...

THE WAS A COLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED SOME SNOW.

Another story of an old lady swallowing everything under the winter sky, and regurgitating out into something we will always love! Read this book to find out what is it.

Book Code PB007: THERE WAS A COLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED SOME SNOW
by Lucille Colandro & Jared Lee
RM15 (including p&p, via Pos Ekspress)

To place an order of this book, email to bookwormzmal@gmail.com the following details:
1. Book Code(s) :
2. Name :
3. Address :
4. Contact. no. :
5. Payment: Maybank
6. Notes/ Special Instructions:
I will advise on payment process after an order has been made through email.

Promote Bahasa Melayu books.

How do we establish a reading culture in Malaysia or introduce Bahasa Melayu to foreigners/tourists when there are no BM children publications available at KLIA airport bookshops?
Three weeks ago, a friend of mine who is working at a school in London spent a couple of weeks holidaying in her hometown Ipoh. Due to her busy vacation schedule, she decided to buy a few children BM story books (for teaching purpose) at KLIA at the very last minute, thinking that this is Malaysia (where else can you get Bahasa Melayu books if not in the country where it originated right?) and she should be able to get a couple of books before flying off.
To her astonishment, there were no such books on sale at all. All she could see are English books arranged neatly on the shelves. Obviously she was disappointed and contacted me instantly to buy the books here in Malaysia and send them to her in London.

So, today I'm going to buy a few books for her from POPULAR Summit (Sale up to 70% starts from yesterday) and also think of a way to distribute local Malay books to other countries with huge Malaysian population.

more best children books for 0-2 years old...

continued...
Excerpt from The Guardian.co.uk , Tuesday, 11 May 2010 online resource:

Where's Spot? Eric Hill

The delights of a simple game of hide-and-seek are explored in the bright pages of this flap book. It is dinner time but where is Spot? The search is entirely good humoured, with no sense of parental irritation at his disappearance!

We're Going on a Bear Hunt: Michael Rosen

A big bold story perfectly matched by Helen Oxenbury's illustrations, it captures the happiness and excitement of a family day out. Armed with all the things they need, the family sets off, splashing through water, squelching through mud, swishing through long grass. They're not scared! Or are they? The double-quick, headlong journey home is equally brilliant – and so is the snug ending.

Mr Gumpy's Outing: John Burningham

On a hot, sunny day, generous Mr Gumpy treats his animal friends to an outing on the river. Mr Gumpy tells them all not to muck about. But . . . guess what? Things do not go according to plan. Perfectly paced and sparely told, there are enough clues in the illustrations to enable young listeners to predict the catastrophe and relish it.

IS YOUR MAMA A LLAMA?

Finding for your loved one need not be a depressing experience, as what Llyod encountered in this wonderful adventure through the forest, lakes and meadows. He made friends with other lovely animals too.

"Young readers will delight in the playful rhythm of the text...The graphics are some of Kellogg's best... An IRA Teachers' Choice For 1990"

Book Code PB006: IS YOUR MAMA A LLAMA?
by Deborah Guarino & Steven Kelogg
RM15 (including p&p, via Pos Ekspress)

To place an order of this book, email to bookwormzmal@gmail.com the following details:
1. Book Code(s) :
2. Name :
3. Address :
4. Contact. no. :
5. Payment: Maybank
6. Notes/ Special Instructions:
I will advise on payment process after an order has been made through email.

Best children books for 0-2 years old.

Excerpt from The Guardian.co.uk , Tuesday, 11 May 2010 online resource:

The Very Hungry Caterpillar: Eric Carle

One pickle, one cup cake, one slice of watermelon – small fingers have never been able to resist the tiny hole through which the very hungry caterpillar crawls or the luscious food he savours as he does so in his growing journey from a tiny caterpillar to a great big fat one. The necessary "pop" all adults just have to make to make sure he metamorphoses into a beautiful butterfly makes this the easiest book to share with the very smallest listener.

Dear Zoo: Rod Campbell

A perfect flap book, Dear Zoo raises anticipation and then satisfies it absolutely when the flap is lifted. I'm not sure that I'd trust a zoo to come up with exactly the pet I would like, and I'd be right; an elephant is too big and a frog is too jumpy. All have to be sent back. But patience is rewarded. In the end they do send exactly what is wanted.

The Baby's Catalogue: Janet and Allan Ahlberg

Loads of looking at all the things that babies and their families do all day long. Babies feeding, sleeping, playing; mothers and fathers working and resting; siblings teasing and caring. Everything that happens in the world of a baby is kindly observed in this near wordless picture book


to be continued...

MY BEAUTIFUL CHILD.

I am just amazed at the pastel-watercolour pictures portraying children and close adults from different backgrounds and skin hues. Pictures certainly mean more than a thousand words, thanks to this book.

"I want to show you everything, my beautiful child..especially how much I love you."

Book Code PB005: MY BEAUTIFUL CHILD
by Lisa Desimini & Matt Mahurin
RM10 (including p&p, via Pos Ekspress)

To place an order of this book, email to bookwormzmal@gmail.com the following details:
1. Book Code(s) :
2. Name :
3. Address :
4. Contact. no. :
5. Payment: Maybank
6. Notes/ Special Instructions:
I will advise on payment process after an order has been made through email.