August is a little boy who looks different from anyone else. Really different. He has one eye and other strange, misshapen features that make children stare at him. But inside he is just a little boy who loves his dog Dasiy, likes to play ball, eat ice cream and ride his bike. Since he knows he can’t change the way he looks, he wonders what it would be like if people could change the way they see him.
Freak the Mighty is a popular middle grade novel, about two unusual boys and their friendship. Max is a slow learner stuck in the body of a teenage giant and Kevin (Freak) is a small boy with a near genius brain stuck in leg braces. Our reviewer compares which is better – the book or movie version?
When Mr Hare discovers a R200 note in his doorway and sees Mr Mandela’s face on it, he decides it must belong to him. He calls all the animals to announce that he will brave the city of Johannesburg to find him. The animals all warn him that he can’t read so he needs to be careful he doesn’t get lost in the ‘city of readers’.
Chocolate Me! is a picture book about differences and how they can be celebrated if seen in the right light. Chocolate Me is a little boy who wonders about all the ways he is different from his white friends, Timmy, Johnny and Mark who, with their ‘normal’ names, straight hair, and fair complexions make Chocolate Me feel like he is all kinds of wrong. A perfect springboard for diversity discussions.
A super happy, catchy book version of singer Pharrell Williams’s chart topping single. Page through the bright gorgeous photos and you’ll be humming along too!
The story opens on the back street of a big city – it’s early evening and a dog barks and a cat with no name scrambles up a fence. Shane, a young boy, spies the cat and coaxes the “Spitfire, Kitten Number One’ to climb into his jacket, promising he will take it home to ‘his place.’
Moving house can be overwhelming for little ones and this is a very practical book about all that needs to be done to get the big move underway.
A sweet set of Little Hands Trust books by Nikli Daly for toddlers that explain concepts such as colours, shapes and textures in a simple and accessible way. Tom was immediately transfixed and looked at each page carefully making little noises when he saw the instruments.
This book came just in time to save me from yet another argument in our house around taking responsibility. Subtitled ‘10 ways to soar through life’, this inspirational book is jam packed with life lessons. It brings you back to the basics and reminds you – and your children – what is really important.
This charming Dr Seuss-inspired rhyming book about a little girl who likes herself no matter what is the perfect gift to encourage a little self-love. The heroine is a little girl who lists all the ways she likes herself no matter what she looks like and no matter what anyone thinks of her.
‘Once upon a time there was a little crocodile. And this little crocodile didn’t like water.’ So begins Merino’s charming tale of a a crocodile who wants to love playing in water just like his brothers and sisters, but try as he might he just can’t take to it. Until the day he decides to force himself and something unusual happens.
This was one of the first books I read many years ago by the talented Niki Daly. Shepherd goes into the city with his Gogo (grandmother) to help her do the shopping. Gogo walks very slowly, but Shepard likes to take his time as well, hence his nickname Songolola, which is Zulu for millipede.
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