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A magpie takes Splodge along with a shiny object, prompting Bug Belly and the other froglets to attempt a rescue. Their route brings dangers from owls and snakes; Bug Belly relies on an inventive plan and gadgets.

A single collection combines familiar fairy tales with nursery rhymes. Scheffler illustrates the book; the selection includes animal tales and “Puss in Boots”.

A playful chase story asks readers to notice what the pictures reveal while the mouse narrator denies it. Humour comes from that mismatch, with dragons pursuing the mouse and a final change to the book’s title.

A varied read-aloud collection of traditional nursery rhymes and action songs, alongside original animal and teddy-bear stories and rhymes. The illustrations use different styles, and the contents can be browsed in short selections.

A collection of eight Polish folk tales, illustrated with paper-cut artwork. The contents include stories about a dragon, a mermaid, a frog bride and a glass mountain.

A set of humorous, illustrated rhyming stories offers playful scenarios, from a persuasive cat and a duck's poor decision to a rabbit's unusual escape from a bear.

Expect a browse-and-name experience rather than a continuous story: themed spreads pair pictures with labels, and Little Mouse appears as a find-and-search detail.

A retelling-inspired adventure gives readers choices that affect Goldilocks’ fate. Blank spaces let children add illustrations, and the story’s choices are linked with respect and empathy.

A dove, owl and whale set out to help a forest replaced by desert. Animals bring seeds from different parts of the world, and a boy brings water; together they produce a seedling.

A compact, illustrated retelling of Genesis’s creation story, using selected King James Bible text and paintings to evoke each day’s work. The language and images are deliberately restrained rather than majestic.

A warm picture-book story about a cat with two homes, and two sisters whose family life also spans households.

A muddled box of socks gives Lionel a matching problem to solve: he makes a game of finding which pair belongs to each animal. The story also includes a small moment of disappointment when he finds no pair for himself.

A mythic adventure links a child’s changing identity with the recovery and sharing of light. The illustrated story also has an accompanying musical score on CD.

A gentle friendship story about trying to fit in and finding company. Its upside-down illustrations make Batty’s unusual point of view part of the reading experience.

A playful, offbeat tale that pairs an unusual word sequence with colourful illustrations; its story may feel deliberately odd rather than neatly explained.

This is a practical art book focused on inventing and drawing characters, settings and companions from fantasy and comic-book worlds, rather than a story with a plot to follow.

Expect a familiar fairy tale presented with a Mexican setting and artwork by Mexican illustrator Sandra Equihua, rather than a wholly new story.

A fast fantasy adventure combines hidden power, darkness, a threatened city and family secrets. Its mixed comic-and-narrative form may make the story’s movement between panels, captions and dialogue especially important to follow.

Expect a lively, absurd animal adventure built around friendship, danger and rescue. Its distinctive appeal lies in comic names, playful language, a fantastical setting and illustrations intended to invite shared noticing.

A warm story about a child meeting a frighteningly energetic dog on his own terms. Its emotional movement is clear, though the friendship’s final turn is presented very quickly.

This appears to offer a child-focused adapted Ojibwe story whose title names Old Meshikee and little crabs.

A brisk collection of child-centred horror tales, designed to deliver a complete fright in a short sitting. Its appeal lies in variety, strange situations and creepy illustrations rather than one continuing narrative.

This is a vehicle-rich Christmas adventure: elves design competing sleighs, while one works independently on another solution. It offers imaginative machines, busy illustrations, rhyme, sound effects and a clear focus on making and problem-solving.

A reflective, image-led book for readers who enjoy dipping into stories rather than following a tightly plotted journey. Its strongest appeal is atmosphere: dreams, animals, wildness, hope and space for private interpretation.

This is a richly illustrated mermaid adventure about protecting a home from development. Its diary format, playful language and underwater world may invite shared reading, visual exploration and discussion.

A brisk, humorous rescue adventure in which Dulcinea uses her wits to confront a witch and navigate enchanted obstacles, with illustrations that contrast her calm manner with the witch’s theatricality.

This is a visually contrasting, rhyming story about a boy who loves the natural world, faces homophobic bullying at school, and develops a plan to reclaim his school through creativity and nature.

A poetic picture book follows a girl whose ordinary school day is shattered by war. Alone, she travels through dangerous displacement before encountering a school that initially excludes her. The story presents destruction, bereavement and possible drowning indirectly, then turns towards welcome, solidarity and hope through children’s practical kindness.

A warm, imaginative outing centres on companionship across generations. The visual journey—from heat and desert to a fantastical picnic—offers plenty to notice and discuss, without requiring a fixed answer about what really happened.

A tender but emotionally weighty story about losing someone special. Its strongest feature is the storm-in-a-jar image, which gives Arlo’s sadness and anger a concrete visual form before the story turns towards remembering Nana.

A lively, picture-rich pirate story whose appeal seems to lie in humorous disorder, brisk dialogue and small visual discoveries.

This offers a lively route into scientific curiosity: invention, robots and jokes are paired with explanations of antimatter, atoms, robotics and the scientific method. It may particularly engage readers who enjoy illustrated, idea-rich adventures.

This is a fast-moving, highly visual comic novel about two boys inventing, writing and being repeatedly distracted in their extraordinary treehouse. Its humour comes from absurd machines, fantastical creatures, cartoon drawings and playful attention to making a book.

A compact, imaginative fantasy about a child’s anger and imaginative escape. Max’s journey towards and away from the Wild Things gives the book energetic movement, while his return home brings the story back to family.

A thoughtful, visually rich story about how the same encounter can look different from different standpoints. It offers emotional and social complexity without relying on a single narrator’s version of events.

A cheerful school celebration becomes a lively water fight, with children, teachers, costumes, inflatables and a hose. The rhymes, repeated splashy sounds and colourful illustrations make the event feel energetic and playful.

This is a gently eerie story about meeting a feared darkness rather than simply defeating it. Its strongest effects come from the contrast between the blackness and the reassuring light of Lazlo’s flashlight and night light.

This is poetry with a historical conscience: the sea becomes a route through stories of migration, refuge, enslavement and loss. Its images may invite reflection, while the back matter adds context beyond the poems.

This is a reflective story about ordinary family and community life alongside the demanding work of mining. Its quiet rhythm and contrasting imagery invite attention to what the boy notices, remembers and wonders about.

This is a comic adventure about dinosaurs whose celebration gives way to threats, kidnapping and theft. Its central idea is whether organised sport can replace fighting, though the story does not reveal whether peace succeeds.

This looks suited to shared early reading: rhyme, recurring endings and repeated phrases may help a child notice patterns and practise fluency, while the story’s humour and illustrations provide interest.