The Quiet book by Deborah Underwood is a jewel of a book, with soft and characterful illustrations…

“First one awake quiet.
Don’t scare the robin quiet.
Last one to get picked up from school quiet.
First look at your new hairstyle quiet.
Swimming underwater quiet.
First snow fall quiet…  “

On her website Deborah says, “The idea for this book came to me when I was waiting for a classical guitar concert to start. I noticed the expectant silence right before the guitarist started playing, and that made me think of other quiets. And yes, “Before the concert starts quiet” made it into the book!”

Wouldn’t this be great for inspiring kids’ own writing? There is a sequel, The Loud book. Here is a blog post which includes quite a few of the illustrations.

I also adore Manfred the baddie by talented Scottish author & illustrator John Fardell. His detailed humorous illustrations, imaginative layout and book design perfectly complement this delightful story of wickedness…

Here is a video of John Fardell reading Manfred the Baddie, shown sitting at his desk with pen and inks ready for the next creation in a gloriously messy studio (you’ll see it right at the end as the camera draws away)…
Put it on your smart board for the whole class to enjoy !

And here is a clip from the Scottish Book Trust with John Fardell demonstrating tips for drawing baddie faces, creating baddie hideouts, and thinking about what sort of bad things your baddie might do to make a good story.

And he is right – be it little girls, bunnies or bananas - it is all in the eyebrows!

John Fardell’s other, later picture book is just as wonderful - Jeremiah Jellyfish flies high. Here is a review from The book bag which summarises it.

“A delightful tale of a jellyfish who’s tired of drifting aimlessly. A great plot, punchy writing, and engaging illustrations make it a joy from start to finish. Highly recommended.” and I totally agree!

Review by Jeannie

image by johnsoax