This past week, my granddaughter slept over and we spent a couple of days together. We always enjoy reading and bedtime gives us a chance to read a few books together. These were all books I read to her (or started in one situation) and I added comments or reactions from her. All books were provided by the publisher at one time or another upon request. The rating and opinions shared are ours.

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The Froggies Do Not Want to Sleep by Adam Gustavson

Published June 8th 2021 by Charlesbridge Publishing

5 Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This was a fun bedtime story that I shared with my granddaughter. There is not a lot of text in the book, but the illustrations were wonderful. It starts with the frogs sneaking out of bed and goes on to show them engaging in all sorts of fantastical activities. The various costumes they wear to participate in things like jousting, or heading into space were a hoot. We talked a lot about the activities they were doing as she didn’t know what jousting was and thought a frog riding an alligator was pretty funny. The illustrations had so much action, emotion and little things to look at that they added so much to this book. She wanted me to read it to her brothers when they came to pick her up and was constantly sharing with her little brother things we had talked about the night before. I will say that I had to read a couple of other books to settle her down so I could put her to bed, but this is definitely a winner for us. Once again, the magnifying glass option in Hoopla added a bit of fun to this one as well.

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Anne’s School Days: Inspired by Anne of Green Gables (Anne Chapter Book #3) by Kallie George, Abigail Halpin (Illustrations)

Published July 6th 2021 by Tundra Books (NY)

4 Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I loved the Anne of Green Gables books and stories when I was younger, so I wanted to share them with my granddaughter. The Anne Chapter Books by Kallie George, are a great way to do that. This is the story of Anne meeting Gilbert Blythe. She and her BFF Diana are walking to school when Diana tells her that Gilbert has returned and that he is very handsome. They have some issues before she decides that they can be friends. This is an early chapter book for young readers who are reading independently and ready to move on to more challenging books. They can be shared reading, or independent reading. Now, my five year old granddaughter is still a bit young for these books, we read part of this one and she wanted to switch to something else, but we did finish it the next day. I enjoy these stories and the whimsical illustrations and recommend them for those 8 and up.

Magic in the Attic: A Button and Squeaky Adventure

Magic in the Attic: A Button and Squeaky Adventure by Jim Shore

Published August 11th 2020 by Happy Fox Books

3 Stars:⭐⭐⭐

There are a lot of five star reviews for this one, but it was just okay for us. Magic in the Attic is the cute story of how Button (a plush bear) and Squeaky (a balloon dog) meet and become friends. It begins with a rainy day and Button being bored. He decides to explore the attic, a new adventure for him. He finds a lot of amazing things to play with, but just before he decides to leave, he sees a trunk in the corner. Her explores the trunk and finds a box with instructions on how to make a friend, a balloon dog friend. Once he follows the directions to make his balloon dog, it comes to life. They really don’t do much together, but Squeaky, gives him a special gift that makes them become great friends. My granddaughter loved the illustrations and we spent a lot of time looking at the pictures of the things in the attic and talking about them. She, of course, had no idea what an attic was and I had to convince her that she doesn’t have on in her house and I don’t either. The message of friendship was just okay for us. I wish there had been more about that. This was an okay story, but not one that we will probably read again.

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The Moose Fairy by Steve Smallman

Published July 20th 2021 by Happy Yak

5 Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

My granddaughter wants to be a fairy, so she really wanted me to read her this book. It was cute and met her expectations. Of course she thought the other animals were mean telling moose he couldn’t be a fairy, but was happy that he got his wish eventually. She loved his costume and how hard he tried to follow the fairy pledge. She was worried, happy, angry and sad at different times in this book, which to me means it was a story that made her feel something. The illustrations were wonderful showing action and emotion. A definite winner for us. This would be a great story for pre-school and primary classrooms about being kind to others and how to be a friend. One I know we will read again.

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Animal Colors by Nikolas Ilic

Expected publication: August 17th 2021 by Happy Yak

5 Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is a simple book that includes, colours, different animals and the sounds they make. When I read this with my granddaughter, she made the sounds of the animals. She knew the names of all but one of them and we enjoyed this quick read. She made me read it to her little brother when they came to pick her up and she “read” it with me. He enjoyed mimicking the sounds she made and of course had his favourite, the donkey. He “Hee-Hawed” for several hours after we finished reading it, twice. The illustrations are cartoonish, done in bright, vivid colours that added interest to him. I definitely recommend this cute book for toddlers to learn not only their colours, but the names and sounds of some familiar and not-so-familiar animals.