Bye Bye Baby by Janet and Allan Ahlberg

Do you remember the little book called "Are you my mother?" by PD Eastman? Every young child knows the baby bird will find his mum of course but the real fun comes from all the odd characters he encounters along the way.

This is exactly the premise of Bye Bye Baby. Our little hero has lost (or misplaced) his mother. Along the way he meets a cat, a teddy, a clockwork hen and an old uncle. All join him on his quest until disaster strikes. The baby crumples into a heap and calls out "I want my mummy!" At that very moment a mummy appears from around the corner and she is pushing a pram. With the rain falling everyone travels home to enjoy a warm bath, a dry nappy and a pot of tea with a ginger biscuit.

As they all sit by the fire the old uncle begins to read a story. "There was once a baby who had no ... daddy!" And off we go again.

The illustrations are so special. You can feel the cold of the rain, the roughness of the pavement and the warmth of home along with all the lovely little details that Janet Ahlberg adds to her scenes just like the ones in The Jolly Postman, Peepo and The baby's catalogue.

This joyous picture book should be shared over and over again with your little baby. The lines that match with the cover illustration are delightful : "There was once a baby who had no mummy. This baby lived in a little house all by himself. He fed himself and bathed himself. He even changed his own nappy." I do fear this book might be out of print but look in your library today you are sure to find it. My favourite character is the clockwork hen (cluck)! I also love the subtitle "A sad story with a happy ending."