Stella and Marigold by Annie Barrows illustrated by Sophie Blackall

The warm, loving relationship between Stella and Marigold is at the heart of these books. 

Blurbs from Annie Burrows web page.

Book 1: Stella & Marigold 

Stella, who’s seven, likes cats and axolotls and second grade. But most of all, she likes Marigold. Marigold, who’s four, likes gibbons and red paint and the plumber. But most of all, she likes Stella. Stella and Marigold do all the regular things that kids do—like going to school and playing with their friends, like sometimes going to the zoo and sometimes getting sick—but even the most regular things have a secret side. For instance, there was a secret involving a blanket. And another one, about wolves, a terrible storm, and two brave children. That was a very exciting secret, and no one knows about it but Stella and Marigold. And you, if you read the book!

I especially loved the seventh and final story in book one - The Brave Children. Here is the Kirkus Star review.

Book 2: Stella & Marigold: Mermaids and Mix-Ups

Stella and Marigold live with their parents in the half-house. But in other houses in other cities, there are other people who were part of Stella and Marigold’s family. One of them is Cousin Judy, who sends them lots and lots of presents for no reason at all. One day, for no reason at all, she sent them a purple present. It was a book, and in the book, they were supposed to list their friends. That’s when Stella and Marigold discovered they didn’t have enough friends. They needed to make more. But how? With flowers? With magical recipes to make snow fall? With lots of nice Bandaids? How about a mermaid candleholder? The two sisters are full of ideas and plans. Maybe they turn out and maybe they don’t, but luckily, Stella and Marigold always have a best friend at home.

Here is the Kirkus review of Book Two.

Book 3: Stella & Marigold: Past and Presents

Nowadays, Stella and Marigold live in the half-house. But the half-house is very old, so they are not the only children who have ever lived there. One surprising day, they discover that there was another girl, maybe named Ziamara, who not only lived in the half-house, but drew on the wall. And who not only drew on the wall but left secret presents for Stella and Marigold. And who not only left secret presents but maybe went all the way up to the roof of the house! Inspired by this hero from the past, Stella and Marigold make great plans for the future.

Here is the Kirkus Star review of Book Three.

I listened to a podcast this week where Sophie Blackall talked about creating Stella and Marigold with Annie Burrows. I had seen the covers of the two books in this series from 2024 but I had not read them. The first book is just a delight - it would be a fantastic book to read aloud in your family or as a gift for a young reader aged 7+ AND if you are in a school library this is a must add series for your collection. The paperback editions are very affordable. Here is a video where Sophie Blackall talks about the series.  See inside book one here. 

Here are a few quotes from the podcast (you can read it from the transcript or listen):

Bianca: Stella or Marigold: who are you most like?

Sophie: I’m definitely Stella. I can’t even pretend for a second that I’m Marigold, but I love Marigold with my whole heart. She makes me laugh so much. She is such a person; she is so real to me. But I’m more like Stella, always wanting to do the right thing and be responsible.

Bianca: What do you love most about working with Annie (Burrows), or about her as a person, that people might not get from the books alone?

Sophie: Annie has a way of channeling childhood like no other writer I know. She is right there, and she finds all the incredibly specific things that, as soon as we’re reacquainted with them, come back in a rush of “Yes, that is what it feels like to be a child.” A child’s sense of time, a child’s sense of injustice, a child’s sense of who they are. ... 

With Annie, it’s really a lot about characters and finding how to convey all of Marigold’s feelings in a spread. Marigold patting a banana because she feels sorry for it. Marigold wondering what dust tastes like, because she’s so bored she can’t think of a single other thing to do except get on her hands and knees and pick dust out of the crevices in the floor. Marigold waiting a hundred years for her sister Stella to come back from school, because that’s how long it feels. ...

When Annie was thinking about names, she came up with Stella because Stella is celestial. She is cool, composed, and ethereal in a way, a wise soul like a star. Marigold is hot and close to the ground. She has big feelings. So in the books, I drew Stella in cool colors, and Marigold is always in reds, yellows, and oranges, and she bursts off the page.

Anne Barrows and Sophie Blackall are also the author/illustrators of the popular Ivy and Bean series. There are eleven books in this series and I am sure you will easily find them in your local or school library. Here is the Kirkus review of book one from 2006. In 2008 Kirkus gave book four from the Ivy and Bean series a Star review.

Reviewers compare Stella and Marigold with Beezus and Ramona but for me the tone beautifully matches the Miller Family series by Kevin Henkes - especially the books with Sal as the central character.

I also thought of the Violet Mackerel series:

Read more here

You library might also have another series about sisters (twins in this case) - Ling and Ting by Grace Lin (4 books). 

Betsy and Bon: Three Sweet Stories by Simon Howe

 There are, as the subtitle tells you, three stories in this little volume. Each begins with a similar opening sentence:

The Hive

"Down at the bottom of the garden where flowers grow tall and roots grow deep, Betsy and Bon built a hive."

This story is about making and including all friends who have delightful names: Frogly (frog), Harrington Mouse (mouse), Penny Spots (ladybug), Butter Benjamin (butterfly) and Spencer Snail. All are welcome.

The Good Idea

"Down at the bottom of the garden, where the sun is warm and the breeze is cool, Betsy and Bon were relaxing in the shade."

This story is about resolving differences, and I love the way they play hide and seek (check other books about this game).

The Sunny Spot

"Down at the bottom of the garden, where the buds are small and the blooms are big, Betsy and Bon were searching for the perfect spot to have afternoon tea."

If you share this book in your family with your small reading companion it would be fun to make some scones, grab some jam and a picnic rug and head outside to read the final story.

Blurb: Down at the bottom of the garden, where flowers grow tall and roots grow deep, Betsy and Bon play in a world full of whimsy and imagination. They try to find friendly bees to live in their wonderful hive, decide on a game they will both enjoy, and have a picnic in the perfect sunny spot.

Everything about the production of this book is appealing - it is a small hardcover volume, the full colour illustrations, the chapters or short stories which are short and could easily be read as a family read aloud - one each night for three nights, and this book even has one of those bookmark ribbons.

Simon Howe spoke to Joy Lawn at Paperbark Words. I also wondered if Betsy and Bon were children or bees.  Here is the answer from Simon Howe:

When I drew that original picture, the same question occurred to me: are they children in costumes or are they actually bees who look like children? They talk about being bees. And they even talk about being able to fly, but we never see them do it. Personally, I imagine them as children in an imaginary play-space. But I don’t think the stories prove this. The question is open. They may very well be bees.

Full of nostalgia and charm, this deluxe hardcover collection of low-conflict short stories is the perfect gift for young readers. The Little Bookroom Melbourne

It is a little book (and I mean that in every sense because it is the right size for small hands) that harks back to gentler times and vintage favourites such as Cicely Mary Barker’s flower fairies, Ida Rentoul Outhwaite, Jan Wade and May Gibbs with their darling little inhabitants, and their common themes of nature and its beauty, companionship, gentle pleasures and kindness. Just so Stories

Huge thanks to UQP for sending a review copy. There is a link to Teacher's Notes on the publisher page but really I would just read this book either in your family or to your Preschool or Kindergarten group with no need for deep analysis. 

Post update: Simon Howe spoke about his book at a Gleebooks Kids event last weekend. Things I discovered:

• The illustrations were created with digital tools (many of us at the event agreed that was a surprise)
• Simon makes clay versions his character's heads so he can draw different angles
• In each story Betsy and Bon are perhaps far apart from their friends, but the end of each story celebrates a coming together.
• The flowers in the story are reminiscent of an English cottage garden but with the addition of one Australian reference - gumnuts. I noticed milkweed; foxgloves; and sorrel. Simon especially loves the word milkweed!
• The names for his characters came to him very quickly - he loves playing with language and delights in the sounds of words like elderberry cordial or the name Harrington (for his mouse character).

After his talk I thought about the way the story is set in a giant garden and that made me think of the classic book The Borrowers.

You will find this book in your local independent book shop next week (1st September).  I previously talked about his book from Simon Howe:

The House that walked away

One series I thought of to read after Betsy and Bon is the Squeak Street books by Emily Rodda.

Other companion books:

Houndsley and Catina

Honey and Bear

Vicky and June

Bear and Bird

Mouse and Spoon

Cornbread and Poppy

Tales from Outer Suburbia by Shaun Tan

These are fairy tales for modern times, in which there is valor, love and wisdom—without dragons and castles. The accompanying illustrations vary widely in style, medium and palette, reflecting both the events and the mood of each story, while hewing to a unifying sense of the surreal. ...  Graphic-novel and text enthusiasts alike will be drawn to this breathtaking combination of words and images. Kirkus Star review

Tales from Outer Suburbia is an anthology of fifteen short illustrated stories based on my memories of growing up in the northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia. Each one is about a strange situation or event that occurs in an otherwise familiar suburban world; a visit from a nut-sized foreign exchange student, a sea creature on someone’s front lawn, a new room discovered in a family home, a sinister machine installed in a park, a wise buffalo that lives in a vacant lot. The real subject of each story is how ordinary people react to these incidents, and how their significance is discovered, ignored or simply misunderstood. Shaun Tan

Stories in this book are: The Water Buffalo; Eric; Broken Toys; Distant Rain; Undertow; Grandpa's Story; No other country; The Nameless Holiday; The Amnesia Machine; Stick figures; Alert but Not Alarmed; Wake; Make your own pet; Our expedition; Night of the Turtle Rescue.

I was already familiar with many of the stories in this collection especially Eric which I love (and I gifted to a young friend named Eric). 

On a recent visit to Gleebooks a customer called in to ask about Shaun Tan and Rachel Robson mentioned Tales from Outer Suburbia to the customer. She talked about binging the whole television series over one weekend and how she really thought this production deserved a lot more attention. Now jump forward a few weeks. I was visiting our local charity book sale and spied a copy of Tales from Outer Suburbia for just AUS$2 - a mint condition paperback copy. 

If you are a casual or substitute teachers try to find a copy of this book - these short stories will create magic with any class.

The story ‘Broken Toys’ developed from a drawing of an old-fashioned deep-sea diver approaching a suburban corner deli (one near my home), which naturally raised for me the question of why he was there, and where he came from. A second idea came from the fact that as children, my brother and I often lost toys over the back fence into a  neighbour’s yard, although I’m happy to say that they never came back chopped in half as they do in the story. Shaun Tan

The real idea for this story came from an anecdote told to me by a taxi-driver one day on my way to an airport. He described an incident in Lebanon where a dud missile had somehow ended up in the middle of a suburban street, and some local people seized the opportunity to take it home, disassemble it and sell it off as scrap metal. It provoked a secondary scenario in my mind, of children finding an unexploded missile, and converting it into a ‘space rocket’ cubby-house. Shaun Tan

I am sure you have seen and read many books by Shaun Tan - he won the Astrid Lindgren Memorial award in 2011. 

Here are two quotes that resonated with me from Shaun Tan's ALMA acceptance essay:

Books offer the freedom to make up our own minds, the best stories being not at all instructive or moralizing but rather asking very well-crafted questions in an entertaining way, inspiring further creative thought. 

If my work has a collective theme, it’s something like this: ‘reality is just another strange story’. It’s something we constantly narrate to ourselves through this peculiar invention of language and pictures; a project that begins in childhood and never really ends. Great books become part of our own map of experience: through reading we grasp the power and unity of our own thought and feeling. We are invited to empathise with others, to see the world from alternative angles, to wonder what it would be like to live differently, and to not feel alone when we constantly ask: ‘what if?’ 

After you read the BOOK of Tales from Outer Suburbia switch on your television and enjoy the fantastic animated series. There are ten episodes of about 20 minutes each.

I’ve always been open to the idea of taking ideas from a book transferring and transforming them into different dramatic forms. The important thing for me is not plot or even character; it’s a certain sense of place, a certain spirit, a certain way of seeing things. Shaun Tan

Tales from Outer Suburbia is full of the bizarre, presented without fanfare: deep sea divers take a walk to the corner milk bar; a tiny pointy-headed visitor moves into the crockery cupboard; sparkling goldfish swirl through the night sky. But while there are frequent fantastical elements, the story is simultaneously firmly planted in everyday suburban life. ABC News

Read this interview with Shaun Tan and the Australian Children's Television Foundation. 

I would follow Tales from Outer Suburbia with these two (one has a page from Shaun Tan):

Ten-word Tiny Tales

Ten-Word Tiny Tales of Love

Bear and Bird: The Secret and other stories by Jarvis

The List - Bear is upset that everyone else has a great nickname. In a moment of temper she writes a list of really awful names about her friend Bird. Rabbit arrives and offers to do the shopping and somehow the two lists are mixed up. How lucky because Bird gets the shopping list and wait till you see what happened to the nasty list.

The Lasagna - it is okay to like different things. Bird likes tambourines, a film about worms on holiday and the sounds of eating banana. The friends can't seem to agree so they decide to write their own lists of things they don't like. The contents of their lists are hilarious - slug slime shampoo; the word serious; that book about an alligator with false teeth and the word armadillo. Can the friends resolve their differences?

Secrets - this one ends with a Birthday Party! I reminded me of Pat Hutchins The Surprise Party; Max Velthuis Frog and the Surprise Party and Got to get to Bears. Take a look at this post.

The tree - this is a story about how (not) to play Hide and Seek. (Click that label attached to this post to find lots more hide and seek stories).

Publisher blurb: Best friends Bear and Bird may not always understand each other, but they always want the other to be happy. So when Bird feels left out because Bear has given a cute nickname to everyone but her, she’s relieved when her hasty list of names for Bear doesn’t reach him (Stinky Sock Muffin, anyone?). And when the two of them learn they have zero dislikes in common—from lasagna to chess to the word armadillo—and wonder if they can still be friends, they soon realize there’s one important dislike they can both agree on. Whether the challenge is being hopeless at keeping a secret (Bear), or getting befuddled about the rules for hide-and-seek (Bear again), this ever-endearing pair continue to charm in a sixth set of gentle stories.

Take a look at my previous post about the author illustrator Jarvis.

The world needs more books like this! The Bear and Bird series are written for newly independent readers who need to read real books not 'readers'. They contain short chapters which are self-contained stories and even better they have glorious colour illustrations. If you work in a Primary School library, please please pop this book series onto your shopping list. They only cost around AUS$16 each so for less then $100 you will have six splendid books to share with your young readers. 

Here are the titles in order: 

• Bear and Bird: The Picnic and Other Stories
• Bear and Bird: The Stars and Other Stories
• Bear and Bird: The Adventure and Other Stories
• Bear and Bird: The Stick and Other Stories
• Bear and Bird: The Cave and Other Stories
• Bear and Bird: The Secret and Other Stories

Plus a picture book - The Cloud: A Bear and Bird

Blurb: When Bear arrives at the Woody Woods for the first time, he is looking for a friend. But it seems like all the friends are already taken. Then he meets Bird, who is looking for something, too—the Puffy Fluffy Octopus Cloud! Bear decides to help her look for it, and so begins an unexpected adventure . . . Will they ever find that octopus-shaped cloud? 

Perhaps they might find something even better!

The Clothes Horse and other Stories by Janet and Allan Ahlberg

There are six very short stories in this little book with delightful, detailed illustrations by the late Janet Ahlberg.  The stories cover a range of emotions and some of these ideas or themes might surprise you. Each story is named after a common expression such as jack pot or God knows.  The first story is the one you see in the title. A magician makes a horse out of clothes and for a while the horse works pulling a milk cart but eventually he runs away. Over time all of his clothes are stolen so the horse goes back to the magician and because he is now invisible, he plays a few tricks on him until the horse works out he can take washing off clothes lines and find a new purpose in life as a pantomime horse. 

The second story is very sad and poignant. A young girl decides to save parts of her life for later. As an old woman she opens her various boxes. For one day, for example, she is able to live as though she is eight all over again. Bit by bit, over time, she uses her Life Savings then sadly she dies but there is one box left. This box contains 'half an hour, age four.'  The twist is clever:

"If ever you should feel the urge to act like a four-year-old (unless you are a four-year-old) you can blame it on the life savings of a woman in the fortune-telling business, with a little magic on the side. That's what I'd do."

The third story is called The Jack Pot and it is about a whole lot of boys named Jack who invade the home of a giant. The fourth story is called No Man's Land but it is not about a war. And the sixth story, God Knows, is the most complex. God is telling a bedtime story to a group of children and it is about the creation of the earth and some how all of history is squeezed in too.

My favourite story is Night Train which explains the delivery of night at the end of every day and also the delivery of sweet dreams. It reminded me of this book:

The King who Banned the Dark

I am always on the look out for short story collections because they are so perfect to use with a class as writing inspiration and also I love to share these with casual (relief) teachers because they are easy to pop into a bag of teaching tricks for those days or times when no work has been left for a class.

I had a copy of The Clothes Horse and other stories in hardcover and in a larger format in my former school library but oddly I had not read it until last night. My copy comes from a charity book sale and as I have said previously, I am fairly sure this book has never even been opened it is in such pristine condition. The Clothes Horse and other stories was first published in 1987. My copy is a reprint from 2000.

Here is the full Kirkus review:

Six brief, whimsical stories with the air of extemporaneous bedtime tales told by a gifted parent, from the creators of Each Peach Pear Plum; each story is a logical (but zany) extension of a common phrase. "The Clothes Horse" has been made by a magician, out of clothes; but even after all the clothes are appropriated, one by one, he retains a tenuous existence. "Life Savings" are bits of various ages stored up by a 70-year-old woman, resulting in curious behavior when she gets them out again. In "The Jack Pot," a beleaguered giant catches troublesome Jacks till they form a football team and bother him more than ever. Then there are "No Man's Land," "The Night Train," and "God Knows" - God's answer to his own children when they ask him what else people invented (after spaceships and the Beatles) and what they did next. Janet Ahlberg's deft, carefully detailed illustrations add to the fun. Cozy, comic, wry and wise, these rather British morsels may not be to the taste of every American child, but they're certainly worth a try. The avuncular voice suggests a read-aloud, but the stories' brevity will also make them attractive for independent reading.

The Clothes Horse story which opens the book reminded me of this picture book:

The Emperor's New Clothes Horse

You should also look for this book by Janet and Allan Ahlberg - it's a terrific one to share with a Kindergarten or Preschool group. 

Anne Frank Pen and Inklings

Cover art by Geertje Aalders. She is an acclaimed Dutch artist who uses a cut-paper technique. 

She lives in Kampen, Netherlands.

Forty-six illustrators have contributed to this project a collaboration with illustrators around the world, to make pictures to accompany some of the funny, thoughtful, curious stories from the extraordinary mind of Anne Frank.  Anne Frank would have been 95 on June 12th. As a homage to her authorship a unique, special edition of her short stories is released, her ‘Pen-and-Inklings’ as she called them. This publication is accompanied by a new exhibition at the Anne Frank House. Anne regretted the fact that she couldn’t draw, but for this book 46 illustrators from around the world took on that task and created beautiful illustrations for each story. The Dutch edition of Pen-and-Inklings: Stories and events from the Back House is available in all Dutch bookstores and in the museum shop at the Anne Frank House. The English and German editions are only available in the museum shop. Source Sophie Blackall Instagram

Read one of the stories here. 

Here are some of the big names who have their work featured in this book. I have explored books by many of these illustrators on this blog. Limited edition pieces of their art are available to buy in the shop at Anne Frank's House. 

• Sophie Blackall
• Emily Sutton
• Felicita Sala
• Julie Morstad
• LeUyen Pham
• Dieter and Ingrid Schubert
• Emily Hughes
• Britta Teckentrup
• JooHee Yoon
• Axel Scheffler
• Oliver Jeffers
• Chuck Groenink
• Barroux
• Hadley Hooper
• Jan Jutte

See more of these art pieces here. 

Here is the post by Emily Sutton

I need to find someone going to Anne Frank's house so I can see/own a copy of this fabulous book.

Blurb: Anne Frank is best known for the diary she kept in the Secret Annex. What many people don't know is that Anne also wrote short stories. She calls them 'my pen children' in her diary. The stories range from events in the Secret Annex to fairy tales about fairies and gnomes and memories of her school days. Anne even starts working on a novel, in which she incorporates her father's life story. Anne regretted not being able to draw. More than forty top illustrators from all over the world have taken on this task. Moreover, they give us a glimpse into their world and show us that creativity and inspiration can turn into setbacks and obstacles. Like Anne, they continue to believe in a better and peaceful world. This unique edition is a tribute to the talented writer Anne Frank. ISBN [9789047634362]

The book is introduced by Malala Yousafzai and contains a short biography of all the illustrators and a text in which they talk about their relationship to the work of Anne Frank and their own experiences with creativity, adversity, peace and war. This special edition of Anne's 'Pennekinderen' not only provides a new perspective on Anne Frank's diverse work, but also on the connecting power of creativity and inclusivity. The common thread running through Anne Frank's stories and the illustrators' contributions is a call for tolerance, understanding and connection. Moreover, they give us a glimpse into their world and show us how they approach setbacks and obstacles with creativity and inspiration. Like Anne, they hope for a better and peaceful world. Stretto

Manxmouse by Paul Gallico

This book has twelve chapters and each reads like a short story. We first meet Manxmouse as he is created by a ceramic artist who specializes in making mice. On this night, however, he has been drinking and his newest mouse looks very odd. This chapter is entitled "The story of the Tiddly Mouse-Maker."

"In the first place it was not grey but an utterly mad blue. It had a fat little body like an opossum, hind feet like those of a kangaroo, the front paws of a money and instead of delicate and transparent ears, these were long and much more like those of a rabbit and what's more they were blue too, and violently orange-coloured on the inside."

And of course this little creation has no tail - just a button.

As the clock strikes thirteen, Manxmouse makes his getaway. He discovers his fate lies with meeting a manx cat and so his long adventures filled with interesting characters begins. He meets a movie star, an elephant in a circus, a greedy pet shop owner, a long-distance truck driver, a taxi driver, a tiger and a lonely child named Wendy H Troy. He flies on the back of a hawk who talks like the captain of a passenger jet and rescues a fox from a pack of hunting dogs. Every story feels like a wild ride and readers are sure to keep turning the pages anxious to know the outcome of meeting the fabled manx cat which you are sure to anticipate will end in disaster. 

Blurb: The brave little Manxmouse is one-of -a-kind creature on a special journey. But everyone knows who awaits him, for the Manxmouse belongs to the Manx Cat… The Manxmouse is one-of-a-kind. He’s the strangest little mouse you’ll ever see, with bright blue fur, huge rabbit ears and a distinct lack of tail. But Manxmouse doesn’t mind being different. He knows that destiny awaits him, and so Manxmouse sets out on an exciting adventure. He meets tigers and hawks and dastardly pet-shop owners, but there’s someone he dreads and desires to meet more than anyone else. The someone who has been waiting for him all along… the Manx Cat.

I think this book has stood the test of time even though it is quite a quirky tale. Children in Australia may be unfamiliar with some of the settings in London such as Madame Tussaud's wax museum. If this story was your own childhood favourite you could read it as a family read aloud - one chapter per night. 

Here is a discover - The Manx Cat is a real breed: The Manx cat is a breed of domestic cat originating on the Isle of Man. It is one of the oldest known cat breeds. The Manx is medium-sized, stocky, and heavily boned, with sloping shoulders and full chests. It has a naturally occurring mutation that shortens the tail, and can be identified as being either a rumpy, a rumpy riser, a stumpy, or a longy. 

Manx is also a Celtic language spoken on the Isle of Man. All of the UK references in this book seem a little strange to me now that I have discovered Paul Callico is from the USA.

On my recent trip to Melbourne I visited several bookshops including a few I had not seen before. One was North Melbourne Books and it had the best back list titles and eclectic collection of children's books of any store from my visit. 

Manxmouse was published in 1968. You are sure to recognise the name Paul Gallico (1879-1976) and perhaps you read others of his famous books such as The Snow Goose (1941). I didn't realise he wrote Mrs. 'Arris Goes to Paris (1958) but I did love the recent movie. He also wrote The Poseidon Adventure (1968) and again, although it was long ago, I did love the movie. Reading about Paul Gallico I was amazed to find that in 2000, J.K. Rowling declared that Gallico's Manxmouse was one of her favorite childhood books. Again, this one has a movie adaption - this time as a Japanese Anime movie Manxmouse's Great Activity (Tondemo Nezumi Daikatsuyaku). Manxmouse even has his own Wikipedia page. 

Here are some previous cover designs (using these to talk to students about appeal and design etc can be a powerful discussion starter).

My copy of Manxmouse is from the series Collins Modern Classics - here are a few others:

Happy Days for Mouse and Mole by Joyce Dunbar illustrated by James Mayhew

Warm and comforting as the softest blanket, Mouse and Mole should be 

on every child’s bookshelf 

ready to be enjoyed independently or shared with a grown up!

The Book Activist

I first encountered a Mouse and Mole book when they were published in a slightly smaller format by Corgi as Corgi Pups. Now they are larger and have colour illustrations and are published by Graffeg from Wales. 

Begin here with my previous post about Mouse and Mole. 

There are three stories in Happy Days for Mouse and Mole. The first story is a trickster tale. Mouse makes himself a terrific hammock, but Mole wonders will it be safe, will it be comfortable, will it be perfect. Mole offers to try out the hammock meanwhile Mouse is expected to fetch cushions, biscuits and lemonade. The surprise ending will give you and your young reading companion a smile. 

In the second story Mole misplaces his glasses. Actually, he has many, many pairs of glasses all designed for different purposes. I love the page which is filled with so many variations on glasses including glasses to find glasses!

The final story is a perfect one to read at the start of Autumn as the leaves are falling. 

"If you can catch a falling leaf, you will be lucky for the rest of the year."

Now for some details - Why oh why is this book SO expensive here in Australia? I want to say this book should be added to your Primary school library but the copy I borrowed from a school library (they thoughtfully include the price of their books beside the imprint page) cost AUS$33. Looking for others in the series they seem to range in price from AUS$20 up to AUS$33. And the other problem is that once you buy one Mouse and Mole book you will want ALL nine of them - yes they are that good.

• Mouse and Mole 
• Mouse and Mole have a Party
• Happy Days for Mouse and Mole
• A Very Special Mouse and Mole
• A Fresh Start
• The Secret of Happiness
• Mouse and Mole: Lo and Behold! (Watch a video)
• Mouse and Mole: Clink, Clank, Clunk!
• Mouse and Mole: Boo to the Who

Check out the website of James Mayhew. Here are other books by Joyce Dunbar. Mouse and Mole is/was also a television series. Use my post label unlikely friends to find other splendid easy chapter books about friends like Mouse and Mole.

As always, the gentle humour in Joyce Dunbar’s thought-provoking story telling is given a delightfully nostalgic feel thanks to James Mayhew’s charmingly elegant illustrations. Whether as bedtime reading for little ones or read solo by older children, these are small literary gems. Red Reading Hub