Fox's Socks

This book, by Julia Donaldon & illustrated by Axel Scheffler (the duo of Gruffalo fame), is a perfectly framed lift-the-flap book for children under five or so. It follows a fox who is searching various locations in his home for his socks, discovering various other items of clothing beneath the flaps on the way. The pictures are delightful, the language is simple & the rhyme scheme satisfying; a great one for reading with the grandkids.*

* Which is presumably why my parents have it, I don't imagine that they're reading this themselves recreationally. Yes, I'm still at my family home for the holiday season - I have my own stack of books to read, but this took me a minute or two to breeze through so it doesn't really count as a meaningful diversion from my own list. It is, interestingly, a very appropriate book for me to have clocked in as the first read of the new year - my mother's surname is Fox** and I recieved a surprisingly large number of socks*** for Christmas, so maybe that combination of factors subconsciously oriented me toward this book.

** As such, the house is strewn with artworks, mugs, a stuffed doorstop, etc, that feature or resemble foxes - capped off with a real roadkill fox head as you go up the stairs.

*** About half of the socks that I currently own have holes in the heel or toe, which I personally don't mind, but my parents seem to perceive this as a sad state of affairs.

the Gruffalo

This book, by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler (a thoroughly-competent team of childrens' book production if ever there was one), you've probably already heard of as a modern classic. It follows a mouse* through the forest as he debates with various animals why they shouldn't eat him because he's friends with a scary monster (who the mouse proceeds to seemingly invent over the story's course), who then meets said monster - and it all goes rather well for them both. Rhyming couplet text, exceedingly juicy illustrations and the final twist all work in tandem to make this probably the most enduring kids' book of its decade. You don't need my recommendation, this would be by default a great lump for anyone under the age of 7 or so.

* In the more recent film adaptation played by Martin Freeman, who I can only say is perfect for this role in an otherwise also-well-cast-and-producedly excellent film version

the Snail and the Whale

This book by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler (yes, the very same duo who were behind the Gruffalo) unexpectedly hit me right in the feels. I read it to a child from church,* and it seemed to go down well, which I can only partly attest to its quality as a children's book because I'm an incredible read-out-louder. That said - the text is rhythmic and flows aloud perfectly, and is even occasionally a bit funny, the plot is genuinely quite compelling, the illustrations are beautiful, the friendship between the two main characters thoroughly heartwarming. A classic.

* For those of you who suspect this is just another excuse for the fact that for an intellectual 24-year-old I read a lot of children's books, yes, you, shut up.