Hippobottymus

Hippobottymus

By Steve Smallman and illustrated by Ada Grey

Published by Little Tiger Press

We’re celebrating award-winning author Steve Smallman and Ada Grey’s Poo in the Zoo this week, and here's another laugh out loud book by the talented duo - Hippobottymus. It’s fun, it’s bonkers and features a farting surprise!

When Mouse sits down by a bubbling creek, the creek loudly bubbles which made Mouse squeak, squeak, SQUEAK! The bubbling and the squeak make a great song and soon Bird wants to sing along and Centipede too, tapping a beat with his tappity feet. Other animals want to join in once they hear the music; there’s a monkey crying “Woo-hoo” and a Warthog banging on his bottom like a big bass drum, and finally being joined by Crocodile, playing on his teeth like a xylophone with a bone. All of the animals are having fun, dancing and making music all day long. Mouse thanks everyone, but who was making the bubbling sound?…It’s Hippo. But Mouse and all of the other animals don’t realise it was Hippo until he explains that he had beans in the week and his bottom has been parping and making bubbles in the creek!

Hippobottymus is very funny and has a musical rhyming story that will get you singing along to the musical noises with the little ones. I found myself singing out loud and getting louder as each animal joins in. I especially love the end, reading Hippo’s reason for his trumping and parping bottom. Ada Grey’s lively illustrations work really well with this funny story too, bringing extra humour to the pages.

Like Poo in the Zoo, Hippobottymus is packed full with laughs! Available in all good book shops and online from Little Tiger Press. 

Happy Birthday Royal Baby

Happy Birthday Royal Baby

Written by Martha Mumford and Illustrated by Ada Grey 
Published by Bloomsbury

 

 

Well, I’m a little late in reviewing this book but with my thoughts now turning to my daughter’s first birthday it’s always good to remember that it’s the simple things babies love most! This is the second Royal Baby book, Shhh! Don’t Wake the Royal Baby! is the first in the series by author Martha Mumford.

The Royal Palace is awash with activity all because it's the Royal Baby’s first birthday and everything must be perfect. The cook is busy making the biggest cake ever with lots of jam, as the Royal Baby loves jam. The banqueting hall is filled with hundreds of balloons and dinosaur shaped ones, as the Royal Baby loves dinosaurs. There’s a bouncy castle and the royal orchestra in the garden, because of course, the Royal Baby loves bouncing and loves music.

 

 

 

It’s soon time for the party to begin and guests have arrived from near and far carrying gifts of all shapes and sizes. At any birthday party, there’s always party games and in this royal case, there’s Pin the Tail on the Corgi and Musical Thrones (what else?). Everyone is having a lovely time except the birthday boy himself. Waaaaaaaaaah! He cried. The Royal Baby was not happy. No one knows what’s the matter with him - they thought they had remembered all the things the Royal Baby likes.

 

 

The prince’s grandad suggests opening presents and what a pile of presents there are - so many toys for the little prince but still he just continues to cry. But who better to know how to fix the situation than Grandma. Minutes later the Queen’s private jet flies overhead leaving a vapour trail with the message Happy Birthday Royal Baby. As everyone looks up, the prince stopped crying just as the Queen parachuted to the ground with a present strapped to her front. Handing over the present, the little prince tore off the paper to find a cardboard box with nothing inside. His parents are astonished but the Queen knows to wait and see… the Royal Baby bounced up and down excitedly and climbed inside with his dinosaur shaped balloon - he was finally happy. Now the prince was able to enjoy all the cake, bouncing and the music, and everyone was right, he did love all those things and had the most fun ever.

 

 

This picture book is bursting with cake, balloons, presents and corgis! There are corgis everywhere! And I imagine children will enjoy spotting the cute little dogs amongst the wrapping paper and toys. Each page is jam packed with bright and bold illustrations. I enjoyed the illustrated Royal family and family members of the Duchess. It’s a lovely way of introducing Prince George and the Royal family to young children - though hopefully your little ones won’t be expecting a party of this magnitude! And as ever, Corgi covered end papers! (drool!).

 

 

With Royal Baby number 2 due anytime soon, look out for the third Royal Baby book - Hooray! It’s a New Royal Baby! due this April 2015. I’m sure it will be a marvellous Royal read! Happy Birthday Royal Baby is available in all good bookshops and on the Bloomsbury website.