BG Christmas Gift Guide 2011: Books

Welcome to the BG Christmas Gift Guide 2011. Books are one of the most brilliant and versatile presents you can give and there are some corkers around this year. We’ve rounded up the best arty, festive and just darn fabulous titles out there for a range of ages. Miller Goodman’s Shapemaker and Playshapes are modern [...]

Woop Studios

Is it just me or are there lots of amazing alphabet books around at the moment? First, there was Operation Alphabet, now there’s A Zeal of Zebras by Woop Studios (Chronicle, RRP £11.99), which I spotted while browsing the shop in Tate Modern the other day (what can I say, it’s right behind my office). [...]

Operation Alphabet

I knew I’d love Operation Alphabet (Thames & Hudson, RRP £9.95) as soon as I heard about it. The brainchild of Al MacCuish, creative director at ultra-cool East London ad agency Mother, it’s a glorious tale with divine retro illustrations by Luciano Lozano. The premise is that under a postbox near the Houses of Parliament is the [...]

Hot shop: Burp!

Hurrah for another online boutique and yay for it being British. Burp! is the Hampshire (Farnborough, to be exact)-based brainchild of Kate & James Hayden-Ellis who, like so many parents these days, were bored with the traditional baby offerings and took matters into their own hands. The result is a small but lovely selection of goodies [...]

The High Street by Alice Melvin

I’ve been a fan of illustrator Alice Melvin’s work ever since I first came across her fabulous birds in Tate Modern. I can’t really explain why I like it so much but, suffice to say, I was pretty excited to discover she has a new book out.   The High Street (RRP £9.99, Tate) is [...]

Sneak peek: new Eric Carle book!

It’s been a while since a brand new Eric Carle book has been published, but this one is definitely worth waiting for. The Artist Who Painted A Blue Horse (RRP £12, Puffin) isn’t out until 4 October, but I’ve been lucky enough to have a sneak peek. Inspired by the work of Expressionist artist Franz Marc, [...]

Marina Vandel Mes Livres wallpaper

Got a bookish child? You could do worse than invest in one of French designer Marina Vandel’s cute and colourful wallpapers. Choose from Mes Livres (My Books), or Ma Bibliothèque (My Library) patterns. Panels measure either 130cm or 180cm x 50cm and cost from €50 (plus p&p), Little Fashion Gallery. I love the attention to [...]

Mud Pies and other Recipes

Some kids love to create culinary masterpieces for their dollies and teddies, out of petals, leaves, puddle water and mud. I know, because I’ve got one of them – though I suspect that with her, it’s more an excuse to get muddy and stir things with sticks than it is any early blossoming of a [...]

Jungle Book for iPad

Tabitha  recently enjoyed going to see a stage production of the Jungle Book with her class, and on the back of that, she got well into the Disney version (spawning our family joke of singing ‘Claire’s Accessories’ to ‘Bear Necessities’ – I know, geniuses, we are). So when we heard about Electric Type’s Jungle Book [...]

Lunchbox – the story of your food

Lunchbox – the story of your food (£8.99 from Walker Books) is a great but very simple book: it takes each ingredient in a typical lunchbox and explains where it has come from. So we learn about flour-making in mills, tomato-growing in hothouses, and cheese production processes. Like many parents, I suspect, I worry about [...]

Spot It Again! by Delphine Chedru

Alfie and I are devoted fans of French illustrator Delphine Chedru’s Spot It! (Abrams), a joyous book of patterns concealing various creatures, from sea urchins to dragons (some of which I struggled to discover myself. So, we’re on tenterhooks awaiting the release of this follow-up, the imaginatively titled Spot It Again!, which features similarly tricky [...]

10 best: New books for under fives

It’s no secret that I’m a book geek. And, much to my delight, so is my little one. There are so many fabulous new titles either just out or imminent that I couldn’t just pick a couple to feature, so I thought I’d bring you a round-up of my favourites. First up is Stephen Savage’s [...]

Noisy Neighbours by Ruth Green

If you’re a BG regular you’ll know that we adore the work of artist Ruth Green. Her retro-styled prints of flora and fauna are simply gorgeous and now she’s created a beautiful book, Noisy Neighbours. It’s not being published until the 28th March, but I just had to give you the heads up as I [...]

Little Scout – shop for boys

I must admit to being slightly baffled by the concept behind new online shop Little Scout, which only stocks ‘toys for boys’ – think robots, planes and pirates. To me, this seems like a bit of an outdated idea – many little girls I know enjoy playing with trains and cars as much as my [...]

Have You Ever Seen a Smack of Jellyfish? An Alphabet Book

I’ve been a fan of Sarah Asper-Smith’s work since I featured her gorgeous greeting cards back in 2009. So I was really excited to discover she had produced a book, Have You Ever Seen a Smack of Jellyfish? featuring her fabulously quirky illustrations. Not only beautiful on the bookshelf, but a great educational tool as [...]

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