Book of the Week - Jack and the Flum Flum tree and this week's 5-a-day books

Book of the week

Jack and the Flum Flum tree

The front cover caught by eye among the library books.  It is a Julia Donaldson book from last year but I hadn't heard of it.  I didn't flick through it I just thought it is bound to be good.  We read it first while waiting in the car, Luath was a bit unsettled and it calmed her.  Like most Julia books it has a lovely rhyming cadence.  Jack's granny has the moozles and the only cure is the fruit of the flum flum tree on the Isle of Blowyernose.  He builds a boat, gets a crew and before he sets off granny gives him a patchwork sack with various items - balloons, spoons, hankies...  On their boat trip they have a few mishaps, each time Jack says "don't get your knickers in a twist, let's have a look in the patchwork sack"  We have read this often and enjoyed the David Robert's illustrations too.  Luath loves spotting the two cats featured at the start and the end.

5-a-day books
(I started doing this after reading this post from almost a year ago on the Imagination Tree blog about selecting five books to read everyday for a week and why it is important).

Tickly Octopus

Picture book with brightly coloured illustrations.It was a quick library grab to fit in with these week's theme.  An octopus who loves to tickle, but only the giggly fish really like to be tickled.  He tickles an oyster, who looses her pearl.  The octopus goes after the pearl to retrieve it.  Along the way he learns a few other things he is good at.  Luath liked when we added in some tickling either us tickling her, her tickling us or using her octopus to tickle.

Commotion in the ocean


A picture book of short fun poems about different sea creatures.  We have read one of his books before, daddy loved it Luath wasn't quite so keen.  Again Luath wasn't a big fan, I am very sure she will like it when she is a little older.

Kate Morag and the new pier

A picture story book, aimed at older children that Luath.  We are Katie Morag fans.  The stories are quite long for Luath but she will listen to them.  We enjoy pointing things out in the pictures.  A new pier is being built on Katie Morag's island.  It talks about the ups and downs of a new bigger pier.  A big storm comes through and the islanders need to help out the workmen from the mainland.
The Big Boat ride

A lift the flap picture book about Noah's ark.  Luath likes the flaps.