Wednesday 21 January 2015

Review of Baby's Big Box of Little Books


You might have noticed in Bed Time Routine of my 7 Month Old that Rhodri has a little collection of books slowly building on his bookshelf. Every night either me or my husband read him a bed time story before he is put in his cot and left to drift off to sleep. I've done this since he was about 8 weeks old and since he has gone to bed in his own room. 

Story Time
Why, you might ask, have I read to him since he was so little? Well I think it's important to encourage all children to read, it sets them in good stead for school. For babies it encourages them to learn to talk and communicate with others.

I think the earlier we introduce books in to their routine, the easier it is for them to fall in love with stories and characters. I'm a bit of a book worm myself, often escaping in to the pages of a good read. I hope that Rhodri will one day enjoy the comforting pages of a book and enjoy reading more than games consoles... I can hope!

So when Puffin Books kindly sent me Baby's Big Box of Little Books to review I couldn't wait to give them to him and see what he made of them! The books are written and illustrated by Janet & Allan Ahlberg. They wrote and illustrated one of my all time favourite childrens books - The Jolly Christmas Postman, so I had high hopes for these little books. I wasn't disappointed!


Having first received them, I was full of ooo's and aahh's at the presentation on these lovely little books in their presentation box.

I was also impressed with the box itself as it's quite sturdy and has a magnetic flap to keep the box closed. This keeps them all neat and tidy, minimising the room they take up on his relatively small book shelf.


 Inside the box, there are 9 little books. Each book has a different 'topic'. There are Mornings, Toys, Baby, Inside, Pets, Outside, Games, Family & Night-Times.


 Each little book is sturdy, always good with an 8 month old who has managed to rip a few paper book pages already!

The pages are thick, perfect for little hands to grab and keep hold of. Rhodri hasn't quite grasped how to turn pages yet but he held the book letting me turn pages for him, which is definitely progress!


 Inside each book words relating to the 'topic' are printed, illustrated with a clear and easy to relate to picture. They are very easily recognisable for babies and young children, which seems to keep Rhodri engaged. The words, at the moment, don't mean a lot to him. But the pictures keep him engaged, which will eventually make the words mean more to him.


 Each book has 5 words in, so a nice little bite sized portion of learning.


I love that these books introduce simple, everyday words. They are familiar words and concepts to him which keeps him interested in the books and pictures. Although Rhodri will sit and listen to a story every night, I feel that is partly because it is routine or habit, and because he is getting a cuddle at the same time. Normally a book in the day time would be considered a toy for chewing and throwing. These books have escaped that fate and Rhodri has enjoyed looking at the pictures with me.



I quite enjoy the fact that there are different topics that relate to every day life, so I can pull the books out at different times of the day for us to look at together. We have a cat, so if he's trying to play with the cat I will pull out the 'Pets' book and show him the animals. He definitely seems to enjoy that he recognises certain things from the books.

I really love these books and think they are perfect as a gift for a baby or to give Mum at the baby shower. It's a lovely little addition to our book collection and I think every Mum and baby should have these! The books are good quality, well illustrated and perfectly aimed at children who are learning, babbling and starting to gain a vocabulary. I would definitely recommend all my Mummy friends add this to their collection!

You can grab your self a set from Amazon or Waterstones. RRP £9.99 but both retailers are selling this lovely set for £7.99 (prices correct as of 21/01/2015).

**Disclosure: Puffin Books kindly sent these books to myself free of charge in return for a review. All opinions are honest and in my own words.**











The Giggles Family

2 comments:

  1. Completely agree with you about starting to use books early. I think most babies are curious about them naturally so its lovely foster that #KidTested

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    1. Thank you for the comment. It's definitely worth nurturing their curiosity :)

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