What Fred Read: reviews and celebration of books for young children

Welcome to WhatFredRead, a blog for people looking for recommendations, reviews and celebration of books for young children. I am the mum of four young children and I have a passion for children's literature. This blog is my new year's resolution, to share our daily reads. WhatFredRead is brought to you by 30-something me and my trusted panel of critics aged 7,5,3 &1.

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Sunday, 15 October 2017

Baby Brains

Author and Illustrator: Simon James Publisher: Walker Books, 2004 ( featured edition 2007) Here's a picture book that belongs on a...

Tuesday, 22 August 2017

Home

Author and Illustrator: Alex T Smith Publisher: Scholastic Children's Books, 2009 I discovered this book in a weekly library haul;...

Saturday, 5 August 2017

The Pig's Knickers

Author: Jonathan Emmett Illustrator: Vanessa Cabban Publisher: Walker Books Ltd, London, 2010 This is a fantastic, cheeky, witty chil...

Thursday, 27 July 2017

The Tickle Book

The Tickle Book with pop up surprises Author: Ian Whybrow Illustrator: Axel Scheffler This book, together with The Bedtime Bear by...

Tuesday, 18 July 2017

The Diabolical Mr Tiddles

Author and Illustrator: Tom McLaughlin Publisher: Simon and Schuster, 2012 This book made my eyebrow ache, as it was arched to one sid...

Sunday, 16 July 2017

The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe

Author: C.S.Lewis Publisher: First published 1950 by Geoffrey Bles, First published by Lions, Collins Publishing Group, 1980, edition f...

Tuesday, 4 July 2017

Edwina the Emu

Author: Sheena Knowles Illustrator: Rod Clement Publisher: Angus Robertson, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, 1996 I was passed ...

Friday, 30 June 2017

Flotsam

Author and Illustrator: David Wiesner Publisher: Andersen Press, 2012, first published by Clarion Books, 2006 I can't put this boo...

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About Me

Fred Read: I'm the mum of 4 children (all under the age of 8) and I have found a dearth of reviews (from the UK) of books to read for this age category.It's as if there's a literary snobbery about reviewing for this age range, as if preschooler lit isn't worthy, or important enough. And books for toddlers...don't get me started (where's the discussion on these!). I'm genuinely worried that in the UK we don't celebrate our writers and illustrators (particularly the contemporary ones) enough. We're quick to criticise but not to applaude.So hopefully you'll find my reviews constructive but celebratory in tone. Sadly, The Guardian ceased to publish its children's lit reviews last year. The rise of cheap book retailers online- okay, but they 'recommend' everything; high street bookshops recommend new launches (they're expensive!)- where to start? This blog is the result of a New Year resolution to myself, share what I know. I've 7years experience of reading 6 odd books a day to my children, and I'm passionate about reading aloud and getting kids, especially boys, to enjoy literature. Getting children to read is so very important, yes, but getting children to enjoy books is the first battle.

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