Green Children's Books for Christmas

This month, I have enlisted the help of two extremely fussy and demanding reviewers, namely my three-year-old daughter, Georgia (‘three and three quarters, Mummy!!') and two-year-old Kate. We obtained a collection of books from Brigit and our wonderful local library in Evesham, and set off for some serious bedtime reading.

Michael Recycle by Ellie Bethel, illustrated by Alexandra Colombo (Meadowside Books £5.99)

Michael Recycle is a superhero from another planet who comes to Earth to rescue mankind from being litterbugs and wasteful.

Georgia: I like it a lot. Is Michael a boy or a girl? (a boy - Becks) OK, I think Michael is a girl.

Kate: I want Peppa (Pig)!

Becks: Great book, rhyming couplets mean it is easy for Mummy or Daddy to get a good rhythm going when reading. Bright and colourful illustrations make the book enticing for children. Georgia thought it was excellent and the next day we put the recycling bins out together, and she told me that Michael Recycle was watching. This book has been read (so far) every night since we got it (four days ago!!).

Belonging by Jeannie Baker (Walker Books £5.99)

This book has no words, just illustrations of the same scene from a child's bedroom window in a city. As the child gets older, the scene changes, gradually getting greener and more optimistic.

Georgia: Look! That's me! (the little girl in the book has dark hair like Georgia - Becks)

Kate: Teddy! Duck! There's meeee!

Becks: I wasn't sure about this book at first, the illustrations are very detailed and, I thought, more suited to an older child's book. However, the girls both pored over this book pointing out people and elements of the pictures which attracted them. The overall premise of the book may be suitable for older children (say over five) but my girls really enjoyed the illustrations and they happily sat together chatting about what was going on in the pictures. A very interesting and unique book.

Rebecca Pridham