KIDS’ BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2022
Inventive, enlightening and LOUD, these were the essential children’s reads this year
Ages 0-6
1 There’s a Ghost in this HouseBy Oliver Jeffers
(HarperCollins, £20)
World-renowned children’s author and artist Jeffers needs no introduction, as I always say when introducing yet another gem from the great Belfast writer. This story, ostensibly about a little girl searching for rumoured ghouls in a fully furnished, deserted old house, is particularly exquisite and imagination-sparking. The simple comic-book illustration of our intrepid explorer stands beautifully against photorealistic images of various rooms, some of which come with estate agent-style architectural descriptions. Between every page is a semi-opaque cover page, some of which are blank, some of which reveal ghostly presences. Young children will enjoy the game of hide and seek the book encourages, and might also sense the unsettling, rather thrilling atmosphere conjured up by hanging portraits of solemn unknown figures, stairways into dark corridors and unexplained shadows. One wonders if Jeffers will ever run out of ideas and unique ways of presenting them.
2 I DID See a Mammoth!By Alex Willmore
(Farshore, £7.99)
Writer/artist Alex Willmore has created a rod for parents’ backs with this irresistible shoutalong picture book about a group of explorers trawling the Antarctic for penguins. The grown ups’ tooled-up gear and serious
