Thursday 20 September 2012

Picture Book FEAST ! Nom nom nom

 
Toot toot sniffers! The beginning of autumn is upon us, thus it will only be a matter of mere moments until we are donning our tweed and snuggling up betwixt the log burner and the sherry decanter. 

I have a rather droolsome abundance of gem-like wonderment to introduce you to this month, with treasures from amongst others the delightful Kevin Waldron, squeezesome Holly Surplice and new comer Emma Yarlett.
 
So sit yourself in a comfy chair and get a brew on...lets start with an EXCLUSIVE  Sneak peek! (or should that be PEEKS !) at

Pandemonium at Peek Zoo by Kevin Waldron
published by Templar Publishing

 
It seems an age since the first Mr Peek book (5 years in fact) and now, almost upon us is a second, Mr Peek and his assistant Jimmy are celebrating a new arrival of their own in the form of a new baby panda (ahhhh)


Peek is busy organising a free extravaganza at the zoo so everyone can come and greet the monochrome bundle of joy, however as preparations are underway Peek realises the baby panda has in fact GONE MISSING! (and before you ask, NO it wasn't me...) as you can imagine, chaos ensues in the mad dash to find the missing star of the show.

A picture book with a baby panda in a bucket AND a chimps tea party certainly gets he sniffer seal of approval, also look out for Mr Peeks rather snazzy PJ's, I wonder if they do those in pug size...



With all the charm of the first book this welcome addition to the book sniffer shelf is witty and chic in bucket loads.

 


 
Sidney, Stella and the Moon By Emma Yarlett -
Published by Templar Publishing



Anarchic monobrowed siblings Sidney and Stella do everything together, everything EXCEPT sharing. Disaster strikes when the troublesome pair accidentally break the moon! Gasp. With spectacular pull out spreads to drool over and a good smattering of tittersome little details to spot. This modern and fresh picture book is set to be an intergalactic success.

Guinea Pig Party by Holly Surplice published by Nosy Crow.


This iced gem of a picture book is quite literally packed with chubby warbling guinea pigs in party hats, what's not to love!
Any book with a guinea pig conga, mild peril in the form of pin the tail on the donkey, scoffing too much cake, space hoppers and balloons gets a big licky seal of approval from the Sniffer. Counting to ten has never been so much fun. Holly has created a jolly counting book and her candy colour illustrations and spongy cover are the cherry on what is a quite delightful picture book.
Lovely treats for tiddly peeps!

Visit Holly's website here... and check out her wonderful blog !... you can also follow her on Twitter ...@HollySurplice

Fondant Fancies all round! TOOT TOOT

 

MORE NEXT WEEK! ... including treats from Claudia Boldt, James Mayhew AND David Roberts


OH and while I'm here and you're there, get your mitts on a copy of this book (Little Big Books) it is absolutely marvellous! Any Sniffer worth their salt should have this on their shelf!


P.S in regional news... (dated 20/09/12) Pop along to Chris Haughtons exhibition on Brick Lane this weekend and pick up some early Christmas prezzies.. AND check out our Shaun Tan signed book competition on the Book Sniffer Facebook Page! - Closing date 24th Sept 2012)

Tuesday 4 September 2012

High Times and Happy Days


A magnificent pug in his flying machine....

Tada-ta-tiddly-tadaaaa.. I'm in my Biggles goggles and my silken scarf is a fluttering in the breeze, My passion for taking to the air has been ignited with a wondrous flame of ingenious publishing from the cads about town at NOBrow.

So fasten your seat belts and crack open your miniature bag of peanuts for today we are sniffing High Times by Golden Cosmos


High Times details the history of flight and aviation from Icarus to jets and beyond. Featuring hot air balloons, rockets, Zeppelins, world war two bombers, passenger airlines and space shuttles amongst many more.  
Unlike any common or garden wall chart you may have come across in the past this unusual leporello style book folds out into a stunning double sided concertinaesque panoramic story-scape (now that's a mouthful) it's jewel like colorscheme and vintage style make this a unique publication which doesn't bow down to a younger audience but will positively grab their attention and launch it straight into the atmosphere. 

As an object it it droolsomely stunning and worthy of framing, as an educational tool it is packed with detail whilst being absorbing and accessible in equal measures.

These beautiful objects would make a welcome addition to any young sniffers library to be poured over again and again.










In addition to High Times this series also includes the stunning Swan Lake which features front of house and back stage spreads.
With comical characters in the audience enjoying the show to theatre workers beavering away in the wings, children will love using their imagination to disappear into the wonderful magical world of ballet. Ive been spinning about the house in my tutu ever since.







Now let me tell you a little bit about NoBrow, I first sniffed their publishing in a snazzy art gallery in Edinburgh and was so utterly blown away by the quality that I had to have a sit down and a cup of tea and a cake.

No Brow strive to publish books with their inherent qualities as objects in mind, doing everything in their super powers to ensure that they look good, smell good and most of all tell great stories!



You must must must check out the NoBrow website here AND follow them on Twitter @nobrowpress - You won't regret it, and that's a cast iron Book Sniffer promise with a cherry on top.