We're looking for the perfect hug by Martha Mumford

We're looking for the perfect hug.
Come and join the fun!

Once again, the bunnies are off on another adventure - this time they are on a mission to find the perfect hug. But who gives it? The prickly hedgehog? The woolly lamb? The snappy crab? Or the fluffy chick? Surely it can't be wily Mr Fox!

As with the others in the series, this is a joyous romp for our youngest readers through the countryside with lots to discover in the colourful, detailed illustrations and hidden under the flaps so cleverly disguised. As they join in the repetitive phrases that take them through the fields to the vegetable patch, across the lake to the farm and even to the seaside, there are lots of opportunities to help them build their vocabulary about the sorts of things they might expect to find at each location so even if it is unfamiliar to them, they are building a mind-picture for the next story they encounter with that setting. For example, while they are trying to predict where there might be a hug in the Giorgio's Fruit and Vege Patch, they could not only identify the vegetables they know (giving them a sense of empowerment) but learn words like "shed", "wheelbarrow" and "hedgehog". Sharp eyes might even see the beanstalk which could lead on to the story about Jack's adventure, while others might notice the colour of the leaves in the wheelbarrow and not only be able to identify the season, but perhaps explore why they are no longer green. Such wonderful opportunities for conversations and explorations - there might even be an opening to talk about who and why and when we hug, and sadly, how sometimes it might not be what we want or from someone we like.

Reading the pictures is such an essential early reading behaviour to enable the child to more precisely predict the text, that there is so much more to this series than just the interactivity of lifting the flaps. Add to that, familiar characters doing everyday things that the child will relate to and this is a winning series for our youngest readers.

Themes: Hugs, Love.

Barbara Braxton