Lush foliage and delightful characters abound in this cautionary tale of overenthusiastic neatness that delivers its message of environmental preservation with subtlety and humour. Your selection was perfect for our children and what really made the difference was your ability to engage with each child, discuss their interests and help them to choose a suitable book based on your extensive knowledge of the books you were selling. It is accepted by you that Daunt Books has no control over additional charges in relation to customs clearance. The clever use of colour and pop up devices are engaging and all the more terrible, when the scene of devastation is shown as white, blank and lifeless. With warm, rich illustrations, bursting with humorous detail and amusing rhyming text, the tale skips along and is great to read aloud.

It was such a pleasure to meet you both, and I really appreciated how smoothly and professionally you ran everything. Thereafter, we watch Pete, see what unfolds, and then draw a greater understanding of him and his setting. It might be interesting to compare different badger characters and look at some non-fiction about the wild animals to see if there is a realistic basis for representing badgers with these characteristics.A study of the double page spread showing Pete’s home trapped under a platform of concrete is a great example of this. Sunday Times If you haven't discovered the brilliant wit and inventiveness of award- winning Emily Gravett yet, then this superbly illustrated rhyming adventure is a great place to start. Pete the badger likes everything to be neat and tidy at all times, but what starts as the collecting of one fallen leaf escalates and ends with the complete destruction of the forest! Spring is a great time to start exploring the world around you - whether that's learning more about animals, going for a picnic or simply visiting your local park. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

Whether or not Pete is a totally reformed character remains open to question, however, as, in another typical Gravett touch, he is found hoovering up the British Library catalogue record information on the back page. Pete hoovering up the catalogue reference on the final page of Tidy suggests that he hasn’t reformed entirely and is always going to be tempted to interfere with things that should be left alone.We use Google Analytics to see what pages are most visited, and where in the world visitors are visiting from. However, the wicked looking stainless steel secateurs with which he is cutting off flowers whose colours ‘didn’t quite match’, should warn us that this is an animal whose scouring and scrubbing may lead to a drastic minimalist solution to nature’s inherent untidiness. Yourself and Bob are much cherished in our booky world and I personally really appreciate everything that you do.

Pete is not the reliable source of wisdom and good sense that have been attributed to badgers in other stories. This is a tale of dinosaurs using their strength and power to break up concrete roads and clear up piles of old cars and other man made rubbish. Gravett's familiar minor cast of bemused bunnies and dishevelled foxes pop up throughout and the pictures are packed with comic detail. None of the badgers in these books appear as active or irresponsible as Pete in Tidy, although wild badgers do go to some trouble to keep their sett clean and remove stale bedding away from any openings.You guys were so fab and Dawn was such a lovely presence in the schools - I will absolutely be in touch next time I'm in your neck of the woods. Young children will enjoy the pictures, approachable characterisation and considerate message of ‘Tidy’. I have even talked the head into a little revamp of the library so that we can display them properly!

Emily Gravett’s engaging woodland creatures will appeal to fans of such classics as The Animals of Farthing Wood and The Wind in the Willows and the rhythmic, rhyming text is perfect for reading aloud.Emily Gravett's place in the world of children's books is already established but in Tidy she excels herself and will delight new audiences. This enables her to photograph objects, change their size and move them around the page until she is happy with the result. Your words, like your reviews, bring books to life and give them a voice before the front cover is even turned. I haven't charted out my visits for the summer term, but I'm sure there are several in the south) and thanks so much for being so fantastic!