Delicious books give youngsters a taste for reading by various authors – children’s book reviews –

How do you fancy a book that promises to be irreverent, energetic, visually exciting, fact-packed and laugh-out-loud?

Look no further than Noodle Juice, a tasty name in the book world that sounds like a takeaway special but is, in fact, a new publisher of children’s books which believes firmly in the importance of silliness!

On a mission to make young brains ‘fizz,’ Noodle Juice was cooked up by creators Sarah Walden, a children’s book specialist and publishing expert, and Mark Walden, author of the internationally published HIVE and EARTHFALL series, who work on the premise that children today want to see books that compete head to head with the media they enjoy on their screens and devices.

Age 7 plus:

All The World’s A Stage

Sarah Walden and Hannah Li

Curtain up on a book that puts young readers at centre stage!

This super, illustrated exploration of the exciting world of acting is the first book in Noodle Juice’s entertaining Express Yourself series... the perfect inspiration for the next generation of creative young minds.

So if you dream of walking the red carpet, are fascinated with special effects, or have a story that you are itching to tell the world, this practical guide to all things stage, film and TV is packed with everything you need to know about working in the theatre or film industry.

From the ancient origins of performance to the emerging digital world fusing art and technology, All The World’s A Stage provides an amazing insight into theatre, television and film. The guide showcases the many different roles required to create a blockbuster movie or West End production and then tells you exactly how to do it at home.

Learn about famous theatres and follow a timeline of musicals, explore fascinating film genres and exotic locations, and discover the behind-the-scenes magic of stage and screen. Just follow the step-by-step guides and practical tips and in no time you’ll be putting on your own production or shooting your own film. Next stop, Hollywood or London’s West End!

With practical tips on making short films and plays, guides to behind-the-scenes roles in TV and Hollywood, and lavishly illustrated throughout by Hannah Li, an award-winning Chinese illustrator based in Manhattan, this dazzling book is the ideal gift for any child who dreams of a life and career in film or stage, and a must-have for classroom libraries.

(Noodle Juice, hardback, £12.99)

Age 5 plus:

What is Philosophy?

Sarah Walden and Katie Rewse

And if you want to encourage your little ones to start engaging with big ideas, this perfectly pitched Little Book, Big Idea series has some resonant questions and answers.

Helping to build foundations for life-long learning by explaining big ideas to little people, this carefully created, illustrated series uses simple language to explain complicated ideas, with each book taking the core questions that relate to each subject and providing answers that make sense to young children.

And first book in the series tackles philosophy and asks questions like what does it mean to be human, what is truth, what is good, what makes us happy and what is knowledge? These are all very BIG questions that need exploring at some stage and the book emphasises that the sooner children start to think about the answers, the better the world will be.

Each double-page spread explores one question and various answers, and each page is filled with illustrations that inspire positive thinking and make the exploration fresh, engaging and different.

Imaginatively illustrated by Katie Rewse, who is particularly interested in how illustration can be used to inspire positive thinking, and a glossary of important words at the back of the book, What is Philosophy? is perfect for sharing with any inquisitive child.

And in What is Money?, also written by Sarah Walden and illustrated by Katie Rewse, youngsters learn that money makes the world go round and explore topics like who looks after our money, whether money is good, who were the first people to use money, how people earn money, what taxes are, and what is the future of money.

Essential reading for youngsters in a world where money talks...

(Noodle Juice, hardback, £9.99 each)

Age 3 plus:

Elephant Makes a Smell

Illustrated by Mr Griff

It’s hard to always be polite... and even grown-ups sometimes struggle!

If you’re eager to show your young children that good manners help to make the world a much nicer place, then Noddle Juice’s pre-school Elephant and Friends Manners series could be just what you’re looking for.

Exciting to look at and fun to read, these sturdy board books, with their jaunty rhymes and lovable animal characters, feature madcap, gigglesome stories and carefully concealed messages about thinking about others, and being kind to each other.

So join Elephant and his friends on a particularly pongy journey. If it’s not rotten eggs or smelly green slime, then it’s onion breath and stinky socks. Energetic rhyming text will delight young children and it’s guaranteed that they will laugh out loud at the final smell of the book!

And in Zebra Won’t Wear Spots, we meet Zebra and her friends on a particularly spotty adventure. If she’s not dripping wet or very chilly, then she’s feeling left out or being rather rude. Will Zebra ever learn to love spots?

Using playful rhyme, friendly animal characters to explore recognisable emotions, likes and dislikes, and the different moods which we all experience, each book explains a specific area of manners to help little people realise that life is easier when we’re all being polite!

(Noodle Juice, board book, £6.99 each)