The themes of the books are about:-
Deployment, sharing, friendship, changes, loss, worries, separation, divorce, new families and emotions.
All of these books are suitable to share with young children.

If you feel that you would like to borrow these books, click on the 'Contact Us' tab above.

I will send the books home via your child’s book bag

Thank you.

Angela Clark

	Duffle Duck is much smaller than all the other ducks who tease him, saying, "A duck so small can do nothing at all." They seem to be right, as everything Duffle tries to do ends in disaster. One day, though, Duffle's small size becomes an advantage.
	Exploring our differences and our differing feelings.
	Badger is in a bad mood. He won’t see or talk to anyone. The animals are at a loss without him – who will help with holiday arrangements, give advice and support, take them fishing? Only Mole has the sensitivity to see what is wrong. He secretly organises an award ceremony at which all the animals receive a certificate of achievement. But the real climax of the celebrations is when Badger receives the best award of all.
	Badger is so old that he knows he will soon die. He tries to prepare his friends for this event, but when he does die, they are still grief-stricken. Gradually they come to terms with their grief by remembering all the practical things Badger taught them, and so Badger lives on in his friends' memories of him.
	Wherever Jenny goes, her worries follow her - in a big blue bag. They are there when she goes swimming, when she is watching TV, and even when she is in the lavatory. Jenny decides they will have to go. But who can help her?
	Young children will identify with the little mouse who uses the pages of this book to document his fears – from loud noises and the dark, to being sucked down the plughole. Packed with details and novelty elements including flaps, die-cuts and even a hilarious fold-out map, this is an extraordinary picture book.
	Worry and anxiety are on an upswing. In fact, anxiety is the most frequent of all mental disorders in children. High levels of stress and big emotions related to social situations, sensory issues, or general frustration are common in children who live with anxiety. Such stress can lead to a loss of control, resulting in aggressive behaviour, such as screaming, throwing things or even hurting someone. Prolonged anxiety can also seriously impact success in academic achievement and cause children to avoid social and extracurricular activities.
	From the moment Julia is born, her most treasured possession is a red woollen blanket. Together they go through the many colourful and lively experiences of childhood. The bigger Julia grows, the smaller her blanket becomes – until the day that she starts school…
	Bear just isn't in the mood to play with Bug. She lumbers off to her cave for a nap but Bug buzzes after her as he thinks they are playing 'chase'! Bad-tempered Bear gets increasingly huffy and decides to hide from Bug instead. Of course Bug finds her and thinks it's an invitation to play hide-and-seek. And so it goes on. Each time Bear tries to shake off Bug, Bug - in his enthusiasm to play - gets the wrong end of the stick, and so each time adds to Bear's exasperation. Then Bear snaps. She tells Bug to go away and finally she gets to have her nap. But Bear feels bad for being mean so she comes back out of her cave to look for Bug and finds him floating and forlorn on a water-lily pad. Bear wades out into the lake and brings Bug back to the shore. 'You are my very best friend. Would you like to play now?' said Bear. 'I'm too tired to play,' said Bug, shaking the water from his wings. 'I think I'd like to have a nap.' And so they did. Together. A story that celebrates the resilience of real friendship - this is an important and reassuring truth for children to know from the earliest age
	It's Boot's task to take Daddy where he's needed, but it's Daddy's job to explain why. Boots say Daddy is getting ready to deploy, but Bean needs to know why Daddy is leaving, what he does while he's away, and why Bean can't go with him. Daddy is a soldier and his boots are preparing to take him away again. If Bean can hide Daddy's boots will Daddy be able to stay? Daddy explains to Bean the many things Daddy's called to do, why his boots sometimes have to take him far away and how his work is really not so much different than other daddies' jobs.
	Written by Lieutenant Colonel Christopher MacGregor and based on his own experiences of going away from home, this comforting, wise book helps to explain why parents sometimes have to go away and shows ways to help children cope.
	A little boy tries to find a pot of parent glue to stick his mum and dad back together. His parents have come undone and he wants to mend their marriage, stick their smiles back on and make them better. This rhyming story is brilliantly told with a powerful message that even though his parents may be broken, their love for him is not.
	Told in the form of a long letteto her mother, this story features a small girl who is sent off to stay in the Yorkshire Dales. Gradually homesickness changes to enjoyment and her relationship with her grandfather grows until she is begging to have her holiday extended.r home.
	It's a dark night. A night for naughty bears to creep downstairs. Horace and William need biscuits to make them brave so they sneak downstairs. Then they hear a noise - a mum kind of noise. What will happen to the two naughty bears when mum finds they are downstairs, when they should be in bed?
	Through simple prose and vivid illustrations, this heart-warming book encourages positive behaviour as children see how rewarding it is to express daily kindness, appreciation, and love. Bucket filling and dipping are effective metaphors for understanding the effects of our actions and words on the well-being of others and ourselves.
	Fred is a scaredy cat. He is frightened of mice and spiders and caterpillars and monsters. His cousin Jack isn't frightened of anything. He comes to stay and involves Fred in all sorts of frightening situations. The worst moment is when the two of them meet some fierce-looking cats in the park.
	Once there was a baby in the house - and to that baby, Mum and Dad and Jill and John and Uncle Tom were giants. But little by little, that baby grew up - until she became a giant too. This book is explores the stages of life and development.
	Gerald was a tall giraffe whose neck was long and slim, but his knees were awfully bandy and his legs were rather thin... Every year Gerald dreads the great Jungle Dance, and feels ashamed that he cannot tango and two-step with the rest of the jungle animals. Then one day he realises that it doesn't matter that he is different from everyone else--it’s just that he needs a different tune to dance to.
	Grandma and Grandpa loved their garden and spent many happy hours there together, but happiness came to an end. This touching story brought a tear to my eye and is a perfect book to share with a young child who has lost a loved one. It is full of hope, love and importance of sharing memories and feelings.
	Danny's dad travels all over the world taking photos of animals. He loves the pictures, but he always misses his Dad. This time Dad's off to the North Pole, a Great White Bear turns up, and Mum says he can stay.
	Book about emotions
	Laura is often lonely but one night she sees a falling star and runs downstairs to find it lying damaged, on the pavement outside. Laura takes it to her room, mends it, and lays it tenderly on her pillow. She tells the star all her secrets but when she wakes in the morning, the star is gone. Also available in DVD from school.
	It's the end of the school year, and Leo will no longer be taught by the kind Mrs Ellis. He's frightened of Miss Lyons, who is to be his new teacher, but over the summer he finds out that she's not as he feared. When school starts again, Leo is boldly leading his friends into their new classroom.
	This heart warming and inspiring storybook helps children ages 2-7 thrive despite a parent's lengthy absence. Lily's daddy is deployed for about a billion days. She feels angry, sad, stubborn, and naughty. Her mommy helps Lily understand her emotions and cope with them in healthy ways. With her mommy's steadfast love, Lily finds ways to be happy despite the separating miles; she bikes and swings and plays the piano. She collects mementos in a Memories for Daddy box and adds stickers to a calendar to help count down the days to daddy's return. When the big day finally, finally arrives, she jumps joyfully into her daddy's arms. Lily loves hellos! This is a new ALL MILITARY version: daddy wears a generic BDU uniform.
	This is the much-loved story of Little Beaver, who lives all alone by the edge of a pond. He doesn't have a friend in the world. One day, when he starts to cry, he hears someone else crying too. So Little Beaver sets off to find this kindred spirit. Along the way, he's joined by a duck, an otter and a turtle, who each claim, "I do need a friend, but it wasn't me who was crying." Will Little Beaver ever find the creature who was crying, and make a friend at last?
	Nobody knows what Mr McAllistair keeps in the shed at the bottom of his garden. Just what is in the colourful bottles which fill the shelves and sparkle with hidden secrets? Step inside as a magical mystery is uncorked.
	Moppy is a funny little fuzzy alien who drops by a little boy's house and needs to learn to understand and control his emotions. Moppy changes colour when he goes from calm to happy, or to sad or angry, and the host-family who has taken him needs to help him understand why he is experiencing all sorts of different feelings, and how he can get back to a calm state.
	I'm a grim and grumpy little Small and nobody loves me at all,' said a small fox. But that's not true and Small's mother is determined to prove that her love is limitless - no matter what! A beautiful, lyrical, loving book about setting big worries to rest.
	The family is moving house. A new baby is one the way. But alone in the attic lies a little creature who doesn't even know its name. So begins the story of Nothing and his journey to discover who he really is. On the way he meets all kinds of creatures who unwittingly jog his memory and help him find his way home. There is a wonderful pull out surprise at the end.
	George says the cardboard house is his and his alone. It isn't for girls, small people, twins, people with glasses, or people who like tunnels. But when he leaves the cardboard house for a little while, he comes back to find that there are some people inside who don't think it is for people who have red hair - like George. This is a topical and perceptive book that shows that it is much more fun to share.
	A story in which three baby owls wake up one night in their hole in a tree to find that their mother has gone. Darkness gathers and the owls grow anxious, until at last she returns and they bounce up and down with joy.
	Rainbow fish learns to share and make friends.
	These sensitive stories reassure young readers and provide them with a vocabulary which helps them to express and understand their feelings as they grow up and encounter different situations. 'Story words' in each book explain words simply and gently.
	Spaghetti in a Hot Dog Bun. How can Ralph be so mean? Lucy is one of a kind and Ralph loves to point that out. Lucy’s defining moment comes when Ralph truly needs help. Because she knows what she stands for, Lucy has the courage to make a good choice. This charming story empowers children to always do the right thing and be proud of themselves, even when they are faced with someone as challenging as Ralph.
	The little knight wants a sword to whoosh and swoosh in the air. His mother gives him a sunflower instead. The sunflower sword whooshes and swooshes very well. "But," says the little knight, "it won't be any good for fighting dragons." Or will it?
	Little bunny Willa is scared to go to sleep, just in case she has a bad dream. She asks her older brother Willoughby for help. Wise Willoughby knows that she just needs to think of all happy things that will be waiting for her in the morning...
	A story for children who have lost someone they love. Eric is a sand dragon who loves the sea very much. Each day, he watches it going out and coming back. His sea is beautiful indeed to him. But one day, the sea goes out and does not come back. Eric waits and waits, but it does not come back. So he falls on the sand in terrible pain. It feels to him as if he has lost everything. After many bleak days, Eric sees a little wild flower. It is dying. Eric knows he must save it. He finds water. More and more flowers appear and so Eric starts to make a beautiful rock pool garden. And as he does, he finds the courage to feel the full pain of his loss, instead of closing his heart. He realises that his memories of his precious sea are like a special kind of treasure in his mind, a treasure he will never lose.
	In this award-winning picture book classic about divorce, Alex has two homes - a home where Daddy lives and a home where Mummy lives. Alex has two front doors, two bedrooms and two very different favourite chairs. He has a toothbrush at Mummy's and a toothbrush at Daddy's. But whether Alex is with Mummy or Daddy, one thing stays the same: Alex is loved by them both - always. This gently reassuring story focuses on what is gained rather than what is lost when parents’ divorce, while the sensitive illustrations, depicting two unique homes in all their small details, firmly establish Alex's place in both of them. Two Homes will help children - and parents - embrace even the most difficult of changes with an open and optimistic heart.
	Deciding what to play can be difficult.
	Tickly toes, a big red nose; wasps that sting, a fall from a swing; shrieks, creaks, jaws, claws - what makes children laugh or cry? Children's emotions are explored in this book.
	The power of imagination and where it can get you.