Now we are officially in December it is time to get gift buying. We believe that books make the best gifts (we may be a little biased) so we've brought together a list of some of our favourite titles from 2017. We have something for everyone from timeless classics to cosy bedtime stories.
Every story starts with nothing, so ... why not an octopus who wants to fly in a spaceship? A delightfully meta picture book that will set imaginations soaring.
From Benji Davies comes a metafictive story about ... how to build a story!
Debut author Maggie Tokuda-Hall sets up a funny, smart and warm-hearted story all about storytelling, then hands the baton to imaginative readers, who will be more than prepared to take it away.
Peck, hop, flap and make some noise in this story full of colour, rhyme and feathered friends – now in paperback!
Flap your wings, fly up high, open your beak and sing in this fun action rhyme story about fantastical birds by multi-award-winning author Lucy Cousins. "Can you imagine ... just for one day ... you're a busy bird? Yes, a bird! Hooray!" Can you stand on one leg like a flamingo or waddle like a penguin? How about say "cock-a-doodle-doo!", "tuwit-tuwoo" and even "tra-la-la"? A bouncy read-aloud book to be enjoyed; beautifully illustrated with bold, bright colours and packed with all sorts of wild and wonderful birds!
Root for Morris the spectacle-wearing mole to find his way home in this laugh-out-loud story from Jarvis, the creator of Alan's Big, Scary Teeth.
Morris the mole can’t find his glasses anywhere. So, he decides to go on without them. With perfect comic timing and a whole lot of heart, Jarvis will have all readers rooting for Morris to find his family, and rejoicing in the idea that – glasses or no glasses – you can always make your way back to home sweet home.
A breathtaking new picture book by children's author Nicola Davies, illustrated by Laura Carlin, winner of the Bratislava Illustration Biennale and the Bologna Ragazzi Prize for Illustration. Starting a new life in a new country, a young boy feels lost and alone – until he meets an old man who keeps racing pigeons. Together they pin their hopes on a race across Europe and the special bird they believe can win it: King of the Sky.
From the multi award-winning picture book maker Chris Haighton comes the ultimate bedtime book.
A series of exquisitely coloured cut pages of increasing size introduce woodland families – bears, deer, rabbits and teeny, tiny mice – who are all beginning to feel really ... rather ... tired ... YAWN! "Dear me," says Great Big Bear, "it must be time for bed!" But Little Bear is certainly not sleepy – he's wide awake! (For now...) With sublime, starry night time scenes Chris Haughton creates a lulling bedtime read.
Multi-award-winning, bestselling duo Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen conspire again on a slyly funny tale about some very sneaky shapes.
Meet Triangle. He is going to play a sneaky trick on his friend, Square. Or so Triangle thinks...
Visually stunning and full of wry humour, here is a perfectly-paced treat that flips the traditional concept book, and approaches it from a whole new angle.
A special 25th anniversary edition of a modern classic reassuring young children that Mummy will always come home.
"The perfect picture book" Guardian
Never has the plight of young ones who miss their mum been so sensitively told or so beautifully rendered as in this tale from picture book masters, Patrick Benson and Martin Waddell.
They may have been swallowed, but they have no intention of being eaten... A new comedy from the unparalleled team of Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen.
When a woeful mouse is swallowed up by a wolf, he quickly learns he is not alone: a duck has already set up digs and, boy, has that duck got it figured out! Turns out it’s pretty nice inside the belly of the beast – there's delicious food, elegant table settings and, best of all, dancing. And there’s something more: no more fear of being eaten by a wolf! The award-winning Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen of Sam and Dave Dig a Hole and Extra Yarn offer a tale of cooperation and creative cuisine that is sure to go down easy.
Pick a pine tree from the lot – slim and tall, or short and squat! Long straight limbs or branches bent... Mmm! Just smell that piney scent!
From Jarvis and author Patricia Toht comes a beautiful, irresistible Christmas gift book that all begins with … picking a pine tree! Brimming over with the excitement of being with family at the festive season, a gorgeously rhythmical, read-aloud narrative accompanied by warm, joyful art celebrates all the familiar rituals of decorating the tree – from digging out jam-packed boxes of trimmings, stringing tinsel, to, at last, turning on those twinkly fairy lights.
Join Ellie and Lump – two toddler elephants – on their very busy (very noisy) day!
In this big-hearted and bouncy read-aloud story about a special day in the life of two adorable elephants, Ellie and Lump are bubbling with energy from the moment they wake up.
Illustrator Becky Palmer captures the joy and excitement of a day out with mum and the thrills of planning a party, while the read-aloud text with wonderfully rhythmical sound effects makes this a fizzy first reading experience perfect for sharing with toddlers.
From the award-winning creator of Hug, Tall and Yes comes another classic picture book for the very youngest children. Using only a handful of words, Jez Alborough skilfully tells the bedtime tale of Bobo the chimp. The sun is still up and this little chimp wants to play with his jungle friends, but then the sun goes down and he’s all alone…
The perfect bedtime read for every playful little monkey!
Where is Little Fish?
From Alice Tait, illustrator of the iconic London Range, comes a stylish, action-packed lift-the-flap book – the perfect introduction to the capital city for first-time sightseers! 
One day, deep in the jungle, five elephants discover a new tree – a tall tree – and, atop that tree, the most mouth-wateringly delicious fruit any of them had ever seen. “MINE!” each elephant cries. “Mine, mine, mine, mine, MINE!” But who will get there first? And will the elephants spot the five tiny mice, planning and plotting, slowly approaching that tip-top branch? 
Starting a new life in a new country, a young boy feels lost and alone – until he meets an old man who keeps racing pigeons. Together they pin their hopes on a race across Europe and the special bird they believe can win it: King of the Sky. Nicola Davies’ beautiful story – an immigrant’s tale with a powerful resonance in our troubled times – is illustrated by an artist who makes the world anew with every picture. 
