This one is an oldie but a goodie. This fast-paced, hilarious, rhyming text follows Eddie. who is looking for his teddy in the woods. It’s super-fun to join in with the repeated rhymes and readers will love the HUGE surprise in store for Eddie when he eventually finds what he’s looking for. This book is a timeless classic, gorgeously illustrated throughout.

How would you solve the problem if 1 million wasps invaded your town? The residents of Itching Down find a creative solution by trying to construct a giant jam sandwich to trap the wasps.

Some of the language and illustrations seem quaint to modern readers, but this adds to the retro charm of the book and the strong rhyming structure carries the story at a great pace. Children love the imaginative efforts of the townspeople (supersize food always seems to capture young children’s imaginations) and the story could lead into a host of creative activities including baking, designing, acting and drawing.

This classic rhyming picturebook and classroom favourite has stood the test of time and is still a big hit in Reception and KS1 classrooms.

The classic storybook Each Peach Pear Plum is an ideal choice for Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) due to its fun rhyming verses, lovable illustrations by Janet and Allan Ahlberg and familiar fairy-tale characters that children enjoy spotting. Readers who recognise the characters will have fun guessing the rhymes, using the pictures for clues (Where is Cinderella? In the cellar! Who is in the wood? Robin Hood!).

The book has stood the test of time and remains a firm favourite with Preschool and Reception children.

This laugh-out-loud favourite continues to be a popular rhyming book for Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) children, with its whimsical narrative, catchy rhymes and humorous storyline (pants AND space aliens – what’s not to love?).

The playful text and super fun illustrations by Ben Cort capture the imagination of young readers, while the rhythmic flow and repetition make it hard to resist joining in. All in all an absolute essential for delighting young children at storytime.

This is the story of one excitable pea in search of somewhere more fun to be than a plate of food at dinner time! Primary classes love The Runaway Pea for its exciting storyline, vibrant illustrations and a good dose of humour. The food-based characters add a fun element, making the story enjoyable and engaging for young readers. We love the expressions of surprise on the vegetables’ faces as their little green friend catapults himself off the plate and lands with a splat in a pile of ketchup. A series of mishaps follow, until the little pea accidentally finds himself making a brilliant new start.

With its playful themes of friendship and spirit of adventure, along with rhyming verses and repetition, this ensures a lively and entertaining storytime that young children always giggle along with.

This is a delightfully silly story that will engage children of all ages, but especially younger ones who can delight in the opportunities for silly voices and revelling in the funny relationship between the bear and the mouse.

Alongside the energy and vibrant colour of the illustrations, the quirky story and the witty rhyme, this book also comes with a QR Code on the inside cover for listen to the story online, This is the kind of book that young children absorb and learn off by heart in no time at all.

The Cat And the Rat And The Hat by Em Lynas and Matt Hunt is going to be a firm favourite of mine for reading to KS1 classes! As a cat-owner (slave?) myself, I absolutely love the scene-setting of the cat on the mat, playing and sleeping and dreaming…only to be interrupted by the rat, swanning around in his great big hat. The ensuing tug-of-war fight is brilliantly illustrated, the back-and-forth pictures giving children lots to notice and comment on. This is where the book really comes into its own as both a class read-aloud and a shared-focus – in a class situation you’ll have children taking sides, you could even act it out with props and be completely raucous!

We’ll never grow tired of this creative tongue-twister series of stories that make for perfect read-it-together books for families and classroom settings – it’s ridiculously good fun that takes ‘the cat sat on a mat’ to a whole new level of hilarity.

The award-winning series includes Oi Frog!, Oi Dog!, Oi Cat!, Oi Duck-billed Platypus! and Oi Puppies!, and each book is based on the premise of instructing a menagerie of animals where to sit, using rhyme (for example, hares sit on chairs and lions sit on irons). The funny interplay between the unconvinced frog (who does not want to sit on a log, by the way), and the experienced mat-sitting cat, is what makes this book such a hoot.

Children in EYFS love this book, which always gets little ones joining in with the wonderfully silly rhymes. It is a good book for Reception phonics learning and also just to read for fun. The illustrations are bright and colourful and it is exactly the kind of go-to story time treat that teachers rely on for guaranteed giggles for classroom story sessions.

Nabil Steals A Penguin is an absolute hoot for Reception or Infant classes. With rhyming text and lots of action, the story of how Pierre the Penguin falls in love with curry and steals away in Nabil’s rucksack in the hope of a lifetime of delicious food (definitely NO FISH!) will have your little ones giggling (and also hungry).

Nabil’s family is warm and welcoming when Mum finally discovers Pierre in the bath, and they feed up their visitor with joy. The book works well as a class read as there’s plenty you can act out with lots of expression; but the illustrations are great for a shared-focus read with a parent too as there’s lots to see. The colours are vibrant but not overwhelming. I would suggest younger children would borrow this most often from the library, but any primary children just starting French would also find it fun to hear the greetings (and a few “ooh la las!”) in context.

The book comes with the Nosy Crow “Stories Aloud” QR code, so that you can listen along, which is a great bonus.

This is a wonderful book that follows the cycle of a mysteriously individual jellyfish-like creature named Stanley as he travels through the ocean. As he meets other sea creatures, differences between him and them start to become apparent – like his two handles and colourful stripes. Various creatures swallow Stanley as he tenaciously continues on his journey until he is found by a human, on the shore, who chooses to put Stanley to much better use. A fun and brightly illustrated picture book with a clear message that plastic does not belong in the sea.