Children's Books > C Children's Books > Lucy Cousins > less than 5 GBP

Advantages: Very popular with young children
Disadvantages: No lift-the-flap opportunities

Maisy is a sweet little white mouse, with a pink tail, nose, ears and paws. She isn't a 'regular' sort of mouse as she wears clothes, sleeps in a bed, brushes her teet and much, much more! The books in this series really appeal to young children, as Maisy does everything that they can relate to. ~ The story ~ Not surprisingly, this book is all about Maisy dressing up, a pastime that is very popular with pre-school children. The story begins ...
...the reader then realises that Maisy has made a zebra costume and the party begins!! ~ Illustrations ~ I am a big fan of the Lucy Cousin's illustrations in the Maisy series of books. They are bright, large, simple and bold. The outlines of each character or object is in thick black pen and the rest is coloured in, in rich, vibrant colours. The backgrounds are also very bright, not the bog standard white that is in so many children's books. ~ ... Read review

Advantages: A great hide and seek, lift the flaps adventure for young children.
Disadvantages: None but watch that little inquisitive fingers don't rip the flaps in their excitement!

...and three-dimensional books. ~ Jazzy in the Jungle ~ This book has a very simple story line. Mama JoJo and Baby Jazzy are playing hide and seek in the jungle and the Mum asks: " Where are you Jazzy?" As each flap is lifted a variety of unusual animals reply "Not here" and a few suggest alternative places to look. Here are some of the animals in the book: Anteater, Snake, Hummingbird, Leopard, Gorilla, Crocodile, Baboon and so on............. ...
...and Format ~ In true Lucy Cousins style, the outlines are in thick black pen and coloured in so that the animals and the undergrowth of the jungle scenes really stand out! Not surprisingly, since it is set in the jungle the background is dark green and the drawings are very simple and bold. Although an extremely simple story line, the illustrations really make this book come to life and children love the anticipation and expectation of what is ... Read review

Advantages: Bright and colourful with lift the flap interaction. Great for early readers too.
Disadvantages: If anything, it's too short!

...Maisy books ~ Where is Maisy going? is a children's picture book from the series of Maisy books by Lucy Cousins, a few of which I have listed below: * Maisy goes swimming * Maisy takes a bath * Maisy at the farm * Maisy' colours * Maisy dresses up * Maisy goes to bed All of these books are aimed at pre-school children as they contain elements that are familiar to very young children and are a fabulous educational tool. ~ Where is Maisy going? ...
...It encourages children to guess where Maisy is going using picture cues based on their own real life experiences. * A great aid in learning colours. * This is also a great book for emergent readers as the word for each item is written in bold text under each picture. ~ Maisy products ~ As well as a host of books in this series there are also Maisy Movies / Films on VHS: * Play with Maisy * Count with Maisy * Maisy's Bedtime * Maisy's colour ... Read review

Advantages: Encourages teamwork and fun
Disadvantages: none

***The Background*** The Maisy stories are all written by the wonderful Lucy Cousins and there are lots in the series to choose from in various forms. Whether your choice is paperback, hardback, board book or even an audio book you are sure to find one you like. You can also get sticker books too. Lucy Cousins is a mother of four and this obviously helps her when it comes to writing books for young children as she is bound to have a good idea of ...
...TV. ***The Characters*** Maisy has a few friends that help share in her everyday adventures. They are a very mixed bunch and remind me a bit of the selection of toy animals in my own son's bedroom. Cyril the Squirrel Tallulah the Chick Charley the Crocodile Eddie the Elephant Maisy also has a small stuffed Panda toy that she likes to take everywhere with her. ***The Story*** In this book we see Maisy set of for an adventure camping in the ... Read review

Advantages: Helps children learn their colours.
Disadvantages: None but I would have liked more colours to have been included.

...The Maisy Books ~ Maisy's Colour Collection is a picture book from Lucy Cousins' very popular series of books about Maisy, a little white mouse with a pink nose, tail and paws. Lucy Cousins is a great author and illustrator and seems to have a real knack for knowing what appeals to young children. All of her Maisy books are aimed at pre-school children and contain elements that are familiar to little ones as well as being great educational tools! ...
...but a few! ~ Maisy's Colour Collection ~ This book doesn't really have a storyline. It's aim is to help children learn about colours and the names of objects. On the first page we meet Maisy who is driving the RED tractor. There are then a host of objects relating to the colour red, dotted around the page, e.g. tomatoes, apples, ladybirds, a red wheelbarrow etc with the names of each object clearly written underneath them. The following colours ... Read review