One Day in the Jungle ¦ "I Don't Care!" said the Bear ¦ The Caterpillow Fight ¦ The Brave Ones ¦ Contrary Mary ¦ Daisy Dare ¦ Little Pig's Bouncy Ball

A clutch of titles intended for 'early reading' from a series called (rather optimistically in some cases) 'The Giggle Club'. By far the strongest are the pair from Colin West. Undoubtedly the winner with my reception children, One Day in the Jungle takes us through a week of sneezes from butterfly's little one to hippo's enormous one until, on day seven, elephant's gigantic 'ACHOOOOOOO!' blows away the jungle. This jaunty tale with its repeating pattern has been read over and over in eager anticipation of the final blast.

In "I don't Care!" said the Bear Bear refuses to be scared by the growing crowd of huge and unfriendly creatures following him till who should send him dashing for the safety of his lair? - teeny-weeny mouse. Cumulative fun, rhyming style, jokey pictures.

You will need to be a skilled reader aloud to get the best from The Caterpillow Fight, a rhyming, tongue-twisting, pillow-bashing romp (when the caterpillars went/ to their caterpillar beds,/ They all had caterpillows/ for their caterpillar heads etc.). The pacifist in me is somewhat ill at ease with all the thumping and whacking but I thoroughly approve of Big Caterpillar's ingenious intervention. (Keep an eye on the cushions in your book corner if you add his to your collection.)

In The Brave Ones assorted toy-like animals march through the woods to Little Clancy and the safety of home, convincing themselves they are not afraid at every rustle and creak. But, the Brave Ones are in for a surprise in their own quiet cosy house. The gentle scariness and helpful repetition carry the reader through the book but even the most timid might be disappointed by its feeble finale.

The girl mouse in Contrary Mary starts her day with roast potatoes and gravy and ends it being tucked into bed tail first, 'out-contraried' by mum. Though the pictures contain much of the warmth of the mother/daughter relationship, Mary's antics are only mildly amusing. The same is true of the spirited female mouse character in McBratney's Daisy Dare.

Little Pig's Bouncy Ball is a cumulative tears to laughter tale with an old fashioned look about it. I cannot imagine many young readers joining the heap of laughing animals when Dan Dog returns with the lost ball. The funniest part of this book was the Club joke inside the back cover.

An uneven series in which the best titles are very good value; the £1.99 price point has been achieved by using cheap paper on which some of the illustrations look quite muddy.