The Enormous Turnip; The Elves and the Shoemaker; The Gingerbread Man; The Little Red Hen; The Sly Fox and the Little Red Hen; TheThree Billy Goats Gruff

This new series of almost square hardback books is bright and colourful, with text and illustrations working together on every page. The various illustrators tell the tales well, showing action and emotions and disasters yet to come, and the speech bubbles help move the stories along, offering a change of pace. All of these books use ellipses at the end of some pages to encourage a pause and a prediction, and the texts are rhythmic, with opportunities for building confidence and reading independence. Lines of text on each page vary from one to five, three lines only being a good average. The stories read aloud well, and have original additions which hold the reader’s or listener’s attention. ‘Come back here, little ginger feet/face/head/paws’ for example, as well as all the familiar expected lines. Whilst the language used may not be poetic, the vocabulary choices tend to be lively and varied.

Whilst Ladybird suggest the series is ideal for reading aloud and sharing with two to four year olds, several of these stories would be suitable for guided reading in the Literacy Hour, and at £2.99 each have to represent value for money.

There are also a further six titles available: Chicken Licken, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Jack and the Beanstalk, Little Red Riding Hood, The Magic Porridge Pot , and The Three Little Pigs .