The Great Big Book of Life

Tackling a huge topic, this book offers a whistle stop tour of life’s main stages with a particular focus on babies. Seven of its double page spreads look at what babies can do, how they communicate, why they wake at night, what they eat, potty training and how they are protected from illness. The reader is invited to make connections with babies they know.

Childhood, teenage years and adulthood are dealt with very briefly, but some important ideas are included, for example that in old age some people may become forgetful and more in need of support while others on the other hand may continue with an active life working or pursuing their interests. There is an effort to demonstrate there is no one ‘right’ way to live; for example, indicating not everyone has a partner or gets married. These insights may serve to reassure children some of whom may make connections with people they know. The book introduces children to other information too, such as the fact that some children in the world don’t go to school and some adults can’t find a job.

The illustrations bring the text to life and add to the text, for example two children communicating with sign language adds another dimension to the pages focused on language. Illustrations such as the teenager’s bedroom will chime with many adult readers and add humour. A caption on the title page invites eagle eyed readers to spot the cat on every page.

This book is 6^th in a highly acclaimed series which includes the Great Big Book of Feelings and The Great Big Book of Families from the same writer/illustrator team. This addition celebrates life and how amazing humans are. It leaves readers with the valuable message that we all have a life worth living and we should make the most of every day.