JANUARY
Helen Cooper was born in 1963, and grew up in Cumbria in a very rural area where milk came from the farm in a can, bears lived under the stairs, and children had freedom to roam. There was very little homework, no study of phonemes, and the TV was tiny, black and white, and only worked when the clouds were the right shape. This meant that she had lots of time to pursue her own hobbies which were writing, reading, drawing and playing the piano. And still are. She saw no reason why she should ever stop, so after qualifying as a music teacher, she wrote and illustrated her first picture book ‘Kit and the Magic Kite’. It was published by Hamish Hamilton in 1987. It was not very good. Her second one was even worse.
Luckily she improved a bit. Since then she has written and illustrated another sixteen picture books and one for older readers. They have been translated into over twenty languages and won various awards. Notably among these, are The Bear Under The Stairs winner of the Smarties Young judges prize, The Baby Who Wouldn't go to Bed, and Pumpkin Soup both winners of the Library Association Kate Greenaway medal.
Her multi-layered artwork is executed in mixed water based media. She lives in Oxford with her husband, the author/illustrator Ted Dewan, their daughter Pandora, lots of books, and a rather large grand piano, in a house with no under the stairs cupboard.
Title:Bear Under the Stairs
Category:Fiction
William is convinced a bear lives under the stairs so throws food down to him, honey, kippers and allsorts. The smell of it all gets so bad that William's mother sets off to investigate. Will the bear get her? You will just have to read the book to find out.
Another sensiitive subject for young children handled in a humorous way.
Title:House Cat
Category:Fiction
Tom the cat lives in a house that is split into two flats so he lives with both his families. One day, Tom is put in a box and when he is let out again and has had a scratch and a sniff he realises he is not in his house.
A beautifully illustrated book with vibrant language that makes it a lovely book to read aloud. Also good for children to work through the loneliness that they may feel when moving house.
Title:Little Monster Did It
Category:Fiction
It is all peaceful in Amy's house, until the little monster arrives at the same time as the new baby. Little monster loves Amy but not the baby, so Little Monster does some very naughty things but poor Amy is blamed for them.
A funny book that would be useful for parents helping a child to come to terms with having a new baby in the family.
Title:The Baby who would't go to Bed
Category:Fiction
It is bedtime but baby wants to stay up all night so he zooms off in his car. He meets tigers and soldiers but none of them want to play.
This is Helen Cooper's breakthrough book as its illustrations won her the 1996 Greenaway Medal. The illustrations are wonderful conveying a dark nightime world where dangers could lurk.
Title:Tatty Ratty
Category:Fiction
Tatty Ratty is Molly's favourite toy. But one day she loses him. To take her mind off this her parents conjure up a series of wonderful adventures for him, the aim of which is to get him back to Molly.
This story is a lovely mix of fantasy and adventure. Look out for Tatty Ratty changing from scene to scene.
Title:Pumpkin Soup
Category:Fiction
Cat, Squirrel and Duck live in an old white cabin in the woods. All they ever eat is pumpkin soup which they make together, each with their own job. One day Duck wants a different job and trouble starts.
A beautifully told and illustrated story showing that no one is more important than anyone else in a family.