The little Prince: Where are you, fox? by Corinne Delporte. Illus. by Antoine de Saint-Exupery

A lovely to hold board book will be adored by younger readers feeling the delicious textures which lie beneath the flaps on each double page. Tactile, visually bright and attractive, the book will remind older readers of The Little Prince and its environmental message, and gather younger readers into its sway as they search for the little fox amongst the various things depicted.

A smelly cheese, prickly cactus, birds in flight, a leather tent and blue planet hide a bright lantern, aromatic rose, a wooly sheep and bright moon, all designed to ignite the senses and be engaged in what is seen or felt or imagined on each page.

I am so glad the cactus had no prickles, even though I could imagine them, just as I could smell the lanolin of the sheep and the kerosine of the lantern and the fragrance of the lovely rose. Children and adults alike will discuss each page and what each means to them as they read, coming in the end to an understanding of some of the variety of things which make up our planet.

Designed to stimulate the senses and practise their motor skills, the tactile book will appeal to a wide variety of children bent on lifting flaps, feeling different textures and talking about the search for the fox before nodding off to sleep.

Themes: Sleep, Moon and stars, Lift the flap, Textures.

Fran Knight