Jurassic World Books from Centum

On its opening day, Ian and I went on a daytime date to the cinema, while the kids were at school and oblivious to what we were up to, to watch Jurassic World in amazing D-Box 3D. With the moving chairs, rumbling and shifting in synchronisation to the action, I felt like I was in the heart of the movie surrounded by those incredible Velociraptors and the rest of the prehistoric reptilian cast. Though of course, having the utterly gorgeous Chris Pratt in larger than life 3D was what really sold the film for me. Seriously, he could be my alpha male any day!

Not surprisingly, Jurassic World has broken box office records and has incredibly paid for itself in the first weekend of opening. Clearly we can not get enough of this amazing dinosaur franchise (nor the adorable Chris Pratt!) Adults and children alike are mesmerised by the idea of dinosaurs, and the thought of a theme park like Jurassic World would make lots of childhood dreams come true. Sadly, although Ian told me that he heard on the radio that scientists have worked out the theory for creating a dinosaur embryo from a bird's egg by switching on and off the genes for specific traits, the ethical implications mean that we probably won't be buying our tickets for a real live Jurassic World anytime soon.

However, there is plenty of great merchandise available to keep us all happily entertained while we wait for the rebirth of the dinosaur.

Freddy was sent some great Jurassic World Books from Centum.

Jurassic World - The Dino Experience Activity Book 
£4.99

With over 50 pages of puzzles, games, colouring, doodling and stickering, this book is great fun for junior dino-fans. Kids can find out all about dinosaurs with some fascinating facts and colour illustrations and will be kept occupied for hours filling in the pages.

The book is set out as if it is a souvenir from Jurassic World itself, complete with a resort map. It makes this activity book a bit different as kids can imagine they are experiencing a week at the theme park as they complete each page. The book contains over 190 stickers to use in the book. There is also a push out 3D model of a T-Rex tail to make. (You can complete the model T-Rex using the model parts from four books in the series).

This is a great book for a rainy day or to entertain children during the long summer holidays.

Jurassic World - The Ultimate Quiz Book 
£4.99

There are forty challenging quizzes in this book, which challenge older kids' dinosaur expertise to the max. It tests kids on whether they could fend off a T-Rex attack? Asks if they can identify fossils? And checks if they know their dinosaurs?  All this and more is tested within the pages of this exciting quiz book.

There are species quizzes to test knowledge of each different dinosaur along with general knowledge tests, questions on the prehistoric eras, the animals' lives and their extinction plus questions about the film itself. The quizzes are nicely presented with illustrations throughout. As an added bonus there is also a push out 3D model of a T-Rex head to make.

Other titles in the series include a Poster Book, Mega Sticker Book, a junior novel and a paperback picture book, which features high quality movie stills from the film.

Find the books in supermarkets, toy shops, gift shops, garden centres and other major retailers.

Gorgeous Colouring and Activity Books from Buster Books

If you are looking for a healthier, longer lasting and all together more thoughtful gift idea for the children this Easter, Buster Books has an absolutely gorgeous range of art and activity books for all ages.  Inspiring creativity, unleashing artistic talents and occupying children's time in a productive way, seems to me a much nicer way of celebrating Easter than by overindulging in chocolate eggs! They are also perfect for keeping kids occupied during school holidays or when April showers lead to wet weekends.

I have received a selection of new titles coming soon from Buster Books and each one is stunning.  I love Buster Books, as they take colouring, drawing and stickering to a new level of gorgeousness. With a range of different styles and themes, they have a title that will appeal to everyone, young and old.  The quality of the paper and of the designs is superior to most colouring books found on the market. Children can create masterpieces that can be framed and treasured or have fun completing the educational activities.


The Amazing Creative Colouring Book

Featuring complex, geometric designs, this book is perfect for building creative imaginations. Children can lose themselves in the patterns, which include retro prints, repeating kaleidoscopic motifs and designs taken from nature.  Such intricate colouring in can be very therapeutic and relaxing for both children and adults.

Publication date: 2/4/2015
Price: £5.00

The Dinosaur Colouring Book

Featuring fun facts and cartoon style pictures, this is a must for dinosaur fans.  There are illustrations of monster fish and giant insects alongside the Tyrannosaurus, Velociraptor and Stegosaurus.  The phonetic pronunciation of the tricky names are included so children can learn the names of the dinosaurs too.

Publication Date: 16/4/2015
Price: £5.00

The Fashion Through Time Colouring Book

For fashion lovers, or those with an interest in the history of clothes, this book is a look back at the fashions through the ages from the Ancient Egyptians, Romans and Greeks, right up through the roaring 20's, the swinging 60's to the present date.  The intricate pictures are detailed giving a glimpse into the lives of people throughout history and around the world, focusing on what they wore and the accessories they had. It's a lovely book for older children and is also educational, inspiring an interest in fashion and design.

Publication Date: 16/4/2015
Price: £5.00

The Pirate Colouring Book

Ahoy me hearties!  Grab your crayons or pencils and dive right into the seven seas with this colouring book that is bursting with pirates, treasure maps, shipwrecks and hidden treasure.  The detailed, cartoon style pictures are perfect for little pirates to enjoy as they follow the adventures of the band of swashbuckling pirates. There is a lot of funny detail hidden within the pages and each spread tells a story, so it is a great prompt to get little ones talking and thinking creatively.

Publication Date: 19/3/2015
Price: £5.00

The Puzzle Activity Book

There are hours of fun to be had within the pages of this activity book!  There are mazes, objects to find, dot to dots, spot the differences and puzzles to solve.  The illustrations are detailed, fun and kid friendly.  Children can practice their penmanship and their mathematical skills as they solve the puzzles by matching shapes, counting and following mazes.  It's lots of fun and excellently presented to keep little ones happily entertained.  It's a good way to get reluctant readers and writers engaged as they have to read instructions and use their pen to complete tasks.  This is perfect for my 5 year old Freddy, challenging him in a fun way.

Publication Date: 9/4/2015
Price: £5.00

The Original Sticker By Numbers Book - Animals

By matching coloured stickers to their numbers, children can complete the beautifully illustrated animal pictures within the pages of this book.  From tropical birds to underwater scenes, the mosaic effect creates some lovely works of art.  The white spaces are numbered to correspond to a certain colour of sticker, making it simple to do.  There are over 3500 stickers, so even when the pictures are completed there will still be some stickers left for a bit of freestyle designing of your own.  The finished pictures are all so colourful and detailed, children will get a real sense of achievement through this activity.

Price: £6.99

The Tracing Paper Colouring Book

This is a stunning colouring book with an artistic twist. In addition to the colouring pages, it also contains 20 tracing paper pages, which can be used to create stunning stained glass effect designs. Some of the tracing paper comes ready printed with simple designs that can be completed by tracing patterns from the book or adding your own embellishments. The rest of the tracing paper is blank so children can come up with their own complete designs, or trace and colour favourite images from the book.  The tracing paper is very thick and high quality, and it is perforated for ease of removal. Once done, the tracing paper pictures can be stuck on a window pane to give a stained glass effect.

Publication date: 16/4/2015
Price: £9.99

You can visit busterbooks.co.uk to see their entire range.  You can also follow @BusterBooks on Twitter and Instagram and find them over on Facebook too.

Some Great Kids' Books on Review

Mungo Monkey has a Birthday Party

This is an incredibly cute, colourful storybook from illustrator Lydia Monks, made even better by the addition of lots of fun flaps inside.  It tells the story of Mungo as he prepares for his birthday party.

There is so much to do and little ones can join in with the fun and see what is happening by lifting the flaps!

We loved the colourful illustrations and the cute characters.  The story is simple and sweet and little ones will relate to the tale of Mungo as he bakes a cake, blows up party balloons and chooses a costume to wear.

Egmont 

RRP £7.99 

Publishing March 2014

CBeebies Woolly and Tig 

Fans of Woolly and Tig will enjoy the range of activity books, story books and sticker books featuring their favourite cuddly toy spider.  The Wipe Clean Activity Book lets little ones practice their writing.  Freddy really enjoyed writing his letters, rubbing them off and writing them all over again!

There are lots of things to do and learn, with everyday subjects at the heart of the content.  For example Woolly looks at dinner times and eating in restaurants to teach some early counting and maths skills.

Pre-schoolers can learn vocabulary, trace words and match stickers along with Woolly and Tig.

The colourful sticker sheets are always a hit with children and they allow even the youngest kids to interact with the activities.

The story books reinforce the messages of Woolly and Tig, helping little people share their worries and cope with new situations and experiences.

The Woolly and Tig Books are available now from:

I Love Mummy £5.99 RRP

Let's Play Sticker Book  £3.99 RRP

Out and About Sticker Book £3.99 RRP

Night Night Woolly £5.99 RRP

My Wipe Clean Activity Book (with pen) £3.99

Have Fun with Woolly and Tig £3.99