Children's Books for Pre-Readers

Kind Katie

Susannah McFarlane (author)

Lachlan Creagh (illustrator)

Scholastic, Australia: August 2011

ISBN: 9781741698350

Genre: picture book

Issues: friendship, values

Katie is 'the kindest koala in the whole kindergarten and in all the Kimberley'. She helps her friends with their hobbies and encourages them when they need support.

Read more: Kind Katie

Lazy Lou Lou

Susannah McFarlane (author)

Lachlan Creagh (illustrator)

Scholastic Australia: August 2011

ISBN: 9781741698367 

Genre: picture book

Issues: community, friendship, participation

Lou Lou is a very lazy lizard. 'She likes lounging lethargically and laconically in the lavender.'

Read more: Lazy Lou Lou

Messy Mia

Susannah McFarlane (author)

Lachlan Creagh (illustrator)

Scholastic Australia: August 2011

ISBN: 9781742830476

Genres: picture book

Issues: choices, friendship

Mia is a mega-messy Magpie who creates mayhem wherever she goes. When her favourite marble goes missing, Mia is very upset. 'She mooched and moped amongst the magnolias.' With the help of her friends, Mia finds her marble and learns that a little bit of method is a good idea for a dedicated collector such as herself.

Read more: Messy Mia

Nervous Nina

Susannah McFarlane (author)

Lachlan Creagh (illustrator)

Scholastic Australia: August 2011

ISBN: 9781742830483 

Genres: picture book

Issues: confidence, friendship, participation

Nina is 'a nice but nervous numbat'. She's so nervous that her only answer to any suggestion is 'no'. Her friends encourage her to try new things and join in but Nina is terribly anxious of making a mistake or doing the wrong thing.

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Easter Parade

Irving Berlin (text)

Lisa McCue (illustrations)

HarperCollins, USA: 2003

ISBN: 0060291257

Genres: picture book, song

'Never saw you look/ Quite so pretty before;/ Never saw you dressed/ Quite so lovely, what's more...' A cheerful array of animals head off for the Easter Hat Parade but it is Father Rabbit and his young daughter who are the stars of this delightful book. A late Winter wind interrupts the Spring proceedings. Will the animals' hats survive?

Read more: Easter Parade

The Story of the Easter Bunny

Katherine Tegan (author)

Sally Anne Lambert (illustrator)

HarperCollins, USA: 2005 ISBN: 006050711X

Genre: picture book

Issues: community, sharing

An old couple are making Easter eggs. 'The round old man blew the insides out. The round old woman painted designs' – and all the while their little rabbit watched.

Read more: The Story of the Easter Bunny

The Smallest Bilby and the Easter Tale

Nette Hilton (author)

Bruce Whatley (illustrator)

Working Title Press, Australia: March 2012

ISBN: 9781921504426 

Genres: picture book

Issues: community, friendship, helping

It is the night before Easter and Billy and his bilby friends are off to deliver the eggs around Australia. 'While emus slept and wallabies snored, the little bilbies tiptoed in the shadows, placing eggs here and there and up and down. They left eggs for kangaroos and kookaburras, koalas and cockatoos. Not waking anyone.'

Read more: The Smallest Bilby and the Easter Tale

Mr Darcy

Alex Field (author)

Peter Carnavas (illustrator)

New Frontier Publishing, Australia: November 2011

ISBN: 9781921042836

Genres: picture book

Issues: friendship

'Mr Darcy lived by himself on the edge of Pemberley Park. It was a place where the trees blossomed and the lake sparkled. Mr Darcy loved Pemberley Park, but sometimes he felt lonely.'

Read more: Mr Darcy

Button Boy

Rebecca Young (author)

Sue deGennaro (illustrator)

Scholastic Press, Australia: June 2011

ISBN: 9781741697971

Genre: picture book

Issues: community, differences, friendship

Banjo loves to collect buttons. Being an observant child he finds them in the most unlikely places, including hidden in garden beds, in the gutter and on his way to the park.

Read more: Button Boy

Prudence Wants a Pet

Cathleen Daly (author)

Stephen Michael King (illustrator)

Scholastic Press, Australia: September 2011

ISBN: 9781741699654

Genres: animals, picture book

Prudence really wants a pet but her parents are full of reasons why that's not a good idea. Prudence finds some creative alternatives – a branch, a twig, a shoe, a car tyre – but somehow they don't quite fill the hole in her heart. After all, a shoe can't lick your face or greet you when you come home from school. Will Prudence ever be allowed to have a pet?

Read more: Prudence Wants a Pet