Barbara Gibson – illustratör

Build your child’s reading confidence at home with books at the right levelIn 1665, London was a dangerous place in which to live. A plague had swept across London, and a quarter of the city’s population died. A year later, tragedy struck London again and the Great Fire of London destroyed two-thirds of the city. Richard Platt explores both events and how the city survived in this fascinating information book. Lime/Band 11 books have longer sentence structures and a greater use of literary language.Text type: An information book.Curriculum links: History: How do we know about the great fire of London?This book has been quizzed for Accelerated Reader.

The sun is up, it's time for little Chester Raccoon to go to bed, but he is frightened by the shadows the sun is creating on the walls. Mrs. Raccoon soothes him with a Kissing Hand, and he is able to go to sleep. This sweet and decidedly unscary board book is both a light-hearted way to calm children's fears at bedtime, along with a gentle introduction to Chester Raccoon and the Kissing Hand for the younger child. Funny illustrations will gentle the scary-looking shadows in a bedroom.

During the last 20 years, parents and teachers have passed along the secret of the Kissing Hand to children facing first days of kindergarten, first grade, and other separations. Now younger children can get in on Mama Raccoon's secret and find comfort in A Kissing Hand for Chester Raccoon, a board-book adaptation of the original picture book. Chester could feel his mother's kiss leap straight into his heart. "With a Kissing Hand," said Chester's mom, "We'll never be apart." "Just press your hand upon your cheek and feel that loving glow. It's Mommy saying, 'I love you,' wherever you may go." The Kissing Hand has become a children's classic that has touched the lives of millions of children and their parents. A Kissing Hand for Chester Raccoon conveys the heart of the story in rhyming verse, perfect for read-aloud and easy for even the little ones to remember and recite. With illustrations by Barbara Gibson that capture the warmth and beauty of the original artwork, toddlers now share in the benefits from Mrs. Raccoon's secret for making a child feel safe and secure.

"Are we almost there?" Chester Raccoon asked his mother. Chester is excited about going to his very first sleepover. After his mother drops him off at Pepper Opossum's house with a Kissing Hand in his palm, Chester and his animal friends have a long day of playing games and eating snacks. But when the animals decide to bed down, Chester can't go to sleep. While his Kissing Hand has kept him from getting scared, he isn't in his own bedroom, and he misses his family. When Chester returns home, Mrs. Raccoon welcomes her little cub and reassures him that his home is always there when he needs it. Young readers will enjoy reading about the party fun and take comfort when Chester finds himself in a situation they can relate to.

Moving is hard on everyone, but especially children. Chester Racoon, whom readers have come to know and love through the New York Times bestseller The Kissing Hand, and its sequel, A Pocket Full of Kisses, is facing another dilemma common to the lives of many children; he and his family are moving. Young readers will love the way Chester says goodbye to his old home and learns that there are some exciting aspects to his new home.