Book Review: Lily Mae by Sarah Mahfoudh and Ruth Thorp

I've read to both of my children since they were still inside their Mothers belly and still do so everytime I get the chance to do so. I firmly believe that it's one of the best ways of  bonding with your child  as a Father. With children aged 2 and 11 months, I judge the books that I read to them on 2 levels. If my children sit still from start to finish then it means it is visually very good, and the imagery has held their attention sufficiently. If I sit still from start to finish, then it means it was written well enough for me not to skip pages and I've enjoyed reading it. When you get both of those things in the same book, then you know you've got a keeper. That's exactly what we discovered the first time we sat down to enjoy Lilly Mae; a collaborative effort from author Sarah Mahfoudh and illustrator Ruth Thorp. "Again? Again! Again?". We read it cover to cover 4 times in a row without pausing for breath.

Lilly Mae lives on a cloud and controls the weather depending upon her mood (almost exactly what happens in our house if I'm honest). The colour schemes, imagery and fonts change depending on the weather, making you anticipate each turn of the page and the next illustrative masterpiece that awaits. The connections between emotions and weather in this book are subliminal genius and will have your child learning without them even knowing. By the time we had read the book for the 3rd and 4th time, Clayton was looking out of the window saying 'happy' as he recognised the sun to be shining. I'm looking forward to seeing his reaction the next time we read the book, depending on the weather at the time. Lilly Mae conjures up rain, hail, thunder and winds as well as the happy sunshine - just because we're in the middle of a British summer doesn't mean that any of those aren't a possibility to enhance our reading experience!

Created by a pair of talented, young Brits and published by an independent British publisher, this rhyming picture book can be enjoyed by all ages. It's easy on the eye, flows off the tongue and encourages interaction. The Dad Creek household thoroughly recommends it for you and your family!

Disclosure - We were sent a copy of Lilly Mae in return for this review. All words and opinions are my own and honest.