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The Ice Cream Crocodile by Mariesa Dulak ill. Rebecca Cobb

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ACHUKA Book of the Day 11 May 2026

Publisher: Faber & Faber
ISBN: 9780571368389

The rhyming and rhythm are spot-on in this winning story about a crocodile who will not be sidelined.

Elvis loves the circus life –
The thrills, the skills, the treats,
The wide-eyed crowds that cheer out loud,
The rows of polished seats.

BUT . . . Sidney, the ringmaster, only lets fluffy and feathery animals perform on stage. Can Elvis the crocodile show his STAR potential?

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Ridiculous Raps and Rhymes by Michael Rosen and MC Grammar ill. Mike Byrne

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ACHUKA Book of the Day 8 May 2026

Publisher: Gallery Kids, Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 9781398560833

Published to coincide with Michael Rosen’s 80th birthday (7.5.26).

“The book reads almost like a rap battle between them, with lines from each of the writers weaving in and out and leading to plenty of funny or thought-provoking situations. Rosen’s signature humour complements MC Grammar’s more modern style, and they combine to make verses that just beg to be read aloud – with plenty of nods to some of Michael’s most viral moments thrown in for good measure, noice! ” BookTrust

From two master storytellers, comes a hilarious, high-energy rhyming adventure! Get ready for a rapping and rhyming quest like no other. From school to the zoo, the beach and the museum, riotously funny and wildly ridiculous poems that will take the reader on a one-of-a-kind adventure, with MC Grammar and Michael ‘the mic’ Rosen as their guide.

  • Rhymes about chocolate cake
  • Raps about a hissing snake
  • Rhymes about the school canteen
  • Raps about curry flavoured ice cream
  • Rhymes about books that are magic or scary
  • Raps about bears who are grumpy and hairy

You can follow MC Grammar, an award-winning teacher making learning fun through music and rap, on

 

 
 
 
 
 
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Once Upon an Atom: Questions of science by James Carter ill. Willian Santiago

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ACHUKA Book of the Day 27 Jun 2023

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“Santiago’s illustrations are stunning. His use of colour and texture perfectly capture the wonder and beauty of the natural world.” Children’s Books Ireland

A new title in the  series from poet James Carter to join Once upon a Star, a poetic journey through space and Once upon a Raindrop, the story of water. Santiago’s vivid graphic-design style illustrations (combined with creative page and typographical design) help create stunning examples of concrete poetry. 

From BIG BANGS to tiny atoms SCIENCE tells us why things happen.
Explore the whys, whats and hows of science and answer all the really BIG questions that curious kids are keen to ask. This playful rhyming book bubbles and bursts with all things scientific, from technology and space to experiments, inventions and the natural world.

Follow the illustrator on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/willian_santiago/

Rather than this book being a ‘story’ of science, it’s more of a ‘dip into’ the three main types of science. For my favourite topic – Biology – I brought in skeletons, bodies, flowers, all kinds. With Physics – I wrote about gravity and electricity. With Chemistry, I covered atoms and explosions. To open the book, I began with EVERYTHING. Everything is science, and I had fun coming up with a rhyme to explain this – ‘From big things to little things, invisible to living things. / From cool things to hot things, there’s nothing that it’s not things…’
JAMES CARTER

Batty Ballads by Colin West

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ACHUKA Book of the Day 22 Feb 2023

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A highly-recommended companion collection to Bonkers Ballads (2018) and Barmy Ballads (2020).

The characters you can meet in this new collection include Freda, a flat-footed fairy, a dirty cowboy called Bert, King Neptunes’s naughty nephew and young Gordon Glass, the boy who ignored notices.

There are animal characters too, such as a sea-faring cat who tells of fantastic adventures, a pig called Sam who isn’t very good at going to market, and a collection of creatures who help to make a truly incredible (and rather inedible) cake.

You’ll also meet some colourful dinosaurs, a pair of turnips who visit London, a ginger wig which undergoes various uses (this one’s great fun), and (if you are more observant than Fergus McPherson) you may even catch sight of the Loch Ness Monster.

All the poems are strong in rhyme and rhythm (West is a master of traditional verse forms) and are complemented by the author’s hilarious illustrations. Colin West’s verses have been anthologised by the likes of Julia Donaldson and Roger Mcgough, and all lovers of nonsense will relish the clever wordplay and humour in every line. The book’s ninety plus pages shimmer with wit and charm. Sit back and enjoy the fun!

Twelve Dinging Doorbells by Tameka Fryer Brown ill. Ebony Glenn

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ACHUKA Children’s Book of the Day 30 Nov 2022

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The illustrator writes: “My goal was to create illustrations that emanated joy, celebration, and the loving bond shared within family for this children’s book, and I hope both young and adult readers will feel them as they read this sweet story.”

Every holiday, aunties, uncles, cousins, grandparents, and neighbours come over to eat, sing, and celebrate life. But all our main character can think about is the sweet potato pie Granny makes just for her. As tables fill with baked macaroni and cheese, chitlins, and other sides a-steaming, she and Granny move the pie to keep it intact. The task becomes trickier as the room grows with dancing and card games and pie cravings. Just when all seems lost and there’s no more pie, Granny pulls out a sweet surprise.

Written to the tune of “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” Twelve Dinging Doorbells is exuberant. Author Tameka Fryer Brown’s cumulative rhyme is impossible to resist, and the humorous details in Ebony Glenn’s cut-paper collage will welcome readers to this party again and again.

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