The Best Birthday Present Ever is a gorgeous picture book with a story that put a great big smile on my face, let alone my daughters! Written and illustrated by Ben Mantle, this is a new picture book from Macmillan which has a really feel-good factor.
The story features squirrel and his best friend bear. Squirrel umms and aaahs about what to buy his friend for his birthday. When the big day arrives, Squirrel gets worried when he realises that all of the other party guests have really splashed their cash on whizzy toys and gifts. As it turns out, Squirrel's simple gift goes down well and he and bear spend the whole week playing together.
I loved the message that the best birthday present ever doesn't have to be fancy - it just needs a little thought put into it. To me, this is a really important message for my children to learn.
The illustrations are all great fun and I loved the characterisation of the animals throughout the book. Little details such as the text on the amazing gifts that bear receives, really helps to add weight to the story.
The Best Birthday Present Ever is a beautiful story book that made both Lara and Holly laugh. It is a story suitable for age 2 upwards - both my girls loved it.
Can you guess what present Squirrel gave to his friend?
