Otter Barry Books ISBN:9781910959794 £11.99
This is the charming story of a cradle, carved from a much-loved village tree felled in a storm, in which each new-born in the village sleeps. Their names are subsequently carved on the cradle’s side, recording several generations of village babies for posterity. When disaster strikes and fire ravages the village, there is sadness that this tradition will have been lost – and subsequent joy when the cradle is found unharmed. The story is based on a true one, the tradition of a village community in Victoria, Australia. Jude Daly transposes the setting to rural South Africa, and the illustrations reflect the changing communities of Zulu villages, where traditional round houses are still found among more modern constructions. A good addition to the EYFS library.
Liz Broad