The Great Big Body Book by Mary Hoffman and Ros Asquith (Children's, Non-fiction, 10E/10E, short 'n' sweet review)

 August 2016, Frances Lincoln Children's Books, 40 pages, Hardback, Review copy 

Summary from Quarto 

The fourth book in this internationally best-selling series says that everybody needs some body! Our bodies come in all shapes and sizes and they change throughout our lives, from newborn babies and children through to teenagers, and maybe to mums and dads and grandparents. Find out about growing and learning, big and small, keeping fit, breaks and bruises, the five senses, using our minds, how we are the same and how we are different – and lots more. There are all kinds of bodies in the world. What are YOU like?

Nayu's thoughts 

Everyone should learn how their body works at different ages and in different ways, making this book by an author and an illustrator whose books I find rather awesome. It isn't a super thick book, but crams in heaps of facts into the various sections covered. There are detailed illustrations about our bodies, with information conveyed in a fun manner. It's great that it caters for the modern reader, explaining how some people aren't happy wih their physically allocated gender, including people of all shapes, sizes, those who need wheels to get around and those who wear hijab (totally thrilled by that inclusion!) 

I loved the numerous illustrations which show different parts of the body, or babies at different stages of development. I loved the page where there were lots of baby pictures and it said what they grew up to be, including one with a large birthmark on their face. The book encorages a healthy lifestyle, has a glossary at the book, inckudes a small feature on Mary and Ross and, the best bit had to be the cute cat! This cat appeared frequently, stating the similariies and differences between humans and cats. I liked he part where colour prefernces which some allocate to a specific gender, and here's what the cat has to say. You may need tissues for the death part if you've lost someone dear to you, but it's dealt with sensitively. One for the non-fiction section on your shelf! 

Find out more on Mary's website and Ros's website.