Book Review: A Boy Called Book by Vincent Ralph & Aaron Cushley

Yesterday was National Book Lovers Day, so I decided to delve into my TBR pile and find a book to review that felt like a good fit for this lovely day. Step forward, A Boy Called Book - a beautiful picture book with a lovely story and stunning illustrations.

Once there was a boy called Book...

When a young boy asks his mother why she named him Book, she says "Because your life is a story. You can write it however you want."

As he grows older, Book lives out different kinds of stories: an adventure book as he climbs the tallest tree, a joke book when he makes his friend laugh, and an encyclopaedia when he fills his head with facts.

This is Vincent Raplh's debut picture book and it really is a fantastic one! Not only is it a great story about the different kinds of 'books' a person can be - a joke book when you're being funny or an angry story with big letters when you're feeling cross - it is also a great lesson on emotions and how we can explore them with young children. This book truly has meaning for little readers who are feeling these emotions and experiencing these different 'stories' for the first time, but it's also lovely for adults who get to read it too. It really is a lovely story to share together.

Here is a sneak peek at some of the incredible illustrations inside the book, which were wonderfully created by Aaron Cushley:

Overall, this is "an uplifting tale" and "a celebration of storytelling" - two phrases quoted on the back of the book that I wholeheartedly agree with. 

I'm so glad that I chose to pick this book up this National Book Lovers Day and I strongly recommend you do too. I'll be taking this book into my classroom in September because even though my class are Year 6, you are never too old to enjoy a picture book.

Thank you again to Scholastic for gifting me this beautiful book in exchange for an honest review. It is greatly appreciated.