A Passing on of Shells by Simon Lamb, illustrated by Chris Riddell (Scallywag Press)

A beautiful book in every way. It looks lovely. It even feels wonderful. And the poems and the illustrations inside this smart blue hardback of fifty-word poems are superb. The writing is witty, wise, funny and serious – in places all at the same time. How clever to trap so much in so few words. The illustrations are just fabulous; they are poems in themselves – capturing the meaning of the verse and adding just a little extra to every page. Together they made me smile, laugh, sigh and stop to think. This book will be sitting on my favourites shelf from now on. (And I defy anyone to resist the temptation to count the words – especially in the poem on Page 13.)
JS