Best Friends Forever? 5 Books About Friendship

Friday Five Friendship

This week’s picture book round-up is a bit of a special edition, because we were invited to review a subscription box from The Happy Book Club. The theme of the box was friendship so I’ve gone with the same theme here. You can read about The Happy Book Club in more detail in yesterday’s post (and take part in a giveway to win one of their subscription boxes!), but I have also included the two books we received in this round-up. I’d also like to remind you, that The Bear & The Fox now has it’s own YouTube channel! I’ve started posting videos of the book round-ups, where I talk you through the books in some details and give you some sneak peeks inside. But for the short version, read on! Clockwise, starting from the top:

  • On Sudden Hill, by Linda Sarah (author) and Benji Davis (illustrator) – This is one of my boys’ absolute favourite books, and our number one favourite book about friendship. It’s a moving childhood story of two best friends, and what happens when a new boy joins them. I love this book because it touches on some strong emotions, like jealousy and anger, that children do have to deal with, but it shows everything can be all right in the end and that there’s always room for one more where friendship is concerned. Also, my boys now wants to build their own Mr Climbfierce, but if you want to know what that’s all about, you’ll need to read the book (or get a sneak peek in the YouTube video!)
  • The Zebra Who Ran Too Fast, by Jenni Desmond – This story is the first one from our Happy Book Club subscription box. It’s about a trio of best friends. Elephant is clever, Bird is funny, and Zebra knows all the best games and can run really fast. But one day he annoys the other two, and they don’t want to be his friends anymore. Zebra finds solace in Giraffe, but then a fierce storm brings all the animals back together. Can they be best friends again? And what about giraffe? We really enjoyed this book, and it touches on topics of friendship such as mutual respect and forgiveness.
  • Sylvia and Bird, by Catherine Rayner – This is the second book from our subscription box. Sylvia is a sad and lonely dragon, because she is the only on of her kind in the world. Until she meets Bird and they become friends. Bird’s offer to fly to the Moon with Sylvia, to check if there are any dragons living there, almost ends in tragedy. It’s at this point Sylvia realises she doesn’t need any other dragons, she already has the best friend in the whole world. A beautiful book with gorgeous illustrations, that reminds us the best things in life are often right under our nose but we don’t always realise it.
  • Hector and Hummingbird, by Nicholas John Frith – This is a book we found at the library. Deep in the mountains of Peru, live Hector the bear, and Hummingbird. They are best friends, most of the time. Because sometimes Hector gets really annoyed with Hummingbird, because he won’t stop talking. Until one day Hector has had enough and tells Hummingbird to leave him alone, then stomps off in to the jungle. But it’s not long before he realises that he really misses his friend. Is it too late? I love the illustrations in this book, and my 7 year could really relate to the storyline, as his little brother often annoys him and won’t leave him alone, but at the end of the day they are still friends.
  • Strictly No Elephants, by Lisa Mantchev (author) and Taeeun Yoo (illustrator) – This story is about a little boy who has a pet elephant, which is not easy because with an elephant as a pet you never quite fit in. After being excluded from the local pet club day, he makes friends with a girl who has a pet skunk and was also not allowed in. Together they set up their own pet club, and invite lots of other children with unusual children to join them. In this club, all are welcome! A lovely story about friendship, and not excluding others just because they may be a bit different. Another great library find!

You can find a video of this week’s book round-up over on YouTube, where I talk you through this week’s recommendations and give a bit more insight in to each book! Check it out here >> That’s What Friends Are For | Picture Book Round-up And, of course, I’d also be really grateful if you would subscribe. Thanks!

YT Thumbnail Friendship

Do you have any other favourite books about friendships? Please feel free to share your recommendations in the comments below! And don’t forget to check out yesterday’s post, for a chance to win a package from The Happy Book Club for April.


Disclosure: We received a free Happy Book Club subscription box in return for an honest review. All words and opinions, however, are as always our own. Also, please note that all the book links in this post are Amazon affiliate links. That means if you buy any books via these links, I receive a small percentage – at no extra cost to you! – which helps to keep this blog running. Thank you.

Comments: 11

  • reply
    16 March 2018

    All of these books look so lovely – we used to enjoy reading the Daisy the Duck series of books.

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    Matt

    16 March 2018

    Great selection! Will be checking out your YouTube channel now!

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    Amy - All about a Mummy

    16 March 2018

    We have tons of books but these are new to me. I’ll need to try them out as I get tired of reading the same ones over and over!

  • reply
    16 March 2018

    What a fantastic idea for a subscription box and I love how the books are themed! All the book choices look wonderful, Hector and the Hummingbird looks cute x

  • reply

    Alex

    16 March 2018

    These books look so lovely and I love the idea of a subscription box with themed books! Would make a fab gift x

  • reply
    16 March 2018

    Aww sounds like you have found some fab books on friendship here. It’s so lovely that children can learn life lessons from picture books. x

  • reply
    17 March 2018

    These books sounds so lovely. Considering my son has enough books to fill a library we actually don’t own any of these. I love the sound of the happy book box too, my 4 year old is such a bookworm and he’d love receiving them in the post xx

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    Beth @ BethinaBox.com

    17 March 2018

    Oooh, I haven’t read any of these. Will have to go and have a look for them. :)

  • reply
    17 March 2018

    I haven’t heard of any of these before, but they all look so lovely. you can’t beat a nice children’s book. Kaz

  • reply
    18 March 2018

    Oh these look fantastic! Will be adding a couple of these to my book wishlist!

  • reply
    16 February 2019

    Great post, it is really amazing and the information about the books are really amazing so thanks for sharing this blog with us.

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