Harper Collins have sent us 12 of their favourite books for children aged 0-11 this Christmas and asked my boys to take a look and see what they think of the selection. You shouldn't try to judge a book by it's cover, so I encouraged them to at least read the blurb and the first page too!


The 12 books we've been sent are all in the Harper Collins Gift Guide, and are a mix of fiction written by some of the most popular children's authors of recent times and with pictures from a host of excellent illustrators. Here's what my 7 and 9 year old boys thought...

It can be ridiculously hard to buy for teenagers and young people, especially once they're earning their own money. It's made even harder if you don't live with them and aren't up to date with what bands or TV Shows they are into this month. My lot have helped me come up with a few ideas that hopefully won't spend the next year in the back of a drawer...

Dorling Kindersley have a long-standing and well-earned reputation for making gorgeous children's books. We have many on our shelves that all 7 of our children have sat and poured over, and hopefully our grandchildren will do so too. Boolino Books have sent us 2 of Dorling Kindersley's science books to review - All About Virtual Reality and 3D Printing Projects.

With Cyber Monday approaching it seems apt to do a round up of some of the most impressive tech and STEM toys out there this year. Science and technology for children has come a great distance in the last 5 years and it does reflect in the average price, with many more complex toys costing over £100, although there are still plenty of less expensive options out there.


I've included my favourite science, technology. engineering and mathematics toys that I've seen in the past year.

Over the course of the last year we've looked at some great stockingfillers, here are a few that have been popular here, or that Santa is likely to put in my 7 and 9 year old's stockings this Christmas. Everything starts under £5 - or you can find it for £5 although that may not be the rrp....


Star Wars stationery from Bic. I love this and prices start at £2. Great for encouraging youngsters to write - and they can even start with thank you letters. Bic also have stationery that doesn't feature Star Wars. I've a huge bundle giveaway running until 10th December.


Gooey Stuff. Gooey sticky yucky stuff is the height of fashion at the moment and kids adore it. If you haven't experienced Liquid Lava Putty (£5 The Entertainer) you are missing out - it is amazing to watch and play with. If you are less brave, stick to dough. Nick Jr Ready Steady Dough is only £2 for 4 pots at The Entertainer.

Stationery is always popular at Christmas. Every stocking should contain a special pen or pencil from Father Christmas, for you to write a thank you. Bic have recently released an awesome range of Star Wars stationery and this Christmas they're giving one of my readers a big bundle. Not only that, but the giveaway winner will also receive a tin of their excellent Conte Drawing Pencils and a pack of 20 Intensity Fineliners.


The Star Wars range includes Bic Ball Pen, Bic 4 Colours Ball Pen (and Bic 4 Colours Shine Ball Pen), Bic Evolution Graphite Pencil, Bic Glue Stick and Tipp-Ex Mini Pocket Mouse Correction Tape. Each has great easy to spot Darth Vader packaging and the products inside are printed with characters from Star Wars.

The Transformers 1-Step Changers are designed to be the most easily transformed ever, with one smooth action taking you swiftly from robot to vehicle or creature. The Last Night Mega 1-Step Dragonstorm is one of the biggest models and he's definitely an impressive beast.


Packaging is mainly card and as long as you have scissors, opening is very swift. Demonstration batteries are included, so they may not be fully charged, but usually last very well. Christmas morning friendly. Replacement batteries are 2 x AAA


Your Dragonstorm arrives in 4 parts, but needs no actual assembly. The main body of the figure has 2 detachable wings and the dragon tail, which also serves as weapon for the robot.

Photo printing has changed beyond recognition in my lifetime and one of the latest developments for the home market is portable photo printers. This Christmas the printing experts HP have released a special gift box edition of their gorgeous and almost pocket-sized Sprocket Photo Printer and they've sent me one to review.




Inside the box is the gift bundle.  The HP Sprocket itself in white with rose gold trim, Zipped Case/Wallet with wrist strap, HP Sprocket Photo Album and voucher for a free personalised skin from Wrappz.

The ROXI from Electric Jukebox is a small music streaming hub unit which connects to your TV and can be used for 5 different functions, including streaming music from Electric Jukebox. One year's premium pass is included, as is a remote control which doubles as a microphone and can be used for Smart Voice Search and karaoke.


Our house has always been full of music and my older kids have introduced us to a variety of apps and gadgets over the years, they all have subscriptions to various music streaming services too, so reviewing the ROXI is a very natural step for us.


In the box you have the ROXI hub, ROXI controller, USB charge lead, Power adapter, HDMI cable and 12 month Premium Music Pass. It's nicely presented and looks really neat. The hub itself is very small, wall mountable and in a choice of 3 colours - classic charcoal grey, bright blue or coral red.



The controller is USB rechargeable.  A charge takes around 2 hours and lasts 24 hours of constant use, so it'll not need recharging often. It really isn't too big or unwieldy. It's surprisingly light and comfortable in any size of hand and your children shouldn't drop it every 5 minutes.


Set up was ridiculously simple and took about 2 minutes. You don't have to register, add your card details or make an account, you just plug in the HDMI and the power, log into your wifi and use the controller to control the onscreen cursor to say 'yes' to starting your first Annual Premium Pass - which is included.

The new Paddington Bear movie, Paddington 2, was released on 10th November and to accompany the film Harper Collins have released a whole range of fabulous books. We love books and I'm delighted to have an awesome bundle of 5 to give away to two of my readers in my Christmas Present Giveaways...


Paddington Bear has been around for almost 60 years now. As a child I watched him on TV and read the books, I even had a well-used jigsaw puzzle. The lovable little lost bear from Peru has stood the test of time and I think most children have at some point wished they could be like the Brown family and bring their own bear home.

Zing Games make active family games that will keep everyone awake this Christmas. They have given me two of their new games to give away to one lucky reader - Blast Box and Stik’em. Lively and fast-paced, these are party games everyone can play and if your children are anything like mine, they will love them!


Blast Box (£19.99rrp) is not one for the faint-hearted! Inside the box are a big plastic crate, spinner, hammer, 30 plastic nails (not sharp), a balloon pump and 100 small balloons - plus 20 cardboard fasteners (brilliant because my kids can never manage to tie off balloons themselves). You can see where this is going!

Pass The Pigs is a time-served dice game for anyone aged 3+ or older and more recently they've added 2 extra versions to their range. They have kindly offered me all 3 different Pass The Pigs games as a prize for one of my readers - Pass The Pigs (in a travel case),  Pass the Pigs Giant and Pass the Pigs Party.


Pass The Pigs is a dice game with a big difference - there are no dice. Instead you use small, cute little piggies to count and score, with different poses scoring different totals.


There are now 3 different variants of the Pass The Pigs game priced from £9.99 to £14.99, so there's something to suit everyone.

If your house is anything like mine then you'll be very familiar with fidget toys. Zing make a great range of Every Day Play fidget toys that are played with by children, but also used by professionals, and they have offered a bundle of 6 awesome and varied toys for one of my readers - Metal Chucks, Tumblstix, Spinbladez, Klixx, Thumb Chucks and Zing Dama.


The quality is great and 4 of the 6 light up - which was quite a surprise when I opened my box and everything inside was glowing! They are all packaged in card with a plastic front cover and open very easily and quickly, so you can play immediately - Christmas morning friendly.


Thumb Chucks (£7.99rrp) are the original light-up fidget balls which have been joined by several variants. I've seen Thumb Chucks demonstrated at events several times and there are loads of videos online - basic tricks are easy to learn, but trickier moves take hours of practice to master. This isn't just a fidget toy, it's a skill toy.

We reviewed Mayka Tape for the Rainbow Toy Awards and it's a great fun product that my 7 year old has used all over his furniture and walls to suspend his favourite minifigures. Super easy to use, it adds a whole new dimension to playing with bricks.


You can read my full Mayka Tape review here. Mayka Tape is a rubbery studded tape that is compatible with LEGO and other plastic bricks and has a sticky tape on the back. It is really beautifully presented in a really handy case that stops it unravelling and keeps it safe - it makes a great gift.

Megableu make great family games that everyone can enjoy and they have given me a bundle of 3 of their newest games to give away to one of my readers - Beat the Flush, Tumball and NAME THAT!

A Book Advent Calendar is a great way to get into the Christmas mood and spend real quality time with your child doing something they'll remember forever. Forget chocolates and windows, your child can open their imagination every day in the run up to Christmas.

Scholastic have put together 2 fantastic bundles of 24 books for advent 2017 and I'm truly delighted to be able to give away one of each. If you bought all of these books individually then they'd cost over £145rrp, but Scholastic are giving everyone an early Christmas gift and this Advent Pack of 24 books for age 0-7 is available to buy for only £29.99 while stocks last.


Scholastic Books are responsible for my earliest memories of loving books, I waited for the Scholastic Books leaflet each term with a great deal of excitement as I was allowed to choose a brand new book for myself. It gives me great joy to be working with Scholastic on such an awesome Christmas giveaway.

A Book Advent Calendar is a genius idea and something I wish I'd thought of years ago. Opening a new book each day during December with your children will create fabulous warm memories that you'll all remember forever.

This year Scholastic Books have put together 2 fantastic Advent Calendar Bundles and I'm delighted to be giving one of each away. Both bundles contain 24 specially chosen books and have an rrp of over £145 - but while stocks last they'll be on sale for only £29.99 for the pack.


Over 90 years after they started, Scholastic are still bringing great literature to children and this bundle of 24 Young Fiction books for younger independent readers aged around 7-11 contains some real gems.

My 9 year old loves facts. He gets a lot of pleasure from knowing everything and telling me things I don't know. For the last month we've been receiving a copy of the weekly young people's current affairs magazine The Week Junior and he's read each issue cover to cover.


Your children will hear or read some adult news coverage and this can be scary or confusing for them. It's often hard to know exactly what they've picked up on and how they feel, so it's difficult to know what you should tell them or bring up to discuss.


The Week Junior is pitched at the right level that they will learn the facts and the background and not just the scandalous headlines and terrifying soundbites.

The Game Of Things is a truly hilarious game for 4 players or more. It's very easy to play, but does often lead to answers which could be a bit risque or rude, so it's recommended for age 14+ only. Players secretly write down the answers to questions, and it's up to everyone else to work out who said what?


The Wooden Box is a lovely tough and it makes this a really excellent present. It feels special, it protects the contents well and it'll look good on the shelf for as long as you own it.


Inside the box are the game cards, scoresheets, answer sheets and pencils, as well as instructions. The answer sheets are serrated, so once you've written your answer, you can cleanly tear it off to pass to the reader.

The Awesome Little Green Men are 2 troops of small collectible Army Figures. They aren't all men and in fact half of them aren't even green, they're blue! My 7 year old will happily tell you just how awesome they are though...


There are several different sets to collect, each with mystery figures and the smallest is the individual Blind Box with one figure, a dog tag and a collectors sheet.