Five More Minutes
by Marta Altes
Interest age: 3 to 5
Published by Macmillan Children's Books, 2019
About this book
Time is a funny thing, muses the little fox in Marta Altes’ picture book. Adults – specifically Dad – are always saying things like 'There’s no time!' when he’s trying to get the little ones dressed in the morning, and 'Five more minutes!' when they’re jumping on his bed, trying to make him get up.
In fact, there’s always time to juggle, watch the birds and make new friends when you’re on the way to nursery. So what if you miss the bus? Basically, Dad has absolutely no clue about how time works, and it’s just as well that Fox is on hand to educate him on the flexibility of an hour, and just when it’s time to leave a party (never). But the one thing they do agree on is storytime, which is never long enough – because it’s time they get to spend together.
This original and adorable story about how differently little ones and adults experience time will be utterly relatable for anyone with a young family, and has a gorgeous ending which celebrates the best time of the day – storytime (even if poor dad falls asleep).
What to read next
We know that children can get hooked on a favourite book series or author and struggle to find something they love as much, but we’re here to help.
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A mother whose children follow her everywhere. A chaotic breakfast-time. A noisy bathtime. These familiar everyday scenes have struck a chord with families for 40 years. The much-loved, very talented Jill Murphy created the Large family of elephants, and an instant family favourite was born.
More books like this
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Guess Who’s Going to Sleep
by Smriti Halls, illustrated by Marta Altes
2 to 4 years
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New In Town
by Marta Altes
2 to 7 years
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Brand New Boy
by David Almond, illustrated by Marta Altes
9 to 14 years
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Little Monkey
by Marta Altes
4 to 9 years
Lists of recommended reads
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Pyjamarama: perfect picture books for bedtime
There's nothing quite as magical as a bedtime story. As part of Pyjamarama, our celebration of bedtime stories, we've put together a list of brilliant bedtime reads that little ones - and grownups - will love.