What to Read After... You Choose

Published on: 21 April 2019 Author: Anna McKerrow

The You Choose books from Pippa Goodhart and Nick Sharratt are full of fun and nearly endless possibilities. So if you and your family enjoy them, what could you try next?

We've got some ideas and we want to hear your recommendations, too...

The hugely popular You Choose by Nick Sharratt and Pippa Goodhart provides the young reader with a fantastic series of choices on every page.

If you were hungry, which of the delicious-looking foods would you eat? Which of the jazzy clothing options will you choose? Where will you choose to live - a fairy castle, a windmill, the Taj Mahal?

Now accompanied by You Choose Your Dreams and You Choose in Space, there are even more amazing choices for preschool children. But if you feel like moving on, here are some suggestions - and we'd love to hear yours!

If you feel like moving on to picture books...

The classic Would You Rather... by BookTrust Lifetime Achievement Award winner John Burningham presents children (and adults!) with a thought-provoking array of unusual choices in a slightly different way - from 'would you rather eat supper in a castle, breakfast in a balloon, or tea on the river?' to, 'would you rather be made to eat spider stew, taste slug dumplings, chew mashed worms, or drink a snail shake?'

There's also a recent addition, More Would You Rather, in which John imagined even more squeamish and delightful choices!

If your child enjoys flip books...

Have a look at Nikki Dyson's Flip Flap Dogs or Axel Scheffler's Flip Flap Ocean, - both published by Nosy Crow - which allow you to choose and create new and silly combinations of dog or ocean animal.

If you're looking for another brilliant vocabulary-building book...

Why not try Dorothee de Monfriend's A Day With Dogs, Natasha Durley's Creature Features, Susan Steggall's The Life of a Car or Katie Abey's We Wear Pants?

In their different ways, all four books enable the reader to learn and spot a variety of types of thing, from daily activities to types of clothes and different kinds of vehicles.

For older primary children...

Older children might enjoy books like Aaron Becker's Journey trilogy (Journey, Quest and Return) - three wordless books that enable the reader to create their own story from the rich, vibrant pages.

And Chris Van Allsburg's The Mysteries of Harris Burdick is a sepia-toned treat of surprising images which children can make their own creative choices from, either out loud or by writing their own stories.

Your suggestions

As always, we asked you to recommend your own favourites, or books you think fit the bill after You Choose - and boy, did you deliver! Here are just some of the ideas you came up with:

• Over on Instagram, there was lots of love for You Choose - and @katie_the_snook had a fabulous suggestion. 'We love reading the Benedict Blathwayt Little Red Train books,' she said. 'So much detail in every page. We like to spot the stories in each story!'
• The Wimmelbooks series is 'going down a storm' with @Bompalomps: 'Endless conversation prompts and I love the suggestions on the back on how your child can enjoy different elements as they get older.'
• @KarenFarish suggested trying The Runaway Dinner by Allan Ahlberg, while fabulous author Perdita Cargill opted for Sally Gardner's The Fairy Catalogue: 'I think that one was still being secretly enjoyed at the same time as I, Coriander! Great writer to get hooked on.'
• If you fancy sticking with Nick Sharratt, @tracyshopkins recommends his collaboration with Hilary Robinson, Mixed Up Fairy Tales - and went on to suggest Richard Scarry's Cars & Trucks & Things That Go, too: 'Funny, conversation-generating and fantastic for kids who like to spot things! My son's first favourite book.' We're sold.
  
• And finally, if you just can't quite move on from You Choose, how about just experiencing it differently? 'Just took my little one to see the Nonsense Room Productions stage show of this,' Nicola on Facebook said. 'She loved it - they really bring books to life. It's fab. Helps them want to read, too!' Sounds pretty good to us...

How You Choose empowers children - and celebrates difference