Mini Rabbit’s blind enthusiasm for completing the cake takes him right past obvious solutions. I love that the berries are right below, but he’s off and the quest to find berries is on. And there’s a smashing story here as Mini Rabbit heads off to gather the items needed for his camping. The fact he loses half of them on the way home or, like the marshmallows, they curiously vanish adds humour that children will love. The events add all manner of opportunities to discuss with children what has actually happened and the lovely illustrations help less secure young readers interpret the text. The message about the joys of home and safety comes through brilliantly as does the exploration of disappointment and overcoming adversity. This really is a lovely story.

You might want to draw your cake then write your recipe, or the other way around. But your picture should be mouth-watering! With your eyes closed or a blind fold on, have someone put different foods or items in front of you and see if you can guess what they are just by smelling them. For me it’s a rollercoaster of emotions that I’m trying to manipulate the reader into’ - Alex Wheatle on fictional world building, creating new language and seeing yourself in a bookHis debut picture book, Mini Rabbit Not Lost was published by HarperCollins Children’s Books in September 2018 and was nominated for best picture book in the 2019 Waterstones Book Prize.

Hop little bunnies, hop, hop, hop, Hop little bunnies hop hop hop, Hop little bunnies hop hop hop hop hop hop now stop I have a tiny criticism which arises out of my personal preference as I would rather not have upper case words in the middle of sentences in children’s books. That said, in Mini Rabbit Come Home, they are used for emphasis, so I can see the opportunities for discussing writing technique with emergent writers was well as encouraging young readers, and the upper case words certainly add drama to the story when it is read aloud.You could copy the illustrator’s style, repeat the words exactly, or you could make it your own by changing the pictures and words. I sure hope NOT LOST isn’t the only Mini Rabbit book that John Bond is going to do. I really enjoy this character John has created and how well he captured the enthusiasm a child can have when given the chance to help. For me, that’s the “thing” I want to really take away from this for my writing. I hope you’ll be able to find and capture that bit of life that we can all relate to and enjoy as well And John Bond makes sure that we know exactly how much Mini Rabbit likes cake or making the cake with his mother. Again, this helps us relate or understand Mini Rabbit’s desire to complete this cake when confronted with the fact of missing a key ingredient: Berries. Frank Cottrell Boyce on why reading for pleasure is the most important thing you can pass on to a child I really like the art work in this book. It is colourful, humorous and uses a really pleasing range of pastel colours. I like the occasional use of alternative colours too; a variety of purples for trees in a wood and blues for trees in the snow. I also like the variety of layouts.

The story actually starts off with Mini Rabbit and Mother Rabbit making a cake. Many of us can relate to our children or seeing children helping out an adult with baking (or building) something that normally adults do. You see their independence and confidence grow incredibly fast no matter how well they are actually doing. There are opportunities for creative work. In the classroom, I would reach for a large roll of paper and make a big collaborative map of all the places Mini Rabbit passes on her way to the dark cave, adding sound effects. And then use the map as a prompt for retelling the story in the children’s own words. And of course, cake baking and decoration are a must.

John also uses a wonderful narrator voice to help guide us readers along the way, gently confirming what we are seeing. The way the artwork transitions on each spread and change in scenery to the next is as interesting to study as it is to search for the hidden berries.

He now works independently as an illustrator and artist from his studio at Colonnade House, balancing commercial jobs with self initiated projects and running his online shop. John’s work has been exhibited in galleries worldwide and he has spoken at industry events such as Pictoplasma, Glug and Pecha Kucha. You could find things that look like berries, draw and cut out some berry shapes, or scrunch up some bits of paper. Then ask someone to hide them for you to find. Home Learning Reader in Residence Reader in Residence Digital Years 1 & 2 Not Lost Not Lost By John Bond Published by Harper Collins Children's Books

Story

Simply looking at the cover, we know NOT LOST (I can only hope the Mini Rabbit part will make this a series) is going to be lost despite what the title says. Chalk up another great use of the image telling us something obvious that the title is deliberately leading us astray on. But wait… rewind. Where does this story begin? In the cosy kitchen of the Rabbit family treehouse, Mini Rabbit is baking with her mother. On discovering an empty berry jar and faced with the prospect of no cake, Mini Rabbit sets out to find some berries, heedless of Mother Rabbit’s advice. What follows is an epic journey during which the single-minded, cake-loving Rabbit traverses land and sea, mountains and ravines until reaching the mouth of a very dark cave. Young children will enjoy spying the eyes along the way. Older children will notice the signposts that Mini Rabbit misses in her determination to keep moving forward. John Bond is an illustrator, author and artist who lives and works in Worthing on the south coast, UK. Books are absolutely crucial in getting us to think about new worlds': we speak to the award-winning author, Onjali Q Rauf