by Darren Chetty
illustrated by Sandhya Prabhat
 
A child and their mum arrive in a new home. They’re sure they will make a new friend but they wonder quite how long that’s going to take.  Luckily they’ve brought a full menu of craft materials with them and so, gradually, they begin to build a friend to keep. Another child watches on, curious at the genius cereal-box work. They want to join in. Will the protagonist let them? What friendship(s) will emerge in the end? 
 
A perfectly reassuring book for children experiencing life’s big transitions- one which is honest about the anxieties and hopes those moments provoke. A pensive look, too, at what friendships we wish for and a gentle prompt to reflect on what sort of friendship we can offer in turn. A debut picture book for Darren Chetty and you can see how his years as a specialist in philosophy for children and as a former teacher have been channelled in to this thoughtful, child-friendly text. Animator and illustrator, Sandhya Prabhat, offers a perfect pairing. Her trademark swirls of colour, her attention to detail (the children’s clothes and hairstyles are a joy), her scattering of recurrent bright motifs and the movement she fires up through the pages all invite a keen turn of the page. Picture book joy! [Lead characters of colour; single parent family; protagonist’s gender is left open]. Age 4-7, Hardback 24pp