THE PAPER DOLLS BY JULIA DONALDSON

A little girl makes a string of paper dolls with her mother, and then takes them off to play in an imaginative world of her own in this lyrical picture book from Children's Laureate Julia Donaldson, exquisitely illustrated by Rebecca Cobb. The dolls jump, dance and sing on their fantastical adventure through the house and out into the garden, avoiding a toy dinosaur and an oven-glove crocodile along the way – but then an all-too-real pair of scissors threatens to spoil everything.

Evoking both a sense of childhood loss and the power of memory and the imagination, The Paper Dolls is a gentle, moving story that marks something of a departure from Julia Donaldson's usual style. This is the first time she has been paired with Rebecca Cobb, but the combination is evidently a winning one: Cobb's sensitive illustrations have a childlike, wistful feel that provide a perfectly pitched companion to Donaldson's rhyming text. With beautiful page spreads to pore over together, this lovely picture book is ideal for sharing and will touch both children and adults alike.

If your little ones like to get creative, they'll love this fun indoor activity which shows them how to make paper dolls from Julia Donaldson's The Paper Dolls. Download the printable paper dolls template for children to colour in, and then help them cut out their dolls so they can take them on an adventure, just like in Julia Donaldson's charming story.