Why am I passionate about this?

Since an early age, I loved getting lost in a good story and knew I wanted to be a writer one day. As an adult, I tried writing in many genres but it was when I had my children that I knew I wanted to write children’s bedtime stories. I loved that special time at the end of a busy day when I could snuggle down with my children and get lost in a story with them. I now write children's bedtime stories for a podcast called Koko Sleep. The stories are written in a soothing way and are designed to help the listeners drift easily to sleep.


I wrote

You Can't Eat a Princess!

By Gillian Rogerson,

Book cover of You Can't Eat a Princess!

What is my book about?

When King Cupcake is captured by hungry aliens, it's up to his feisty daughter, Princess Spaghetti, to save him! So…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of I Don't Care! Said the Bear

Gillian Rogerson Why did I love this book?

This is one of the first books I read to my children at bedtime. It's an amusing rhyming story with a wonderfully funny ending. My children loved joining in with the rhymes and would add funny voices for each animal. They always pretended to be surprised by the ending and would try not to giggle too early when I turned to the last page. This is a family favourite and brings back great memories. 

By Colin West,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked I Don't Care! Said the Bear as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 3, 4, 5, and 6.


Book cover of We're Going on a Bear Hunt

Gillian Rogerson Why did I love this book?

This is such a great book to read aloud but even better to act out. I remember sunny days in the garden with my children where we would read the book and travel through the pretend swishy grass and through the mud in search of the bear, and how when we found the bear, we would run all the way back home laughing the whole time.

By Michael Rosen, Helen Oxenbury (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

6 authors picked We're Going on a Bear Hunt as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 3, 4, 5, and 6.

What is this book about?

Gorgeous gift edition of the classic join in story by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury. Shake up a snowstorm with this perfect gift for brave hunters and bear-lovers everywhere!

We're going on a bear hunt. We're going to catch a big one. Will you come too? For over a quarter of a century, readers have been swishy-swashying and splash-sploshing through this award-winning favourite. This new gift hardback edition includes a superb snow scene on the cover to add fun and festive flurries to your favourite family adventure story. Follow and join in the family's excitement as they wade through the…


Book cover of Bedtime for Rosie Rabbit

Gillian Rogerson Why did I love this book?

My eldest daughter is called Rosie and she absolutely adored this book. It has lift-the-flaps inside which children always love. It's a simple story about a rabbit getting ready for bedtime, and it gently encourages children to have a bedtime routine. I read it every night and it wasn't long before my daughter knew the words and she started reading it to me. It is such a treasured book and I still have it in my family box of memories.

By Patrick Yee, Lucy Coats,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Bedtime for Rosie Rabbit as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 4, 5, 6, and 7.

What is this book about?

In this lift-the-flap book young readers can help Rosie Rabbit take off her dress, wash her face, brush her teeth and get ready for bed. '


Book cover of Where's Spot?

Gillian Rogerson Why did I love this book?

My youngest daughter loves dogs and this book became a firm favourite with her. We ended up getting more books in this series including a waterproof one for bath times. This is another lift-the-flap book and my daughter delighted in pretending not to know what was under each flap. Again, like her older sister, it wasn't long before she started to read the book to me. 

By Eric Hill,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Where's Spot? as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In Eric Hill's classic Where's Spot? lift the flaps to find Spot!

In Spot's first adventure children can join in the search for the mischievous puppy by lifting the flaps on every page to see where he is hiding. The simple text and colourful pictures will engage a whole new generation of pre-readers as they lift the picture flaps in search of Spot. A No.1 bestseller since it was first published in 1980, this interactive favourite has stayed in the charts ever since.

This is a bigger, brighter paperback edition of Eric Hill's iconic first lift-the-flap book.

'Spot is one…


Book cover of We're Off to Look for Aliens

Gillian Rogerson Why did I love this book?

I worked as a classroom assistant for ten years and read a lot of books to the younger children, and this one was always a favourite for them. The children loved the funny rhymes and there would be lots of giggles because they knew what was going to happen next. The illustrations are amazing and they inspired the children to draw their own aliens. This book was read so many times that the pages started to fall out, but they were lovingly put back by the children.

By Colin McNaughton,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked We're Off to Look for Aliens as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 4, 5, 6, and 7.

What is this book about?

Experience comic close encounters of the alien kind in this innovative picture book.

Dad's new book has just arrived and his children are sitting down to read his latest adventure... Blasting off into space, Dad's on the hunt for aliens. He meets lots of them - cute, hairy, bug-eyed and scary - and, strangest of all, he falls in love. But what will his family think of his far-fetched tale? A hilarious and innovative picture book from award-winning author and illustrator Colin McNaughton.


Explore my book 😀

You Can't Eat a Princess!

By Gillian Rogerson,

Book cover of You Can't Eat a Princess!

What is my book about?

When King Cupcake is captured by hungry aliens, it's up to his feisty daughter, Princess Spaghetti, to save him! So she blasts off into space to show those naughty aliens who's boss. But how can she stop them from having the king for dinner? Only by introducing them to something even tastier than people: chocolate! A laugh-out-loud funny, mouthwatering picture book that's truly out of this world!

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Serendipity

By Maria de Fátima Santos,

Book cover of Serendipity

Maria de Fátima Santos Author Of Serendipity

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

I have been fascinated by the richness of fairy tales since I was a child. The fantasy writing offers endless possibilities to nourish my mind’s eye and pearls of wisdom that I can transfer to real life. I remember from childhood that I cried reading the Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen. This childhood memory never left me. Fantasy writing is interwoven with the realm of nature and beings other than humans that offer a tapestry for the tradition of storytelling and nature writing, which I found a fascinating field to explore. I hope you can find the same in the books on this list.

Maria's book list on nature and fantasy storytelling for children

What is my book about?

Serendipity is a magical story told by a grandmother to a granddaughter, introducing us to the traditional way of living of the Scottish Travellers and their Cant language.

A fantasy tale for children of 8 years old and older inspired by three real places in Scotland. Serendipity takes us to Helge's Hole in Forres, the Hermitage Forest in Dunkeld, and Glen Lyon in Perth on a quest for Truth, Beauty, and Goodness. It's a story of a grandmother's greater love for a granddaughter, a mother for a daughter, and the boundless bounty of the natural realm for each one of…

Serendipity

By Maria de Fátima Santos,

What is this book about?

Not so long ago, nomadic communities in Scotland told stories around camp fires and slept in bow tents made of hazel and canvas. In this book, their culture is introduced through Cant's vocabulary, a dialect spoken by Scottish travellers. Following them, Serendipity takes you to Helge's Hole in Forres, Hermitage Forest in Dunkeld, and Glen Lyon in Perth, meandering through the valleys and cragged peaks of the Scottish Highlands, in a quest for Truth, Beauty and Goodness.

Dive into Scottish culture as the old grandmother, Julia, recounts to her granddaughter Gaia the tale of a little girl of pure heart.…


5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in bears, extraterrestrial intelligence, and rabbits?

Bears 73 books
Rabbits 74 books