The site doesn’t look the slickest, but is a real Aladdin’s cave of new and old time classics with a wealth of activity books, fiction, non-fiction, book & CD combos and even work books (scary Key Stage 1 and 2 stuff). They will even source books at the best possible prices if they aren’t already offered on the website.

You’ll find heavily discounted books from much loved and more mainstream authors such as Julia Donaldson, Michael Rosen, Anthony Browne and Jill Murphy – a hardback copy of Julia Donaldson’s The Highway Rat costs just £5.50 instead of the RRP £10.99 – on the site, but The Book Stalk also seems to excel in finding lesser known treasures.

Looking at Perseus flying in Greek Myths and Legends

Amongst the more unusual titles is Greek Myths and Legends (which I got a sneak preview of and which has just become available on the site at £6.50 instead of the RRP £12.99) – a hardback anthology of 11 of the most familiar myths and legends from ancient Greece. I feel this would really appeal to boys as an antidote to some of the traditional fairytales, which are often targeted at girls, and is a good example of The Book Stalk’s varied offering. However, speaking of traditional fairytales, the site also has some lovely compilations and has offered readers of this blog 50% off two great titles.

Julia Donaldson’s The Highway Rat and Tales of Princes and Princesses

Fairy Tales – A Classic Collection compiles ten classics including Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White, Cinderella, Puss-in-Boots, Blue Beard and Little Thumb. With wonderful illustrations and stories varying significantly in terms of subject and characters, this would appeal to boys and girls alike. Available on the site for £9.99, readers can receive a 50% discount by using the code ParentSocial50 at checkout.

Unashamedly girly, Tales of Princes and Princesses is a beautifully presented collection of nine tales adapted from the stories of the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Anderson, each illustrated by a different artist. This hardback book with a lovely fold over magnetic closing is available on the site for £12.99, but readers can get a copy for just £6.50 by using the code ParentSocial50 at checkout.

The Book Stalk also offers some other great gifts, such as children’s cooking sets, convertibles and many games from our family favourite, Orchard Toys, at heavily discounted prices.

A wonderful collection at fantastic prices, but do watch out for the delivery costs as they do vary quite a bit from product to product and can bump it up.

Visit: www.thebookstalk.co.uk

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1. Monopoly Junior Party

Monopoly gets a child makeover with cupcake playing pieces, present tokens (instead of houses), a ‘party box’ and party cards. Instead of properties, players buy different themed parties such as a bowling party, pizza party or bouncy castle party and keep moving around the board until someone goes bankrupt. A simplified version of a family favourite, which incorporates most of the features of the original, but in a format that will keep young ones interested. It says age five plus, but most four-year-olds would not have any problems understanding the rules.

Monopoly Junior Party

2. Snakes and Ladders

This needs no introduction. An absolute classic, and a concept that is easy for a four-year-old to grasp. As well as helping with counting, it is a great game for teaching your child about losing, as you can’t deliberately let them win in this game of chance!

Snakes and Ladders

3. Pop to the Shops

This game sees each player taking on the role of both shopkeeper and shopper. As well as encouraging counting skills and involving plenty of interaction, Pop to the Shops teaches children about handling money as they negotiate the purchasing of the items they need, giving change and distinguishing between different coins.

Pop to the Shops

4. Lunch Box Game  

A memory game where the winner is the first to collect all the healthy items in their lunch box. As well as improving memory, it has prompted numerous conversations about what are good and bad foods.

Lunch Box Game

5. The Beetle Game

I’d never heard of this game until my mother-in-law purchased it as a stocking-filler. It’s a game from the 1950s (complete with retro packaging) and has now established itself as a firm favourite in our household. The premise is simple: you roll the dice and assemble your beetle part-by-part. The winner is the first person to complete their beetle. There are a couple of twists and turns which make it a little more difficult to complete this task. A very competitive game and very entertaining for children and adults alike. It also doesn’t take an age to play and no set up is required. It’s also a bargain at £4.99.

The Beetle Game

6. Connect Four

Another game that needs no introduction. Sofia is not very strategic in her play at the moment, but loves it all the same. It’s great for helping her concentration and eventually I’m hoping that this will lead to her thinking strategically!

Connect Four

7. The Gruffalo Match and Memory Board Game

Based on characters/items from the much-loved Julia Donaldson book, this is essentially a memory game. However, as it says on the tin, it is also a board game with spinner so there is a luck element as well as pure memory. The age says five, but Sofia has played this comfortably from three. A must for all Gruffalo fans!

The Gruffalo Game 

8. Guess Who?

Another cult classic, which my daughter loves. She is a little
too young to play without help, as she can’t actually read the character names. However, this does not detract in any way from her enjoyment. The guessing game has been revamped and the particular version that I’ve linked below doesn’t suffer from some of the quality issues that some reviewers describe as one big card slots into the main frame as opposed to lots of individual cards. In addition you can download new cards.

Guess Who?

9. Dora the Explorer on LeapPad

Ok, a change of direction here. Computer games probably divide opinion for this age group. However, they do provide the opportunity for children to play independently, which – if they don’t spend hours playing in isolation – I personally think is a valuable skill. This particular game is brilliant for teaching Spanish vocabulary (Sofia has picked up loads) and learning about the cultures of Egypt, China, Australia and Peru through looking at local animals, food, clothes and landscapes.

Dora the Explorer

10. Oxford Reading Tree – Read With Biff, Chip, and Kipper Flashcards: Word Games

Sofia loves this and so do I as she learns to recognise common words without even knowing it. There are various different games to play, so initially it’s about learning to read the individual words through lotto, matching pairs and snap, but later on we’ll be learning how they are used in sentences. Simple, but very effective.

Oxford Reading Tree – Read With Biff, Chip, and Kipper Flashcards

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