Brain ticklers

A stack of new reading for kids ranging from picture books to a biography of Roald Dahl.

- ANN PACKER

TWIGS AND STONES

by Joy Cowley & Gavin Bishop

(Walker, $29.99)

It's been 18 years since we first met Snake and Lizard, and the reptilian friends have since featured on RNZ and even had their own gig with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. A stunning new picture book, loaded with more images than the early chapter book format allowed, reintroduces the duo in a story that plays with words marvellously recreated with sticks to name the friends' shared abode. But as the “F” for “friend” gets a little smaller, the elements also take their toll on their sign until ... well, smart readers will get it first.

GIRAFFE THE GARDENER

by Kimberly Andrews

(Puffin, $21)

There are ladders but no snakes in Giraffe's garden, which incorporates ideas from seven wildly different styles, each concealing a motif character to spot. This time it's a garden gnome.

The fourth in her series of standalones featuring the animals for whom Puffin the Architect designed a home, this one introduces a daughter whose apprenticeship allows her to step up when Dad overstretches himself with disastrous results. Slow gardening indeed.

DETECTIVE STANLEY AND THE MYSTERY AT THE MUSEUM

by Hannah Tunnicliffe & Erica Harrison