Books in the Collins Big Cat series

Find out lots of fascinating, mouth-watering facts about ice cream, including what it is made from, how it is made, and when people first ate it.

The Pet Detective has his work cut out when his favourite football goes missing. With his dog, Rooney, he sets out to follow the clues; an open window; a missing football; a dirty big footprint; a bubblegum wrapper and a rustle in the bushes. It isn't long before the Pet Detective has located the culprit.

How does a yo-yo climb back up its string? Why does a boomerang come back to you? And how does a kaleidoscope work? These and other mind-bending questions are answered in this explanation text about how toys work.

Jodie loves to juggle - plates, oranges, anything! But his mum isn't so keen as Jodie has lots of 'accidents' when practising his skills. She'd rather Jodie played something less destructive, like football. Will she persuade Jodie to swap his juggling for football? And will Jodie the footballer be less accident-prone than Jodie the juggler?

Morris wants to eat his kitty biscuits, but his mother sends him off to play hide and seek instead. When it's Morris's turn to hide, he finds the perfect place: the food cupboard, where the kitty biscuits are kept!

The colourful photographs in this non-fiction recount demonstrates different ways of pushing and pulling through photographs taken in a children's playground, using swings, roundabouts and climbing frames and simple captions.

Collins Big Cat is a guided reading series for ages 4-11 edited by Cliff Moon. Top children's authors and illustrators have created fiction and non-fiction books that your children will love to read, banded to help you choose the right book for every child. Practical ideas for guided reading are included at the back of each book.

The renowned children's writer Michael Morpurgo has written this vivid account of a child's stay at a farm, told in the form of letters home and illustrated with photographs of animals and children on location at the farm. Humorous and engaging, it conveys the fun and excitement of working closely with animals.

When a young girl adopts Harry the spider as her new pet, no one is very impressed - not Mum, not Dad, and certainly not her big brother (could it be that he's afraid of large, hairy spiders?)... But when Mum needs to go to the dentist and no one can find the car keys, Harry saves the day.

This book helps children identify different types of car by colour using simple, repetitive text which reinforces common colour words. Cars are shown both in close-up and in action in its surroundings, driving in the city, off the road or tearing around a Grand Prix circuit.

A humorous story featuring two whacky scientists building a robot. They assemble the robot carefully with each body part, but where is the head? In this simple text, each body part is named as it is added, and as the different parts are used, a repeated reply of thank you reinforces the phrase.

Open the door and see who is there: a cat in a hat, a fox in socks, a dog and a frog; and they all want to play! But the final visitor is not so welcome - a dinosaur - ROAR!

Kind Emma lives all alone in her little cottage by the wood, with no one to talk to. But one snowy night Emma hears a knock at her door, and a tiny voice asking for help. When she takes pity on the little thing at the door and gives it shelter and food, she finds that her whole life is changed - and she at last has a friend to talk to.

This picture story follows Granny's race against the clock. It's two o'clock and Granny has just one hour to reach her destination. As the minutes tick by, the story shows Granny's increasingly imaginative modes of transport, from skateboard to jet pack, before revealing why she is in such a hurry - it's her grandchild's birthday tea.

Tec the detective has found a hole in the ground - but who dug it? Children follow Tec as he trails his suspects, until he finds the vital clue that leads him to the guilty party!

Read the fantasy story by Julia Donaldson about a mermaid and a greedy octopus, filled with colourful illustrations.

Julia Donaldson tells the tale of the misfortunate characters Bonny and Sandy, who are forever arguing. One day a little man comes to stay, and it looks as though their luck has changed.

The red balloon flies up, up and away! Follow the balloon's journey over the captivating landscape of the rooftops, river, mountains and the sea in this simple non-fiction recount.

Bert's Band like to play as they march down the street. When they win the cup, they arrive back at their home town at midnight, and very carefully remove their shoes and socks so as not to disturb the townsfolk as they march down the street - playing at full belt! This lively text is ideal to read aloud, with lots of opportunities to join in.

Rebecca went to the funfair with mum and dad. She didn't like the hall of mirrors, and the rollercoaster made her turn green - but when she won lots of prizes on a stall, she decided that she liked it after all! The funny illustrations show Rebecca's gradual change of opinion, and include lots of details for early readers to talk about.

'There are sounds all around you...Which sounds do you like?' This is a simple non-fiction book about the wide variety of sounds we head and how they are made. The text is illustrated with lively photographs of children listening, and making noise!

A bright, action-packed non-fiction book that explains how to dance. The step-by-step instructions include sequential words at the start of each sentence: First, Next, Then, Now and Stop. Photographs of children dancing support and clearly demonstrate the actions referred to in the text.

This comical story is a patterned, counting text about a band of pirates searching for treasure. One-by-one, they get into trouble and make a hasty retreat back to the pirate ship. Helpful vignettes of the pirates at the top of each page help children count how many pirates are left.

Worm is fed up with earth for lunch and wants something more exciting. He tries eating grass, bark and even a leaf on the advice of various animal friends - and almost becomes lunch himself when a hungry bird appears!

A wordless picture book about a birthday party. The photographs provide a window on all the preparations, the birthday tea, the guests arriving at the party, the gifts and the games. Come and join the fun!

Where do you see stripes around you? This non-fiction picture book looks at all sorts of stripes. Do you see them on a zebra's fur, or as shadows on the pavement, or on a bright, woolly jumper? Alongside each photograph is a close-up snapshot that magnifies the various textiles and materials in detail.

How do different animals carry their babies? In this book readers will discover, through a series of photographs, that some animals carry their young by the teeth, some on their backs and others in a special pouch.

The photographs and text in this non-fiction picture book combine to give an account of a child getting ready to go out skateboarding. The book presents a glimpse of what makes this exhilarating activity so popular.

What happens when Mum is in the garden tidying up, but thechildren just want to play? This simple, humorous story book shows two boys creating mayhem while Mum works on, unaware. It explores the different places they find to play, from the tent, to the sandpit, through the grass, the leaves and the mud before finally ending up in the bath.