Bluey: Grannies

Penguin Random House Australia, 2020. ISBN: 9781760899363.
(Ages: 2-5) Recommended. This new instalment in the Bluey board book series is based on the incredibly popular Grannies episode, which sees Bluey and Bingo trying to work out whether Grannies can dance. Children who are familiar with the episode will find all their favourite bits and quotes of the episode accounted for: 'I slipped on ma beans!', Dad unblocking the stinky toilet, Nana's ineptitude with FaceTime and the car crash into the sandpit. There is even a holographic page at the end that children can use to make the Bluey and Bingo grannies floss.
A nice message about getting along is also instilled in the book when it is established that Bluey is right: their granny can't floss. Bingo feels sad that she is wrong and doesn't want to play anymore but Mum explains that sometimes you can't keep the game going AND be right. Which is more important? Bluey's solution is to teach Nana how to floss - that way both Bluey and Bingo were right. As a television series, Bluey is a lovely celebration of play, family relationships and imagination and the accompanying books help to reinforce these strong messages of positive family interaction and self-awareness. Themes: Grandparents, Board book, Dancing.
Nicole Nelson