How to use this Page

The game of copycat takes a funny and sweet turn in Copycat Bear! by Ellie Sandall.

Mango is a bird who has a bear friend name Blue. Blue likes to copy everything Mango does like hopping, flying, and singing. But Mango finds it so annoying that she flies away. By the evening, Mango has a change of heart and learns to appreciate how you can be different, but still best friends.

This delightful book focuses on friendship. Blue frustrates Mango by trying to copy her, but once they are apart, Mango realizes how much she enjoys Blue’s company. Sandall has written and illustrated this wonderful book, bringing to life the concept of appreciating our differences and being able to become friends again after a disagreement. The soft, warm colors are as comforting as when Mango snuggles up to Blue at the end of the story.

This is a sweet book that will make a great addition to any home library.

Rating: :) :) :) :) :)

Hardcover: 32 pages
Publisher: Tiger Tales (September 1, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1589251202
ISBN-13: 978-1589251205

I received a copy of this book from the publisher. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Last week I reviewed a beautiful new picture book, Daisy plays Hide-and-Seek by Ellie Sandall. In August I’ll be getting to meet her face to face, at the Just So Festival, but over the last few days I’ve managed to spend some “virtual” time with her, finding out more about her work and inspiration.

Ellie and a live model!

Playing by the book: First up, perhaps you could give us a bit of background – what roads have brought you here, to being an author and illustrator? Did you always want to create books?

Ellie Sandall: I was always drawing as a child, and I loved to write stories too. I remember making a little book about a teddy bear that got lost at a market when I was maybe five or six- I really wish I still had it! My mum is very creative and we often had some sort of project going at home. In secondary school my love of art continued, and I was lucky that my form room was in the Art block, so that I was always surrounded by paint and clay. I used to spend the majority of my breaks at school doodling, and even doodled during lessons, where I would reserve the back page of my exercise book for drawing. My teachers never seemed to mind, as I always got my work done!

After a brief stint of wanting to be a vet (to indulge my love of animals), I pursued my artistic ambitions and completed a foundation course in art and design, followed by a degree in graphic design at Bath Spa University. I really enjoyed the sequential illustration module of my degree course, and particularly the children’s book project I had worked on, and so I wanted to take this aspect further. This led me to the MA Children’s Book Illustration course at Cambridge School of Art, and from there to getting my first book deal with Egmont!

A colour sketch of Daisy by Ellie Sandall. Click to see larger image.

Playing by the book: What books were important to you as a child? Can you remember any picture books you loved? What books were read to you that you really enjoyed?

Ellie Sandall:I remember when I was very young I had a Mother Goose nursery rhyme book which I used to get my mum to read to me a lot- I could recite most of the rhymes from an early age, from looking at the pictures. I actually have a recording on cassette of me reciting this book, aged two! Another of my absolute favourites was (and still is) Eric Carle’s ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar’. Other favourites included ‘ 3 Comments on An interview with Ellie Sandall, last added: 5/30/2011