Milly, Molly and Jimmy's Seeds; Milly, Molly and Betelgeuse

These two booklets are part of a series of 32 published initially in New Zeland but now in some 22 languages world-wide, promoting diversity and the acceptance of difference. The series presents two little girls, one white and one black, who go to the same school and who share experiences with each other and their friends. These experiences have to do with issues such as loyalty, responsibility, being careful of strangers, etc. In the first of these two books, we see the girls coping with their grief at the loss of a school friend, helped by an understanding teacher who mourns with the children. They find sunflower seeds in his desk and plant them in the school garden as a memorial. The second book is about low selfesteem and a guinea pig who feels unimportant as no one knows what his name means until Milly and Molly discover that Betelgeuse is a big, bright, twinkly star. The pictures in both books are cheerful and colourful if amateurishly drawn. Parents and schools alike will find the books helpful for discussion with children about important issues.