Ned and I bought this wonderful book last week and it is officially our favorite picture book of 2008. Cheeky Monkey is the new book written by Andrew Daddo and illustrated by Emma Quay, the team that also created the beautiful Goodnight Me.

Cheeky Monkey is one of those books that just grabs you from the first moment you pick it off the shelf. It gave me that little skip in the heart beat I get when I see something really beautiful.

The little boy Emma has created in this book instantly reminded me of Ned. He has the same beautiful toddler expressions that Ned has that make me ache with love for him. I adore how the character wraps his little leg around his dad as they get in the shower and how he leaps from the high chair for a cuddle just like Ned does.

Andrew Daddo’s text in this book is just simple and beautiful to read aloud. He uses all those funny little sayings that we all find ourselves using around little ones, well I do anyway. Silly Billy, Lucky Duck, Funny Bunny and of course Cheeky Monkey are all in there and leaving the most important till last, a big “I Love You!”

Goodnight Me was Andrew and Emma’s first picture book together and is also magic. Hear Andrew Daddo read their beautiful book here and you will fall in love with it too. On each page the little Orangutan baby says goodnight to a body part, reading this aloud is almost like a meditation, it is soft and lyrical making it perfect for bedtime. Emma’s illustrations are again incredible as she makes this little ape look so cuddly, he is a lovely fuzzy orange gangly creature against a stunning purple background that just makes the book so warm and inviting.

I have given Goodnight Me many times as a gift to little friends and also to one of my best girlfriends who has trouble sleeping. The other day some friends showed me their copy that I had given their little girl Amelie when she was born, much sticky tape had been used to repair the well loved pages as she and her little sister Olivia had wanted it read over and over again at bedtime.

Andrew and Emma obviously make a great team as they have created two instant classics and I can’t wait to see what comes next.