February brings you a sale on Oxford reference books, a huge range of great new releases, and the eagerly-awaited return of story time.

Story Time is back!

What better way to promote a love of reading to kids than by coming along to story time?

Readings offers free weekly half-hour story time sessions at our Carlton, Malvern and St Kilda stores at the following times:

• Carlton – 10am Fridays
• Malvern – 10:30am Thursdays
• St Kilda – 10:30am Saturdays

And if a free story isn’t enough of an enticement to come along, we also offer a 20% discount on full-priced children’s books for half an hour after the session. So pop in, take a seat on the comfy mat and be entertained by a good book.

20% off Oxford dictionaries and reference books

School is well and truly back, and while not everybody might be celebrating, we’re sure our Oxford sale will make you happier. Get 20% off a select range of Oxford reference books throughout the month of February, including junior dictionaries and thesauruses.

And if you still need more inspiration on how to coax your kids into learning, we’ve got a lot of great suggestions for fun and fascinating non-fiction titles.

Our top picks for February

February is such a great month for kids’ new releases that it was hard to choose just a few to highlight. For the full range of books for kids of all ages, head into one of our shops!

• Our Kids’ Book of the Month is Leanne Hall’s Iris and the Tiger, a surrealist mystery for 10+. Complete with missing tigers, reclusive relatives and labyrinthine houses, our reviewer says this story, ‘ has all the hallmarks of a classic children’s novel’’.
  
  
• Newberry Award-winner Katherine Applegate has a new offering for the 11+ set with Crenshaw, a tale of resilience and giant imaginary cats who like to take bubblebaths and dispense advice.
  
  
• Taro Gomi (best known for the classic Everybody Poos) has a new picture book out this month which is a beautiful testament to the imagination. In Over the Ocean, a young girl stands at the edge of the ocean and wonders what’s out there.
  
  
• Michael Ende’s Momo is our Classic Children’s Book of the Month. Ende is best known as the author of The Neverending Story, and Momo is another adventure-filled tale – this time featuring an enigmatic girl and her quest to save a town from a group of grey-suited men and their evil time-stealing ways.
  
  
• If you’re looking for a visual way to explore history, Peter Goes’ Timeline is for you. Dinosaurs, Vikings, Aztecs and spaceships are brought to life in this illustrated timeline that stretches from the Big Bang all the way into the future.
  
  
• Using words simple enough for 5+, nature program presenter Chris Packham teaches readers all about animal migration in Amazing Animal Journeys. Jason Cockroft’s colourful illustrations bring to life the journeys of animals big and small.
  
  

Holly Harper