Although we love a good story book in this house – which is evident in the fact we did T a book advent this year instead of a traditional numbered calendar with doors – we also love having a variety of educational books on his shelves.

It’s only been within the past 12-18 months that we’ve started to buy books that explore subjects such as art, science and history, and although T doesn’t quite understand the meaning of some things, I believe imagery is still a fantastic way to get them started – or at least encourage them ask questions!

What on Earth?

What on Earth? create magnificent books that not only teach children and young adults about an array of subjects; from Sports to Science to Shakespeare, but they give the reader a chance to change the way they read the book – by having the option to use the book as wall art instead of just a book.

A few weeks ago, we were sent two books for T to explore. The Nature Timeline Wallbook and Explorer: Dinosaurs! Both books are hardback and come with the opportunity to be used as full colour wall art.

Although the books are aimed for children probably a lot older than T, this didn’t stop T having a good look at the them and asking what things were. When he wasn’t doing that, he was making noises for each dinosaur or acting like one.

This week we’ve been looking at different Dinosaurs thanks to @whatonearth_books 🦖 🦕 These timeline wall books are absolutely fantastic at teaching children (and young adults) about history, and can even detach itself to create a poster for a bedroom wall. We were recently sent two books, one about dinosaurs and one about nature & planet earth, and I can honestly say I’ve learnt a few things too! Although T is a little young for some of the features, the pictures have really captured him and he often likes making sounds to go with the dinosaurs! There’s also a nifty magnifying glass to really look at things. We’ll be coming back to these books over the next few years and will enjoy watching what new things he’s learnt from last time.

A post shared by LesBeMums (@lesbemums) on Dec 12, 2017 at 3:24pm PST

This book contains which includes over 1000 hand drawn images and boasts a 2 meter wall chart.

You’ll be hard done by to find any blank areas in these books, with each page bursting with facts and figures. From a timeline of the earth’s history to the process of the Bing Bang in 24 hours. There’s also a stunning timeline of evolution ever created, stretching back 4 billion years to the first signs of life.

The Wallbook of Nature also includes more than 30 newspaper articles and a 50-question quiz. It’s created in partnership with experts at the Natural History Museum.

Follow Agent Eagle in the Explorer: Dinosaur book (RRP £9.99), where several pages are dedicated to specific dinosaurs (over 100 in fact), so when you’re finished looking at the timeline you can go back and look at them in greater detail. This wall chart reaches a length of 1.8 meters.

What I like about this book is that the information included is a nice balance between educational and fun, without having too much on the page to overwhelm the reader. The information is to the point and can be easily dissected. I’m going to admit right here that even I learnt a few things!

Both these books are visually stunning to look at and are excellent quality. Both wall charts are perforated to make extraction easy, and the artwork itself is hand drawn on incredibly good quality paper.

I know T isn’t the target audience right now, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t absorbing little facts and images. He thoroughly enjoyed looking at the colourful images and loved talking about the different shapes, sizes, and colours – not to mention what the dinosaurs were likely to eat (apparently they like blueberries).

We were sent two books by What on Earth? Publishing in exchange for an honest review, however all thoughts, opinions, and imagery (unless stated otherwise) are our own.