Alrightgames: Dinosaur Dominoes

Dinosaur Dominoes

2016 / Domino game / 2-4 players / UK

***

Self-explanatory, you'd think, but they throw in a purposeless dino standee to make things interesting.

Alrightreads: TV XIII

Matt Zoller Seitz and Alan Sepinwall, The Sopranos Sessions

2019 / Ebook / 471 pages / USA

****

A bit poncy, but they made me a more attentive viewer and the spoiler policy was appreciated.

Sandy Schofield (Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch), Star Trek: Deep Space Nine – The Big Game

1993 / Audiobook / 276 pages / USA

***

A decent effort for so early in the series (though inevitably lacking as a result), the authors' relentless emphasis on bad smells made the crisis unpleasantly immersive, so thanks for that.

Frank Spotnitz, Marv Wolfman, Doug Moench and Brian Denham, The X-Files

2008-09 (collected 2009) / Ecomics / 176 pages / USA

***

Before the usurped IDW comic continuation and zombie TV relaunch, this brief Wildstorm run aimed more squarely for nostalgia. Impressive likenesses in familiar plots bring nothing new to the table, just how you want it.

Rob Grant and Doug Naylor, Red Dwarf: Son of Soup – A Second Serving of the Least Worst Scripts

1996 / Ebook / 164 pages / UK

****

There's more method to this batch's seasoned selections, but they might as well have released a big book (or two).

Unknown, Severance: The Lexington Letter

2022 / Ebook / 43 pages / USA

***

A short and typically tangential tie-in, mainly notable for giving a hint about one of the series' formerly opaque mysteries, unless I'm missing things.

Babyliography LXIV

Lucy Cousins, Maisy Goes Swimming

1990 / Hardback / 14 pages / UK

***

Getting undressed is the fun part of swimming after all, and this simulator lets preschoolers experience the excitement at home, when the card isn't too stiff.

Unknown, I Can Write... First Words

2021 / Wipe-clean learning book / 56 pages / UK

***

Less fun than other wipe-clean activities, but she seems to enjoy the praise for tracing words almost as much as I do giving it.

Paul Moran, Jonny Marx and Sophie Shrey, Where's the Unicorn?: A Magical Search-and-Find Book

2017 / Puzzle book / 48 pages / UK

****

A bit hard right now, but maybe she won't grow out of unicorns. If not, I'll happily do it myself. Clop, clop.

Fiona Watt and Stella Baggott, Baby's Very First Slide and See Night Time

2018 / Library book / 10 pages / UK

**

Barely any words, so I let her take care of it.

Unknown, Peppa Pig: Play with Peppa Sticker Book

2011 / Sticker activity book / 16 pages / UK

**

Short sticker books kill a bit of time on long days. This is a more generically themed one before they started getting desperately varied.

Alrightreads: TV XII

David J. Schow, The Outer Limits Companion

1986 (updated 1998) / Ebook / 400 pages / USA

****

More obsessively comprehensive than I strictly needed for casual viewing, but it's good to set standards.

John Peel, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine – Objective: Bajor

1996 / Audiobook / 274 pages / UK

****

Supposedly conceived as a Borg story, publisher pusillanimity meant we had to settle for a more interesting, well-realised alien society instead. Suspend your disbelief that nothing of consequence is allowed to happen in print and there's a nice sense of doom that captures mid-period DS9 very well, as well as good sci-fi generally.

Stefan Petrucha, John Rozum and Charles Adlard, The X-Files: Dead to the World

1995-96 (collected 1996) / Ecomics / 208 pages / USA

***

Three unsubtle creature features, some of which would almost make credible episodes.

Grant Naylor, Red Dwarf: Primordial Soup – The Least Worst Scripts

1993 / Ebook / 176 pages / UK

****

Why didn't they publish all the scripts? It's better than nothing, and some of the changes from the page are interesting, even if you've seen the deleted scenes.

Peter Arnold, The Crystal Maze Puzzle Book

1994 / Ebook / 80 pages / UK

***

Repetitive variety of codes, riddles, wordsearches, mazes and other diversions to keep precocious '90s kids busy on Christmas morning, though sorely lacking in colour and roleplay.

Ranking the Ghost albums

I wasn't aware of all the contrived mystique and tomfoolery surrounding these retro weirdos until doing this, always being content with the audible gimmick. The Devil's always had the best tunes, but they were never this catchy.

Behold My Ye Top 5 Ghost Albums. That's right, I don't only like decrepit things.

Babyliography LXIII

Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, Tales from Acorn Wood: Hide-and-Seek Pig

2000 / Library book / 13 pages / UK/Germany

***

Where's Spot with better aesthetics and personality.

Unknown, Wipe-clean Under the Sea Activities

2021 / Wipe-clean activity book / 24 pages / UK

***

The second most appealing of these in the shop, it's largely the same as the unicorn one, but with more internal repetition. She bloody loves doing these, I expect I'll be comparing the whole set.

Unknown, Wipe-clean Dinosaur Activities

2021 / Wipe-clean activity book / 24 pages / UK

***

She chose dinos ahead of farm animals. Maybe she'll even like space one day! Years of unicorns, mermaids and princesses will ultimately be worth it.

Unknown, Mermaid Doll's House Sticker Book

2021 / Sticker book / 16 pages / UK

**

Saved for birthday filler, but not for long, forgetting her insatiable appetite for activities.

Julia Donaldson and Nick Sharratt, One Mole Digging a Hole

2008 / Children's Centre book / 22 pages / UK

**

Eternally useful counting revision, she recognised most of the critters, except when the rhyme required obscure ones like doves. Too good for pigeons or seagulls, are you?

Alrightgames: Honey Bee Tree

Honey Bee Tree

2005 / Stick-yanking gravity game / 2-4 players / UK

*

I think one of my brothers was gifted KerPlunk too far into the computer game era for it to ever do more than uselessly consume cupboard space. Finally getting around to playing a themed rip-off, I hadn't been missing anything. At least we have some bee toys and 'chopsticks' now.

Alrightgames: Glitter Fairies

Glitter Fairies

2006 / Collecting card game / 2-4 players / UK

****

I didn't expect this to be one of her more popular and playable games when I hesitated over suggesting it, even at £1. I get more out of it than some of my own games.

Babyliography LXII

Jack Kent, There's No Such Thing as a Dragon

1975 / Ebook / 23 pages / USA

*****

A core text of my own childhood picture book canon, she seemed to enjoy it too, even if it's not as ripe for roleplaying as Knuffle Bunny.

Yujin Shin, My Magical Rainbow

2021 / Library book / 10 pages

**

She doesn't always feel like reading. These are basically the adverts before library rhyme time.

Unknown, Wipe-clean Unicorn Activities

2021 / Wipe-clean activity book / 24 pages / UK

****

Repeatable puzzles and dexterity exercises jazzed up by magic horses. There were various themes to choose from, I needn't have bothered asking.

Natalia Moore, Stephanie Drake and Jenny Cox, Preschool Shapes Sticker Book

2021 / Sticker activity book / 18 pages / UK

**

The sticker part didn't last long. The shape templates will stubbornly hang around in the school supplies, whether they really get use or not.

Isabel Otter and Sophie Ledesma, Slide and Seek: Splish, Splash!

2021 / Library book / 12 pages / UK/France

**

She likes a good story, but flaps and sliders are the next most appealing things to grab after noisy books when she's filling time.

Alrightgames: Dinosaur Party Game

Dinosaur Party Game

Bingo card game / 2-4 players / UK

*

If it was a unicorn party, she might be duped into playing it more often. There isn't even any educational benefit and they don't even make good frisbees. I wonder if anyone's ever paid the £8.99 RRP and what genuine treats of equivalent value their children were denied.

Alrightgames: Gone Fishin'

Gone Fishin'

2015 / Electronic fishing game / 2-4 players / Canada

**

A less good technological complication of magnetic fishing, she was more annoyed than entertained until she got into its fiddly groove.

Babyliography LXI

Jo Moon, My Fun Learning: First Words

2022 / Board book / 24 pages / UK

***

She's already got a few of these, but I liked its categorisation now that we're starting Daddy School.

Unknown, Fairy Doll's House Sticker Book

2021 / Sticker book / 16 pages / UK

**

She likes arranging the doll's house at the Children's Centre, so here's a 99p version until your birthday.

Scott Barker, Letters, Words, and Numbers: Wipe-Clean Workbook

2022 / Wipe-clean workbook / 15 pages / UK

***

I might not agree with their delineation of fives or insistent use of the Oxford comma in preschool book titles, but they've made these engaging enough that she makes it through a few repetitive pages at a time.

Marion Cocklico, We're Going to the Doctor

2019 / Library book / 10 pages / UK/France

**

Oh, deal with it.

Steffie Brocoli and Catherine Bidet, Through the Forest

2016 / Ebook / 30 pages / France

****

A chill start on multiple-choice gamebooks. If we play it often enough, she might develop a lifelong aversion to the number 11.