When I was growing up, my mother used to take me to the library twice a week. As I result, I’ve got a vivid arsenal of memories of pictures from books – many of which we never owned, and that I have no record of.

For most of them, my memory of the title of the book is completely gone, sadly inaccessible, but if I catch of glimpse of a particular page (now particularly when reading to my own kids and also going to the library) – it all comes rushing back.

“The Elephant and the Bad Baby” by Elfrida Vipont and illustrated by Raymond Briggs (of “The Snowman” fame) is one of those books for me.

It’s a very English story with references to crisps, biscuits, buns and barrow boys, as the Elephant takes the Bad Baby on a tasty trip through a variety of shops. My favorite pages out of the book (and every page, to be honest, is good enough to eat!) is the last scene of his mother making pancakes (in this case, hers are thin, French-style crepes), with lemon and sugar as the perfect accompaniments.