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Jungle fun
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This is a very simple little jigsaw that was bought for my daughter on her first birthday. It is from Mothercare and costs £5 or £6 I believe, and is designed for 12 months and over.

This is a wooden jigsaw that features five jungle animals - giraffe, zebra, monkey, lion and elephant. The base of the jigsaw is plain wood, and the five animals each has a little 'handle' on the top so can be removed from the base with ease. Unlike a traditional jigsaw there are no pieces to slot together - instead the animals simply sit in the base and can be very easily removed even by tiny little hands.

Underneath each animal is the corresponding image which helps little ones put the pieces back in the right place, and the name of each animal is written besides its 'house'.

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A traditional look
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This is a really lovely looking jigsaw. I think wooden toys are lovely anyway as they seem much more traditional, and can be a welcome relief from all the brightly coloured plastic that toys are usually made from! It is very simple in its design, and while the base is plain the animals themselves are nice and brightly coloured, and they each look distinctive from the other. However it's very easy on the eye which I think is what makes it nice for young babies - there isn't too much going on here at all - just a nice simple design and some big chunky wooden pieces to play with, bash about and, hopefully, complete the puzzle with!

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Fun play
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My little girl liked this as soon as she got it, and she played with it on and off for many months. She enjoyed learning the names of the animals and was always pleased with herself once she learned how to master the art of completion!

Despite a fair amount of play, this looks as good as new without a scratch in it, so it's very durable.

The one thing I will say is that it isn't a toy that will get hours of use at a time. Rather it would get a few minutes here and there, so if you are looking for something to keep a young one busy for hours then this isn't the solution (but good luck with finding one if your child has an attention span anything like mine's!).

At three she is now far too old for this sadly, but she did use it until she discovered the world of excitement offered by two-piece jigsaws! However, baby number two is set to make an appearance next month so I'll be digging this out again no doubt!

For very young ones, I would recommend this jigsaw as it looks so nice, and has a real classic feel to it. You may not get hours and hours of use from it but it is a good price for something that looks so nice and is fun for little ones. It would make a lovely gift too!