LOWER SCHOOL READING LIST
Welcome …and so your reading adventure begins at RGS Library.
During your time at RGS you will be encouraged to read as widely as possible and explore different genres and writing styles.
When you arrive at RGS you will spend time in the library getting to know library staff and how the library is organised.
RGS Library has a huge collection of books in its library catalogue, and this can be viewed online . From September, you will be able to read ebooks and listen to audiobooks via the Wheelers eplatform, this means you will have access to books 24/7. We will show you how to download the app on your digital devices in your induction library sessions in September.
On The Lower School Reading List there are books we think are valuable to read as they are challenging in content, language and expression. The more you read the easier it will become to read at speed and express yourself fluently. It is a well-established academic fact that students who read widely and for pleasure achieve higher academic grades; it is for this reason that there is an expectation that you will read regularly for pleasure.
We look forward to seeing you in the RGS Library and remember, the library staff are here to help you find books that you enjoy.
Best wishes
Mrs Davida Hall Community Library Director
ADVENTURE
D-Day Dog by Tom Palmer
Jack can’t wait for the school trip to the D-Day landing beaches.
It’s his chance to learn more about the war heroes he has always admired - brave men like his dad, who is a reserve soldier. But when his dad is called up to action and things at home spiral out of control, everything Jack believes about war is thrown into question. Finding comfort only in the presence of his loyal dog, Finn, Jack is drawn to the heartwrenching true story of one particular D-Day paratrooper. On 6 June 1944, Emile Corteil parachuted into France with his dog, Glen - and Jack is determined to discover their fate ...
The Song Walker by Zillah Bethell
When a young girl wakes up in the middle of the desert, she has no idea who she is. She’s wearing one shoe, a silky black dress, and she’s carrying a strange, heavy case. She meets Tarni, who is on a mysterious quest of her own. Together, the two girls trek across the vast and ever-changing Australian Outback in search of answers. Except both are also hiding secrets. Carnegie Shortlist 2024.
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
There was a wild crashing sound, a ripping of metal, and the plane blew through the trees, out over the water and down, down to slam into the lake... Brian is a city boy, not used to living rough, until his plane crash-lands in the Canadian wilderness. All he has is a hatchet - and a desperate will to survive. Now Brian must learn to live the hard way - or die.
Voyage of the Sparrow Hawk by Natasha Farrant
In the aftermath of World War One, everyone is trying to rebuild their lives. If Ben is to avoid being sent back to the orphanage, he needs to find his brother Sam, wounded in action and is now missing. Lotti’s horrible aunt and uncle want to send her away to boarding school (when she has just successfully managed to get expelled from her last one!). And Clara, their young teacher, is waiting for news of her missing fiancé . . .Costa Children’s Book Award 2020
The Storm Begins by Damian Dibbon
Imagine if you lost your parents - not just in place, but in time. Jake Djones’ mum and dad have gone missing and they could be anywhere in the world - at any time in history. Because the Djones family have an astonishing secret, which for years they’ve managed to keep - even from each other. They belong to the HISTORY KEEPERS: a secret society which travels through the centuries to prevent evil enemies from meddling with History itself. In the quest to find his parents, Jake is whisked from 21st Century London to 19th century France, the headquarters of the mysterious History Keepers, where he discovers the truth about his family’s disappearance - and the diabolical Prince Zeldt’s plan to destroy the world as we know it . . ..The History Keepers series continues with “The Circus Maximus”.
Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz
In the first book in the number one bestselling Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz, fourteen-year-old Alex is forcibly recruited into MI6. Armed with secret gadgets, he is sent to investigate Herod Sayle, a man who is offering state-of-the-art Stormbreaker computers to every school in the country. Soon the teenage spy finds himself in mortal danger.
Safiyyah’s War by Hiba Noor Khan
War comes to the streets of Paris and Safiyyah’s life changes for ever. Her best friend’s family have fled, and the bombing makes her afraid to leave the mosque where she lives. But when her father is arrested by the Nazis for his secret Resistance work, it falls to Safiyyah to run the dangerous errands around the city. It’s not long before hundreds of persecuted Jews seek sanctuary at the mosque. Can Safiyyah find the courage to enter the treacherous catacombs under Paris and lead the Jews to safety? Carnegie Shortlist 2024.
H.I.V.E by Mark Walden
H.I.V.E. (Higher Institute of Villainous Education) is a top-secret school of applied villainy where children with a precocious gift for wrong doing are sent to develop their talents into criminal masterminds. One small catch is that the children cannot leave until training is complete, six years later. With villainy comes a certain freedom of thought, and every year one student in particular will show exceptional talent - after all, it takes the best to produce the worst. This year there are two students: Otto Malpense and his new friend Wing Fanchu are both exceptionally bad, and they are definitely not keen on being held against their will for six long years.
Swallows And Amazons by Arthur Ransome
John, Susan, Titty and Roger sail their boat, Swallow, to a deserted island for a summer camping trip. Exploring and playing sailors is an adventure in itself but the island holds more excitement in store. Two fierce Amazon Pirates, Nancy and Peggy, challenge them to war and a summer of battles and alliances ensues.
Frozen In Time by Ali Sparkes
1956. Freddy and Polly agree to be put into cryonic suspension in an experiment conducted by their father. 2009. Ben and Rachel find a hidden underground vault in the garden - and inside it the frozen figures of a boy and a girl. Can Polly and Freddy adapt to the 21st century? And what happened to their father?
Treasure
Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
In one of the greatest tales of adventure ever written, Jim Hawkins sets sail in search of Treasure Island. But on board ship, Jim discovers a mutinous plan, led by Long John Silver. Plunged into a world of swashbucklers, murderous pirates and deceit, Jim’s enduring story is an enthralling account of courage, guile and wit.
The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak (challenging read)
It is 1939. In Nazi Germany, the country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier - and will become busier still. By her brother’s graveside, Liesel’s life is changed forever when she picks up a single object, abandoned in the snow. It is The Gravedigger’s Handbook, and this is her first act of book thievery. So begins Liesel’s love affair with books and words, and soon she is stealing from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor’s wife’s library... wherever there are books to be found.
But these are dangerous times, and when Liesel’s foster family hides a Jew in their basement, nothing will ever be the same again.
Where the World Ends by Geraldine McCaughrean
Every summer Quill and his friends are put ashore on a remote sea stac to hunt birds. This summer, no one arrives to take them home. Surely nothing but the end of the world can explain why they’ve been abandoned - cold, starving and clinging to life, in the grip of a murderous ocean. How will they survive? Winner of the Carnegie Medal 2018.
Across the Risen Sea by Bren MacDibble
Neoma and Jag and their small community are ‘living gentle lives’ on high ground surrounded by the risen sea that has caused widespread devastation. When strangers from the Valley of the Sun arrive unannounced, the friends find themselves drawn into a web of secrecy and lies that endangers their whole way of life. Soon, daring, loyal Neoma must set off on a solo mission across the risen sea, determined to rescue her best friend and find the truth that will save her village.
Bodyguard:Hostage by Chris Bradford
With the rise of teen stars, the intense media focus on celeb families and a new wave of billionaires, adults are no longer the only target for hostage-taking, blackmail and assassination - kids are too.
That’s why they need a young bodyguard like Connor Reeves to protect them. Recruited into the ranks of a covert young bodyguard squad, 14-year-old Connor Reeves embarks on a rigorous close protection course. Training in surveillance, anti-ambush exercises, hostage survival and unarmed combat, he’s put through his paces and wonders if he will actually survive the course. But when the US President summons Connor to protect his impulsive teenage daughter, Connor’s training is put to the ultimate test.
MYSTERY
The Highland Falcon Thief (Adventure on Trains Series) by M.G. Leonard
Is he a girl? Is she a boy? Sam’s brilliant disguise takes comic literature to new heights. Matthew Burton’s life has been fine until his American cousin crashlands into it. Sam was only ever a distant rumour, a hippy kid who travels around the States with his wacky mother. Now he’s an orphan, dumped suddenly on the Burtons’ doorstep. According to Sam, everything in England sucks, and pretty soon he’s making trouble for Matthew and his friends. They want revenge - and Operation Samantha is born. For Sam - small, long-haired and blond - is the perfect secret weapon in the war at school between the boys and a gang of snooty girls
High Rise Mystery by Sharna Jackson
The detective duo everyone is dying to meet. Summer in London is hot, the hottest on record, and there’s been a murder in THE TRI: the high-rise home to resident know-it-alls, Nik and Norva. Who better to solve the case? Armed with curiosity, home-turf knowledge and unlimited time - until the end of the summer holidays anyway.
Framed by Frank Cottrell Boyce
Dylan is the only boy living in the tiny Welsh town of Manod. His parents run the Snowdonia Oasis Auto Marvel garage - and when he’s not trying to persuade his sisters to play football, Dylan is in charge of the petrol log. And that means he gets to keep track of everyone coming in and out of Manod - what car they drive, what they’re called, even their favourite flavour of crisps. But when a mysterious convoy of lorries trundles up the misty mountainside towards an old, disused mine, even Dylan is confounded. Who are these people - and what have they got to hide?
Ajay And The Mumbai Sun by Varsha Shah
Abandoned on the Mumbai railways, Ajay has grown up with nothing but a burning wish to be a journalist. Finding an abandoned printing press, he and his friends Saif, Vinod, Yasmin and Jai create their own newspaper: ‘The Mumbai Sun.’ As they hunt down stories for their paper, the children uncover corruption, fight for justice and battle to save their slum from bulldozers. But against some of the most powerful forces in the city, can Ajay and his friends really succeed in bringing the truth to light? Not to mention win the most important cricket match ever.
Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart
When a peculiar advertisement appears in the newspaper for children to take part in a secret mission, children everywhere sit a series of mysterious tests. In the end, just four children succeed: Reynie, Kate, Sticky and Constance. They have three things in common: they are all honest, all remarkably talented and all orphans. They must go undercover at the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened where the only rule is that there are no rules. There they must work as a team to save not only themselves, but also the world outside the walls.
Portraits and Poisons by J.T. Williams
Lizzie Sancho and Dido Belle have formed a detective agency - and it’s time for their toughest challenge yet! Georgian London is plagued by a series of mysterious thefts and sinister poisonings. Lizzie and Belle must use all their daring detective skills to find out who is behind the crimes and bring them to justice. The clock is ticking.
Twitch by Leonard, M. G
Twitch has three pet chickens, four pigeons, swallows nesting in his bedroom and a passion for birdwatching. On the first day of the summer holidays, he arrives at his secret hide to find police everywhere: a convicted robber has broken out of prison and is hiding in Aves Wood. Can Twitch use his talents for birdwatching to hunt for the dangerous prisoner and find the missing loot?
Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens
At Deepdean School for Girls, Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong have set up their own detective agency. But they are struggling to find any real crimes to investigate. (Unless you count the case of Lavinia’s missing tie). Then Hazel discovers the Science Mistress, Miss Bell, lying dead in the Gym. To add to the mystery, when she and Daisy return five minutes later, the body has disappeared. Now Hazel and Daisy not only have a murder to solve: they have to prove one happened in the first place.
Hacker by Malorie Blackman
When Vicky’s father is arrested, accused of stealing over a million pounds from the bank where he works, she is determined to prove his innocence. But how? There’s only one way - to attempt to break into the bank’s computer files. Even if Vicky is the best hacker in the world, will she find the real thief before they find her?
Vango by Timothee de Fombelle (challenging read)
Raised by a strange nanny in Sicily, Vango grows up with one friend, a priest, Zefiro, who lives in a monastery hidden from sight. On reaching adulthood, Vango decides to follow in Zefiro’s steps, but at the moment he is taking his holy orders at Notre Dame in Paris, he is falsely accused of a crime and has to go on the run. This is a breathless and highly cinematic story that follows Vango travelling by Zeppelin across Europe from Stromboli to Nazi Germany, from Scotland to the Soviet Union, climbing the rooftops of Paris, crossing the paths of arms traffickers, crooked policemen, Russian spies and even Stalin.
ANIMALS
The Last Wild by Piers Torday
Kester lives in a land in quarantine. A deadly virus has killed all the animals except pests and it’s expected to be equally dangerous to humans. But when Kester realises he can talk to the pests, he finds they have great hope invested in him. A captivating animal adventure.
The Girl Who Stole an Elephant by Nizrana Farook Chaya, a no-nonsense, outspoken hero, leads her friends and a gorgeous elephant on a noisy, fraught, joyous adventure through the jungle where revolution is stirring and leeches lurk.
Will stealing the queen’s jewels be the beginning or the end of everything for the intrepid gang.
The Girl who Speaks Bear by Sophie Anderson
Found abandoned in a bear cave as a baby, Yanka has always wondered about where she is from. She tries to ignore the strange whispers and looks from the villagers, wishing she was as strong on the inside as she is on the outside. But, when she has to flee her house, looking for answers about who she really is, a journey far beyond one that she ever imagined begins: from icy rivers to smouldering mountains, meeting an ever-growing herd of extraordinary friends along the way. Shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal 2021.
The White Giraffe by Lauren St John
When she is eleven years old, Martine is orphaned and sent to live with her grandmother on a game reserve in South Africa. Her grandmother seems strangely unwelcoming and Martine has a difficult time settling in at her new school, where she is conspicuously an outsider. But she has an ally in Tendai - one of the keepers on the reserve, from whom she learns the lore and survival techniques of the bush, and in Grace - who instantly senses there is something special about Martine. There are secrets about Sawubona (the reserve) just waiting to be revealed, and rumours too about a fabled white giraffe - a trophy for hunters everywhere. One night Martine looks out of her window and sees a young albino giraffe. This is the beginning of her mysterious and magical adventures.
Into the Wild (Warrior Cats series) by Erin Hunter
When Rusty is ambushed by a mysterious pack of wild cats living beyond his garden it’s the start of his adventures. As four tribes prepare to defend their territory, Rusty joins ThunderClan and becomes Firepaw, apprentice warrior. But will he be strong enough to survive the battles ahead?.
Swan Song by Gill Lewis (dyslexia friendly)
Dylan is struggling. Since he started high school, everything has become too much to handle. Now he’s been expelled and is forced to move to the tiny village in Wales where his grandad lives. But when Grandad invites Dylan out on his boat to watch the Whooper swans return to their winter feeding ground, things begin to change. Out on the water, with no distractions or pressure, Dylan begins to feel like himself again. But when tragedy strikes, can Dylan keep going when it feels like everything is slipping out of control again?
Call of the Wild by Jack London
The story is set in the Yukon during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush - a period when strong sled dogs were in high demand. The novel’s central character is a dog named Buck, a domesticated dog living at a ranch in the Santa Clara valley of California when the story opens. Stolen from his home and sold into the brutal existence of an Alaskan sled dog, he reverts to atavistic traits. Buck is forced to adjust to, and survive, cruel treatments and fight to dominate other dogs in a harsh climate. Eventually he sheds the veneer of civilization, relying on primordial instincts and lessons he learns, to emerge as a leader in the wild.
My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell
Escaping the ills of the British climate, the Durrell family - acne-ridden Margo, gun-toting Leslie, bookworm Lawrence and budding naturalist Gerry, along with their long-suffering mother and Roger the dog - take off for the island of Corfu. But the Durrells find that, reluctantly, they must share their various villas with a menagerie of local fauna - among them scorpions, geckos, toads, bats and butterflies.
Pax by Sara Pennypacker
Pax was only a kit when his family was killed and he was rescued by ‘his boy’, Peter. Now the country is at war and when his father enlists, Peter has no choice but to move in with his grandfather. Far worse than leaving home is the fact that he has to leave Pax behind. But before Peter spends even one night under his grandfather’s roof he sneaks out into the night, determined to find his beloved friend. This is the story of Peter, Pax, and their journeys back to each other as war rampages throughout the country.
Pony by R.J. Palacio
When Silas Bird wakes in the dead of night, he watches powerlessly as three strangers take his father away. Silas is left shaken, scared and alone, except for the presence of his companion, Mittenwool - who happens to be a ghost. But then a mysterious pony shows up at his door, and Silas knows what he has to do. So begins a perilous journey to find his father - a journey that will connect him with his past, his future, and the unknowable world around him.
The Bomber Dog by Megan Rix
GREY is just a puppy when he arrives at the War Dog Training school.
NATHAN, his trainer, is a brave young soldier.
WOLF is a war dog who’s seen it all.
Grey and Nathan soon become inseparable. Until the day a parachute jump goes tragically wrong . . . As the Second World War rages, Grey faces his most important mission yet: to find his best friend. With Wolf at his side, he must journey across France and behind enemy lines. His path is fraught with danger.
Can he reach Nathan before it’s too late?
Not the End of the World by Geraldine McCaughrean
Everyone knows the story of the Ark. The flood rising, the animals entering two by two. Noah. But what about the women and children? Did they accept all Noah’s orders to ignore their friends and neighbours struggling in the water/ When Timna does the unthinkable - when she defies her father and saves a life - she knows her fearful secret may bring death and disaster on board. If it does, one thing is certain. They’ll be nowhere to run.....
AROUND THE WORLD
AFRICA: ETHIOPIA The Fastest Boy in the World by Elizabeth Laird
Eleven-year-old Solomon loves to run! The great athletes of the Ethiopian national team are his heroes and he dreams that one day he will be a gold-medal-winning athlete like them. When his grandfather announces that he’s going to take Solomon to Addis Ababa, Solomon cannot believe his ears. Solomon’s joy is increased when he realizes that the Ethiopian running team will be doing a victory parade through the city that day. But Solomon’s grandfather has other plans. As Solomon follows him through the big, overwhelming streets, he learns something he cannot believe. The strict old man is a war hero who once risked his life to save a friend and has been in hiding ever since. When grandfather collapses, Solomon knows that his grandfather’s life hangs in the balance. Can the small bare-footed runner with the big heart do it?
AFRICA: SOUTH AFRICA - Journey to Jo’Burg by Beverley Naidoo
This is a story of love, commitment and the flowering of the human spirit against the background of South Africa’s apartheid. Frightened that their baby sister Dineo will die, thirteen-year-old Naledi and her younger brother Tiro run away from their grandmother to Johannesburg to find their mother, who works there as a maid. Their journey illustrates at every turn the grim realities of apartheid - the pass laws, bantustans, racism, the breakdown of family life. The opulence of the white “Madam’s” house contrasts starkly with the reality that Naledi and Tiro face - that their baby sister is suffering from starvation, not an incurable disease.
AMERICA - Some Place More Than Others by Renee Watson
All Amara wants for her birthday is to visit her father’s family in New York City--Harlem, to be exact. She can’t wait to finally meet her Grandpa Earl and cousins in person, and to stay in the brownstone where her father grew up. But New York City is not exactly what Amara thought it would be. It’s crowded, with confusing subways, suffocating sidewalks, and her father is too busy with work to spend time with her and too angry to spend time with Grandpa Earl. As she explores, asks questions, and learns more and more about Harlem and about her father and his family history, she realises how, in some ways more than others, she connects with him, her home, and her family.
AMERICA - Holes by Louis Sachar
Stanley Yelnats’ family has a history of bad luck, so when a miscarriage of justice sends him to Camp Green Lake Juvenile Detention Centre (which isn’t green and doesn’t have a lake) he is not surprised. Every day he and the other inmates are told to dig a hole, five foot wide by five foot deep, reporting anything they find. Why? The evil warden claims that it’s character building, but this is a lie. It’s up to Stanley to dig up the truth.
THE ARCTIC - Race to the Frozen North by Catherine Johnson
Matthew Henson was simply an ordinary man. That was, until Commander Robert E. Peary entered his life, and offered him a chance at true adventure. Henson would become navigator, craftsman, translator, and right-hand man on a treacherous journey to the North Pole. Defying the odds and the many prejudices that faced him to become a true pioneer. This is his incredible and often untold story. Barrington Stoke - Super Readable.
THE ARCTIC - Soonchild by Russell Hoban
Somewhere in the Arctic Circle, Sixteen-Face John, a shaman, learns that his first child, a soonchild, cannot hear the World Songs from her mother’s womb. The World Songs are what inspire all newborns to come out into the world, and John must find them for her. But how? The answer takes him through many lifetimes and many shape-shifts, as well as encounters with beasts, demons and a mysterious benevolent owl spirit, Ukpika, who is linked to John’s past.
CASIA: AFGHANISTAN - The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis
Afghanistan: Parvana’s father is arrested and taken away by Taliban soldiers. Under Taliban law, women and girls are not allowed to leave the house on their own. Parvana, her mother, and sisters are prisoners in their own home. With no man to go out to buy food, they face starvation. So Parvana must pretend to be a boy to save her family. It is a dangerous plan, but their only chance. In fear, she goes out - and witnesses the horror of landmines, the brutality of the Taliban, and the desperation of a country trying to survive. But even in despair lies hope.
ASIA: CHINA - The Kite Rider by Geraldine McCaughrean
Haoyou knows that his father’s spirit lives among the clouds above Ancient China. He also knows that to save his mother from being forced into a new marriage he must now follow in his father’s footsteps and take to the skies, riding a kite through the clouds and the spirits of the dead. Then the Jade Circus offers him a chance to escape his enemies and travel throughout the empire, and maybe even perform before Kublai Khan himself. But is going with the circus really the best option? Could the circus master be leading him into even greater danger?
ASIA: HIMALAYAS Asha and the Spirit Bird by Jasbinder Bilan
Asha lives in the foothills of the Himalayas. Money is tight and she misses her papa who works in the city. When he suddenly stops sending his wages, a ruthless moneylender ransacks their home and her mother talks of leaving. From her den in the mango tree, Asha makes a pact with her best friend, Jeevan, to find her father and make things right. The journey is dangerous: they must cross the world’s highest mountains and face hunger, tiredness – even snow leopards. And yet, Asha has the unshakeable sense that the spirit bird of her grandmother – her nanijee – is watching over her ... Winner of the Costa Children’s Book Award 2019, Longlisted Jhalak Prize 2020.
ASIA: INDIA The Midnight Palace by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
The book begins with a chase through the streets of Calcutta in May 1916. Lieutenant Peake pauses for breath outside the ruins of the Jheeter’s Gate station knowing that he only has a few hours to live. Inside his overcoat he is sheltering two newborn babiestwins, a boy and a girl. Pursued by his would-be assassins, Peake runs at full tilt to the house of Aryami Bose, to whom he entrusts the children. In 1932 we meet the boy, Ben, and his group of friends the night before they are due to leave St Patricks orphanage. They have formed a secret club, The Chowbar Society, that meets each week at midnight in the old ruin they have christened The Midnight Palace. As the novel unfolds, there is more to this story than meets the eye and they are lured by a shadowy figure from the past into a final showdown in the ruins.
ASIA-NEPAL - The Everest Files by Matt Dickinson
A thrilling journey to the dark side of Everest in the deepest Himalaya a story is spreading like wildfire. The story of an Everest expedition unlike any other. An expedition that ended in lies, betrayal, mysterious disappearances - and death. At the heart of it allrumours of dark forces at play. This is the mystery that eighteen-year-old Ryan Hart sets out to solve. Ryan is on a gap year adventure, working for a medical charity in Nepal. In his own words he is ‘up for anything’ and when a local girl begs him to investigate why her sixteen-year-old friend Kami never came back from Everest, Ryan cannot resist the challenge.
ASIA: RUSSIA - The Wolf Wilder by Katherine Rundell
Feodora and her mother live in the snowbound woods of Russia, in a house full of food and fireplaces. Ten minutes away, in a ruined chapel, lives a pack of wolves. Feodora’s mother is a wolf wilder, and Feo is a wolf wilder in training. A wolf wilder is the opposite of an animal tamer: it is a person who teaches tamed animals to fend for themselves, and to fight and to run, and to be wary of humans. When the murderous hostility of the Russian Army threatens her very existence, Feo is left with no option but to go on the run. What follows is a story of revolution and adventure, about standing up for the things you love and fighting back. And, of course, wolves.
ASIA: SYRIA - Welcome to Nowhere by Elizabeth Laird
Twelve-year-old Omar and his brothers and sisters were born and raised in the beautiful and bustling city of Bosra, Syria. Omar doesn’t care about politics - all he wants is to grow up to become a successful businessman who will take the world by storm. But when his clever older brother, Musa, gets mixed up with some young political activists, everything changes . . .Before long, bombs are falling, people are dying, and Omar and his family have no choice but to flee their home with only what they can carry. Yet no matter how far they run, the shadow of war follows them - until they have no other choice than to attempt the dangerous journey to escape their homeland altogether. But where do you go when you can’t go home?
AUSTRALIA - Crow Country by Kate Constable
Sadie isn’t thrilled when her mother drags her from the city to live in the country town of Boort. But soon she starts making connections - connections with the country, with the past, with two boys, Lachie and Walter, and, most surprisingly, with the ever-present crows. When Sadie is tumbled back in time to view a terrible crime, she is pulled into a strange mystery. Can Sadie, Walter and Lachie figure out a way to right old wrongs, or will they be condemned to repeat them?
AUSTRALIA - Into that Forest by Louis Nowra
Moving, shocking and wonderful in equal measures. We were lost, and the only thing that could help us were the tigers. The more I looked at its black eyes, the more I seen kindness, and I knew it were saying to us, Come, I’ll take you home. This is the story of two girls lost in the Tasmanian bush, saved and raised by two Tasmanian tigers. Unforgettable, original and vivid in its composition, Louis Nowra is one of Australia’s foremost literary talents.
EUROPE: GREECE - Medusa by Jessie Burton
Exiled to a far-flung island by the whims of the gods, Medusa has little company except the snakes that adorn her head instead of hair. But when a charmed, beautiful boy called Perseus arrives on the island, her lonely existence is disrupted with the force of a supernova, unleashing desire, love and betrayal.
EUROPE: GERMANY - Auslander by Paul Dowswell
When Peter’s parents are killed, he is sent to an orphanage in Warsaw. German soldiers take him away to be measured and assessed. They decide that Peter is racially valuable. He is Volks-deutscher: of German blood. With his blond hair, blue eyes, and acceptably proportioned head, he looks like the boy on the Hitler-Jugend poster. Someone important will want to adopt Peter. They do. Professor Kaltenbach is pleased to welcome such a fine Aryan specimen to his household. People will be envious. But Peter is not quite the specimen they think. He is forming his own ideas about what he is seeing, what he is told. He doesn’t want to be a Nazi, and so he is going to take a very dangerous risk.
EUROPE: FINLAND - Wilderness by Roddy Doyle
A novel of mothers lost and found, Wilderness is part roaring adventure, part family drama - with a charm that’s all Roddy Doyle’s. While Tom and Johnny are on a husky safari in Finland, their half-sister Grainne stays behind to face the mother who abandoned her. Tom and Johnny are too caught up in their adventure to think of home - until they find themselves lost in the snow, in a desperate struggle for survival.
EUROPE: FRANCE - The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
Twelve-year-old Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. When his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric girl and her grandfather, Hugo’s undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy. A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message from Hugo’s dead father form the backbone of this intricate, tender, and spellbinding mystery.
PACIFIC OCEAN - Kensuke’s Kingdom by Michael Morpurgo
I disappeared on the night before my twelfth birthday. Washed up on an island in the Pacific, Michael struggles to survive on his own. With no food and no water, he curls up to die. When he wakes, there is a plate beside him of fish, of fruit, and a bowl of fresh water. He is not alone.
SOUTH AMERICA - Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson
It is 1910 and Maia, tragically orphaned at thirteen, has been sent from England to start a new life with distant relatives in Manaus, hundreds of miles up the Amazon. She is accompanied by an eccentric and mysterious governess who has secret reasons of her own for making the journey. Both soon discover an exotic world bursting with new experiences in Journey to the River Sea, Eva Ibbotson’s highly colourful, joyous adventure.
SOUTH AMERICA: THE AMAZON - The Explorer by Katherine Rundell
From his seat in the tiny aeroplane, Fred watches as the mysteries of the Amazon jungle pass by below him. He has always dreamed of becoming an explorer, of making history and of reading his name amongst the lists of great discoveries. If only he could land and look about him. As the plane crashes into the canopy, Fred is suddenly left without a choice. He and the three other children may be alive, but the jungle is a vast, untamed place. With no hope of rescue, the chance of getting home feels impossibly small. Except, it seems, someone has been there before them.
FRIENDSHIP & FAMILY
The Bone Sparrow by Zara Fraillon
Born in a refugee camp, all Subhi knows of the world is that he’s at least 19 fence diamonds high, the nice Jackets never stay long, and at night he dreams that the sea finds its way to his tent, bringing with it unusual treasures. And one day it brings him Jimmie Carrying a notebook that she’s unable to read and wearing a sparrow made out of bone around her neck - both talismans of her family’s past and the mother she’s lost - Jimmie strikes up an unlikely friendship with Subhi, beyond the fence. As he reads aloud the tale of how Jimmie’s family came to be, both children discover the importance of their own stories in writing their futures.
Shortlisted for the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize and Carnegie Medal 2017
War Horse by Michael Morpurgo
In the deadly chaos of the First World War, one horse witnesses the reality of battle from both sides of the trenches. Bombarded by artillery, with bullets knocking riders from his back, Joey tells a powerful story of the truest friendships surviving in terrible times. One horse has seen the best and the worst of humanity, the power of war and the beauty of peace. This is his story..
Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk
Annabelle has lived in Wolf Hollow all her life: a quiet place, still scarred by two world wars. When cruel, manipulative Betty arrives in town, Annabelle’s calm world is shattered, along with everything she’s ever known about right and wrong. After Betty disappears, suspicion falls on strange, gentle loner Toby. As Wolf Hollow turns against him, and tensions quickly mount, Annabelle must do everything in her power to protect Toby - and to find Betty, before it is too late.
Chinglish by Sue Cheung
It’s 1984. Jo Kwan’s family has just moved to a new town to live in a cramped flat above their Chinese takeaway. Things are seriously awkward, whether Jo’s dealing with annoying siblings, school bullies, friendship dramas, fashion disasters or some very unlucky pets. Life is often hilarious, frequently confusing and sometimes just makes Jo want to stick drawing pins in her eyes. As her home life with her erratic parents gets ever tougher, she dreams of breaking free to become an artist. Can Jo get through her crazy teenage years? Empathy Lab 2021 - Secondary List. Winner - The Diverse Book Awards YA Longlist 2020.
The Climbers by Keith Gray
When Sully’s status is challenged by new kid Nottingham, the only way to prove who’s best is a race to climb the unnamed tree. In this compelling story of teenage rivalry and friendship, award-winner Keith Gray captures the subtle agonies and reality of life growing up in a small town.
The House of Clouds by Lisa Thompson
Tabby’s fed up. Fed up with losing her best friend and fed up that Grandad has come to stay. Grandad’s always telling the same old silly, made-up stories and now Tabby has to walk his smelly dog Buster every day after school. When one of Tabby’s walks takes her to a lonely hilltop house she spots something strange going on. So strange she can’t help but mention it to Grandad who of course turns it all into another fantasy. But when tragedy strikes, Tabby’s left wondering if Grandad’s impossible story could be true? A poignant and uplifting story of family, connection and imagination, from the Blue Peter Book Award shortlisted author of Owen and the Soldier.
Zebra Crossing Soul Song by Sita Brahmachari
Leny has spent most of his life at the zebra crossing, and for many of those years Otis, the singing ‘zebra man’ has helped him on his way. But when Otis’ sad past comes back to haunt him, Lenny is forced to face his crossroads alone. Only by examining the memories of their friendship can Lenny discover the truth.
When Life Gives You Mangoes by
Kereen Getten
Nothing much happens in Sycamore, the small village where Clara lives. She loves eating ripe mangoes fallen from trees, running outside in the rainy season and escaping to her secret hideout with her best friend Gaynah. There’s only one problem - she can’t remember anything that happened last summer.
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (deals with bereavement)
The monster showed up just after midnight. As they do. But it isn’t the monster Conor’s been expecting. He’s been expecting the one from his nightmare, the one he’s had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments, the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming... The monster in his back garden, though, this monster is something different. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor. It wants the truth. Darkly mischievous and painfully funny, A Monster Calls is an extraordinarily moving novel of coming to terms with loss from two of our finest writers for young adults.
Skellig by David Almond
Michael can feel his sick baby sister’s heart beating inside him, and as long as he can feel it he knows she is alive. But as her condition becomes life-threatening and the family faces the nightmare of an operation to save her life, Michael turns to his new friend Mina and the strange being, Skellig, who has been living beneath the crumbling garage at the family’s new home.
Abomination by Robert Swindells
Martha is twelve - and very different from other kids, because of her parents. Strict members of a religious group - the Brethren - their rules dominate Martha’s life. And one rule is the most important of all: she must never ever invite anyone home. If she does, their shameful secret - Abomination - could be revealed. But as Martha makes her first real friend in Scott, a new boy at school, she begins to wonder. Is she doing the right thing by helping to keep Abomination a secret? And just how far will her parents go to prevent the truth from being known?
Wonder by R.J. Palacio
The story of ten-year-old August Pullman, an ordinary boy with an extraordinary face, and the way he changes the lives and the perspectives of everyone around him. The most poignant, moving and heartwarming tale you will read this year; a book to devour in one sitting and press urgently into the hands of your friends and family.
Carrie’s War by Nina Bawden
It is the Second World War and Carrie and Nick are evacuated from London to a small town in Wales, where they are placed with strict Mr Evans and his timid mouse of a sister. Their friend Albert is luckier, living in Druid’s Bottom with Hepzibah Green who tells wonderful stories, and the strange Mister Johnny, who speaks a language all of his own. Carrie and Nick are happy to visit Albert there, until one day when Carrie does a terrible thing - the worst thing she ever did in her life...
The Railway Children by E. Nesbit
This classic tale recounts the adventures of three children who strike up a friendship with the stationmaster of the nearby railway station.
FANTASY
Wizards
of
Once by Cressida Cowell
The story of a young boy Wizard and a young girl Warrior, taught since birth to hate each other like poison; and the thrilling tale of what happens when their two worlds collide. Once there was Magic, and the Magic lived in the dark forests. Until the Warriors came... Xar is a Wizard boy who has no Magic and will do anything to get it. Wish is a Warrior girl, but she owns a banned Magical Object, and she will do anything to conceal it. In this whirlwind adventure, Xar and Wish must forget their differences if they’re going to make it to the dungeons at Warrior Fort where something that has been sleeping for hundreds of years is stirring.
Rumaysa by Radiya Hafiza
“Rumaysa, Rumaysa, let down your hijab!” For as long as she can remember Rumaysa has been locked away in her tower, forced to spin straw into gold for the evil witch, unable to leave. Until one day, after dropping a hijab out of her small tower-window, Rumaysa realizes how she might be able to escape.
Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve
In a dangerous future, huge motorised cities hunt, attack and fight each other for survival. As London pursues a small town, young apprentice Tom is flung out into the wastelands, where a terrifying cyborg begins to hunt him down.
The Lion, Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S Lewis
Four adventurous siblings, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie, step through a wardrobe door and into the land of Narnia, a land frozen in eternal winter and enslaved by the power of the White Witch. When almost all hope is lost, the return of the Great Lion, Aslan, signals a great change... and a great sacrifice.
Maze Runner by James Dashner
When the doors of the lift crank open, the only thing Thomas remembers is his first name. But he’s not alone. He’s surrounded by boys who welcome him to the Glade, a walled encampment at the centre of a bizarre & terrible stone maze. Like Thomas, the Gladers don’t know why or how they came to be there - or what’s happened to the world outside.
The Griffin Gate by Vashti Hardy
“Warden Griffin at your service. Can I ask if you’ve seen a monster in the area ...?” Grace’s family are wardens of the Griffin Map, using its teleport technology to fight crime across Moreland. Although Grace is still too young, she longs to go on missions herself. After all, if her brother, Bren, can do it, why can’t she? So when Grace finds herself alone with the map when a distress call comes in, she jumps at the chance to prove she’s up to the task. But the map transports Grace to a remote village where nothing is quite as it seems ... Has she taken on more than she can handle? Be transported to a world like no other in this steampunk, fantasy adventure with family at its heart from Blue Peter Book Award-winner Vashti Hardy.
The Girl of Ink and Stars by Kiran Millwood-Hargrave Forbidden to leave her island, Isabella dreams of the faraway lands her cartographer father once mapped. When her friend disappears, she volunteers to guide the search. The world beyond the walls is a monster-filled wasteland - and beneath the dry rivers and smoking mountains, a fire demon is stirring from its sleep. Soon, following her map, her heart and an ancient myth, Isabella discovers the true end of her journey: to save the island itself. Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2017, British Book Awards Children’s Book of the Year, Shortlisted for the Bradford Boase Award and Jhalak Prize.
Northern Lights by Philip Pullman
“Without this child, we shall all die.” Lyra Belacqua and her animal daemon live half-wild and carefree among scholars of Jordan College, Oxford. The destiny that awaits her will take her to the frozen lands of the Arctic, where witch-clans reign and ice-bears fight. Her extraordinary journey will have immeasurable consequences far beyond her own world.
Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
No scheme is too dastardly, no plot too devious. He’s just discovered that fairies are real. These are not the cuddly creatures of bedtime stories. They are armed. They are dangerous. And when Artemis captures Captain Holly Short for her fairy gold, he messes with the wrong elf. Holly isn’t armed but she’s incredibly dangerous, and pretty annoyed with all the kidnapping. Artemis Fowl is about to find out that fairies fight back.
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle
In this novel Charles goes searching for his lost father through a wrinkle in time with his sister Meg and friend Calvin. They find themselves on an evil planet, where all life is ruled by a huge, pulsating brain known as IT. Also available as a graphic novel.
The House with Chicken Legs by Sophie Anderson
Marinka dreams of a normal life, where her house stays somewhere long enough for her to make friends. But her house has chicken legs and moves on without warning. The only people Marinka meets are dead; they disappear when her grandmother, Baba Yaga, guides them through The Gate. Marinka wants to change her destiny, but her house has other ideas. Carnegie Shortlist 2019.
Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy
Stephanie’s uncle Gordon is a writer of horror fiction. When he dies and leaves her his estate, Stephanie learns that while he may have written horror, it certainly wasn’t fiction. Pursued by evil forces intent on recovering a mysterious key, Stephanie finds help from an unusual source the wisecracking skeleton of a dead wizard. When all hell breaks loose, it’s lucky for Skulduggery that he’s already dead. Though he’s about to discover that being a skeleton doesn’t stop you from being tortured, if the torturer is determined enough.
Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
Meggie loves stories, but her father, Mo, hasn’t read to her since her mother disappeared. When a stranger knocks at their door, Mo is forced to reveal an extraordinary secretwhen he reads aloud, words come alive, and dangerous characters step out of the pages. Suddenly Meggie is living the kind of adventure she has only read about in books, but this one will change her life for ever.
Queen of the Silver Arrow by Caroline Lawrence
Few have ever seen her, but all of Laurentum knows the story of Camilla - tied to a spear and thrown across a river by her father as he fled for his life. The Goddess Diana saved the baby, and now it is Camilla’s turn to save Laurentum as the Trojans march on the town. But Camilla is a wild girl from the forest, not the Amazon they imagine, and so Acca must step in to help her new friend adjust to the great destiny before her.
Animal Farm by George Orwell (challenging read)
Mr Jones of Manor Farm is so lazy and drunken that one day he forgets to feed his livestock. The ensuing rebellion under the leadership of the pigs Napoleon and Wellington leads to the animals taking over the farm. Vowing to eliminate the terrible inequities of the farmyard, the renamed Animal Farm is organized to benefit all who walk on four legs. As time passes, the ideals of the rebellion are corrupted, then forgotten. And something new and unexpected emerges. Animal Farm, the history of a revolution that went wrong is George Orwell’s brilliant satire on the corrupting influence of power.
Grimm Tales by Philip Pullman (challenging read)
In this stunningly designed book of classic fairy tales, award-winning author Philip Pullman has chosen his fifty favourite stories from the Brothers Grimm and presents them in a ‘clear as water’ retelling, in his unique and brilliant voice. These new versions show the adventures at their most lucid and engaging yet. Pullman’s Grimm Tales of wicked wives, brave children and villainous kings will have you reading, reading aloud and rereading them for many years to come.
GHOST STORIES
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
When a baby escapes a murderer intent on killing the entire family, who would have thought it would find safety and security in the local graveyard? Brought up by the resident ghosts, ghouls and spectres, Bod has an eccentric childhood learning about life from the dead. For Bod there is also the danger of the murderer still looking for him - after all, he is the last remaining member of the family. A stunningly original novel deftly constructed over eight chapters, featuring every second year of Bod’s life, from babyhood to adolescence. Will Bod survive to be a man?
Doll Bones by Holly Black
Twelve-year-old Zach is too old to play with toys. Or at least, that’s what his father thinks. But even though he stops hanging out with Poppy and Alice, stops playing with his action figures, it’s no good. There’s one toy that still wants to play with him. A doll that’s made from the bones of a dead girl.
The only way to end the game is to lay the doll to rest forever. It’s time for a journey to Spring Grove cemetery. It’s time to grow up.
The Ghost Box by Catherine Fisher
Sarah finds herself responsible for freeing the soul of a frustrated ghost, who will punish her severely if she fails. Everything depends on her unlocking the strange silver box that appeared in her room one night. But will freeing the ghost turn out to be a huge mistake? And why is Matt, her weird Goth stepbrother, so interested in the box? Supernatural tale that will make readers want to leave the light on...
Still Water by Chris Priestley
Evacuated from London at the outbreak of war, Rosie is taken in by kind Mrs Taylor and her daughter Mary. But all is not as it seems. Mary resents and bullies Rosie, and Mrs Taylor is hiding a dark secret. When Rosie comes across a strange girl swimming in a local pond, she hopes they will become friends. But instead her appearance leads to a horrifying revelation that will have terrifying consequences...
Cirque Du Freak (The Saga of Darren Shan Book 1) by Darren Shan
The chilling Saga of Darren Shan, the ordinary schoolboy plunged into the vampire world. Darren goes to a banned freak show with his best mate Steve. It’s the wonderfully gothic Cirque Du Freak where weird, frightening half human/half animals appear who interact terrifyingly with the audience. Darren – a spider freak – ‘falls in love’ with Madam Octa – an enormous tarantula owned by Mr Crepsley. Darren determines to steal the spider so that he can train it to perform amazing deeds. But his daring theft goes horribly wrong and Darren finds himself having to make a bargain with a creature of the night.
The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud
When the dead come back to haunt the living, Lockwood & Co. step in . . .
For more than fifty years, the country has been affected by a horrifying epidemic of ghosts. A number of Psychic Investigations Agencies have sprung up to destroy the dangerous apparitions. Lucy Carlyle, a talented young agent, arrives in London hoping for a notable career. Instead she finds herself joining the smallest, most ramshackle agency in the city, run by the charismatic Anthony Lockwood. When one of their cases goes horribly wrong, Lockwood & Co. have one last chance of redemption. Unfortunately this involves spending the night in one of the most haunted houses in England, and trying to escape alive.
City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab
Ever since Cass almost drowned (okay, she did drown, but she doesn’t like to think about it), she can pull back the Veil that separates the living from the dead . . . and enter the world of spirits. Her best friend is even a ghost. So things are already pretty strange. But they’re about to get much stranger. When Cass’s parents start hosting a TV show about the world’s most haunted places, the family heads off to Edinburgh, Scotland. Here, graveyards, castles, and secret passageways teem with restless phantoms. And when Cass meets a girl who shares her “gift,” she realizes how much she still has to learn about the Veil -- and herself. And she’ll have to learn fast. The city of ghosts is more dangerous than she ever imagined.
The Haunting of Aveline Jones by Phil Hickes
Aveline loves reading ghost stories, so a dreary half-term becomes much more exciting when she discovers a spooky old book. Not only are the stories spine-tingling, but it belonged to a girl called Primrose Penberthy, who vanished mysteriously, never to be seen again. Intrigued, Aveline decides to investigate Primrose’s disappearance, with some help from her new friend, Harold.
The Spook’s Apprentice by Joseph Delaney
`Someone has to stand against the dark. And you’re the only one who can. For years, the local Spook has been keeping the County safe from evil. Now his time is coming to an end, but who will take over? Many apprentices have tried. Some floundered, some fled, some failed to stay alive. Just one boy is left. Thomas Ward. He is the last hope. But does he stand a chance against Mother Malkin, the most dangerous witch in the County?
Five Nights at Freddies by Scott Cawthon
Ten years after the horrific murders at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza that ripped their town apart, Charlie, whose father owned the restaurant, and her childhood friends reunite on the anniversary of the tragedy and find themselves at the old pizza place which had been locked up and abandoned for years.
After they discover a way inside, they realize that things are not as they used to be. The four adult-sized animatronic mascots that once entertained patrons have changed. They now have a dark secret . . . and a murderous agenda.
The
Amazing Mr Blunden by
Antonia Barber
When you come to the house, you will hear strange tales. They will tell you in the village that it is haunted, but you must not be afraid. When the time comes ... you will know what to do.’
Mr Blunden’s words echoed through Lucy’s ears as she explored the house. It was such an old house that it seemed to Lucy as if all the past was gathered up inside it as if in a great box; as though it had a life of its own that continued to exist just beyond the reach of her eyes and ears. Did Mr Blunden, who went out of his way to offer their mother the job as caretaker, mean to help or hurt them? Could she and her brother Jamie really help those troubled ghosts from another age?
Wildspark: A Ghost Machine Adventure by Vashti Hardy
A year after the death of her older brother, Prue Haywood’s family is still shattered by grief. But everything changes when a stranger arrives at the farm. A new, incredible technology has been discovered in the city of Medlock, where a secretive guild of inventors have developed a way to capture spirits of the dead in animal-like machines, bringing them back to life. Prue knows that the “Ghost Guild” might hold the key to bringing her brother back, so she seizes the stranger’s offer to join as an apprentice. But to find her brother, she needs to find a way to get the ghost machines to remember the people they used to be. Winner of the Blue Peter Book Awards 2020.
GRAPHIC NOVELS
Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto
Twelve years ago the village hidden in the Leaves was attacked by a fearsome threat. A nine-tailed fox spirit claimed the life of the village leader, the Hokage, and many others. Today, the village is at peace and a troublemaking kid named Naruto is struggling to graduate from Ninja Academy. His goal may be to become the next Hokage, but his true destiny will be much more complicated. The adventure begins now!
El Deafo by Cece Bell
El Deafo is a funny, deeply honest graphic novel memoir for middle graders. It chronicles the author’s hearing loss at a young age and her subsequent experiences with a powerful and very awkward hearing aid called the Phonic Ear. It gives her the ability to hear-sometimes things she shouldn’t--but also isolates her from her classmates. She really just wants to fit in and find a true friend, someone who appreciates her, Phonic Ear and all. Finally, she is able to harness the power of the Phonic Ear and become “El Deafo, Listener for All.” And more importantly, declare a place for herself in the world and find the friend she’s longed for.
Illegal by Eoin Colfer
Ebo: alone. His sister left months ago. Now his brother has disappeared too, and Ebo knows it can only be to make the hazardous journey to Europe. Ebo’s epic journey takes him across the Sahara Desert to the dangerous streets of Tripoli, and finally out to the merciless sea. With every step he holds on to his hope for a new life, and a reunion with his sister.
Amulet by Kazu Kibuishi
Two ordinary children on a life-or-death mission. After the tragic death of their father, Emily and Navin move with their mother to the home of her deceased great- grandfather, but the strange house proves to be dangerous. Before long, a sinister creature lures the kids’ mum through a door in the basement. Em and Navin, desperate not to lose her, follow her into an underground world inhabited by demons, robots, and talking animals. Eventually, they enlist the help of a small mechanical rabbit named Miskit. Together with Miskit, they face the most terrifying monster of all, and Em finally has the chance to save someone she loves.
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle
The world already knows Meg and Charles Wallace Murry, Calvin O’Keefe, and the three Mrs-Who, Whatsit, and Which-the memorable and wonderful characters who fight off a dark force and save our universe in the Newbery Award - winning classic but in fifty years of publication, the book has never been illustrated. Now, Hope Larson takes the classic story to a new level with her vividly imagined interpretations of tessering and favourite characters like the Happy Medium and Aunt Beast.
The Recruit by Robert Muchamore
A terrorist doesn’t let strangers in her flat because they might be undercover police or intelligence agents, but her children bring their mates home and they run all over the place. The terrorist doesn’t know that one of these kids has bugged every room in her house, made copies of all her computer files and stolen her address book. The kid works for CHERUB.
Ethel & Ernest - A True Story by Raymond Briggs
Utterly original, deeply moving and very funny, Ethel & Ernest tells the story of Raymond Briggs’ parents’ marriage, it follows lady’s maid Ethel and milkman Ernest, from their first chance encounter in 1928, through the birth of their son Raymond in 1934, to their deaths, within months of each other, in 1971.
Marvel 1602. The Sandman series by Neil Gaiman
As twilight descends on the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, all is not well. England is in the grip of terror as strange, violent storms lash the countryside and the Witchbreed, beings with amazing powers, stalk the land - all the while persecuted by the Holy Inquisition. A host of Marvel heroes and villains including Spider-Man, the X-Men, Nick Fury, Doctor Strange, Captain America, Daredevil, Doctor Doom, Magneto and more emerge during the dark days of 1602 and are drawn into a plot of treason and treachery - whilst the end of the world seems nigh!
The Arrival by Shaun Tan
The Arrival is a migrant story told as a series of wordless images. A man leaves his wife and child in an impoverished town, seeking better prospects in an unknown country on the other side of a vast ocean. He eventually finds himself in a bewildering city of foreign customs, peculiar animals, curious floating objects and indecipherable languages. With nothing more than a suitcase and a handful of currency, the immigrant must find a place to live, food to eat and some kind of gainful employment. He is helped along the way by sympathetic strangers, each carrying their own unspoken history: stories of struggle and survival in a world of incomprehensible violence, upheaval and hope.
NON FICTION
Brilliant Maps: An Atlas for the Curious Minds by Ian Wright
Which nations have North Korean embassies? Which region has the highest number of death metal bands per capita? How many countries have bigger economies than California? Who drives on the ‘wrong’ side of the road? And where can you find lions in the wild?
Revelatory, thought-provoking and fun, Brilliant Maps is a unique atlas of culture, history, politics and miscellanea, compiled by the editor of the iconic Brilliant Maps website. As visually arresting as Information is Beautiful and as full of surprising facts and figures as any encyclopaedia, Brilliant Maps is a stunning piece of cartography that maps our curious and varied planet.
Kay’s Marvellous Medicine: A (Terrifyingly) True History of Disgusting Diseases and Crazy Cures by Adam Kay
The olden days were pretty fun if you liked wearing chainmail or chopping people’s heads off but there was one tiny little problem back then - doctors didn’t have the slightest clue about how our bodies worked. It’s time to find out why Ancient Egyptians thought the brain was just a useless load of old stuffing that might as well be chucked in the bin, why teachers forced their pupils to smoke cigarettes, why hairdressers would cut off their customers’ legs, and why people used to get paid for farting. (Unfortunately, that’s no longer a thing - sorry.) You’ll get answers to questions like: Why did patients gargle with wee? How did a doctor save people’s lives using a washing machine, a can of beans and some old sausages? What was the great stink?
I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai (Teen Edition)
When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley, one girl fought for her right to an education. On Tuesday 9 October 2012, she almost paid the ultimate price when she was shot in the head at point-blank range. Malala Yousafzai’s extraordinary journey has taken her from a remote valley in northern Pakistan to the halls of the United Nations. She has become a global symbol of peaceful protest and is the youngest ever winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.
Poems to Save the World With chosen and illustrated by Chris Riddell
This book features famous poems, old and new, and a few surprises. Classic verses sit alongside the modern to create the ultimate collection. Includes poems from Neil Gaiman, Nikita Gill, Maggie Smith, Brian Bilston, Raymond Antrobus, Fiona Benson, Lewis Carroll and many more.
How was that Built? by Roma Agrawal
Join Roma Agrawal, the award-winning young structural engineer who worked on The Shard, for an exciting behind-the-scenes look at some of the world’s most amazing landmarks. Meet the extraordinary people who challenged our beliefs about what’s possible, pioneering remarkable inventions that helped build the Brooklyn Bridge in the US, the Pantheon in Italy, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, the Shard in England and the Sapporo Dome in Japan.
We are all Greta: Be Inspired to Save the World by Valentina Giannella
Follow in Greta Thunberg’s footsteps and join the global mission to save our planet from climate change. With in-depth text and data, this necessary and timely book will answer readers’ questions on what climate change means, what its consequences will be, and what must be done to protect our world..
Fourteen Wolves by Catherine Barr, Jenni Desmond
In fairy tales, the wolf’s cry makes people shudder. They’ve been hunted, captured. But the wolf carries a wild magic - a magic that once restored a barren land. When wolves disappeared from Yellowstone Park in the 1930s, the ecosystem started to collapse. Enormous herds of elk swarmed the plains, bears starved, rabbit families shrunk and birds flew away to new homes. Plants vanished, trees withered and rivers meandered. Until in 1995, wolves returned to the park and everything began to change for the better. This is the story of their homecoming.
Full of Life: Exploring Earth’s Biodiversity words by Isabel Thomas, pictures by Sara Gillingham
Science meets design in this graphically stunning introductory tour of Earth’s amazing biodiversity.
The Golden Mole: and Other Living Treasure by Katherine Rundell, with illustrations by Talya Baldwin
A lavishly illustrated compendium of the staggering lives of some of the world’s most endangered animals, ‘The Golden Mole’ is a chance to be awestruck and lovestruck - to fall for the likes of the seahorse, the narwhal and, as astonishing and endangered as them all, the human.
What if ? - Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions by Randall
Munroe
From the creator of the wildly popular xkcd.com, hilarious and informative answers to important questions you probably never thought to ask. Millions visit xkcd.com each week to read Randall Munroe’s iconic webcomic. Fans ask him a lot of strange questions: How fast can you hit a speed bump, driving, and live? When (if ever) did the sun go down on the British Empire? In pursuit of answers, Munroe runs computer simulations, pores over stacks of declassified military research memos, solves differential equations and consults nuclear reactor operators. His responses are masterpieces of clarity and hilarity, complemented by comics. They often predict the complete annihilation of humankind, or at least a really big explosion.
Romans by Tony Robinson
Tony Robinson takes you on a headlong gallop through time, pointing out all the most important, funny, strange, amazing, entertaining and gory bits about the Romans! It’s history, but not as we know it! Find out everything you ever needed to know in this brilliant, action-packed, fact-filled book including: - How to keep the gods happy - Why you should never ignore an omen - How to defeat an army who are riding elephants, and - How to spot a barbarian.
SPORTS
Ghost by Jason Reynolds
Running. That’s all Ghost (real name Castle Cranshaw) has ever known. But Ghost has been running for the wrong reasons - until he meets Coach, an ex-Olympic Medallist who sees something in Ghost: crazy natural talent. If Ghost can stay on track, literally and figuratively, he could be the best sprinter in the city. Can Ghost harness his raw talent for speed, or will his past finally catch up to him?
Gamer by Chris Bradford
Scott is an orphan, roaming the streets in search of food like so many other children. When the opportunity to become a games tester for Vince Power and his Virtual Kombat video games comes along, he leaps at the chance. But Scott’s about to find out that there’s nothing virtual about the danger in these games...The Matrix meets The Hunger Games in this fast-paced action thriller.
Soccer Squad by Bali Rai
The local youth club are putting an under-elevens squad together - and Dal, Chris, Abs and Jason are determined to be picked. They know they’re the best players in their school - but what if that isn’t good enough and they don’t make the team? Dal knows he’d be gutted if his mates made it and he didn’t ...Then once the team is picked, they have to do the business on the pitch - go out and win! And their coach has a couple of surprise new players to help the team...
Now is the Time for Running by Michael Williams
Deo is a great footballer, a fierce protector of his older brother, Innocent. His brother is easily nervous, easily happy but good at keeping score on the dusty fields of Zimbabwe where the boys play. Then Mugabe’s soldiers come, destroying the only home the boys have known. Now, Deo has nothing but his brother, and a football stuffed with billions of worthless dollars. And so starts their journey to find their father. But with soldiers everywhere, they have only one chance to cross the border, one chance to escape. In face of such a challenge, it is Deo’s brotherly love that endures, his belief that he will lead them both to safety. Deo and Innocent’s journey is a universal story of hope in the face of despair, and the search for a better life.
Ultimate Football Heroes series
Ultimate Football Heroes is a series of biographies telling the life-stories of the biggest and best footballers in the world and their incredible journeys from childhood fan to super-star professional player. Written in fast-paced, action-packed style these books are perfect for all the family to collect and share.
Game, Set and Match by Donna King
Ever since Carrie Springsteen was old enough to hold a tennis racket, her dad has been training her to be the best. Now aged twelve, she’s a star player with split-second reactions and a powerful backhand. But Carrie is tired of having to choose between her friends and tennis - between having fun, or endless hours on the court. Will a month at a top tennis school in Florida help Carrie rediscover her love of tennis and her will to win?
Everest: The Remarkable Story of Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay by Alexandra Stewart
This is the breathtaking story of how two very different yet equally determined men battled frost-biting temperatures, tumbling ice rocks, powerful winds and death-defying ridges to climb the world’s highest mountain. Join these two unlikely heroes on the most amazing of adventures and discover the impact of hundreds of men and women who helped Hillary and Tenzing achieve their goal. But triumphs can be marred with tragedy, as not everyone who climbs Everest survives ...
Women in Sport: 50 Fearless Athletes Who Played to Win by Rachel Ignotofsky
‘Women in Sport’ celebrates the success of the tough, bold and fearless women who paved the way for today’s athletes. The sportswomen featured include well-known figures like tennis player Serena Williams and broadcaster Clare Balding, as well as lesser-known pioneers like Gertrude Ederle, the first woman to swim the English Channel, and Keiko Fukuda, the highest-ranked female judoka in history.
Rugby Spirit by Gerard Siggins
Ok, lads, you have everything you need to win this game.
So go out and do it ,’ said the coach. Eoin’s not sure if it will be so easy! He’s just started a new school ...and a new sport. Everyone at school is mad about rugby, but Eoin hasn’t even held a rugby ball before!
With new rules to learn, new friends to make and new teachers to get a handle on, he really doesn’t need to have Richie Duffy, the resident bully, picking him out as his latest target! And just who is this guy, Brian, who looks so out-of-date, but gives great rugby advice?
Rugby Academy by Tom Palmer
Borderlands First XV have their sights set on becoming the best school rugby team in the world. But while the boys focus on their matches, many of their parents are serving overseas in the armed forces, and everyone is worried as conflict grows in the Central Asian Republic. New pupil Woody is a footballer by nature and must decide if he’s prepared to give rugby his all. Rory feels like he’s losing his focus, distracted by thoughts of his parents in danger. And Owen finds himself a t the centre when conflict breaks out within the team. With so many hurdles to face along the way, how far will they get in the rigorous schools’ tournament?
Sports
by Daniel Tatarsky
SOver 80 stunning, ingenious and absorbing sport infographics!
Infographic Guide to Sport presents unique, witty and surprising facts about every type of sport, from badminton to karate, cricket to ice hockey, football to zorbing. Fascinating stats and all the facts on your favourite sporting legends, it features infamous tales from behind the scenes of the sporting world.
More than just a book of words, with graphs, Venn diagrams and charts, this book provides a unique overview of the all your favourite sports, boasting over 100 original artworks and illustrations and at-a-glance facts to amaze and astound readers.
You are a Champion: How to be the Best you can be by Marcus Rashford, written with Carl Anka
Tear up the rule book. Find your own lane. You are only in competition with yourself. Marcus Rashford MBE is recognised worldwide for his journey both on-and-off the pitch - but how did a boy from the South of Manchester become not only an International footballer but also one of the leading activist voices in the UK? In this inspiring, positive, and practical guide, Marcus gives you the tools you need to reach your full potential and will show you that your possibilities really can be endless.
The Way of the Warrior by Chris Bradford
August 1611 and Jack Fletcher is shipwrecked off the coast of Japan - his beloved father and the crew lie slaughtered by ninja pirates. Rescued by the legendary swordmaster Masamoto Takeshi, Jack’s only hope is to become a samurai warrior. And so his training begins... With courage in his heart and his sword in his hand, can Jack prove himself and face his deadliest rival yet?
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