The School Librarian 72-2 Summer 2024

TSL 

The School Librarian 

The Quarterly Journal of the School Library Association 

Volume 72 Number 2 Summer 2024 

Reading for Pleasure and Purpose: 

A Whole School Approach 

By Karen Whitelegg 

Organising Book Clubs 

By Jacqui Hale 

Neurodiversity and the Power of Stories 

By Fiona Carswell 

www.sla.org.uk

Contents 

TSL 

The School Librarian 

The Quarterly Journal of the School Library Association 

Volume 72 Number 2 Summer 2024 

Welcome from CEO 2 

Editorial 3 

SLA News 4 

Features 

The Year of Populism, Elections, Education & Our Children’s Futures 

Richard Gerver 5 


Jacqui Hale 6 

Immersive Storytelling 

Gareth Osborne 8 

Reading for Pleasure and Purpose 

Karen Whitelegg 10 

The Spark! School Book Awards 

Rebecca Rouillard 12 

Interview with Nicola Usborne 13 

Working with Sixth Formers on Evaluating Information 

Andrew Shenton 14 


Fiona Carswell 16 

Opening Doors with Libraries 

Bob Cox 18 

A View From... 20 

Curriculum Links 23 

FAQs 24 

Research Highlights 25 

Digital 

Bev’s Helpdesk 26 

Embracing Kahoot! In the Classroom by Kojo Hazel 27 

Assistive Technologies by Jonathan Viner 28 

Storyhaven Review by Barbara Band 30 

Little Oxford Review by Bev Humphrey 30 

Literacy Hive Review by Sharon Corbally 31 

Rebel Library Review by Barbara Band 31 

Beeline Reader Review by Gareth Evans 32 

Book Reviews 

7 and Under 34 

8–12 Fiction 44 

8–12 Information 52 

13–16 Fiction 60 

13–16 Information 66 

17–19 68 

Professional 71 

10 

Reading for Pleasure 

and Purpose 

6 


16 

Neurodiversity and the 

Power of Stories 

TSL VOLUME 72 NUMBER 2 SUMMER 2024 1

Welcome from the CEO 

A 

s this issue lands with you, we’ll be 

recovering from this year’s Weekend 

Course; we can’t wait to see everyone 

who’s been able to join us in Sheffield. 

If you missed out on a place, you can update your 

SLA communication preferences to find out about 

our Weekend Course 2025, which will take place 

in Northampton in June; we’re delighted that Anne 

Fine, former Children’s Laureate, will be joining us. 

I am making final preparations for the ceremony for 

the Pupil Library Assistant Award, and also hosted 

for our first in-person board meeting of the year, 

which took place at the SLA Offices in Swindon. I 

have been pleased to represent SLA at the Harper 

Collins Insights evening (you can read my blog on 

the ‘News and Blogs’ page of the website). 

The Great School Libraries campaign committee 

have been working hard to keep pushing the 

envelope when it comes to the future of school 

libraries, and we will keep the conversation going; 

you can read more about the work of the Great 

School Libraries campaign here: 

www.greatschoollibraries.org.uk 

There are opportunities and challenges 

everywhere. I was recently asked where I saw my 

future, which is a difficult thing to answer when 

you’re as focused on the role as you need to be 

as CEO. However, the advice I was given, and 

which I gave in response, is to not move away 

from something but to move towards something. 

I’m hoping we’re moving towards something – 

greater access to books for our children; a renewed 

sense of community; a sharper focus on hope. But 

sometimes, you have to acknowledge when things 

are harder than they should be, or not working 

as they should be. Sometimes it’s asking for help, 

sometimes it’s demanding it, sometimes it’s 

recognizing what’s out of your control and taking 

the action you can to make it better, even if it only 

makes it better for you. 

We can achieve more as a community if we act on 

each other’s behalf and we support those we can. 

It is easy to be negative, to highlight the flaws and 

bring ideas down, and our minds instinctively work 

that way much of the time, but as a community 

we can bring hope to each other, remind each 

other of the good times, and encourage each other 

forwards. One of the small ways the SLA hopes to 

do this is by sharing Moments of the Month – the 

moments which make you smile, that remind you 

why you do what you do, and show the impact of 

school libraries and their tremendous staff. If you 

have a moment you’d like to share, you can do 

that here: www.sla.org.uk/Public/Members/ 

MembersEngage/Moment-of-the-month.aspx 

Thank you for being a part of our community. 

Alison Tarrant is the Chief 

Executive of the School 

Library Association, and 

is Co-Chair of the Great 

School Libraries campaign. 

She was named a Bookseller 

Rising Star in 2018. 

This issue Steve has 

highlighted the winners of 

our School Librarians of 

the Year from recent years. 

Contributions 

Articles, books or digital media for review are always 

welcome. We are happy to receive enquiries from potential 

contributors and will be pleased to supply further 

information. Email: tsl@sla.org.uk 

Advertising queries and all other communications should be 

sent to: info@sla.org.uk. Phone number: 01793 530166 

We are always keen for feedback. 

Subscriptions 

The current cost of annual membership of the School Library 

Association is £95.00 to include one copy of each quarterly 

journal, TSL, or £131.00 to include two copies. The rate for 

retired and fulltime student members is £50.00. Details and 

membership forms may be obtained from the SLA website. 

Members of the SLA receive this journal free; they may 

purchase other SLA publications and training courses 

at reduced rates; and may use our telephone advisory 

service and access members-only resources on the website. 

Worldwide institutional subscriptions to the journal only are 

available at £122.00 for the calendar year 2024. 

Published four times a year by the School Library Association: spring, summer, autumn and winter. 

Cover illustration by Steve Antony. Copyright © 2024 School Library Association. All rights reserved. ISSN 0036 6595 

The views expressed are those of the contributors and reviewers and not necessarily the official views of the School Library Association. 

Registered Charity No. 313660 

2 TSL VOLUME 72 NUMBER 2 SUMMER 2024

Editorial 

A 

s the days get warmer and the end 

of the school year comes into sight, 

you may already find yourself 

reflecting on the challenges and 

successes of the past academic 

year, as well as looking ahead to 

what next year’s students may need. 

In his regular column, SLA President Richard 

Gerver discusses the complexities of education 

in a challenging and uncertain world. This 

reminds us that in schools – as in life – one 

size does not fit all. There is a diversity in 

learning needs amongst young people and this 

is something that applies to every educational 

space – including the school library. 

Within the pages of this issue, you’ll find insightful 

features that explore this educational diversity 

and how it can be harnessed to create meaningful 

reading journeys. 

Children’s author Fiona Carswell emphasises 

the importance of embracing individuality 

and finding joy in each child's reading journey, 

sharing her experiences with her neurodivergent 

son to illustrate how, despite not being a reader, 

verbal storytelling still plays an essential part 

in understanding the world and fostering 

imagination. Researcher, teacher and author 

Gareth Osborne shares the benefits of immersive 

storytelling – particularly for reluctant readers – 

showing how theatre can bring books to life and 

valuably foster reading, writing, speaking and 

social skills, along with students’ creativity. 

What’s more, we also have inspiring content that 

celebrates book clubs as transformative spaces 

that shape kinder, more confident, and empathetic 

individuals, as well as the role that book awards 

can play in creating a buzz around reading that 

connects children with diverse literature. 

It’s important to remember that 

students’ reading skills aren’t just 

the responsibility of one department, 

but of everyone in the school. 

This being said, it’s important to remember that 

students’ reading skills aren’t just the responsibility 

of one department, but of everyone in the school. 

Collaborating with other departments strengthens 

this diverse approach to learning, and I particularly 

enjoyed reading LRC Manager Karen Whitelegg’s 

article on how senior leadership in her school 

implemented a whole school approach to reading 

both for pleasure and purpose, in line with the DfE 

Reading Framework released last year. 

This issue is also home to some stimulating 

research highlights that consolidate diverse 

approaches to learning, including a study outlining 

the multitude of ways that a group of Scottish 

school library staff support their pupils, and a new 

review commissioned by the Mercers’ Company 

summarising the many methods used to nurture 

young people’s engagement in reading and writing. 

Dr Andrew Shenton also shares interesting 

findings from research conducted with 16- and 

17-year-olds undertaking the Extended Project 

Qualification (EPQ), which found that many 

students had the tendency to simplify the analysis 

of their sources and how this impacts young 

people’s information literacy skills. 

As always, be sure to check out our regular 

content for insight into various member schools, 

reviews of the latest digital tools to enhance your 

work, and – of course – a whole host of reading 

recommendations for all ages. 

Our thanks go out to everyone who has 

contributed to this issue. We hope you take away 

something helpful from its pages. 

If you have any suggestions for content you’d like 

to see in future, feel free to get in touch with us at: 

info@sla.org.uk. 

Hannah Groves is 

the Marketing and 

Communications Officer 

for the School Library 

Association. Hannah joined 

the SLA from publishing and 

now works to keep everyone 

informed about everything 

going on at the SLA. 


SLA News 

New SLA Secondary School Library 

CPD Programme Underway 

Thanks to generous funding from 

the Foyle Foundation, our recently 

launched Secondary School Library CPD 

Programme is now well underway. 

This programme allows us to support 

both members and non-members, 

and is in response to the Great School 

Libraries research about the lack of access 

to CPD most school library staff face. 

This programme is also an important 

achievement in the delivery of the SLA 

five-year strategy. 

Fifteen SLA members have been enrolled 

onto an action research training course, 

delivered in partnership with the 

Chartered College of Teaching, where 

they will conduct research projects while 

receiving training in order to valuably 

contribute to the body of research about 

school libraries in the UK and make sure 

the voices of school library staff are heard. 

Additionally, these 15 SLA members 

also received tickets to our sold-out 2024 

Weekend Course, Libraries Unleashed: 

Beyond the Shelves. 

What’s more, we have been able to 

provide CPD opportunities to five 

non-members too. These individuals 

also received complimentary Weekend 

Course 2024 tickets, along with full SLA 

membership for a year. 

We are confident that the benefits of this 

School Library CPD Programme will be felt 

by thousands of children across the UK. 

Remember, to make sure that you’re 

the first to hear about our latest CPD 

opportunities – including exciting 

updates about the Weekend Course 2025 

– login to our 

website and 

update your 

communication 

preferences. 

Visit bit.ly/ 

SLAaccount 

or scan the 

QR code. 

IBA Update 

We are thrilled to be announcing the shortlist for our 2024 

Information Book Award (IBA) this month! 

Sponsored by Hachette Children’s Group (HCG), the IBA aims 

to celebrate the importance of information books, highlight the 

wealth of impressive resources available, and support school 

libraries to get the most out of them. Our dedicated team of 

educator judges have been busy reading all the submissions 

and, after whittling down over 150 different titles to our biggest 

longlist of 35, have now compiled a spectacular shortlist of some 

of the best information books published in the last year. 

What’s more, we have lots of exciting activities planned to help 

pick the winners. As well as the judges’ choices, pupils have the 

chance to vote for their favourite titles to crown a Children’s 

Choice Winner in each of the three age categories and overall. 

Children’s Choice voting opens with the announcement of the 

shortlist and is open until 25 October, with the winners 

announced in November. 

Thanks to funding from the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting 

Society (ALCS), we’re also delighted to have once again been 

able to give a selection of schools a free bundle of the shortlisted 

titles to help them take part. 

You can find all the latest information on our website: 

www.sla.org.uk/iba 

The SLA 

Summer 

School is 

Back! 

We definitely want you all to enjoy a 

well-deserved break this summer. That 

being said, we also know that some of 

you like to use this rare stretch of free 

time to build on your skills … 

So, if you’re looking for a rewarding 

activity to fill some of your summer 

with, join us and fellow school library 

staff in-person for an exciting day out at 

our SLA Summer School. 

This year, we’re inviting members to 

the South West to join Joffre White on 

6th August for a day exploring reading 

motivation. Book your place here: 

bit.ly/SLA-summer-school-book 


Feature 

2024: The Year of Populism, Elections, 

Education & Our Children’s Futures 

Richard Gerver 

In a year that will see big changes, Richard Gerver explains 

how important it is that we focus on the future of education. 

O 

ne of the great attractions 

of populism is the seeming 

ease with which populists 

deconstruct the complex issues 

created by others into simple 

actions that will solve the world’s 

problems. Populists so comfortably talk about the 

easy solutions to, for example, the Ukraine conflict, 

the horrors of the Middle East, and the challenges 

of global migration. 

We are leaving our children some legacy: 

existential threats to global peace, economic 

orthodoxies, the planet’s ecosystem, and the 

impact of technological advancements all mean 

that the world is lurching from uncertainty to 

uncertainty at an increasing velocity. 

We need to develop an education 

system that prepares future 

generations to live with uncertainty, 

change, and constant challenge. 

In previous decades we have seen a mature 

and collaborative relationship build between 

all of the stakeholders in policy and curriculum 

development. Educators and Government were 

looking at the future of education and how 

the system could best meet the needs of an 

increasingly uncertain and changeable future. 

Thanks to the work of global experts like Sir Ken 

Robinson, the author of the 1999, All Our Futures 

report, the vision was focused, inclusive, and 

driven by the challenges of tomorrow. The group 

involved in that report were diverse and included 

Nobel Prize-winning scientists and economists, 

highly respected experts from the cultural and arts 

sector, educators, and policy makers. Together, 

they explored how education could evolve, and 

whilst not providing a conclusive answer, it was the 

catalyst for the constructive pathway that followed. 

We need to have a thoughtful conversation about 

‘If we do not change the way 

we teach, 30 years from now, 

we’re going to be in trouble.’ 

education, with long-term aims and progress. 

Alibaba founder Jack Ma highlighted this in 2018 

at the World Economic Forum in Davos: ‘If we do 

not change the way we teach, 30 years from now, 

we’re going to be in trouble,’ ‘The knowledgebased 

approach of “200 years ago”, would “fail our 

kids”, who would never be able to compete with 

machines. Children should be taught “soft skills” 

like independent thinking, values and teamwork.’ 

Minouche Shafik, Director of London School of 

Economics, echoed these ideas: ‘Anything that 

is routine or repetitive will be automated.’ She 

went on to stress the importance of, ‘soft skills, 

creative skills, research skills and the ability to find 

information, synthesise it, make something of it.’ 

In the post-industrial and global world we now 

live in, we need to develop an education system 

that prepares future generations to live with 

uncertainty, change, and constant challenge. 

We need systems that provide people with the 

skills and traits to confidently learn and access 

education throughout their lives. 

Shafik went on to say that: ‘It’s no accident that 

the people who voted for populist parties around 

the world are people with by-and-large low levels 

of education. It’s not because they’re stupid, it’s 

because they’re smart. They’ve figured out this 

system will not be in their favour.’ 

We cannot let the education debate go unnoticed 

or unheard in this most crucial of years for 

democracy, our children, and both of their futures. 

We cannot let the education 

debate go unnoticed or unheard. 

Richard Gerver is President of 

the School Library Association, 

and a world-renowned 

speaker and author. He was 

previously a headteacher. 


Feature 


Jacqui Hale 

Jacqui Hale explains how she organises book clubs at St Hilda’s 

CE High School and the myriad of benefits they can bring. 

Jacqui Hale is a chartered 

librarian and SLA School 

Librarian of the Year 2023 

finalist. She has worked in 

the library at St Hilda’s CE 

High School in Liverpool 

for almost 14 years. In 

addition to running a very 

busy library, she is also the 

Literacy Coordinator. 

B 

“ 

ook club motivates me to read 

different genres, it’s rewarding to 

be able to share your opinion” 

Year 11 student. 

“I like how we are asked questions 

about the books and everyone’s 

opinion is valued” Year 8 student. 

“I like how structured the meetings are and I love 

the biscuits!” Year 8 student. 

These are some of the responses I got from book 

club members when asked why they attend and 

what they enjoy about book club. Many of the 

responses involved biscuits, but they all agreed 

that book club encouraged them to read outside 

their comfort zone. They all love listening to 

each other talk about the book from their own 

perspective, which can often change their minds 

about the book. Everyone’s opinion is valid, and 

it doesn’t matter if you loved it, hated it, or were 

completely indifferent! 

I inherited my book clubs from an old head 

of English in 2011. We had a handful of staff 

members and around 20 regular students 

attending. This year, there are 79 students across 

lower and middle school clubs and around 25 staff 

and ex-staff members. 

The pupils read six books a year, chosen in 

advance, and we meet once per half term to 

discuss one of them. We eat lunch together in 

the library, share the all-important biscuits, and 

discuss questions I prepare in advance. These 

questions are designed to make them think, to 

really question their own ideas, and to develop 

their empathy. I try to choose books which allow 

them to experience different places, cultures, ideas, 

and identities, or books which deal with difficult 

emotions like grief or bereavement or mental 

health issues. Sometimes though, we just read a 

book because it’s a really good read! 

There’s something so heart-warming about hearing 

a young person say “This book made me realise 

that not everyone goes home to a warm meal and 

a clean house. I think this will make me be kinder 

to others in future as you don’t know what other 

Book Club trip to Waterstones 

children are going through.” (I am the Minotaur 

by Anthony McGowan); or “Reading this book has 

helped me realise how difficult school can be for 

some people and that we should all try harder to 

be more patient” (Can You See Me by Libby Scott 

and Rebecca Westcott). 

I start promoting book club before our pupils even 

arrive. We have over 50 feeder primaries, but in 

July each year, I write to every one of our 175 new 

starters to let them know what they can expect 

from the library at St Hilda’s. In this welcome pack, 

along with recommended reads for them and their 

parents or carers, I include a list of next year’s book 

club books and encourage them to start reading 

them over the summer. From this year we will also 

be providing copies of all six titles for each of our 

pupil premium students so they can read and keep 

them. I purchase multiple copies of each title for 

the library shelves and make sure that everyone 

who wants to join in is able to do so. 

This book made me realise that 

not everyone goes home to a 

warm meal and a clean house. 



The highlight of the school year takes place in the 

summer term: our annual book club reward trip. All 

pupils who have read the six books and attended 

the meetings are eligible to attend. We spend 

our morning in Waterstones, where the staff take 

excellent care of us. Pupils are given free time to 

browse, read, and visit the coffee shop. As a reward 

for their dedication to book club, they each select 

a book of their choice (up to an agreed maximum 

value) and I buy this for them to keep from my 

budget or fundraising. Waterstones discount 

everything by 25%, which makes this reward trip 

possible and is very much appreciated. 

It helps develop young people who 

are kinder, more confident, able 

to articulate opinions and become 

courageous advocates for others. 

After a picnic lunch, we walk to the stunning 

Liverpool Central Library where, after a quick 

tour of the building, pupils are free to spend the 

afternoon reading, relaxing, playing in the games 

room, or (as normally chosen by Year 10 who have 

mocks approaching) sitting quietly and revising. 

Even our Year 11s, who have already officially left 

school, will join us on this trip to claim their free 

book and catch me up on how their GCSEs are 

going. The reward trip is one of my favourite days of 

the year. It is such a joy to watch young people who 

love reading happily wander around a book shop 

and a library, content to be surrounded by books 

and others who love them as much as they do. 

Book club reading choices 

Trying to find time for a staff book club to meet 

can be problematic, so this year I started a hybrid 

book club. Members can attend meetings in person, 

share opinions virtually, or just read the books and 

not get any further involved. Members recommend 

a book they’ve loved or one they’ve been meaning 

to read, and then I send the blurbs out via email. I 

create a Microsoft forms survey so everyone can 

choose their two favourites. The two books with the 

most votes are chosen each term. 

We meet in person once per term, after school, with 

copious amounts of tea and cake, to talk about the 

books. All staff will send in their comments and 

ratings via another emailed form which I collate 

and then send out the results to everyone. Those 

members who cannot attend in person will still 

have a chance to share their thoughts and see what 

everyone else thought of the books. This hybrid 

version means that ex-staff can stay involved – we 

have members as far away as Canada! 

The reward trip is one of my 

favourite days of the year. 

A book club doesn’t just provide a place for pupils 

to meet, or a list of books they can try, it doesn’t 

even just bring together different people who share 

a love of books; it helps develop young people 

who are kinder, more confident, able to articulate 

opinions and become courageous advocates for 

others. A successful book club can be a real game 

changer in school. 

Jacqui’s top tips for running a book club: 

1. Choose books which generate discussion 

and divide opinion. 

2. Make sure everyone is given the chance 

to be heard. 

3. Don't forget the biscuits! 

Book Club pupils outside the 

Liverpool Central Library 


Feature 


Gareth Osborne 

Wouldn’t we all like to dive into a world of stories? 

Read on to find out how this is happening in real life 

and the potential impact on young readers. 

Gareth Osborne is a UKbased 

researcher in immersive 

storytelling at the University 

of Bristol and Bath Spa. As a 

practitioner with 20 years’ 

experience in publishing, 

theatre and education he 

explores children’s urge to 

physically enter and co-create 

their story worlds. 

Immersive storytelling refers to a trend 

in reading development practices 

that seeks to give children up to the 

age of 11 the feeling of a book story 

coming to life and actually happening 

to them via theatrical sets or props in 

schools and libraries. The thrill of being able to 

sensorially experience, move around, and make 

decisions within a hyper-real story world, and 

share that experience with other children, is 

used to encourage children’s reading, writing, 

and speaking. 

Companies like Punchdrunk Enrichment, Kit 

Theatre, and Coney HQ have been developing 

these practices in schools by inviting children 

to believe in scenarios like a magical library 

appearing in search of new stories (The Lost 

Lending Library) or characters escaping from a 

book into the school environment (A Small Tale). 

Centres for immersive storytelling have also 

emerged, like Seven Stories in Newcastle, Discover 

Story Centre in Stratford, and Grimm and Co in 

Rotherham, to cater to children’s need to physically 

explore their story worlds, driven perhaps by the 

popularity of video games. The trend is being 

replicated across Europe with la Maison de 

Histoire recently opening in Paris. 

Storyhaven was a research project undertaken by 

the Universities of Bristol, Bath Spa, and Cardiff 

over two months in a UK primary school with 

30 10- to 11-year-old students as part of their 

key stage 2 English curriculum. It explored how 

immersive story worlds can be harnessed to allow 

children to guide academic research into narrativebased 

learning, and how the impact of immersive 

storytelling on children’s reading can be extended 

beyond expensive theatrical sets to allow teachers, 

librarians, and the children themselves to run easyto-stage 

immersive story games. 

The original story world, created for the project by 

Wonderspun, was set in the town of Storyhaven, 

deep in Earth’s next ice-age, where stories have 

become the fuel for life. Through their storytelling, 

the townsfolk charge word-sensitive crystals that 

emit warmth and light and protect the town from 

the freezing ice-age conditions. Now though, this 

precious resource is disappearing. Someone is 

stealing the town’s tales. In a last desperate roll of 

the dice, the town’s story shamans open up a time 

portal to allow their most intrepid adventurers to 

journey back into the past to save the town’s stories 

before they can disappear. 

It explored how immersive story 

worlds can be harnessed to allow 

children to guide academic research 

into narrative-based learning. 

The children design their player characters from 

one of the town’s adventurer guilds, then play the 

immersive story game together in teams. They 

are issued with physical props to support their 

shared imagining of the story world: an adventure 

journal, a map of the town, and crystal rune stones 

representing the stories they must save. They read 

a choose-your-own-adventure-style branching 

storyline out loud, talking their decisions over 

together as they save and rewrite the stories of 

The townsfolk of Storyhaven 



different townsfolk. Episodes designed for group 

reading lead into episodes to be read alone by the 

children at home, which differentiates players’ 

experience of the story, promoting dialogue in the 

next session of team play. At key moments the story 

world is brought to life immersively by video or livestreamed 

performances to the classroom, during 

which the children perform their stories for an actor 

playing the town story shaman, symbolising them 

sending their tales back through the time portal to 

help the imperilled present of the town. 

A noteworthy outcome of the research was how 

the immersive storytelling engaged the teacher’s 

reluctant-reader students. Storyhaven’s use of 

digital gaming aesthetics in the immersive story 

game defamiliarized the book form of reading, 

which many might have long identified as not being 

for them, or at which they routinely fail. Freed from 

the intimidating book form, these readers could 

dedicate themselves to the reading experience 

without fear of losing face in front of their friends. 

By the end of the immersive story game, they had 

engaged in reading a novel-length text aloud, put 

on the voices of characters, and acted out situations 

from the text. They had discussed different 

perspectives on the developing storyline with 

their friends, explored the characters and settings 

through drawing, made props and costumes to 

support their shared imagining, and extended the 

story world through their own creative writing, just 

like in a fan fiction community. 

Integrating more of the social 

and material playfulness of reading 

into an immersive story game proved 

powerful in building peer support for 

children’s reading journeys. 

We should not forget what a foreign language 

many of those important scaffolding activities 

can be to children who do not have a culture of 

reading at home. Integrating more of the social and 

material playfulness of reading into an immersive 

story game proved powerful in building peer 

support for children’s reading journeys and giving 

disadvantaged children a way into understanding 

the rich pleasures of the broader, interconnected 

reading experience. 

A noteworthy outcome of the 

research was how the immersive 

storytelling engaged the teacher’s 

reluctant-reader students. 

The contents of the stories the children wrote 

during Storyhaven revealed them expertly 

feeding off the surrounding narrative frame 

to enrichen their team’s gameplay by opening 

new areas of the story world to explore through 

their creative writing. Sometimes they copied 

the story world more closely. Other times they 

engaged in acts of narrative subversion, such 

as maximising violence, inverting progressive 

norms, or transgressing boundaries of 

acceptable child behaviour. It was an important 

conclusion of the research that such subversion 

is equally valid evidence of the children’s 

developing story expertise. It showed them 

intuitively experimenting with pushing the 

limits of what the story world would accept, 

despite that being in ways that adult mediators 

might instinctively frown on or see as the 

children behaving badly or being disrespectful 

to the reading event. 

Storyhaven's crystals emit 

warmth and light when 

stories are told around them 

Next steps: 

1. Read the review on 

page 30 and sign up to try 

Storyhaven with your class 

or library club: 

storyhaven.app/school 

2. Read further research on 

topic: bit.ly/story-research1 

and bit.ly/story-research2 

3. Bring immersive 

storytelling and gaming 

into conversations about 

building strong peer reading 

communities. 


Feature 

Reading for Pleasure and Purpose: 

A Whole School Approach 

Karen Whitelegg 

Here Karen Whitelegg talks us through her school’s 

approach to reading and how specific strategies 

have encouraged whole-school involvement. 

Karen Whitelegg Learning 

Resource Centre Manager 

and EPQ Coordinator at 

Dronfield Henry Fanshawe 

School. Honour Roll School 

Librarian of the Year 2022. 

1 

Department of Education 

(2023). ‘The Reading 

Framework’ Available at: The 

reading framework - GOV.UK 

(www.gov.uk) 

2 

Ofsted (2022). ‘School 

inspection handbook. 

Handbook for inspecting 

schools in England under 

section 5 of the Education Act 

2005’ Manchester: Ofsted 

3 

researchED Home 2020 Alex 

Quigley: Closing the Reading 

Gap (inc. in the time of the 

Coronavirus). Available at: 

https://www.youtube.com/ 

watch?v=bXHHZeyKWOc 

Context: Dronfield Henry 

Fanshawe School (DHFS) is an 

LEA secondary on the border of 

Sheffield and Derbyshire, with 

over 1800 students including the 

Sixth Form. 

The expectation of The Reading Framework July 

2023 1 and OFSTED 2 is that all students will be 

able to access the curriculum and not fall behind 

because they can’t read to the appropriate level. 

As a school, we believe that developing a student’s 

reading skills isn’t just the responsibility of one 

department but of everyone in the school. We 

take pride in the whole-school focus and believe 

that reading is a fundamental building block for 

21st century life. 

Senior Leadership Led Reading Development 

Strategies: 

In 2017 a Senior Leadership (SLT) post with 

responsibility for creating a whole school approach 

to developing reading skills was instituted, using 

academic research as a foundation for practice. 

Reading development is a regular part of staff CPD 

and curriculum development planning. 

The following strategies have been developed 

by the senior leadership team with input from 

teaching faculties, SEND department, and the LRC 

(Learning Resource Centre), as part of an ongoing 

programme of reading skills development. 

Please note these strategies are in addition to 

English Department/LRC reading development 

lessons, SEND/LRC sessions, buddy reading, book 

clubs, displays, and book events. 

Reading for Pleasure Strategies: 

• Reading tests: until 2023 all students were 

tested in Year 7, and students with SEND as 

required, so little or no data was available for 

progression or regression in reading age. 

From 2023 all students in Years 7 to 11 are 

tested to ensure currency of data. Reading 

ages are available to teachers on seating 

plans to allow for differentiation and support 

in lessons. 

We believe that developing a 

student’s reading skills isn’t just 

the responsibility of one department 

but of everyone in the school. 

• Reading week: 3 per year. SLT and LRC 

work together to create whole school Reading 

Weeks: 

• 10 minutes of each lesson: reading for 

pleasure focus. 

• 1 day: story shared across lessons. Linked 

with the wider curriculum and building 

empathy. Examples: 

• Black History Month: Homecoming: 

Voices of the Windrush Generation by 

Colin Grant 

• Refugee Week: You Don’t Know What 

War Is: The Diary of a Young Girl from 

Ukraine by Yeva Skalietska 

Disciplinary literacy strategies for KS3 


Reading for Pleasure and Purpose: A Whole School Approach 

When I get a tricky bit of reading 

to do I know that I can use these 

jigsaw pieces to help me to think 

of a way to understand. 

• Reading café: launched in 2023. SEND 

department, SLT and LRC invite students 

with SEND, parents, and carers to an informal 

gathering to discuss helping students with 

reading. Students and attending siblings are 

given a book and bookmark. 

• Targeted intervention sessions: for 

students disengaged with reading. 

• Parent/carer communication: raising 

awareness of why reading is important and 

offering guidance on reading at home. 

• Staff reading profiles: modelling positive 

reading behaviour. 

• Book giveaways: research by LRC and SLT 

highlighted issues with access to books at 

home during lockdown and a potential decline 

in reading ages. In response in June 2020 all 

Pupil Premium and Bursary students were 

gifted a book matched to their LRC borrowing 

record. Since 2021 all Year 7 students receive a 

World Book Day book, as students are unable 

to use the vouchers in local shops. 

Embedding Disciplinary Reading in the 

Planned Curriculum Strategies: 

• Faculty reading representatives: group 

meetings to share and disseminate good 

practice, and monitor reading based projects – 

includes LRC. 

• Wider reading audit: teaching faculties 

assessed the use of wider reading within 

lessons and explored how to increase subjectbased 

student reading. 

• Etymology and morphology: looking for 

common syllables and word roots to help 

students build an understanding of 

unknown words. 

• Quigley jigsaw pieces 3 : developed to give 

students a framework for disciplinary reading. 

The pieces are used in lesson to highlight 

required actions, e.g. predicting meanings, 

and are printed in their planners for reference. 

Recent student feedback explained how they 

use the pieces: 

• Year 7: ‘we used the jigsaw pieces in maths 

recently when we did an activity […] To 

help us to understand what to do, the 

teacher gave us a clue and we used the 

jigsaw pieces in our planners […] when I get 

a tricky bit of reading to do I know that I can 

use these jigsaw pieces to help me to think 

of a way to understand.’ 

• Year 8: ‘I use these in my own life outside 

of school too. Now that I’ve been shown 

how to, I often reread bits of writing that 

I don’t understand. In the past, I would 

have just put the book down and chosen 

something easier. It has helped me to read 

more challenging things.’ 

• KS3 information lessons: using books in the 

LRC or classroom to build information literacy 

skills. Our action research shows that using 

books in lessons embeds the knowledge of 

how to use indexes, contents, and SMART 

reading skills better than stand-alone LRC 

study skills sessions as students can see why 

and how these skills are useful. 

Reading enriches the mind and 

soul and makes us better people. 

The SLT led reading development strategies are in 

constant development; there are several new ideas 

on the table for next year, as well as continuing 

to improve long term projects. Our Headteacher, 

Martyn Cooper said, ‘Reading will always be a key 

priority for the school as it is such a vital part of 

life, whether for pleasure or purpose, and opens up 

amazing opportunities, experiences and horizons 

for everybody. Reading enriches the mind and 

soul and makes us better people – for that we will 

always champion it.’ 

2024 LGBTQ+ month 

book display 


Feature 


Creating a Buzz about Books 

and Sparking a Fire for Reading 

Rebecca Rouillard 

Find out more about the exciting Spark! 

awards and how young readers can get involved. 

Rebecca Rouillard explains what all the buzz is about. 

Rebecca Rouillard is a 

primary and secondary 

librarian, a writer, and a 

keen cold-water swimmer 

in addition to being on 

the Spark! School Book 

Awards team. 

@rrouillard @TKALibrary 

In 2022 there was an outcry when the 

Costa Book Awards and Blue Peter 

Book Awards were both cancelled. The 

Blue Peter award, in particular, was 

lamented as one of the few book awards 

that put voting power in the hands of 

children. These awards connect children, parents, 

and teachers with good-quality children’s literature 

and celebrate authors who don’t get prime 

supermarket shelf space. Fortunately, in 2024 the 

landscape of children’s book awards looks a lot 

more verdant. 


The Spark! School Book Awards was created 

in 2020 by a headteacher and three colleagues 

working on the frontline of reading and literacy in 

schools. It started with 60 schools in South-West 

London and this year we have 170 schools from all 

over the UK. Our reading panels of teachers and 

librarians shortlist four books in each category in 

January, pupil voting takes place in June, and the 

winners are announced in a virtual ceremony at 

the beginning of July. Like our mascot, Buzz, Spark 

aims to create a ‘buzz’ about reading in schools. 

Our goal is to engage teachers, librarians, authors, 

and, most importantly – children. 

Teacher Engagement 

Part of our job as librarians is helping teachers 

expand their book knowledge, and Spark provides 

curated shortlists of good-quality, diverse, and 

inclusive children’s books. We have four categories: 

picture books, 7+ readers, 9+ readers, and 11+ 

readers – our new secondary category. We also 

have a guest category – this year it is graphic 

novels. In addition, a range of resources is available 

on our website, including assembly slides, 

booklets, posters, and blogs to help teachers and 

librarians get the most out of the awards. 

Author Engagement 

As librarians we know the huge value of an author 

visit; each Spark shortlisted author provides an 

introductory video plus one online author visit, so 

pupils can ask them questions about their books. 

Participating schools are invited to these events, but 

they are also recorded if you are unable to attend. Our 

schools also engage with the authors on social media. 

Recently, one of my Year 4 pupils was thrilled to have 

her illustrated ‘Tyger’ poem praised by S.F. Said, and 

a Year 9 pupil was hugely excited that her ‘This Book 

Kills’ poem was reposted by Ravena Guron. 

Pupil Engagement 

Of course, our primary goal is pupil engagement. We 

are proud to be one of the few children’s book awards 

decided by pupil votes. There are several other 

opportunities for pupils to get involved, including a 

poetry competition and our main competition where 

pupils can submit a book review or creative response 

in any medium for the opportunity to win a prize. 

One of our fundamental goals is minimising barriers 

to reading and, as a registered charity, we fundraise to 

provide free books for disadvantaged pupils. 

‘The award is a wonderful introduction to a range 

of brilliant books and authors. It has encouraged 

me to read books I wouldn’t normally have chosen, 

such as My Friend the Octopus.’ Year 6 Pupil. 

You can find out more about the Spark! 

School Book Awards on our website: 

www.sparkbookawards.co.uk 

Top reasons to get involved in a book award: 

1. Entice new users into the school library. 

2. Introduce pupils to exciting new authors. 

3. Build children’s confidence in expressing 

their opinions. 


Feature 

Interview with 

Nicola Usborne 

Nicola Usborne talks to us about their new 5-year 

sponsorship of our Primary School Library of the 

Year Award, which has been re-named to honour 

her father's commitment to supporting literacy. 

W 

hy do you think primary 

school libraries are 

important? 

Giving all young children 

access to books – to build 

a love of reading, to build 

literacy, to educate, inform and delight children 

– is crucial. We know how many children have 

no books of their own at home; primary school 

libraries are vital in making books available to all. 

What impact do you hope this award will 

have on schools and their students? 

There are so many teachers and librarians doing 

all they can to create inspiring libraries for their 

students, often with very stretched resources. We 

are thrilled to be able to celebrate those spaces and 

the passionate professionals who work so hard to 

shape them. I hope that this award will encourage 

students to feel proud of their school library. 

Primary school libraries are vital in 

making books available to all. 

In founding Usborne, your father successfully 

fostered a love of reading and learning 

among children by creating great fiction and 

information books. How do you see the role 

of fiction and information for young people? 

Usborne started out as a non-fiction specialist, 

because that’s where the biggest gap was when 

my dad founded the company in the ‘70s. Since 

then, we’ve expanded into activity books, baby 

books and fiction. We apply the same principles 

to every book we publish: we view each topic or 

theme through the eyes of a curious child; we 

ensure that words and pictures work together 

in perfect harmony to convey information or a 

story; and we stick to the same high standards in 

editorial, design and production. It doesn’t matter 

what type or topic of book a child reads, only that 

they are reading. That’s why we create irresistible 

books for children at every age and stage, across 

all genres and categories. Functional literacy is 

obviously vital, but so is absorbing and questioning 

information, and learning empathy through stories. 

Functional literacy is obviously 

vital, but so is absorbing and 

questioning information, and 

learning empathy through stories. 

The role of digital literacy is imperative in 

today’s world, as is reading – how do you 

see the relationship between reading and 

digital engagement? 

I see a strong future for physical children’s books, 

as we know that parents and children still seek 

out books to share, to collect, and to put on a 

shelf. Books are great value and easy access. Many 

parents also want their children to spend less time 

on screen – particularly if they are concerned 

about the content they might be accessing. 

However, digital can obviously also be a very good 

way to deliver learning and reading experiences. 

At the Usborne Foundation, we chose to work 

digitally so that we could achieve as much scale 

and reach as possible with our funding. We have 

built six very sophisticated learning games called 

‘Teach Your Monster …’ (four around reading, one 

in maths and another to promote healthy eating) 

that have now been played over half a billion times 

(and I didn’t mistype that!) around the world. We 

are all very proud of the impact that these digital 

games have achieved. 

I hope that this award will encourage 

students to feel proud of their library. 

Nicola and Peter Usborne 

© Martin Usborne, 2023 

Nicola Usborne is MD of 

global children's publisher, 

Usborne. She also co-runs 

the Usborne Foundation, a 

charity whose suite of online 

games, Teach Your Monster, 

have been played more than 

500 million times by children 

around the world. 


Feature 

Working with Sixth Formers 

on Evaluating Information 

Andrew K. Shenton 

Andrew Shenton shares his research on how sixth 

formers evaluate information, highlighting the 

importance of guidance from information professionals. 

Dr. Andrew K. Shenton 

worked as a teacher, school 

librarian and EPQ supervisor in 

various schools for over thirty 

years. He has recently retired. 

Introduction: The principle of least 

effort is frequently cited in analyses of 

how we find and use information. The 

analytical nature of evaluation means 

that it is a challenging skill for students. 

In addition, young people may lack the 

maturity necessary to apply some of the strategies 

that are routine for adults. Consequently, we might 

expect them to adopt practices that simplify the 

evaluation process. This inclination emerged as 

an important theme in the findings of a recent 

research study exploring how Sixth Formers 

appraise information for major school projects. 

The Study 

Background 

The work took place in a big, well-performing 

comprehensive school in northern England. The 

participants were sixteen- and seventeen-year-olds 

undertaking the Extended Project Qualification 

(EPQ). This course requires candidates to conduct 

a large, independent project that culminates in 

an oral presentation and a 5,000-word essay. As 

the critical use of information is an integral part of 

their task, students are also encouraged to submit 

a document in which they analyse the sources they 

have consulted. In the last academic year, 40 Year 

12s studied for the EPQ and 32 of them handed 

in a document of this type. The results that follow 

emerged from my scrutiny of this material. 

Results 

Although by no means universal, it soon became 

apparent that many students had simplified in 

some way(s) the process of analysing the sources 

they had examined. One boy, for example, 

considered only authorship when discussing 

the reliability of the material, and 13 learners 

who presented information about each of the 

consulted items in their ‘source analysis document’ 

addressed more descriptive aspects than critical 

ones. In dealing with the question of currency, 

most candidates merely indicated in their 

document the age of the item on the basis of its 

year of publication. When exploring the authority 

of the writer, several just reproduced part or all of 

the mini biography included in the source. They 

tended not to state explicit conclusions nor to look 

elsewhere for information about the author that 

may have presented another perspective. 

The evaluation of information is a 

complex task; it is multifaceted and 

demands attention to qualitative 

factors, as well as statistical measures. 

Two different approaches were taken with respect 

to citations, but in each set of circumstances the 

candidates were interested solely in statistics. In 

the first scenario, students noted the number of 

citations the paper had attracted and, without 

exception, any work that had garnered a seemingly 

impressive total was believed to be trustworthy. 

None of the candidates pursuing this line made 

any attempt to ascertain who had cited the work 

or the contexts in which this had been done. 

Secondly, attention was focused on the number 

of sources the paper itself referenced. Again, any 

work that cited what the individual felt to be a 

reasonable number of items was deemed reliable. 

No one reported making any effort to scrutinise 

the cited material in relation to the nature of the 

sources, their currency or authorship. 

Discussion and Implications 

The students’ behaviours raise a range of 

significant issues. With regard to the currency 

of information, the learners were frustrated 

when working with websites that lacked a date 

of creation or updating. This shortcoming 

emphasises the need to pay heed to the age of any 


Working with Sixth Formers on Evaluating Information 

If we are successful in changing 

behaviour at this formative stage, 

we can help instil good practice. 

references and engage with the item’s main text so 

as to determine how far it covers the latest thinking 

and events. In deriving their opinions on authors 

from the mini biographies that accompanied 

their papers, the youngsters appeared unaware 

that generally writers themselves supply this 

information, so the problem of potential bias has to 

be acknowledged. 

It is perhaps in terms of citations, though, that 

most concerns arise. Here assessments were based 

entirely on quantitative evidence. There are several 

explanations as to why a paper may be highly cited. 

The most significant include its age, the size/scope 

of the area under consideration and the degree 

of research activity within that area. Also, an item 

may be heavily referenced because it has acquired 

notoriety among experts. 

Turning to the second “citations” scenario, we may 

feel it is entirely natural – and even advisable – for 

older students to investigate the sources that have 

been used by a writer. After all, Sixth Formers are 

taking their own first steps in referencing according 

to standard conventions. Nevertheless, in terms of 

evaluating the work of others, they may struggle to 

identify from a citation alone the kind of item being 

referenced and at least some of the cited material 

is likely to be inaccessible to the student. It is not 

surprising, then, that some youngsters fall back on 

statistics. Yet, in establishing their argument, many 

authors will typically cite others who are similarly 

minded, so again the danger of bias arises, and the 

scope of the evidential base may be narrow. 

Final Thoughts 

The evaluation of information is a complex task; it is 

multifaceted and demands attention to qualitative 

factors, as well as statistical measures. Critical 

analysis is time consuming and requires much 

effort if it is to be undertaken conscientiously. Even 

Sixth Formers may lack the maturity and inclination 

to conduct a thorough assessment. It may be 

difficult, too, for young learners to wrestle with the 

contrasting discoveries that emerge when different 

evaluative criteria are applied. For example, a paper 

that gains status from being highly cited may be so 

old that it cannot be considered to offer an up-todate 

perspective. 

The analytical nature of 

evaluation means that it is a 

challenging skill for students. 

Although not all the learners applied expedient 

strategies – some worked diligently on assessing 

their sources – undoubtedly a great onus falls on 

the information professional to be alert to signs of 

shortcutting and provide counter arguments that 

prevent the methods reported here from becoming 

habitual patterns. If we are successful in changing 

behaviour at this formative stage, we can help instil 

good practice from which young people will benefit 

in a variety of contexts, both personal and academic. 

Putting it into practice in the classroom 

This study emphasises the need for students to 

receive training in how to evaluate information 

rigorously in order to counter the natural 

tendency of some to take the path of least effort. 

The activities that follow form a lesson that 

encourages young people to be genuinely critical 

in their assessments of sources and which could 

be used with any secondary school year group. 

1. Present two reasonably short sources of 

contrasting quality. 

2. Ask the students to read them and offer their 

first impressions. 

3. Invite them to evaluate each source 

systematically against the criteria in an 

established model. Do the students feel that 

their initial reactions were borne out by 

further investigation? What else have they 

found themselves thinking about? 

4. Suggest that they use the model they have been 

shown to identify for themselves a good source 

and a poor one, on a subject of their own choice. 

5. Organise a discussion in which the students 

share their ideas with the class. Everyone 

improves their own understanding of the 

model’s evaluation criteria as a result of input 

from other members of the group. The wideranging 

relevance of the principles involved 

should be apparent in the exchanges. 


Feature 

Neurodiversity and 

the Power of Stories 

Fiona Carswell 

Author Fiona Carswell shares her family’s experiences 

of reading and storytelling, reminding us that stories 

have a power that can be shared in different ways. 

Fiona Carswell lives in 

Scotland with her young 

family, and is mother to two 

boys, one autistic, the other 

neurotypical. The Boy Who 

Loves to Lick the Wind is her 

first book. 

Fiona Carswell’s book, The 

Boy Who Loves to Lick the 

Wind, illustrated by Yu Rong, 

is out now in hardback at 

£12.99, published by 

Otter-Barry Books. 

The question I have been asked most 

since my book was published is what 

my boys make of it. When it comes 

to the younger lad, that’s an easy one: 

at seven, he is reading independently 

for fun and has been dining out on 

the buzz of mum having a book on shelves. I even 

made it onto his class’s Achievements Board during 

publication week. I would say confidently that he’s 

quietly proud, in that sort of don’t-you-dare-hug-mein-front-of-my-mates 

sort of way. 

As for my elder lad, I have no idea. At age ten, 

and with an autism diagnosis since three, he 

is not yet a reader or writer, 

although he did have a mighty 

good crack at signing his name 

in my Mother’s Day card, which 

was utterly thrilling. 

If I’m honest though, literacy is 

not one of the more pressing 

issues in our day-to-day lives as 

a neurodivergent family. Much 

more important is my elder 

son’s happiness, his ability to 

be fleetingly calm, the ways in 

which we can gently expand his 

social and sensory worlds, and the 

continuous building of communities for him as he 

grows and develops. 

I always thought, naively, that children just 

learned to read – that it just happened, almost 

magically. It had genuinely never occurred to me 

as I entered motherhood that reading wouldn’t, 

for one of my children, be part of their young lives. 

What mum doesn’t envisage snuggling up on the 

sofa, reading stories from their own childhood 

and passing on the baton. 

But sometimes life just doesn’t work that way. My 

younger boy reads avidly, but rarely the books I 

would choose: he can lose himself in a football 

I always thought, naively, that 

children just learned to read. 

programme and will happily dismiss the titles I’ve 

chosen as ‘potentials’ in the bookshop, having 

studied the back-cover blurbs himself. We are 

our own people, and our reading journeys are 

testament to that. 

For my elder boy, stories, in their purest form, 

are everything. As a concrete thinker, he needs 

constant storytelling – incessant narration – to 

make sense of a world which is, ultimately, not 

built for him. As a family, we create 

stories, every day, all day. A baby is 

crying in a buggy: we must unpack 

the possible why and where and 

what and who of what made the 

baby upset. A classmate is absent: 

a narrative must be woven to 

explain the face missing from the 

room that day. A car pulls out 

and gives everybody a low-level 

fright: we need to create the story 

behind that everyday, seemingly 

innocuous, incident in order for 

processing to begin. 

And what is salient to me is rarely what is salient 

to my son. Fine, he’s seen the chap with the big, 

fluffy beard, on which I’ve been focusing, and 

is delighted to try to touch and sniff it – being a 

sensory seeker and not reading context is a heady 

combination. But guaranteed there’s something 

happening behind the bearded man, in the 

background, which will capture my lad’s attention 

and become a fixation. 

We are our own people, and our 

reading journeys are testament to that. 



A story that needed to be told and 

repeated and enjoyed in whatever 

way works for each and every child. 

I’ve often thought it’s rather ironic that my son is, 

as yet, not writing: his ideas would be wonderfully 

anarchic and truly original. He asked me recently 

if there was a man dressed up inside my sister’s 

dog (presumably he’d seen a pantomime horse 

somewhere). He’s wonderfully merged the notions 

of Easter and Halloween and now tells anybody who 

will listen that Jesus comes back at Halloween. And 

he was the first person I ever saw licking the wind. 

When I wrote my book, it was that image of him, 

joyfully embracing every sensory compulsion on 

the beach, that burned bright. In that moment, it 

became his story: not a story that needed to be read, 

necessarily, but a story that needed to be told and 

repeated and enjoyed in whatever way works for 

each and every child. 

My elder son has never sat and listened to me read 

my book to him. He has never listened to me tell 

the story of this amazing boy on the beach with the 

wind on his tongue, opening hearts and minds with 

his sense of joy, so raw in its pureness. But there 

is one page he loves to stare at – a page on which 

Yu Rong’s mesmerising splashes and wind and 

movement are, to me, most tangible – and that is 

quite enough for me. 

Fiona’s top tips for school staff to support 

autistic students like her son: 

1. Embrace their reading choices (be they 

programmes, magazines, instructions, 

roadsigns, etc) – motivation is key! 

2. Use wordless stories with all pupils. And 

remember, talking is storytelling, too! 

3. Consider whether your library or reading 

environment supports neurodivergent pupils 

the best it can and what barriers can be 

removed to aid accessibility for all. 


Feature 

Opening Doors with Libraries 

Bob Cox 

Quality reading opportunities can be a gateway 

to opportunities. Here, Bob Cox shares his own 

experiences of this as both learner and educator. 

Bob Cox Having taught 

English for 23 years, Bob 

Cox is now an independent 

education consultant, 

writer, and teacher coach 

who works nationally 

and internationally to 

support outstanding 

learning. Find out more 

about his work at www. 

searchingforexcellence. 

co.uk. 

His latest book Opening 

Doors to Ambitious 

Primary English (Crown 

House Publishing) is out 

now: www.crownhouse. 

co.uk/opening-doors-toambitious-primary-english. 

My first encounter with a 

library was the mobile type, 

a long, long time ago when 

I must have been a primary 

age pupil. I can still hear the 

unnerving creak below my 

feet as I stepped into a beguiling world of book 

after book, rising to shelves beyond my reach. The 

insularity of the single corridor of books added 

to the ownership: I wanted to explore forever! I 

borrowed books either too hard, too large, or with 

quirky covers. Nobody minded; everyone smiled; 

the inky stamp on the book label followed! 

Generations on, I am a long-term educationist, 

writer, and teacher; and the library remains the 

hub of pupil reading journeys. Our Opening 

Doors series of books recommends flooding 

pupils with quality reading: a text bonanza! So, 

for example, after terrific explorations of the 

ghastly descriptions of Miss Havisham in Great 

Expectations, more can be learnt and enjoyed with 

a hoard of other descriptive texts: The Graveyard 

Book perhaps or the spooky woodland in The 

Longest Night of Charlie Noon. How about a trip 

to the Australian outback with the incredible 

The Song Walker or the dark heart of a future 

London in Tyger. Librarians make what I call ‘a 

beautiful contact’ with reading lives of pupils by 

recommending such books. 

As a young teacher, I decided to borrow huge 

trunks of poetry books from the school library 

service. I asked pupils to choose, read, browse, 

and discuss. A fairly stern advisor from the local 

authority walked in that day. Every pupil was 

reading. There was silence, a total silence. Was 

that good or bad? I had no strategies to talk 

about – just many anthologies, some of them 

quite hard, and they were choosing their own. 

They were not advanced readers either. The 

The library is the hub of the 

school’s intellectual and joyful life. 

Librarians make what I call ‘a beautiful 

contact’ with reading lives of pupils 

by recommending such books. 

advisor strolled up and down, looked, spoke to 

pupils, showed no feelings. He asked to see me at 

the end of the day. I was numb. I was convinced 

he thought there was no rationale behind the 

lesson, no exercises, no tasks. 

‘Reading is everything,’ he said, with a wry smile 

and the removal of his thick, dark glasses. ‘You 

thought nothing much was going on. I think 

everything was going on. The resources made 

the difference.’ 

The resources made the difference. 

I never forgot that encounter. The library is the 

hub of the school’s intellectual and joyful life and 

not just for English lessons. It’s one thing for me 

to work with the enthusiasm of teachers but only 

a functioning library system in the school and 

area can inject the knowledge and skills to make 

it happen. The kinds of expertise needed to keep 

whole text quality reading for all alive relies upon 

a constant flow of advice and availability of books 

which only libraries can supply. If we believe in 

an enriched curriculum, we need to support the 

libraries and librarians who make it happen! 

References 

The Opening Doors series by Bob Cox et al 

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaimon 

The Longest Night of Charlie Noon 

by Christopher Edge 

The Song Walker by Zillah Bethell 

Tyger by S. F. Said 


A View From ... 

… a Primary School 

Everywhere we look at the moment, whether in the news, social 

media, or in the workplace, everyone is talking about AI. If I'm 

honest, I have hidden behind the fact, particularly in the case of 

ChatGPT, that the age limit for use is 13, and so I haven't set aside 

time to see if it can be a productive tool in the library. However, 

I've noticed the children talking about it more and many are 

using it at home, or their parents are. So recently I have been 

experimenting with Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, and ChatGPT 

– the three main players at the moment. I've also signed up to 

various AI sources so that I won’t be caught out when it inevitably 

becomes a part of our everyday experience, in the same way as 

searching for something online. 

As primary school librarians, we all have those developing 

readers in our midst that are hard to reach in terms of their 

reading engagement, and it can be easy to despair when none of 

our reading suggestions gain any traction. Recently, I have tried 

ChatGPT with one of my developing readers. He is dyslexic, finds 

reading tiring and thus needs support with his reading stamina 

and engagement. Sometimes, he just needs that short story. 

ChatGPT allows him, under my supervision, to create a short 

story in seconds that is literally tailor made with his imagined 

characters. I can also prompt ChatGPT to insert and repeat 

certain words a set number of times, that he needs to practise. 

These could be based on phonics 

or reading fluency. It has been 

really powerful for him to practise 

his reading fluency and stamina 

in this way, either as a short story 

or short chapters that can create a 

longer story. 

It also means I can create a hard 

copy from ChatGPT, classify it 

on our LMS, and display it in the 

library for other children to read 

and enjoy. This creates interest. As 

a way in for those children that find 

reading engagement really tough, AI 

can prove to be an invaluable tool. 

Sally Le Marquand is the 

school librarian at Bishop 

Gilpin Primary in South 

West London. 

However, I would be nervous about relying on this technology to 

replace the imaginative and descriptive writing process in the long 

term (actually I've found such AI generated stories are pretty dull) 

but as a stepping stone to address reading stamina and fluency it 

is definitely another tool worth having in our librarian armoury. 

… a Secondary School 

Hopefully we are enjoying some summer weather when you 

read this. However, right now I’m taking a moment to look 

back on the spring term. March is a super busy month what 

with World Book Day, the National Reading Champions Quiz, 

end of term Star Tests, EPQ submissions, and the highlight 

of the school year (in our Library at least) – the final of the 

Derbyshire Schools’ Book Award. 

I am extremely fortunate to have been able to work with other 

school librarians in our county to develop the DSBA over the 

last nine years. Our final was held at the University of Derby and 

included students from 11 different schools. Although trips fill 

me with terror (endless risk assessments remind you of all the 

possible things that could go wrong), students benefit so much 

from visiting different places and you can see their lives and 

aspirations developing with each new experience. 

The university’s widening participation team have been a great 

supporter of the DSBA, hosting our final for several years. Students 

also enjoy a tour of the campus, with the library high on their 

must-see list. This year, they also particularly enjoyed seeing the 

Aquatic Research Facility: “I’ve found Dory!” exclaimed one of my 

students, excitedly peering through the windows. 

The DSBA is all about the students, and in the final, groups of 

students champion each of the shortlisted books. The creativity, 

bravery, and enthusiasm of our 

students never fails to astound 

me. This year’s presentations were 

without doubt our best yet! They 

made me want to read the books 

all over again. 

The authors we’ve featured over the 

years have also been so generous 

with their time throughout the 

whole process. We’ve been lucky to 

have several join us for the final in 

previous years, including Katya Balen 

and Ben Davis. In fact, huge thanks to 

Ben Davis for stepping in again this 

year at short notice. 

Helen Smith – "I've been 

working in school libraries 

for longer than I care to 

remember, but still not sure 

I'm doing it right. Here's to 

learning as we go". 

Working collaboratively with other librarians reminds us that 

we’re not alone in our roles, and the final creates many memories 

– not just for students but for the staff involved too. Remembering 

over a hundred students all cheering for their favourite book can 

keep you going on days when Year 10 are banging on your wall, 

you find a mouldy sandwich behind the thriller books, or another 

book is returned still damp from last week’s rain shower. 

I’ve already started planning for our 10th anniversary next year! 



… a Schools Library Service 

Our summer term here at Creative Learning Services (CLS) 

is always full of delivering our final sessions for primary and 

secondary pupils in schools, training school staff, and sending 

out resources as the end of the subscription year for most of our 

schools arrives. We will also be finishing many of the projects 

we run with our range of partners, which is a really exciting time 

as our book award winners are announced and the planning for 

next year begins. 

We work hard to establish good relationships with our internal 

Leicestershire County Council partners, such as Participation, 

Record Office, Museums Collections, LCC libraries, and our 

museums teams. We are also invited to work with some wonderful 

community groups, most recently with the Anand Mangal group 

and currently the Sikh Women exhibition at Bosworth Battlefield – 

just a couple of examples of working together for CLS to establish 

better understanding of other people’s culture and heritage and to 

encourage our schools to get involved too. 

Throughout the year, we work very closely with Leicester City 

Libraries and School Development Support Agency (SDSA) 

colleagues on an initiative called Whatever It Takes (WiT), which 

aims to get every child in Leicester reading. We run three book 

awards together, host author events, present at conferences, run 

training, and so much more, which all benefits our schools and 

our own professional development. 

We are fortunate to be part of the 

NPO funding for Leicestershire, 

so we are involved in a new 

project using our Artworks and 

Resource Box collections within our 

community. Our Artworks Officer 

also works in partnership with art 

galleries and artists to curate our 

unique collection which schools Nicole Jordan is Senior 

can borrow. We also run training Librarian at Creative 

sessions for students from Leicester Learning Services, part 

University Museums Studies and of Leicestershire County 

Education Departments and provide 

Council, who manages the 

online training to other museums’ 

team of CLS librarians. 

staff around the country through 

Museums Development Midlands (MDM). 

We couldn’t do our work here at CLS without working with a range 

of different partners throughout the year. Whether that’s running 

virtual author talks, sending out real museum artefacts and 

artworks into schools, or liaising on a new exciting project with 

one of our community groups, we thrive on this way of working 

and there are so many mutual benefits, along with helping to keep 

our service as robust and reliable to ensure that our schools keep 

subscribing with us. We are looking forward to another great year 

of partnership working. 

… a Sixth Form 

The library isn’t a destination for many students: being open at both 

ends, it is often a corridor to elsewhere, so to combat this we’ve 

started taking a Pop-Up Library out to events. This allows us to 

curate a small, relevant, attention-grabbing collection. 

When I started in this role, the fiction section was ‘pale, stale, and 

male’; adding diversity and making the space more inclusive have 

been my top priorities. I think a good indication of how successful 

this has been happened when we looked at the books that we could 

take to the LGBTQIA+ Society’s Pride Party and realised most of the 

collection was out on loan! A quick shopping trip with Browns and 

Overdrive meant that we had more new books to loan out on the 

day. Thank goodness for next-day delivery! 

The next stop was at February’s staff development day. We’re keen 

to get our staff reading so that they can model this behavior for 

students. To tie in with Valentine’s Day, we used ‘Blind Date with 

a Book’. Staff loved the idea and were intrigued by the three-word 

descriptions that we put on the cover. We loaned 16 books in one 

hour, which is more than our usual monthly staff total! We also 

positioned our stall by the tea and coffee station which helped 

with passing trade. 

When we attended the Easter Fair, I struggled to find a way to tie in 

Easter and reading until I discovered Paskerkrim – the Norwegian 

tradition of reading crime books 

over the Easter long weekend after 

a day’s skiing. 

We had a successful visit from DC 

Comics author Dean Ormston, 

who led a session on storyboarding 

and graphic novel writing. We are 

fortunate to have a comics’ superstar 

on our doorstep here in Barnsley 

and the session was enjoyed so 

much by both our students and by 

Dean that more are being organised. 

We’re always trying to come up 

Abby Barker is a librarian 

at Barbnsley College. 

with new ways to present our literacy workshops and this one was 

perfect – it even resulted in coverage in the local press. 

Finally, some long waited for news. Work will finally begin in 

May on the College’s Institute of Technology which will house a 

new library. We can’t wait to get into the new space and offer our 

students an amazing, modern library experience. 



… a Specialist School 

We are on the move; it is official. The funding has come 

through and now it is all about the plans, designs, and keeping 

everyone happy. 

I am sitting at my desk with a sample of flooring and a proof 

copy of The Grimmelings by Rachael King to one side, while to 

the other there is an aurora projector and an accessory pack for 

our switch adapted Scalextric – life is never dull and that is what 

I love about my job. Each day I have the opportunity to support 

our students in their learning and development, and now we are 

going to create a space that will have a library at its heart – but it 

will be so much more. 

We are creating a new interactive learning zone (ILZ); the 

name is still up for discussion as our students rightly want 

to choose the name. This space will be one that students can 

explore, discover, and escape in. There will be four spaces 

including an immersive learning zone where students can 

interact with content via sound, light, and touch; it is here 

where learning will come to life and also give them the 

opportunity to access spaces and environments that they 

might not currently be able to. The library will have a hoist 

spanning the full length of the space so that students can 

get out of their wheelchairs and truly relax while listening 

or reading a story. In the next two spaces we will have an 

interactive area with switch-adapted 

toys and kit, along with our iSand, 

an augmented reality sandbox. And, 

finally, there will be a gaming zone. 

This space will be designed with 

input from our therapy department 

to provide adaptive and accessible 

access to gaming. 

All of these zones will have fully 

controllable lighting, which students 

can control themselves so that they 

can define a space or create sensory 

stimulation. We are also looking at 

a switchable glass wall along the 

entrance to the ILZ, which we can 

project onto to showcase students’ 

work and to show films. 

Louise Harding is LR Manager 

in a specialist school and 

college, who believes that 

every student should have the 

opportunity to access books 

to discover the power and 

magic that they can bring. 

So, this one area will be multipurpose and have to meet the 

variable needs of our cohort which range from primary school 

through to college students. Not a small feat, so watch this space 

to see what we create! Now I have the unenviable task of weeding 

our current book stock from 7,000 to under 3,000 … 

… an International School 

One of the core roles of the library is to develop information 

literacy in our students. Recently, our Grade 7 students 

conducted research centred around the concept of “exploration” 

for their individuals and societies class. In their classroom, the 

students learned about early exploration, including Marco Polo, 

the Spanish Conquest, and the British Empire. They visited the 

Maritime Museum to learn about exploration and global trade 

in history. They also had a visiting author speak about his own 

family history research. 

Their research task was to create a visual journey map by 

investigating a person within their family that has gone on a 

journey and explored somewhere new to them. They were 

required to conduct both primary and secondary research, 

including an interview as well as using other sources including 

diaries, photographs, letters, or other documents if deemed 

relevant. Students also researched the context for the journey 

using the library databases in addition to online information. 

Their teacher, having already used the library extensively 

throughout the past two years asked to collaborate in the design 

and implementation of the project. As we have already worked 

together a number of times with the same group of students, a 

true collaboration has developed whereby we can identify gaps in 

knowledge and understanding, and then refine the task over time. 

A library lesson was conducted very early on in the research 

process. Our lessons are 80 minutes in length, allowing for 

time for students to practice the skills learned. Building on the 

students’ already developed 

referencing and researching skills, 

we discussed the use of local 

library resources, including access 

to Ancestry.com, which would 

enable students to use a program 

(which has a subscription fee) for 

free. Additionally, we discussed 

how to label and cite sources 

such as maps, photographs, and Erin Patel is a Teacher Librarian 

other primary sources. Students from Sydney, Australia. Since 

were encouraged to access the relocating to the UK two years 

Library Guides for guidance on ago with her family, she has 

digital resources and referencing; been the MYP Teacher Librarian 

however, I was very pleased to see at Southbank International 

that a degree of autonomy had School, an IB school in London. 

been developing. Having been 

regularly exposed to the library 

resources, and constantly challenged in their development of 

research skills, a degree of confidence was evident in many of 

our students. However, as an international school with new 

enrolments each term, the Library Guides were valuable tools for 

those who needed them. 

Our students have some degree of choice in their research and 

therefore were actively engaged in developing complex research 

skills alongside understanding their own place in the world 

through researching their family history. 


Curriculum Links 

Primary – Empathy 

Book: Chinery, Emma 

My Friend Andy 

Little Tiger Press, 2024, 32pp, £12.99, 

9781801045803 

Mum and Lilly walk dog Fluffy every day 

past Andy, but when Fluffy gets lost he 

knows Andy is safe and will help him. 

Book: Smith, Granger, Illustrated by 

Laura Watkins, Up Toward the Light 

Thomas Nelson, 2024, 32pp, £12.99, 

9781400241668 

A way to approach bereavement and 

grief with young children and recognise 

life cycles and new beginnings. 

Book: Tallec, Oliver 

A Better Best Friend 

Gecko Press, 2024, 32pp, £12.99, 

9781776575732 

Friendship through the eyes of animals, 

with each animal being a potentially 

better friend than the last until the 

realisation that you can have many 

great friends. 

Book: Dockrill, Laura, 

Grey, Illustrated by Lauren Child 

Walker Books, 2024, 40pp, £14.99, 

9781406389562 

Two great voices of words and pictures 

combine to show we can have ‘down’ 

days, but brighter days will always come. 

Video: ‘Communication Skills: 

Empathetic Listening – Inside Out, 

2015’ (YouTube) 


watch?v=t685WM5R6aM 

Showing the difference between 

sympathy and actually listening in order 

to emphasise with how someone is 

feeling when things go wrong. 

Video: Sesame Street (YouTube) 


watch?v=9_1Rt1R4xbM 

Mark Ruffalo and Murray talk about 

the word "Empathy" and knowing how 

someone else feels when things go 

wrong. 

Website: EmpathyLab 

https://www.empathylab.uk/ 

The go-to site for research, activities, 

booklists, and more for all things 

empathy to help children of all ages 

understand emotions. 

Website: Empathy Day – Teaching 

Resources – BBC Teach 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/empathy-dayteaching-resources/zsbbydm 

Building on EmpathyLab’s theme and 

resources, the BBC provides short videos 

and films to offer different ways of 

walking in others’ shoes. 

Website: 23 Fun Empathy Activities for 

Kids – Very Special Tales 

https://veryspecialtales.com/empathyactivities-for-kids-printable-kindness/ 

Tips, advice, and activities on how 

to teach empathy to children with a 

downloadable, fun ‘kindness challenge’ 

to print off. 

Secondary – Empathy 

Book: Libenson, Terri, Always Anthony 

Balzer & Bray, 2024, 336pp, £8.99, 

9780063320925 

Popular Anthony and timid Leah 

encounter a bullying incident at school, 

and both are affected in many ways. 

Book: Quarmby, Katherine 

Just Breathe 

Badger Publishing, 2024, £7.99, 9781788378260 

Poverty, bereavement, foster care, and 

bullying. No one can fail to empathise 

with Sam as he deals with all life has 

thrown at him. 

Video: ‘Brené Brown on Empathy’ 

(YouTube) 


watch?v=1Evwgu369Jw 

Dr Brené Brown reminds us that we 

can only create a genuine empathic 

connection if we really examine what we 

say and do. 

Video: ‘Empathetic Listening Skills’, 

Communication Coach Alexander 

Lyon (YouTube) 

https://youtu.be/lO1gpzakbik 

Explanations of emotional literacy, 

providing that ear to enable someone to 

talk, actually hearing how someone feels. 

Video: ‘The Power of Empathy’, 

Eileen Dobzynski, TEDX 

https://www.ted.com/talks/eileen_dobzynski_ 

the_power_of_empathy 

Eileen talks about the power of empathy, 

saying we’re sorry, but do we mean it? 

Do we feel it? Empathy is something that 

connects us all. 

Video: ‘The Importance of Empathy’, 

Lifehacker (YouTube) 

https://youtu.be/UzPMMSKfKZQ 

Explanations and tips to help notice 

others and better understand how they 

are feeling to help with empathy. 

Website: BBC ‘Being kind online’ 

https://www.bbc.com/ownit/curations/beingkind-online 

Just because someone is behind a screen 

doesn't mean you can't treat them as 

you'd like to be treated. Ideas and advice 

to help make the web a kinder place. 

Website: ‘Cognitive Empathy vs. 

Emotional Empathy’, Jodi Clarke 

https://www.verywellmind.com/cognitiveand-emotional-empathy-4582389 

Learn the details of different types of 

empathy and where they differ, why it 

matters, and what you can do to improve 

your own skills. 

Website: ‘Empathy at Work’, 

Mind Tools Content Team 

https://www.mindtools.com/agz0gft/ 

empathy-at-work 

Developing Skills to Understand Other 

People, important in the workplace and 

throughout life. 


Frequently Asked Questions 

answered by Dawn Woods 

1. I want to be inclusive for KS1, but 

don’t want parents complaining 

about book stock. 

Inclusivity for secondary schools will 

include books on gay relationships, may 

include LGBTQ+ in the title, and will 

be written to answer questions many 

young adults have about their sexuality 

and the emotional conflict they may be 

feeling because of their age. However, 

books for younger children can be just 

as inclusive without being so overt. 

Some children will simply experience a 

book as a beautiful tale, others will see 

themselves reflected in the story and 

know they are seen. 

• You can introduce picture books 

with different kinds of families, e.g. two 

mummies or two daddies, but that don’t 

specifically focus on this. There may 

be a storyline which focuses on going 

shopping and doesn’t mention the child 

is with two same sex parents. It may 

come up in discussion where you can 

say there are many different types of 

families, but if it doesn’t, your pupils 

are obviously not yet ready. Yet they 

may remember that title some time later 

and simply accept it as a different type 

of family to their own. 

• Some books use animals being different. 

The obvious example here is Elmer, and 

who doesn’t love and accept Elmer? My 

Mate Mark Is a Hammerhead Shark is 

a book about appearances, yet one little 

boy sees he needs friends just like the 

rest of us. My Friend Andy is about a 

homeless man who people pass on the 

street yet don’t see until Andy gives his 

time freely to help a little dog in need. 

You can provide a whole wealth of 

wonderful stories to promote inclusivity 

and acceptance and allow your pupils to 

pick up what they need from each book 

when they are ready to consider that 

not everyone is the same and that this is 

perfectly alright. 

Dawn Woods is the Member 

Development Librarian at the 

School Library Association. 

She has spent her career 

mainly with a Schools' Library 

Service, but also in children's 

libraries, and was previously a 

manager of an SLS. 

2. I want to make the library 

interesting but don’t have time to 

constantly change displays. 

The key here is to use the tools and 

people at your disposal. Book publishers 

spend a lot of time designing book 

jackets to sell books. Use them to ‘sell’ 

your stock. Display face outwards and 

encourage borrowing of titles which 

may be otherwise overlooked. Have 

conversations about the display to 

discover what your readership enjoys and 

what they don’t. 

• Be realistic. Half a term is a good 

length of time for a display. It may take 

a week to compile, so you don’t want 

to be changing it 3 weeks later. Equally, 

neither do you want a winter display to 

be hanging around during hot summer 

months. 

• Use the SLA Library and Reading 

Planner which suggests useful days, 

weeks, months to promote which are 

linked to books or the school 

curriculum. It is organised into months 

and gives useful websites to help – but 

prioritise just a few which fit in with 

school priorities. 

• For this reason, communication with 

other staff is essential. Discuss as a 

staff what will be useful to the whole 

school community and allow others to 

contribute and certainly not overlap or 

conflict with anything you were thinking 

of planning in the library. 

• Use pupil library assistants to help. 

Pupil contribution is enormously 

confidence boosting for children. They 

may even want to bring in their 

parents to see, who then engage more 

meaningfully with the school library 

and their child’s reading. 

3. What do I need to consider when 

thinking about purchasing a library 

management system to organise my 

school library? 

Computerising your library records 

will give you access to data that would 

otherwise be time consuming to 

collect. However, the initial cost and 

time expense of setting it up can seem 

daunting. 

Questions to Ask 

Systems differ in terms of functionality. 

The more you pay, the more functionality 

there will be. 

Major things to decide what is important 

to you are: 

• Can you personalise the front end 

for students and staff? Is it attractive to 

pupils? 

• Will it run on your existing computers? 

• How easy is it to search – does it allow 

for ‘inventive’ spelling? 

• How easy is it to catalogue? Does it 

include a cataloguing database, or will 

you need to purchase that separately? 

• Does it sync with your school 

management system to allow the import 

of pupil records? 

• Does it support single sign-on so that 

there are no issues around students 

remembering passwords and this 

encourages use? 

• What reports are offered as templates, 

or is there the ability to create your own 

to enable you to discover usage? 

• How easy is the circulation? Can pupils 

use it independently? 

• Can users access remotely? 

• How much training is needed in cost 

and time, or is it intuitive? 

• What is the Help Desk service like? 

Don’t take the word of the company – 

ask other users. 

Shortlist systems to suit your school 

needs and talk to other schools who use 

these systems. 

The SLA website provides an up-to-date 

list of systems. 


Research Highlights 

The Real-Life Impact of School Librarians 

You are unlikely to be reading this article if you 

didn’t believe that school librarians have a positive 

impact on both reading and personal development 

in their pupils. But how do they actually do it? This 

study of librarians from 18 different Scottish schools 

sought to understand the diverse ways in which 

librarians support pupils. The two main themes 

identified were as follows: 

1. Reader development beyond attainment – 

cultivating a love of reading, supporting diverse 

reading activities, ensuring book provision 

reflects the school community, and aligning 

reading with pupils’ contemporary lives. 

2. Supporting personal development – expanding 

pupils’ world view through books, supporting 

aspects of pupils’ lives, providing support for 

minority pupils, creating a safe and social space, 

and supporting pupil autonomy. 

This study provides a critical analysis alongside 

insightful quotes from the librarians interviewed. 

tinyurl.com/webber-bohan 

Approaches to Reading and Writing 

for Pleasure 

The Mercers’ Company have commissioned a 

review and meta-analysis of research on how to 

nurture children and young people’s engagement 

in reading and writing, carried out by the Open 

University. Researchers selected peer reviewed 

studies and looked to common themes or 

‘synergies’. They identified five such synergies: 

1. Young people’s literate identities – parent, 

teacher, and peer relationships can positively and 

negatively influence a child’s identity as a reader 

and writer. 

2. Motivating readers and writers – having 

autonomy over their own reading and writing 

makes a child more intrinsically motivated. 

3. Text access, choice 

and time – being able 

to choose the content 

and form of their writing 

has a positive impact on writing for pleasure, just 

as having free choice of a diverse range of books 

positively impacts reading for pleasure. 

4. Social interaction – interactive and social 

activities, at home, school, or online, are more 

likely to engage both readers and writers. 

5. Role models and connected communities – when 

a role model shares their personal experience of 

reading and writing, both positive and negative, 

this helps to shape children’s reading identities. 

These synergies were found to be closely 

connected, impacting on each other. 

tinyurl.com/mercers-reading-writing 

Song Lyrics Can Engage Reluctant Readers 

and Writers 

Research from the National Literacy Trust has 

looked at the use of music lyrics as a genre of 

reading material in over 60,000 children and young 

people in the UK, with some surprising findings: 

1. Most 8- to18-year-olds are reading song lyrics, 

with 3 in 4 reporting they had done so in the past 

month, regardless of if they like reading or not. 

2. 3 in 10 8- to 18-year-olds are writing song lyrics, 

and this increases to 4 in 10 for children who are 

on free school meals. 

3. 7 out of 8 participants in a creative writing 

workshop centred around music lyrics felt 

encouraged and more confident afterwards. 

This report shows that using song lyrics could be a 

very useful tool in engaging children in both reading 

and writing. Is this something you could explore with 

a book club or intervention group in your library? 

tinyurl.com/lyrics-in-focus 

Becky West joined the SLA 

in 2022 as the Association 

Services Administrator and 

currently looks after the 

administration of the SLA's 

awards and TSL. She has 

a background in science 

education. 


Digital 

Bev’s Helpdesk 

Beverley Humphrey helps us out once again with her top 

tips for using AI to make new resources at lightning speed. 

Hi everyone. This time in my column I 

have a couple of different tasks I want 

to complete and I’m looking to use AI 

tools to help me. 

Bev Humphrey is a 

Literacy and Digital Media 

Consultant with specialisms 

in the use of digital media, 

reading promotion, and 

event organisation. 

26 TSL VOLUME 72 NUMBER 2 SUMMER 2024 

Firstly I want to create a task that I can use in a 

lesson with Year 7 students that will give me some 

insight into their reading choices and help me get 

to know them a little better. For this I’m going to 

use a site called Learnt.ai (learnt.ai) which has a 

whole range of generators that I can use. You can 

use a limited amount of these for free, so these are 

the ones I will focus on. From the ‘Tools’ menu I 

selected the ‘Stand Up, Sit Down’ activity: under 

‘Scenario Theme’ I typed ‘reading for pleasure’, 

in ‘Target Audience’ I added ‘teenagers’; I chose 

critical thinking as a learning objective, then I 

made sure to change the language to English 

(British) and clicked ‘Generate’. Within a couple 

of minutes I was then presented with a full-page 

activity plan which, to be honest, would have 

taken me much longer to come up with myself. I 

could then choose to refine the result if I wasn’t 

quite happy with it, and then save it to my account 

or download into Word where I could make any 

alterations I wanted. 

I was definitely down a rabbit 

hole of productivity with this site. 

On to my next task – I’m looking to create an 

infographic poster with common misconceptions 

about reading but I don’t want to be scratching 

my head for hours trying to come up with the 

content. On the same site I can choose ‘Common 

Misconception’ tool and type in ‘reading’ as the 

topic for a teenager audience and then generate. 

This then gives me five common misconceptions 

about reading, example below: 

‘Reading is a passive activity: another 

misconception is that reading is a passive activity 

that simply involves absorbing information. In 

reality reading is an active process that requires 

critical thinking, analysis and reflection.’ 

I don’t want to be scratching my 

head for hours trying to come 

up with the content. 

The five suggestions the site came up with were 

pretty good, but for my purpose they were a little 

wordy, so in order to make them more concise I 

clicked the refine icon at the top of the page (two 

arrows in a circle) and this then summarised the 

points for me. 

By this time I was definitely down a rabbit hole 

of productivity with this site and went on to 

create a list of genres using the ‘Create a List Of…’ 

generator, which gave me 20 genres within seconds 

and also generated some discussion topics on 

a theme of the importance of reading for life 

progression using the ‘Debate Topics’ generator. 

I went on to use the ‘Homework Generator’ to 

create a homework on the topic of good and evil in 

literature, and was able to choose both the age of 

student that will be completing it and how long I 

wanted the homework to take. 

Using this one AI site I was able to prepare five 

resources in less than the time that it would have 

taken me to produce one on my own – absolute 

winner in my opinion! 

I was able to prepare five resources in 

less than the time that it would have 

taken me to produce one on my own.

Digital 

Embracing Kahoot! 

in the Classroom 

Kojo Hazel 

Looking for fun ways to engage students in the 

classroom? Kojo Hazel talks us through the benefits of 

Kahoot! and how it’s so much more than a simple quiz program. 

Kahoot! and Its Place in 

Modern Education 

Kahoot! has become a vital tool in the 

educational technology landscape, renowned for 

its ability to transform traditional learning into 

an engaging, interactive experience. Through the 

creation and use of game-based learning formats, 

Kahoot! supports a variety of question types, 

including quizzes, discussions, and surveys, which 

are utilised to enhance student engagement and 

provide immediate feedback. Kahoot! offers a 

flexible pricing model, including a free version for 

basic educational use and various subscription 

tiers that provide additional features such as 

advanced question types, detailed reports, and 

increased player limits. These subscription options 

allow educators to choose a plan that best fits their 

classroom’s needs and budget constraints. 

Uses for Educators: 

Kahoot! is exceptionally versatile, finding its place 

in classrooms, remote learning environments, 

and blended learning setups. For instance, in 

my esports lessons, I have been using Kahoot! 

to quiz students on strategic game concepts and 

player roles across different games. The quizzes 

are designed to test their understanding of team 

strategies, map knowledge, and character abilities, 

which helps reinforce tactical learning and quick 

decision-making during gameplay. This interactive 

approach not only engages students but also 

encourages competitive learning and teamwork. 

It allows for real-time interaction, making lessons 

dynamic and responsive to student needs. Kahoot! 

can be integrated into staff training sessions, 

helping educators to collaborate and share best 

practices in a fun, interactive environment. 

Uses for Students: 

Students benefit from Kahoot! by being actively 

involved in their learning process. Kahoot!’s 

engaging format encourages students to 

participate and compete in a friendly manner. The 

platform supports student-led learning, where 

students can create their own quizzes to challenge 

It is a powerful educational tool 

that brings interactivity and fun 

to the learning process. 

peers, thereby reinforcing their understanding 

of the subject matter. Additionally, Kahoot! 

encourages students to think and react quickly 

under time constraints, which can be beneficial for 

their cognitive development. The ability to create 

quizzes that students can complete during their 

own time has proven to be a very effective revision 

tool for my IT students. 

Training Materials and Support: 

Kahoot! offers a plethora of resources aimed 

at both educators and students. These include 

detailed tutorials, webinars, and a comprehensive 

help centre that assists users in creating and 

managing Kahoots. For educators looking to 

deepen their understanding of Kahoot! and 

its potential uses in the classroom, there are 

certification programs available that provide 

advanced training in creating educational games. 

Compatibility with Educational Ecosystems: 

Kahoot! seamlessly integrates with major 

educational platforms like Microsoft Teams 

and Google Classroom, allowing educators and 

students to launch Kahoot! sessions directly within 

these environments. This integration is crucial 

for maintaining a streamlined workflow and 

facilitating easy access to Kahoot! activities during 

virtual or hybrid lessons. 

Conclusion: 

Kahoot! is more than just a quiz platform; it is a 

powerful educational tool that brings interactivity 

and fun to the learning process. Whether in the 

classroom or through virtual learning, Kahoot! 

provides an invaluable resource for educators 

striving to enhance engagement and learning 

outcomes. It’s a tool well worth exploring for anyone 

committed to delivering high-quality education. 

Kojo Hazel is a teacher of 

Esports & IT, and Diversity & 

Inclusion Fellow for Microsoft 

Education UK. 

@kojohazel 


Digital 

Assistive Technologies 

Access is everything: Jonathan Viner explains how a range 

of assistive technologies can be used to improve access to 

learning and information for students with additional needs. 

Jonathan Viner is the 

founder of 10Digits, an 

independent consultancy 

that provides actionable 

insight and hands on 

support to education 

entrepreneurs. He also 

publishes the fortnightly 

Nordic EdTech News 

newsletter and is a regular 

commentator speaker and 

writer on global edtech 

trends. @jonathanviner 


We all know the power of a good 

book. But for students with special 

educational needs, the journey to 

becoming a confident reader can be filled with 

challenges. That's where assistive technologies 

(AT) can be game-changers, helping to address 

learning gaps and fostering a love for literacy. 

As librarians, you can play a crucial role in 

recommending and guiding students towards 

AT tools that empower their reading success. But 

what’s out there and how do they work? 

Assistive technologies (AT) can 

be game-changers, helping 

to address learning gaps and 

fostering a love for literacy. 

The first area to look at is text-to-speech (TTS) 

software (including readers) which are powerful 

tools for struggling readers. They allow learners to 

see text on the screen while a digital voice reads it 

aloud. This can improve comprehension, fluency, 

and overall engagement. Popular options include 

built-in features on tablets and computers along 

with products like NaturalReader and Read&Write. 

Audiobooks are also fantastic ways for students 

to access stories and engage with complex text. 

Platforms like Audible, Audrey, and Learning Ally 

offer vast libraries of audiobooks that appeal to 

all ages and interests. They also allow users to 

highlight the text as it's being read, whilst the 

narration speed can also be adjusted. 

Printed pages can also be turned into voice with 

optical character recognition (OCR) technologies. 

These take paper texts and convert them to a 

digital format, which can then be read aloud by 

TTS software. This is a game-changer for students 

struggling with worksheets or even physical library 

books. Popular OCR tools include Adobe Acrobat Pro, 

OneNote, and free mobile apps like CamScanner. 

Unusual or subject-specific vocabulary as found in 

textbooks can create significant challenges for some 

students. Reading pens can be an invaluable solution 

in such circumstances – these are small electronic 

devices that scan printed text and then read it aloud 

via a pair of headphones. They often also contain 

built-in dictionaries to provide definitions, and some 

products also work across multiple languages. 

It’s important to stress that the world of AT does 

extend beyond reading. Grammar checkers like 

Grammarly can help with writing assignments, while 

mind mapping software like Coggle or Miro assist 

with brainstorming and planning. Screen readers like 

NVDA and JAWS provide complete text-to-speech 

conversion for students with visual impairments. 

Librarians can be a powerful 

connection between students and the 

assistive technologies outlined above. 

Librarians can be a powerful connection between 

students and the assistive technologies outlined 

above. Working with other members of staff and 

parents is, of course, key to understanding a student’s 

specific needs and their learning preferences. 

Working together, librarians and educators can 

identify appropriate interventions and support 

students to use them effectively. The best approach 

is often a hands-on one. Allow students to explore 

different AT tools in the library, providing a safe 

space for them to experiment and find the ones 

that best meet their needs. 

The world of literacy should be open to everyone. 

By understanding assistive technologies and 

recommending the right ones to students, 

librarians can play a vital role in fostering a love of 

reading and empowering all students to become 

more confident and successful readers. 

The world of literacy should be 

open to everyone.

Digital 

Storyhaven Review 

Barbara Band 

Storyhaven is an immersive reading and roleplaying 

game aimed at 8- to 13-year-old children. 

It is set during a future Ice Age in 54,324AD where 

the town of Storyhaven is kept warm by magical 

crystals that use stories for their power. However, 

the crystals’ powers are fading, putting the town in 

great danger, so players have to travel back in time 

to recover the town’s stories. 

Barbara Band is a chartered 

librarian with over 30 years’ 

experience working in a 

wide range of schools; 

an international speaker, 

writer, and trainer, she offers 

consultancy services on 

all aspects of librarianship 

and reading. When not 

campaigning for school 

libraries, she can be found 

reading, knitting, or painting. 

It is designed for 2–6 players with an adult as 

facilitator. Each player has their own hard copy 

adventure journal in which they create their 

names, skills, and personalities from characters 

in one of the Storyhaven town guilds, design a 

backstory, and collect gold, stamina, and story 

points during the game. Blank journals are 

provided to print off, as well as optional additional 

activities to complete. As the game progresses, 

players develop their characters, adapt objects to 

use in the game, and rewrite their adventures. 

This is an excellent resource to use with reluctant 

readers, particularly those who are more drawn 

towards a screen than the printed page. It 

combines immersive visual and audio effects with 

imaginative tasks to engender creative writing, and 

is akin to a choose-your-own-adventure, a popular 

book format. It also facilitates the development of 

social skills and teamwork as the players have to 

work together to negotiate dangers. The game can 

be played on mobiles, tablets, and PCs, and pricing 

is reasonable. The guidance suggests that each 

session should last approximately two hours, a bit 

too long for a lesson; however, as individuals have 

their own log-in details and the game remembers 

where they were in the narrative, it could be played 

over several weeks. 

You can read more about Storyhaven here: 

storyhaven.app/school 

Experience the public-facing immersive entrance 

into the story world here (turn on computer 

sound): storyhaven.app 

Little Oxford Review 

Bev Humphrey 

Bev Humphrey is a 

Literacy and Digital Media 

Consultant with specialisms 

in the use of digital media, 

reading promotion, and 

event organisation. 

The Little Oxford app is designed to be used 

with 3- to 5-year-olds to help them prepare for 

starting school, and it has activities supporting 

the seven key areas of Foundation Stage. My own 

granddaughter starts school this September, so 

she was a perfect test subject. 

The seven sections are titled ‘Number Fun’, ‘Let’s 

Move’, ‘Get Talking’, ‘Healthy’, ‘Happy Me’, ‘Explore 

Your World’, and ‘Get Creative!’ and we’ve enjoyed 

using all of them. My granddaughter is particularly 

keen on the times when you are encouraged to dance 

and move about, accompanied by augmented 

reality items and characters on the screen – you 

can capture video of this on the app as well. 

All of the activities are easily completed solo by the 

child, but there are prompts all the time for them 

to show the screen to an adult so that you can keep 

up with what they are doing. We are also loving 

the pop-up books that are included and we were 

delighted to find a virtual version of a physical 

book we had previously borrowed from the library. 

There is a comprehensive help file included for 

parents which not only gives hints on how to use 

the app properly but also has great tips on using 

digital media with young children, information 

about phonics, and many great resources should 

you wish to extend your at-home activities. The app 

is extremely well thought out and well designed, and 

my granddaughter asks to use it whenever I see her 

– a big thumbs up from both of us. 


Digital 

Literacy Hive Review 

Sharon Corbally 

According to the home page, Literacy Hive is ‘a 

comprehensive library of the programmes and 

resources available to help you inspire young writers, 

support individual readers and promote reading for 

pleasure in your primary or secondary school’. 

I’ve been using this website for some time and 

completely agree with the description. Materials 

are gathered under four key headings – ‘Supporting 

individual pupils’; ‘Whole school reading’; 

‘Inspiring writing’; and ‘Books and authors’ – and 

divided into sub-topics. The sheer amount of 

information available could risk the site becoming 

overwhelming. However, the layout is extremely 

clear and accessible for browsing or, alternatively, 

the search function at the top of each topic page is 

excellent. Users can search by the type of resource 

they’re interested in – Key Stage; region; resources 

price band (free or £ to £££) – and even limit by 

provider. Results are in the form of a very short 

synopsis and a link to each resource. Some will 

be very familiar, but others are more unusual and 

broaden the opportunities we can offer. 

Possibly the most useful section of the site is ‘The 

Literacy Year’. Filter by month and see a list of all 

the national celebration days; literacy events and 

competition closing dates occurring during that 

month. A game-changer for planning displays, 

activities, and CPD. 

Sign up for the ‘Literacy Hive’ newsletter to receive 

regular news and reminders to make the most of 

this brilliant, time-saving website. 

www.literacyhive.org 

Sharon Corbally is a 

secondary librarian powered 

by lifelong learning, reading, 

tea and (nearly) all things 

green. 

Rebel Library Review 

Barbara Band 

The Rebel Library is a group of writers, librarians, 

and bookworms who have collated an online 

collection of books that address ecology, climate, 

and nature emergency. Resources are grouped 

into fiction, non-fiction, poetry, classics, books 

for children, and books for adults, and each 

section shows a range of covers which can then be 

expanded to give a short summary of the book. 

The sections can be browsed or the whole website 

searched using keywords, titles, and authors. 

Whilst this website could be a useful starting point, 

I found it too basic to be of much use for a school 

library resource. There are no publication details 

given about any of the books and certainly, at the 

very least, a publication date should be included 

as a minimum given the changing nature of the 

subject material. There are also no links between 

the different groups; for example, The Grapes of 

Wrath is listed under Classics but not under Young 

Adult, yet it sits in both sections. The creators 

aim to keep the website up to date by adding 

monthly ‘What We’re Reading’ titles. This is a new 

website which very much feels like a collection 

in development, I hope that it grows and expands 

to include bibliographic information as well as 

additional titles. 

Barbara Band is a chartered 

librarian with over 30 years’ 

experience working in a 

wide range of schools; 

an international speaker, 

writer, and trainer, she offers 

consultancy services on 

all aspects of librarianship 

and reading. When not 

campaigning for school 

libraries, she can be found 

reading, knitting, or painting. 


Digital 

Beeline Reader Review 

Gareth Evans 

Beeline Reader (2024) is an online reading aid 

designed to help readers reduce the time spent 

reading online content and improve their focus. 

This simple cognitive online tool achieves its 

goal by replacing traditional black font with a 

unique colour gradient. Beeline Reader utilises 

three colours arranged in a gradient to guide the 

reader’s eyes, helping them read more effectively 

and maintain better focus. On each line, the text 

alternates between colours, with each character 

changing slightly in tone. 

I tried out the paid version of Beeline Reader via 

a Google Chrome extension tool. Beeline Reader 

is also available as an iOS reading app, and you 

can pay an additional cost to use the PDF reader 

version of Beeline Reader. 

The Google Chrome extension tool was easy to 

set up. In the extension tool settings, you can 

select your three colours using a default theme 

or choose your own. The extension tool settings 

allow the user to choose additional options, such 

as converting the text to OpenDyslexic Font and to 

focus on one block of text at a time. 

As a person with Dyslexia, I tested the reader 

myself and found it very effective for staying 

more focused on reading web-based content 

and I was reading more quickly after testing the 

tool for a week. Beeline Reader is widely used 

by university students, as noted by Bingaman 

(2022). It won a Microsoft Education Tech 

Award in 2015 (Divisibility, 2015). However, 

it’s better suited to older students, as indicated 

by research from Koornneff & Kraal (2002), 

and may not be suitable for younger students. 

The free version of the reader has very limited 

features; however, the full access version costs 

Gareth Evans has been 

working as a secondary 

school librarian in Wiltshire 

for 8 years. In 2023 he was 

honoured on the CILIP 125 

List, and is also a committee 

member for YLG South West. 

Gareth has a BSc (Hons) 

Degree in ICT from the 

University of Gloucestershire. 

just under £2/month for an individual user. Educational discounts are 

available for schools, but the cost of a whole school license in the UK is not 

stated on the Beeline Reader site. 

References 

Beeline Reader (2024) www.beelinereader.com; Bingaman, M. (2022) https://solve.mit.edu/ 

articles/assistive-technology-for-all-beeline-reader-deployed-on-solve-s-site; Divisibility (2015) 

Q&A with Nick Lum, https://mydiversability.com/blog/2015/10/20/ qa-with-nick-lum-founderof-beeline-reader-and-2015-tech-awards-laureate#:~:text=We%20 

were%20excited%20to%20 

find,receiving%20the%20 Microsoft%20Education%20 Award; Koornnef, A. & Kraal, A. (2022) 

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/ S2451958822000318 


Books: 7 & Under 

Ahmed, Sufiya, 

illustrated by 

Hazem Asif 

The Best Eid Ever 

Bloomsbury, 2024, 32pp, 

£7.99, 9781801993777 

Celebrations. Family. Islam 

The Best Eid Ever, written by Sufia Ahmed and 

illustrated by Hazem Asif, is a vibrantly colourful 

picture book for children aged 5+. This happy family 

story introduces the reader to Ramadan and the 

festival of Eid-al-Fitr. We follow Aisha’s story from 

the first glimpse of the crescent moon, through 

hennaing of hands, Eid prayers at the Mosque, 

sweet treats and finally an Eid gift hunt. The book 

also includes a fact section and a glossary at the 

end, making it an ideal learning tool either at home 

or at school, whilst the bright, jewel-like colours of 

the illustrations make it appealing to young children. 

Mrs. Katrina Reilly 

Almond, David, 

illustrated by Gill Smith 

A Way to the Stars 

Walker, 2023, 32pp, £12.99, 

9781529506655 

Family. Dreams. Adventure 

David Almond and Gill Smith 

have teamed up to create a beautifully thoughtprovoking 

picture book about imagination, 

perseverance, and the unbreakable bond between 

father and son. Joe dreams of reaching the stars, 

but doesn’t know how to get there. Laughed at 

by his friends, but encouraged by his dad, the 

pair embark on a mission to help Joe realise 

his dream, no matter how impossible it may 

sound. Whether writing for young adults or very 

young children, David Almond always delivers a 

surprising, tender-hearted treat, and A Way to the 

Stars is no exception. Gill Smith’s bold illustrations 

are a perfect accompaniment for this uplifting, 

gravity-defying story. This award-winning duo 

complement each other wonderfully, and it’s 

hoped that there will be more picture books to 

come from the pair in the future. 

Becca Watts 

Antony, Steve 

Rainbowsaurus 

Hodder, 2024, 32pp, £12.99, 

9781444964516 

Animals. Colour. Interactive 

EDITOR'S PICK 

What a wonderfully funny and energetic story 

of a family who go in search of the fabulous 

Rainbowsaurus. This follows in the tradition of such 

stories as ‘There was an old woman …’ and even the 

12 days of Christmas, so that as the story continues, 

we meet a range of animals, none of whom have 

seen the Rainbowsaurus. However, at the end, all is 

revealed and a happy ending is the result. This is a 

wonderful book that works so well with those under 

5s (personal experience speaking). The repetition 

in the text creates a great framework, but it is the 

range of animals and the fantastic noises that they 

make which really work with the young audience. 

The book is full of energy, humour, and all of the 

colours of the rainbow. It leaves the audience 

with a warm glow and a real excitement about the 

possibilities that they can add to the story. It feels as 

if this is a true future classic. 

Margaret Pemberton 

Atta, Dean, 


Alea Marley 

Confetti 

Orchard Books, 2024, 32pp, 

£12.99, 9781408362075 

Celebration. Pride. Family 

Ari discovers confetti in many places: at her 

birthday party; at the Pride parade; in the falling 

autumn leaves; at her uncle’s wedding to his 

husband; in fireworks in the night sky; and even in 

snowballs. Ari loves the way the small rectangles 

of paper helicopter down and learns that colour 

and celebration abound in many aspects of life. 

The double-page spreads are warmly, colourfully 

drawn, foregrounding the different forms of 

confetti in all their glory. 

Ms. Carolyn Boyd 

Barr-Green, Craig, 


Francis Martin 

Gina Kaminski 

Saves the Wolf 

Little Tiger Press, 2023, 36pp, 

£12.99, 9781801045001 

Neurodiversity. Fairy Tales. Humour 

A delightful retelling of Little Red Riding Hood, in 

which an autistic child decides to “fix” the mistakes 

of the original story and save the wolf. It uses emojis 

to indicate characters’ moods and a direct, matterof-fact 

tone which really captures Gina's personality. 

Complemented by clear and bold illustrations, this 

is a fun, joyous read and establishes a new young 

heroine of children’s books, appealing to all. 

Ms. Jo Sennitt 

Biddulph, Rob 

Gigantic 

Harper Collins, 2023, 32pp, 

£12.99, 9780008413439 

Rhyming. Siblings. Whales 

Fans of Rob Biddulph will be 

excited to see his new offering: 

a stunningly illustrated underwater adventure 

about a young whale who is much smaller than 

the rest of his family. At first glance this story is 

about how everyone has value no matter how big 

or small they are, but at its heart the story actually 

centres around the subject of sibling rivalry and 

how to reconcile a broken relationship. The story 

revolves around a small whale, named Gigantic, 

and his older brother Titan, whose arrogance and 

jealousy gets him into trouble. After Gigantic’s 

efforts save Titan from disaster, the older brother 

learns some humility. Biddulph has seemingly 

traded in some of his trademark humour and 

silliness for a more serious storyline, but his playful 

rhyming ensures it is still a very pleasant read. Be 

prepared for a very cheesy ending. 

Becky West 



Holidays 

Editor's Picks 

Brundle, Joanna, illustrated 

by Isabella Croker 

Celebrations Around 

the World 

Booklife, 2024, 24pp, £4.99, 

9781805050575 

Celebrations. Festivals. Worldwide 

A simple introduction to 

celebrations around the world, with 

clear photographs which provide 

discussion points for young children. 

Emenanjo, Bunmi, 

illustrated by Diana Ejaita 

I’ll See You in Ijebu 

Barefoot Books, 2024, 32pp, £7.99, 

9781646868445 

Africa. Islam. Religions 

A Catholic girl growing up in 

busy Lagos, Nigeria visits her 

Muslim extended family in the 

countryside town of Ijebu to 

celebrate Eid al-Adha. 

Heald, Robin, illustrated by 

Andrea Blinick 

The Light from 

My Menorah 

Pajama Press, 2023, 32pp, 

£13.99, 9781772782899 

Celebrations. Festival. Light 

The importance of light is central, 

offering comfort to different people 

and their holiday festivals around the 

world. Covering various religions. 

Khan, Sara, illustrated by 

Nadiyah Suyatna 

Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr 

Words & Pictures, 2024, 48pp, £7.99, 

9780711287150 

Customs. Festivals. Islam 

Informative exploration of the 

traditions associated with the 

festivals of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr. 

Koster, Gloria 

Rosh Hashanah 

Raintree, 2024, 32pp, £13.99, 

9781398252844 

Celebrations. Customs. Judaism 

Discover the Jewish festival of Rosh 

Hashanah and why Jews celebrate 

it, what they do, and what they eat. 

Mucha, Laura, illustrated 

by Hannah Tolson 

Celebrate! 

Nosy Crow, 2023, 112pp, £18.99, 

9781839940415 

Celebrations. Festivals. Holidays 

Beautifully illustrated exploration of 

50 festivals and celebrations around 

the world from different cultures 

and religions. 

Owen, Ruth 

Memories of Holidays 

and Having Fun 

Ruby Tuesday Books, 2024, 24pp, 

£7.99, 9781788564243 

History. Holidays. Leisure 

Moments from the not-so-distant 

British history in photographs of 

how people spent their valuable 

leisure time. 

Stewart, Whitney, illustrated 

by Christiane Engel 

What Do You Celebrate?: 

Holidays and Festivals 

Around the World 

Union Square Kids, 2023, 40pp, 

£7.99, 9781454950639 

Celebrations. Festivals. Holidays 

Fourteen different countries with 

some unique celebrations, with 

crafts and practical activities to 

involve children. 

Bright, Rachel, 


Nadia Shireen 

Snail in Space 

Simon & Schuster, 2024, 

32pp, £12.99, 9781471199479 

Snail. Space. Adventure 

Snail in Space is a delightful collaboration between 

two brilliant picture book creators that bursts with 

liveliness and humor. Gail, an extraordinary snail 

with big dreams, defies conventional wisdom by 

aspiring to become the first snail in space. Readers 

are invited to join Gail on her stellar journey as she 

discovers the enchanting power of reaching for 

the stars and giving it her all. From the creators of 

the beloved Slug in Love, Rachel Bright and Nadia 

Shireen, comes another irresistibly charming tale 

that is sure to capture the hearts of children and 

adults alike. Get ready to embark on an out-of-thisworld 

adventure with Gail the snail as she proves 

that with determination and courage, even the most 

unconventional dreams can come true. 

Ms. Helen Robinson 

Bright, Rachel, 

illustrated by Jim Field 

The Pandas Who 

Promised 

Orchard Books, 2023, 32pp, 

£12.99, 9781408356098 

Family. Promises. Adventure 

Red pandas Popo and Ketu promised their mama 

they would NEVER stray past the tall gnarly pine, or 

climb down the mountain, and that when daylight 

came they would always be near. Above all though, 

they must always look after each other. Home 

loving Popo is content with their treetop games, 

but Ketu is restless and one morning decides to 

sneak off to explore while mama sleeps. What can 

Popo do but follow and keep the most important 

promise of all, to look after each other? Together 

they see the beauty of the world around them, play 

in the meadows, and taste the grasses, until Ketu 

falls right at the feet of a snow leopard! Popo’s fast 

thinking saves the sisters, and they return to the safe 

embrace of a very relieved Mama! Bright’s rhyming 

tale reminds little explorers of the importance of 

family and keeping promises, while Field’s luminous 

illustrations are full of light, movement, and charm. 

Helen Thompson 

Browne, Anthony 

A Boy, His Dog 

and the Sea 

Walker, 2023, 32pp, £12.99, 

9781529507058 

Family. Sea. Dogs 

The illustrations in this book are stunning. We get 

a multicoloured pile of stones on a beach but if 

you, like a dreamy child, look closely you can 

see fishes, faces, dogs, feet, and almost anything 

else your imagination can summon. The shiny 

paper enhances the seascapes. Danny takes his 

delightfully engaging dog, Scruff, for a walk on 

the beach by their house where they play stick 

fetching. Then, they realise there’s someone in 

trouble in the water and Danny directs Scruff 

to ‘Fetch!’ while a concerned crowd watches. 

Thus Scruff rescues Danny’s brother Mick from a 

dangerous situation. It’s very simple. Although the 

language is comfortably accessible (strong verbs 

and few adverbs and adjectives) you could tell this 

story in your own words by using the sumptuous 

illustrations as prompts. It’s a large format hard-back 

book perfect for resting across two laps. Rather 

poignantly Browne has dedicated it to the memory 

of his own older brother, Michael. 

Mrs. Susan J. Elkin 



Carswell, Fiona, 

illustrated by Yu Rong 

The Boy Who Loves 

to Lick the Wind 

Otter-Barry, 2024, 32pp, 

£12.99, 97819156569156 

Seaside. Friends. Autism 

This beautifully produced picture book celebrates 

the friendship between two young boys who are 

next door neighbours. Throughout the book the 

two unnamed boys behave in different ways and 

prefer different things, yet they both enjoy throwing 

stones into the sea together. One of the young 

boys is autistic and his mum organizes a beach 

trip for the friends. We watch how her son rarely 

speaks, enjoying whooping and humming instead. I 

enjoyed reading this book as it brought back many 

happy memories because I grew up living by the 

seaside. However, this story related to something I 

have never done, licking the salty wind, and shows 

how we can all learn from each other. The colourful 

illustrations work very well with the text. Both boys 

enjoy splashing around and chasing one another, so 

Mum uses a timer on her phone to let them know 

when it is home time. This is a straightforward story, 

tenderly told and highly recommended for sharing. 

Janet Syme 

Coelho, Joseph 

Ten-Word Tiny Tales 

Walker, 2023, 56pp, £14.99, 

9781529502688 

Creativity. Imagination. Words 

Ten-Word Tiny Tales is a book 

with a difference. Each tale in 

the collection is made up of only ten words. In fact, 

they aren’t stand-alone stories but parts of stories, 

and therefore the idea is to use these words as a 

stimulus for children to create their own stories, 

first through drawing, and then through writing. 

The ten-word tales have been brilliantly illustrated 

by a group of illustrators who used the ten words 

to trigger their imagination and then depict their 

thoughts. It is a beautiful hardback book with a 

textured cover not unlike a canvas. This lends 

itself to the topic of creativity which surrounds the 

book. A genuinely inspiring book to kick start the 

imagination of young people. 

Linda Nash 

Coppo, Marianna 

The Best Bad 

Day Ever 

Frances Lincoln, 2023, 48pp, 

£12.99, 9780711283336 

Feelings. Friendship. School 

This was so much fun to read 

aloud to our youngest pupils. Wolfie had decided 

it was going to be a bad day and found it very 

difficult to shift out of that idea until he bonded 

with a friend at school who felt the same, and 

they managed to get each other out of their joint 

slump. Charming and hugely appealing, we loved 

exploring in storytime how end papers change in 

some picture books when they are influenced by 

the story unfolding between the end papers, and 

this book does this beautifully. The book starts with 

the scribbles of Wolfie’s angry picture he created 

at school and ends with a happy child-like sketch 

of a house, tree, sun, and a little wolf and his little 

penguin friend sitting in happy friendship. This 

delightful book sparks discussions about how we 

feel when we start and end the day and what we 

can do to help our friends who feel unhappy. 

Jenny Griffiths 

Daywalt, Drew, 


Oliver Jeffers 

The Crayons Love 

Our Planet 

Harper Collins, 2024, 32pp, 

£7.99, 9780008560867 

Colours. Environment. Humour 

Jeffers and Daywalt’s crayons are instantly 

recognisable, and this charmingly funny little book 

delivers a gentle message about caring for our 

planet. A simple statement heads each double page, 

illustrated in crayon with the proud colour close 

by to claim credit. Beige pops up on the second 

page to point out their lovely ear of wheat, but then 

they are trying to claim a place for wheat on the ice 

caps, as fruit, as an animal, on the river, and even in 

the sky! Exasperated children will love telling beige 

that they are wrong – until, that is, they say the 

most important thing of all. The deceptively simple 

illustrations manage to convey the thoughts and 

feelings of sticks of crayon, and are careful to depict 

colours at heights that reflect how much they have 

been reduced by enthusiastic colouring. Lovely! 



De La Bedoyere, 

Camilla, illustrated by 

Britta Teckentrup 

There Are Birds 

Everywhere 

Big Picture Press, 2024, 32pp, 

£8.99, 9781800786585 

Birds. Nature. Environment 

The cover of this large hardback book is full of 

embossed pictures of brightly coloured parrots that 

shimmer with blue foil and attract the reader. The 

endpapers are packed with fascinating illustrations 

of penguins. Camilla De La Bedoyere takes us on 

a journey exploring the wide range of birds in the 

world. There are plenty of facts. Information is 

presented in digestible chunks. We learn about 

what a bird is; birds that have been around for ages; 

where birds live; water birds; how birds fly; feeding; 

barn owls; love birds; penguins; long distance 

travellers; and birds and people. Did you know that 

there are more than 10,000 species of birds? Or that 

although Anchiornis had wings, it probably couldn’t 

fly? (It used its long feathered limbs to climb 

instead.) Or that the skua is known as a ‘pirate bird’ 

because it attacks other seabirds and steals from 

them? Questions and ‘Can you find’ assignments 

encourage interaction. Britta Teckentrup’s colourful 

illustrations are stunning and enhance the text. 

Highly recommended. 

Brenda Marshall 

Duff, Meghan Wilson, 


Taylor Barron 

How Are You, Verity? 

American Psychological Assoc, 

2023, 203pp, £15.99, 

9781433841514 

Neurodiversity. Inclusion. Marine Life 

A wonderfully inclusive and illuminating look at 

the world through the eyes of the neurodivergent, 

brown-skinned, and non-binary protagonist. Based 

upon the author’s own experiences growing up, 

and with her passionate interest in marine life also a 

key element, this clearly shows the confusion that 

common idioms and phrases can cause to those 

on the autistic spectrum. When big brother John 

tells Verity that when people ask that question it is 

rather more of a greeting than an invitation to tell 

them at length about sea creatures, Verity begins 

to experiment with that concept by asking the 

question herself. But when a cancelled field trip to 

the aquarium leaves Verity feeling down, prompting 

a sincere version of the query from John, it leads 

to a heart-to-heart and an imaginative solution to 

cheer her up. With an informative afterword about 

neurodivergence and a really engaging, quirky 

illustrative style, this is well worth having. 

Joy Court


Fang, X 

Dim Sum Palace 

Pushkin Press, 2024, 48pp, 

£12.99, 9781782694564 

Adventure. Food. Culture 

Have you ever tasted a 

dumpling? When made 

properly, following authentic recipes, they are a 

true delight and their smell is enticing, guaranteed 

to make your tummy rumble. However, what 

happens when the dumpling that you are about 

to eat has a rather unusual filling? We are about 

to find out when the Empress is presented with 

a Liddy dumpling …! Liddy is so excited she can’t 

sleep; tomorrow is the day she will go to the Dim 

Sum palace with her family. But a tempting smell is 

wafting into her bedroom, and deciding to follow 

it, Liddy finds herself at a real palace, in its kitchen 

– a place filled with dumplings, baos, buns and so 

many tasty treats. Liddy thinks about trying some, 

just a bite you understand, but then slips, falls into a 

dumpling filling, and goes unnoticed by the chefs! A 

delightful feast for the senses and a laugh-out-loud 

story of mischief and food, plus an opportunity to 

learn about the food and culture of another country. 

Mrs. Louise Ellis-Barrett 

Gamboa, Jaime, 

translated by 

Daniel Hahn, 


Wen Hsu Chen 

The Invisible Story 

Lantana, 2024, 32pp, £12.99, 9781915244765 

Braille. Blindness. Reading 

A story is waiting in a library, unread and unseen. 

Until one day, ‘a reader appeared who was different’, 

a girl who chooses the invisible story and reads it 

to the end. The girl is blind, and the story is written 

in braille. Her act of choosing and reading the 

story releases it from the page. The illustrations 

use cut paper and watercolour to create depth and 

texture; the contrast of the stark white library and 

the colourful escaping story is highly effective. This 

is a quietly beautiful book about how stories inside 

books can be read differently, and how readers are 

all different; this girl reads the story not with her 

eyes but with her fingertips. It is a great introduction 

to braille, and could generate thoughtful 

conversations about how blindness does not need 

to be barrier to reading. 

Alex Mallin-Jones 

Giddens, Rhiannon, 

illustrated by Briana 

Mukodiri Uchendu 

We Could Fly 

Walker, 2023, 32pp, £12.99, 

9781529517811 

Family. Africa. Folklore 

Rhiannon Giddens’s lyrical text is based on her 

song of the same name. Drawing on a heritage 

of African folklore, a Mama and her daughter are 

talking. The daughter watches a sparrow. The bird 

takes flight, and the girl wants to fly too. Her mother 

tells her about her Granny Liza, who flew every 

night ‘searching for the promised land’. As Granny 

Liza foretold, the girl feels a trembling in her arms, 

a lightness in her feet, and a desire to fly and be 

free. The girl and her Mama ‘join the journey started 

long ago’. They ‘slip the bonds of earth and fly’. The 

poetic words and illustrations combine to make 

a powerful moving book inspired by the myth of 

‘flying away’ created by enslaved African Americans. 

Uchendu’s artwork, with its muted colour palette, 

is hypnotic. I love the landscapes with spirits 

ascending and the close ups of the mother and 

daughter's faces. An uplifting, evocative large 

format picture book for all ages. 


Gill, Nikita, illustrated 

by Chaaya Prabhat 

Animal Tales 

from India 

Nosy Crow, 2023, 96pp, 

£16.99, 9781839944628 

India. Animals. Storytelling 

Animal Tales from India is a beautiful collection of 

ten stories of Panchatantra which were traditionally 

shared by generations of storytellers, kept alive 

by being read aloud. They have been wonderfully 

reimagined by author Nikita Gill, with incredible 

illustrations by Chaaya Prabhat. The cover is 

captivating, and the vibrant artwork continues on 

every page. Nikita herself was told these stories as 

a child by her grandmother, and because she loved 

them, and this tradition needs to continue, she 

has written them down to pass on to all children 

today. We enjoy tales of jackals, birds, elephants, 

mice, a monkey, a crocodile, lions, a bear, a donkey, 

a tortoise, a rabbit, and many more. Themes of 

kindness, bravery, and friendship are woven into 

these tales. This book would make both a treasured 

gift and a stunning addition to your library. I can 

think of many pupils who will be delighted to take 

this home to enjoy as soon as it goes on display. 


Griswold, David, 

illustrated by Merle Goll 

Meltdown 

American Psychology 

Association, 2024, 32pp, 

£15.99, 9781433842573 

Emotions. Mental Health. Resilience 

Published by Magination Press, the Children’s Book 

imprint of the American Psychological Association, 

Meltdown is a fun and colourful book exploring 

emotions. The story depicts robots rather than 

humans, and the fact that sometimes things can 

go wrong, but there is always a reset button. 

Griswold’s message is clear: it’s normal to have ups 

and downs, even total meltdowns, but they don’t 

last forever. He includes some very practical ways 

in which our emotions can be managed – quiet 

time, deep breaths, fresh air, a snack, a hug – but 

all in the context of the narrative. The story is full of 

funny illustrations and clever robot puns, making it 

an excellent starting place for a key stage 1 teacher 

wanting a read-aloud to begin a topic on emotions 

and mental health. 

Mrs. Fliss Riste 

Hancocks, Helen 

I Really Want to 

Be a Cat 

Walker, 2023, 32pp, £12.99, 

9781529509939 

Pets. Cats. Humour 

A beautifully observed look at 

the relationship between pets and their owners – 

who often feel that their pets have a better life. The 

little girl narrator very obviously adores her pet cat, 

and the reader wonders how much the feeling is 

reciprocated by the enigmatic expressions of the 

grey cat, who does at least tolerate being followed 

around all day. She admires the cat’s skills and 

abilities, which are illustrated very cleverly; this 

can be seen in the line drawings of the endpapers 

showing agility, or the scene where the cat is good 

at hide and seek and literally cannot be found, or 

the contrast between needing a torch to see in the 

dark and the cat’s wide eyed gaze. There is just one 

aspect of a cat’s behaviour that she does not want 

to copy ‘Yuck!’, which provides a very humorous 

conclusion to this charming picture book. 

Joy Court 



Hodgkinson, Leigh 

The Princess and 

the (Greedy) Pea 

Walker, 2023, 32pp, £12.99, 

9781529503005 

Rhyming. Food. Repetition 

An adventure that will make you as hungry as the 

princess. Using rhyming and thoroughly enticing 

illustrations, follow green pea trying to satisfy a very 

big appetite. Following the format of ‘There was 

an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly’ which invites 

readers to join in, this story will offer plenty of 

opportunities for discussion including, foods, and 

colours. You can’t help but encourage readers and 

listeners to join in with the repetition. 

Lisa Daisy 

Jones, Huw Lewis, 


Ben Sanders 

Clive Penguin 


£12.99, 9781801044868 

Environments. Humour. Penguins 

Meet Clive, a penguin who is rather dissatisfied with 

his current living situation and dreams of a more 

comfortable life. Will an unexpected discovery 

solve all his problems? The deadpan humour of 

Clive’s internal monologue is accompanied by bold 

graphic illustrations in a restricted palette popping 

with neon orange. This is a book of few words, yet it 

manages to fit in a complete story arc with plenty of 

laughs and surprises. Ideal for younger children who 

like frequent page turns to keep them engaged. 

Clive Penguin could also be used in the classroom 

to model the structure of a story and to inspire 

childrens’ own story writing. Author Huw Lewis 

Jones is a real life polar explorer – I wonder if he has 

shared the same feelings as Clive on his expeditions. 

Becky West 

Kaur, Jaspreet, 


Manjit Thapp 

The Spaces 

In Between 

Big Picture Press, 2024, 32pp, 

£8.99, 9781800787056 

Mindfulness. Sensory Overload. Concentration 

Big cities are busy, noisy, frightening places. They 

can be overwhelming. If you are exploring with 

your dad, where to find somewhere quiet? The 

library? The museum? On top of a double-decker 

bus, watching the world pass by? Perhaps by 

concentrating on something in particular rather 

than being overwhelmed by sensory overload, the 

noise becomes less threatening. A simple, rhythmic 

text accompanies brightly coloured illustrations 

showing this busy day trip, made less overwhelming 

by its focus on the small things. Mindfulness looks 

for the spaces between the plethora of impressions 

that can relentlessly assault our senses unless we 

learn to block them out. There are suggestions for 

ways to reduce the effects of sensory overload, 

and doubtless groups of children will make their 

own contributions in any discussion as to how they 

cope with the daily bombardment. Perhaps the best 

example to be given to children would be for adults 

themselves to practise mindfulness. 

Peter Andrews 

Kirst, Seamus, 


Noemie Gionet Landry 

Once Upon My 

Dad’s Divorce 


2023, 32pp, £15.99, 

9781433840746 

Anxiety. Divorce. Emotions 

This is a very empathetic look at the traumatic 

situation that young people face when their 

parents split up. This story looks at young Grayson 

and how he feels when his two dads break up 

and he has to spend his time between them. His 

whole life seems as if it has been turned upside 

down and it has definitely been split in two as he 

spends a week with each parent and has to divide 

his possessions between their two new homes. 

He still wonders if the split was anything to do 

with him and he hides when it is time to go to his 

second home. Thankfully, his loving parents are 

able to help him understand his feelings and see 

a way forward to a new normality in their lives. 

Although this book is from the U.S., it has many 

lessons that can be taken on board and will help 

children who are going through this major upset 

in their lives. Good for key stage 1 pupils. 


Kramer, Jackie Azúra, 


Taia Morley 

Rhythm 

American Psychology 

Association, 2024, 32pp, 

£15.99, 9781433842634 

Society. Seasons. Hope 

A book for our times, Rhythm tells the story of a little 

girl whose father is unemployed. She finds solace 

in one tree which is her steady friend. Through 

the rhythm of the seasons she finds hope, and the 

pages illustrate how the tree contributes to her life 

through winter, spring, summer, and finally, autumn 

(though as it uses American English it refers to the 

fall). It is sensitively illustrated with shaded colours 

and a simple font and would be a comforting book 

to read to children about the importance of our 

natural world. Published by Magination Press which 

is the children’s book imprint of the American 

Psychological Association, it shows the combined 

power of psychology and literature. 

Sue Bastone 

Lara, Carrie, 


Christine Battuz 

A Year of 

Celebraciones 


2023, 32pp, £15.99, 

9781433841552 

Celebrations. New Year. World Traditions 

Mr Ramirez’s class shares how each of their 

nationalities celebrates a new year, what dates they 

are celebrated on, what traditions they have and 

how they have many similarities and differences. 

Traditions include decorations, gifts, foods, and 

gatherings. A colourful, inclusive picture book that 

will be very useful in school project boxes and 

classroom libraries. 

Tricia Adams 



Lawrence, Patrice, 


Diane Ewen 

Is That Your Mama? 

Scholastic, 2023, 32pp, 

£7.99, 9780702314971 

Family. Coping Skills. Diversity 

Josie loves her family, but they all look different, 

and people are always asking Josie: ‘Is that your 

Mama?’ Josie gets upset by people asking this 

question and starts to wonder if it wouldn’t be better 

for all her family to look the same. However, her 

family comes up with a clever solution to help Josie, 

using a globe that Josie sticks stars on to show all 

the countries that the generations of her family have 

come from, including India, Trinidad, and Scotland. 

Then together they all make a T-shirt with a star 

on. This gives Josie confidence, and the next time 

someone asks her, ‘Is that your Mama?’ Josie knows 

that she doesn’t need to answer and that her family 

belongs together. The book is a celebration both of 

belonging to a family and of diversity. It also aims to 

help children cope with unexpected and unwanted 

questions. The story is compassionately written with 

engaging and colourful illustrations. 

Ms. Andrea Rayner 

Malik, Humera, 


Sonali Zohra 

The Great 

Henna Party 

Lantana, 2024, 32pp, 

£12.99, 9781915244604 

Celebrations. Culture. Women 

Here is a brightly coloured picture book full of 

activity and celebrations. We learn from the helpful 

author’s letter at the end of the book how the ritual 

of painting henna on girls’ and women’s hands has 

been used for 5,000 years in South Asia, the Middle 

East, and Africa. This engaging story follows Noor 

at her cousin’s wedding preparations. The girls and 

women sing, eat special foods, and have their hands 

painted with henna. Noor’s mother informs her 

about the different traditions on display, and Noor 

loves the way the women hide the names of those 

whom they love in the intricate henna patterns. I 

am sure readers will enjoy learning all about this 

popular culture. I particularly liked the illustrations 

of the decorated garden and the attractive scene of 

Noor’s Nani sharing food with her granddaughter. 

This book would be a beautiful addition to a home 

or school library and is an inclusive book that could 

be shared in the classroom. 

Janet Syme 

Marzo, Bridget 

Mo’s Best Friend 

Otter-Barry Books, 2024, 

40pp, £12.99, 9781915659194 

Stone Age. Families. Dogs 

Living in the stone age, Mo and her family go about 

their daily life. While by herself Mo hears the yelp of 

an animal. Deciding to investigate, she discovers a 

young beast with a thorn in its paw. She removes 

the thorn and the two play happily together until 

Mo has to return to the family who are horrified 

by the beast and chase it away. But when baby 

Baba goes missing and the beast is blamed, Mo 

is determined to prove her family wrong and find 

Baba. Inspired by a child’s footprint and a dog paw 

print found next to each other at the Chauvet Caves 

in France, this is a charming story, wonderfully 

told and beautifully illustrated, giving a real visual 

insight into everyday activities and life in the Stone 

Age. It captures the inquisitive nature of young 

children well too. It also has a spread showing 

Stone-Age survival skills which is excellent. A book 

to read aloud or share one-to-one. 

Stephen Leitch 

McQuinn, Anna, 


Ruth Hearson 

Zeki Hikes 

with Daddy 

Alanna Max, 2023, 24pp, 

£7.99, 9781907825484 

Diversity. Nature. Curiosity 

This is a captivating picture book which champions 

positive gender socialization through the story of 

Zeki and his Daddy on a day out together. Be with 

Zeki every step of the way as he explores and gets 

close to nature. Daddy and Zeki pack for the day, 

then go hiking through the forest, rushing by a 

stream, stopping to snack on crunchy crackers, 

pausing to lay on the grass, finding a smooth stone 

under a spiky bush. The emphasis on child’s-eyeview 

ensures you truly feel you are hiking with Zeki. 

Each page invites you to look, touch, and feel as 

you journey through the tall trees to the cool pool, 

across squelchy mud, finding bumpy pine cones 

and delicate feathers. Zeki notices a tiny leaf, sees 

a busy bee, and lingers by a slow snail. Nature in all 

its aspects is an important part of the curriculum. 

This book is a charming introduction into focusing 

on sensory engagement to foster a connection with 

nature. Suitable for early years and key stage 1. 

George Thomas 

Milbourne, Anna, 


Asa Gilland 

I’m Feeling 

(a Little Bit) Shy 

Usborne, 2023, 24pp, 

£12.99, 9781805312031 

Emotions/Feelings. Coping Skills. First Experiences 

Saying hello to people you don’t know for the first 

time can be difficult. The little girl in this story feels 

shy, and finds it hard going to a birthday party or 

going to school for the first time because there are 

lots of children she doesn’t know. However, once 

she is brave enough to step through the door, she 

finds people she knows and things to do. She also 

learns that everyone can be shy sometimes – even 

her confident big brother. This empathetic story 

explores how shyness can affect a child and subtly 

shows ways of dealing with it. These coping skills 

are seamlessly integrated into the narrative. The 

book is full of endearing illustrations and is paper 

engineered, using cut-outs to lead the child from 

one spread to the next which makes the interaction 

with the text even more fun. Finally, the story is 

useful for exploring milestones such as birthday 

parties and the first day at school. 

Ms. Andrea Rayner 

Millward, Gwen 

Meet the Wildlings 

Templar, 2024, 40pp, 

£7.99, 9781787419339 

Family. Emotions. Cooperation 

What a fun way to experience 

the not such fun experience of 

squabbles! With the illustrations portraying the 

shared experience of all present beautifully well, 

this is a story worth sharing. When their behaviour 

descends into rage and chaos, the now Wildling 

state must be reversed. Through some team work 

and problem-solving the children return to being 

themselves, having learned a little lesson. This is 

an entertaining and amusing story that will create 

plenty of opportunity for, I imagine, valuable 

discussions. 

Lisa Daisy 



Morpurgo, Michael, 


Emily Gravett 

The Ogre Who Wasn't 

Two Hoots, 2023, 32pp, 

£12.99, 9781035010264 

Family. Kindness. Nature 

In the second book from this pairing of 

heavyweights in the children's literary world, 

comes a modern fairytale where, instead of a 

prince, it is a toad and his act of kindness that sets 

the princess free. Princess Clara doesn’t want to be 

a prim princess at all. She is a free spirit and – to 

the horror of the royal household – loves nothing 

more than to run around barefoot in nature: 

jumping, splashing, getting muddy and making 

animal friends along the way. When she finds 

a ‘little ogre’ in her garden, they soon become 

best friends and the creature ultimately changes 

the course of Clara’s life for the better. This is 

a beautifully illustrated story about kindness, 

compassion for nature, prioritising family, and 

always being yourself, even if that means breaking 

the mould. Sensitive topics are touched upon – 

death of a parent, loneliness, feeling different – but 

it is an uplifting story that is perfect for reading out 

loud to a class of key stage 1 children. 

Louise Davis 

Nainy, Mamta, 


Violet Kim 

My Momo-La 

is a Museum 


£12.99, 9781915244635 

Family. Read-Aloud. Museums 

A child and her much-loved granny (‘momola’ in 

Tibetan) spend a day exploring the museums of a 

great city (New York?). Everywhere they go, they 

see something that links to Momo-La’s life: the 

cracks on a statue are like her wrinkles, ‘maps of 

the paths I’ve taken in my life’. The child realises 

that her grandmother is herself a museum, a 

storehouse of stories. Alert readers will see that 

Momo-La left Tibet as a refugee, but this is very 

much below the radar, although an afterword 

makes clear the author’s intentions. The emphasis 

is on the full-page, brightly coloured illustrations of 

the pair’s day in museums. Suitable as a read-aloud 

book for very young children. 

Anna Quick 

Rahman, Jumana, 


Maryam Huq 

Bhorta Bhorta Baby 

Bok Bok Books, 2023, 16pp, 

£7.99, 9781739261429 

Board Books. Cooking. South Asian Food 

This is a brilliant board book to share with a toddler. 

An excited baby is helping to make aloo bhorta. 

There is plenty of opportunity to encourage a child 

to join in with the repetitive sound effects of mixing 

and chopping. A great introduction to South Asian 

food for any hungry toddler. By the end of the 

story, children will probably want to have a go at 

making this aromatic dish with a parent. The book 

is sturdy enough to take into the kitchen whilst 

trying out the recipe. 

Sarah Seddon 

Rolfe, Kate 

Wolf and Bear 

Two Hoots, 2023, 32pp, 

£12.99, 9781035019571 

Friendship. Sadness. Resilience 

Best friends Wolf and Bear 

love playing games together, although Bear often 

feels too sad to play. Bear spends more time in the 

shadows, whilst Wolf tries to engage Bear in her 

games. When Bear becomes completely lost to the 

shadows and in her own sorrow, Wolf howls a song 

to the moon. Hearing the sound, Bear battles his 

way out of the shadows and into the light and the 

arms of Wolf. Bear still does not want to play but the 

two friends meet every time there is a bright moon 

when Wolf sings especially for Bear. This picture 

book for ages 3+ is a moving journey of sadness 

and hope, exploring friendship and acceptance 

of differences. Sensitively told, it will provoke 

discussion about feelings and friendship with all 

ages. The illustrations are beautifully calming and 

original. The overall message is one of positivity and 

hope. Very highly recommended. 

Susan Mullen 

Shaha, Alom, 


Sarthak Sinha 

How to Find 

a Rainbow 

Scribble UK, 2024, 32pp, 

£12.99, 9781915590398 

Rainbows. Weather. Friendship 

This is a beautifully illustrated tale about the wonder 

of rainbows and the close friendship between 

sisters. Rekha spots a rainbow while she is walking 

and she runs inside to share the magic with her 

sister, only to find that it has disappeared. Where 

could it have gone? The sisters explore the different 

landscapes, trying to find the elusive rainbow, 

including many natural features of China such as 

rice paddies and mango trees. The illustrations 

use subtle watercolours, blending the background 

colours, helping to create the illusion of a rainy and 

soggy afternoon. As they search for the rainbow, 

the sisters work out the perfect conditions needed 

for one to appear, teaching us about weather 

conditions. But the story is also about the joy of 

nature and the shared friendship with a close one. 

This would be a good addition to a primary school 

library as part of the Reena and Rekha series. 

Ms. Gemma Wright 

Sheers, Owen, 


Helen Stephens 

Drew, Moo and 

Bunny, Too 

Walker, 2023, 80pp, 

£15.00, 9781529500004 

Kindness. Pirates. Friendship 

Drew and his best friends Moo and Bunny have 

adventures each night flying on their red rug. But 

one night Moo and Bunny argue and the rug drops 

from the sky into the ocean, and they get taken 

prisoner by a pirate ship whose crew is stealing 

rare and unique treasure from the natural world. 

Can Drew and his friends show them that there 

is a better way to enjoy their treasure hunting 

that shares the wonder with everyone? Illustrated 

throughout with bold, stylised, and colourful 

pictures, you can tell this has been written by a poet 

as the text is lyrical and rhythmic. It is quite a long 

story for the intended age group, but the writing 

style would lend itself to being read aloud and could 

introduce children to the idea of books being read 

over several sessions. With the themes of kindness, 

sharing, love and friendship, it would also be good 

for supporting work on empathy and emotional 

literacy. 

Isobel Powell 



Smith, Maudie, 


Jen Khatun 

A Hat Full of Sea 


£12.99, 9781915244666 

Families. Relationships. Grandparents 

Visiting her Grandpa Jim in hospital, Cora is 

concerned that he’s confined to bed with his view 

of the world restricted to a small window. If Jim 

can’t go outside with her until he’s better, Cora will 

bring the outside to him! Using the special hat her 

grandpa gave her, and her wonderful imagination, 

Cora captures the essence of all the places they 

enjoy together – the sea, the countryside, the 

market, and fair, and even the night sky – and 

brings them to Jim’s hospital bed. But Cora loses 

her precious hat and then finds Jim’s bed empty. 

Happily all ends well in a lovingly joyous conclusion. 

The gloriously vibrant illustrations beautifully 

convey Cora’s energy and exuberance as she aims 

to cheer up her grandpa in this heartwarming story 

about the special loving bond between a little girl 

and her grandfather. A lovely picture book to share 

with early years and key stage 1. 

Lynn Marshall 

Song, Mika 

Donut Feed the 

Squirrels 

(Norma and Belly) 

Pushkin Press, 2023, 128pp, 

£8.99, 9781782694526 

Humour. Graphic/Comic. 

Animals 

Squirrel friends Norma and Belly really, REALLY want 

a donut. They need to come up with a foolproof 

plan and recruit some squirrel friends to help them 

out. This is cute and funny, and children will love 

the silly antics of the mad squirrels as they carry out 

their audacious donut robbery. The text is simple 

and the artwork is dynamic and expressive, making 

this an ideal graphic novel or comic book for 

younger children. I particularly like the that there are 

several scenes where the story is told without text, 

just a sequence of pictures. Perfect for improving 

the visual literacy skills of all children. It could also 

be used to support verbal communication for 

children with special educational needs or children 

with English as an additional language as it would 

encourage two-way discussion and inference about 

what is unfolding in the story. 

Ms. Isobel Powell 

Tregoning, Robert, 


Pippa Curnick 

The Dress in 

the Window 

OUP, 2023, 32pp, £7.99, 

9780192783585 

Identity. Love. Diversity 

A magical book with a strong message that it it 

is okay for us all to like different things. Beautiful 

illustrations and rhyming text make this book a 

pleasure to read, and it has a wonderful ending. 

A boy spots a beautiful dress in the window of a 

second-hand shop and is desperate to buy it. He 

dreams about dancing in the dress and decides 

to raise the money to buy it through doing lots 

of chores. With all the money raised, he heads 

straight to the shop but is devastated when he 

realises that the dress is gone! This book may 

pose some tricky questions about why the boy 

wants the dress so badly and for this reason may 

possibly be presented to small groups of children. 

An important book for the PSHE shelf and a great 

example of being true to yourself. 

Miss Becky Taylor 

Vaughan, David, 


Fran Brylewski 

Harry Heal the 

Friendly Footballer 

New Generation Publishing, 

2023, 28pp, £9.99, 9781803698267 

Football. Empathy. Collaboration 

Jesse Proudfoot is a new, anxious pupil who 

doesn’t play football. Harry Heal is quick to 

introduce him to the football team and show what 

a kind, caring, supportive team they are. Harry 

takes Jesse on a worldwide football tour where 

Jesse continues to develop his skills with much 

encouragement from the team. Jesse learns that 

practice helps and together they can make great 

things happens. By facing his fears, Jesse becomes 

the hero of the match. The shiny cartoon-like 

illustrations are full of energy. 


Yun, Dai & Mixter, 

Helen, illustrated by 

Igor Oleynikov 

Where Can We Go? 

A Tale of Four Bears 

(Aldana Libros) 

Greystone Books, 2023, 40pp, £14.99, 781771649810 

Habitats. Immigration. Climate Change 

Opening up on an apocalyptic landscape, this is 

a darker-edged addition to the growing canon 

of allegorical picture books about the immigrant 

experience. With no prey left in the Arctic, the 

bears move to an apartment block where a play 

on Goldilocks sees them finding just the right 

place to sleep. Happiness is short-lived though as 

their human neighbours run away in fear. Weak 

with hunger, they look for hope, and the promise 

of food, in old books. My favourite section sees 

the bears, having found the TV remote, staring at 

the readers, the next pages revealing a wide polar 

expanse, populated by tasty looking ‘little black 

things’ (penguins). First published in China, the 

translated text is direct, with hints of dry humour. 

While the illustrations might be divisive, especially 

morbid touches such as the smallest bear using 

a seal skull as a toy, the rustic, filmic style – 

reminiscent of Wes Anderson’s Isle of Dogs – will 

appeal to readers in lower key stage 2 onwards. 

Samantha Lockett 

Zhang, Vikki 

The Lucky Red 

Envelope 

Wide Eyed Editions, 2023, 

24pp, £14.99, 9780711285910 

China. Festivals. Lift-the-Flap 

Following baby Ru’s first Lunar 

New Year, from domestic preparations to the 

joyful Lantern Festival, The Lucky Red Envelope 

combines the narrative of a cosy picture book 

with fascinating facts about Chinese culture and 

festivities. Each double-page spread is filled with 

incredible detail and colour, making reading an 

immersive experience. While some of the flaps 

may be too small for little fingers to open, they 

will captivate older children, revealing further 

snippets of information and quirky pictures. Even 

the delicious looking dumplings can be opened! 

The pages on the Chinese Zodiac are particularly 

fun, allowing readers to discover their Zodiac 

sign, while the New Year parade, featuring a 

huge dragon, is a visual wonder. As well as being 

an excellent curriculum aid for key stage 1 and 

beyond, the sumptuous production design, 

with its thick board-book style pages, intricate 

illustrations, and decadent gold finishes, make 

it a worthy investment for schools and Schools 

Library Services. Truly a book to celebrate! 

Samantha Lockett 


Books: 8 – 12 | Fiction and Poetry 

Anderson, Laura Ellen 

Marnie Midnight and 

the Moon Mystery 

(Marnie Midnight) 


£7.99, 9780008591335 

Family. School. Friendship 

Marnie is an anthropomorphic moth off to the 

Minibeast Academy where she has classes such 

as Predator Studies and everyone is terrified of 

the Early Bird. Yes, it’s an entomological take on 

the traditional school story. Think Charlotte’s 

Webb in collision with Harry Potter. Once at 

school, Marnie’s yearning to know more about 

the moon and her apparently dead heroine, 

Lunora, kick in, and the story becomes a quest 

with – of course – encounters with villains and 

other obstructions en route. The narrative tone 

is light and witty. Alliterative expletives include 

things like ‘bothering beetle bums’ and I grinned 

at the pub called The Hungry Caterpillar run by 

someone called Eric. You also have to admire the 

way Anderson combines moth-like characteristics 

such as beautiful wings and a fondness for nectar 

with chatting and living in a family, with attentive 

Papa and Mama moth and a little brother who’s 

still a grub. As you’d expect from Laura Ellen 

Anderson, the busy illustrations are fun and lively. 


Anderson, Jessica Lee, 


Alejandra Barajas 

Saving Snakes 

Raintree, 2023, 112pp, £7.99, 

9781398251366 

Snakes. Family. Friendship 

Naomi’s mum works at the Exotic Animal Hospital 

and often brings home special patients. When the 

family receive a new house guest – Beauty, the 

injured snake – 8-year-old Naomi (an animal lover) 

is shocked to learn how some people can harm 

snakes because they don’t know how to handle 

them. So, Naomi has an idea to set up a snakerescue 

club, keeping people better informed about 

snakes and how to remove them safely. With the 

help of her best friend Emma, and her older brother 

Nolan, Naomi sets about creating the service, and 

before long she has her very first customer. Full of 

snake facts and animal safety, not only is this a great 

story, but it is educational too. 

Mrs. Angela March 

Bailey, Lily 

When I Feel Red 

Orion Children's Books, 2024, 

356pp, £7.99, 9781510109933 

Dyspraxia. Emotions. Growing Up 

As I raced through When I Feel 

Red, I was mentally compiling a 

list of students who NEED to read it! Narrator 

April is a Year 8 student who is struggling – her 

dyspraxia makes life difficult in so many ways 

already, without the added pressure she feels at 

home to be “perfect” like her older brother. Even 

worse, her usually unshakeable confidence in 

being herself is shaken by her peers’ new and 

confusing obsession with crushes and dating. 

April just wants to play animal rescue with her 

toys and hang out with her geeky best friend 

Ben, and she starts to worry if she will ever feel 

“normal”. This book helped me to understand 

dyspraxia better, and I think it’s great to see this 

representation in a book for young people. I also 

think it’s so important that our students can read 

about people who are finding school tough, who 

aren’t ‘Uber Readers’, and who feel all the doubts 

and worries that come with teenage territory. A 

brilliant read for those students who always feel a 

bit “behind”, and a reminder to us all to be kind. 

Heather Grainger 

Bass, Guy, illustrated 

by Lee Cosgrove 

Taking Shelter 

(Hugh Dunnit Mystery) 

Andersen Press, 2024, 80pp, 

£6.99, 9781839134180 

Comical. Love. Mystery 

Taking Shelter is such a funny book, and it grips 

you from start to finish. It is a book you can’t put 

down and it will be one of those titles that children 

exclaim “I read it in a day”. It's ideal for early 

chapter readers with its comical illustrations and 

comic strips breaking up the text. Hugh Dunnit is 

determined to find out who shredded his maths 

homework and he will not believe that it is his new 

dog, Shelter. Hugh’s commitment and love for 

Shelter (because he found him in a shelter) shines 

through the story. As Hugh works through the 

mystery, he stumbles upon the fact that Shelter 

actually lives with his teacher. Hopefully this is 

the start of many mysteries to come and is a great 

addition to the school library. 


Beckett-King, Alasdair, 

illustrated by Claire Powell 

Death at the Lighthouse 

(Montgomery Bonbon) 

Walker, 2023, 304pp, £7.99, 

9781529505818 

Detectives. Friendship. Humour 

I find these mysteries absolutely brilliant. They are 

filled with excellent one liners, jokes that you need 

to read twice to get the full extent of the humour, 

and characters who roll off the page. Montgomery 

Bonbon is the foreign detective who often finds 

himself in the right place at the murderous time. 

With Grampa Banks along as a trusty camera-toting 

sidekick, the pair embark on a holiday on Odde 

Island. Bonnie had intended to leave the yellow bag 

containing Bonbon at home so she could holiday 

with her grandpa, but upon arriving, they discover 

the news of a murder at the Leerie Lighthouse. 

Good thing Grampa packed the bag … Bonnie 

must try to navigate friendship and two parts of 

herself. Meeting the “odd” characters who call the 

onion-banned island home is a funny glimpse into 

island life. I love that Bonnie and her Grampa have 

such a unique and loving relationship and I love her 

determination to be both Bonnie and Bonbon, not 

to mention pulling the wool over everyone’s eyes! 

She is literally hiding in plain sight and I love it. 

Mrs. Erin Hamilton 

Bell, Alex, 


Tim McDonagh 

The Glorious Race 

of Magical Beasts 

Faber Childrens, 2024, 352pp, 

£7.99, 9780571382231 

Adventure. Magic. Family 

Apprentice librarian Eli is twelve years old and 

works at the largest library in the world! When 

his grandmother is taken ill, Eli enters the annual 

Glorious Race of Magical Beasts. The race has 

already cost Eli his parents, but now it’s his only 

chance to save his family. In the company of his 

trusted moon tortoise, Humphrey, and his friend 

Jeremiah, Eli embarks upon an epic adventure 

and soon finds himself locked in the unlikeliest of 

partnerships. Rule-breaking rival Raven and her 

magical ice hare have their own agenda, but Eli 

will need to keep his friends close if he’s going to 

succeed. Can a hare and a tortoise put aside their 

differences? Bell delivers a breathtaking tale of 

unlikely heroes and talking animals, balanced with 

pathos, humour and charm. A vibrant celebration of 

imagination, libraries, and treading your own path, 

this is a story for all ages and you’ll want to return to 

its pages again and again. 

Alison King 


Books: 8 – 12 

School 


Barnett, David, illustrated by 

Anna Morozova 

Lowborn High 

2000 AD, 2024, 112pp, £12.99, 

9781837861095 

Magic. School. Wizards 

Wychdusk Manor has been the school 

to which all the top magical novices 

are sent. Androgeus Frost always 

thought he’d get in, but somehow 

finds himself at Lowborn High. 

Butchart, Pamela, 

illustrated by Becka Moor 

The Pirate Cat 

Nosy Crow, 2024, 112pp, 

£6.99, 9781805131434. 

Series: Wigglesbottom Primary 

Friendship. School. Seaside. 

A cat decides to join Year 2 on a 

school trip to the seaside and has a 

brilliant time chasing seagulls, raiding 

picnics, and sunbathing on the shore. 

But the arcade causes trouble! 

Coven, Wanda, illustrated 

by Anna Abramskaya 

Worst Love Spell Ever! 

Simon & Schuster, 2024, 368pp, 

£7.99, 9781398529137. Series: Middle 

School and Other Disasters 

Magic. School. Witches 

Witch-in-training Heidi Heckelbeck 

wants her crush to notice her. The 

problem is Hunter is really popular. 

Heidi decides a love spell is the 

best option. 

Daley, Tom & Green, 

Simon James, illustrated 

by Luna Valentine 

Jack Splash 

Scholastic, 2024, 224pp, £7.99, 

9780702330049 

School. Sport. Swimming 

Jack wants to impress his diving 

coach dad, but Jack is the worst diver 

in the worst diving team in school. 

But a new pupil starts at school with 

seemingly magic swimming skills. 

Greene, Jarad 

A for Effort 

Harperalley, 2024, 224pp, £12.99, 

9780063032873 

Anxiety. Friendship. School 

A new school year for Jay, but his 

new friendship group’s obsession 

with perfect grades puts the 

pressure on. Can Jay step up? 

Peirce, Lincoln 

This Means War! 

Andrews McMeel Pub, 2024, 176pp, 

£8.99, 9781524887490. 

Series: Big Nate 

Competition. Rivalry. School 

American school life with a 

challenger threatening Nate’s status 

as the owner of the school’s filthiest 

locker, thus upping the stakes. 

Russell, Rachel Renee & 

Russell, Nikki, illustrated 

by Erin Russell 

I Love Paris! 


£7.99, 9781471196850 

Series: Dork Diaries 

Diaries. France. School 

Nikki and her band are invited to Paris 

for a super cool photoshoot – it’s a 

dream come true! Nikki can’t wait. 

Williamson, Lisa, 

illustrated by Jess Bradley 

Double Drama 

Guppy Publishing, 2024, 256pp, 

£7.99, 9781916558083. 

Series: Bigg School 

Conflict. Families. School 

Life isn’t easy for Daniel Littleton. His 

mum always seems to be ill, his dad 

is always working, and his little twin 

sisters drive him up the wall! 

Best, Anna, illustrated 

by Marit Cooper 

Aunt Grizelda’s 

Monstrous Myths 

Hogs Back Books, 2023, 32pp, 

£9.99, 9781913827458 

Greek Myths. Poetry. Humour 

POETRY 

A collection of eight Greek myths retold in verse 

with a modern twist to show children an alternative 

version that might have happened. This picture 

book features the tales of Medusa, Pandora, 

Daedalus & Icarus, Midas, Hades, Pygmalion, and 

Narcissus & Heracles. Alongside each poem is also 

a brief summary of the story as told in the original 

myth. Illustrations are bright, support the humour 

of the text, and help bring the myths to life in a 

new way. Every once in a while, a book comes 

along that really surprises the reader – this is one of 

them. It’s a very funny, witty, and utterly captivating 

introduction to these myths. I think it will really 

appeal to its intended audience. I loved it. 

Annie Everall 

Brooks, Charlie P., 

illustrated by Steve May 

Sammy and the Extra 

Hot Chilli Powder 


£7.99, 9780008597481 

Adventure. Dogs. Jobs 

Sammy is a young Setterpoo with a highly 

developed sense of smell. Although she doesn’t 

realise it, her owner Harry is training her up to be a 

sniffer dog – something she’s not keen on doing 

even though she’s very good at it. Disaster strikes 

when Sammy has a bad experience with some 

super-hot chilli powder and she has to retire. But 

with the help of her new human best friend Beanie, 

she recovers her sense of smell and goes on to 

stop a diamond heist. Narrated by Sammy, this is 

a funny, fast-moving adventure, full of engaging 

characters and ideal for reading aloud or for newly 

independent readers. 

Chris Routh 

Bunzl, Peter 

Glassborn (Magicborn) 

Usborne, 2023, 368pp, £7.99, 

9781801313681 

Magic. Quest. Mystery 

The four Glassbelle children all 

descend from a long line of Fairy 

Folk. They listened to the stories told by their 

recently deceased mother and were not aware of 

any magic powers themselves until 10-year-old 

Acton, when the clock strikes thirteen, is chosen 

to defeat the Fairy Queen and destroy the family 

curse. Spells and poems help them navigate the 

underworld. The children are given courage with 

wise words such as ‘a lie for a lie makes the whole 

world blind. But a truth for a truth means every 

heart sees clearly.’ When the siblings set out to help 

their brother, the chapters alternately tell their story 

in fast-paced action. A story of epic proportions. 

There’s even an interesting link to the Brontës 

outlined at the end of the book. 




Dasgupta, Piu 

Secrets of the 

Snakestone 

Nosy Crow, 2024, 272pp, 

£7.99, 9781839946318 

Paris. Mystery. Intrigue 

Secrets of the Snakestone 

transports readers to the enchanting streets 

and hidden depths of nineteenth-century Paris, 

where young Zélie finds herself embroiled in a 

riveting tale of mystery and intrigue. Sent from her 

home in India to work as a maid in Paris, Zélie's 

life takes an unexpected turn when a mysterious 

boy emerges from the sewers clutching a locket 

belonging to her father. Together, they delve into a 

world of dark secrets, cursed stones, and colourful 

circus performers, accompanied by an adorable 

baby sloth! Zélie shines as a fearless and spirited 

protagonist, complemented by the cautious and 

thoughtful Jules. Her inner pep talks add a delightful 

depth to her character, especially during moments 

of uncertainty. Despite its historical backdrop, the 

story maintains a modern pace, keeping readers on 

the edge of their seats with fast-paced action and 

intrigue. The captivating cover art is sure to attract 

young readers, inviting them into this captivating 

adventure. For fans of Sophie Anderson or Kiran 

Millwood Hargrave. 


Daymond, Jonny, 


Marco Guadalupi 

Rainforest Rescue 

(Globe Defenders) 

New Frontier Pub, 2024, 339pp, 

£8.99, 9781915167705 

Environment. Adventure. Rainforest 

A great story to compliment the study of 

conservation and Amazon rainforest curriculum 

topics in school and an exciting spy adventure 

too! Siblings Jess and Jack have just started at a 

new school. Little do they know that this school is 

secretly a special academy for spies who are trained 

to save the world from environmental attacks. In 

this story the siblings accidentally find themselves 

on a mission to the Amazon rainforest and come 

face to face with criminals who are destroying 

the forest and the livelihoods of the people who 

live there. A great adventure with lots of action, 

advanced tech, and suspense. This is the first title 

in the Globe Defenders series which is set to be a 

trilogy. Great for key stage 2 and above. 

Cassie Kemp 

DiCamillo, Kate, 


Julie Morstad 

The Puppets 

of Spelhorst 

Walker, 2023, 160pp, £10.00, 

9781529512854 

Fairy Tale. Magic. Adventure 

This is an outstanding, beautifully written and 

illustrated book to treasure, read aloud, and to 

reread. Written in the style of a fairy tale, the story 

features a king, a boy, a girl, a wolf, and an owl. 

They are all puppets kept within a chest embossed 

in gold with the word ‘Spelhorst’. They are waiting 

for their story to begin. Each puppet has its own 

dream, but they must not be separated. Short 

chapters have endings that make you want to 

read on, and the reader will find they want to 

read the whole tale. The black and white, quite 

dark drawings enhance the story with absolute 

perfection. A story to be shared. Age 8 to 108! 

Susan Mullen 

Doyle, Catherine 

Pirates of Darksea 


£7.99, 9781526655103 

Adventure. Pirates. Bravery 

Christopher and Max are 

disappointed when the fabled 

Stolen Sunrise fails to materialise and carry them off 

on magical adventures. However, when Christopher 

receives an invitation to join the mysterious ship 

two years later, he is in hospital battling cancer. 

Max is tricked by a sarcastic parrot (Squawk) and 

finds himself not only on the ship but leading a 

mutiny and fighting a seemingly unbeatable foe. 

Swashbuckling a plenty ensues, and along the way 

Max learns about being brave in the face of the 

hardest thing if all, the fear of losing someone you 

love. Full of humour and peril, this is a rollicking 

adventure with heart. Lots of lovely touches – small 

gifts from Christopher become essential tools in 

the fight, Squawk calls Max Brutus after the mutiny, 

Christopher’s tumour is mirrored by the evil sharkstooth 

embedded in the villain’s chest – make this a 

story to become immersed in. 


Driver, Sarah 

The Night Train 

(Dreamstalker) 

Farshore, 2024, 336pp, 

£7.99, 9780008595029 

Fantasy. Magic. Dreams 

This new fantasy series is set in 

Hirathorn, where 12-year-old Bea lives in a 

tiny cottage with her mother Ula and owl Pip. 

Ostracised, Ula and Bea are under suspicion when 

villagers’ dreams disappear, shadowy nightmares 

stalk the land, and everyone is ordered to abandon 

their homes and flee. But Ula, who has kept a 

secret past hidden from Bea, is ill and refuses to 

leave. So Bea, accompanied by Pip and new friend 

Martha, journeys aboard the mysterious, sentient 

Night Train to the magical city of Silvervein in a 

quest to rid Hirathorn of nightmares. But Silvervein, 

city of secret mage guilds, mythical creatures, and 

treacherous skinshifters, is in the grip of Queen 

Mora, who’s using nightmares to take control of 

Hirathorn. Can Bea take on the dangerous role of 

a Dreamstalker, like her mother, and help restore 

the balance between dreams and nightmares? 

This fast-paced adventure immerses the reader 

in a richly imagined, vividly described magical 

world. Creepy and exciting, yet thoughtful and 

heartwarming – perfect for age 10+. 

Lynn Marshall 

Eagle, Judith, 

illustrated by Kim Geyer 

The Stolen Songbird 

Faber & Faber, 2023, 336pp, 

£7.99, 9780571363148 

Adventure. Friendship. Historical 

This exciting story is set in 

postwar London. Caro’s mother hasn’t returned 

from her travels – so Caro has to stay with a stern 

great-aunt she’s never met, secretly taking her 

beloved rabbit. In her borrowed suitcase she finds 

a famous painting. How did it get there, and was 

it stolen by the notorious Snakes gang? Thrilling 

adventures ensue, with Caro’s friends Horace and 

Albie in supporting roles. The children and their 

friends solve not only the art thefts, but some 

bittersweet family mysteries as well. Aspiring 

acrobat Caro is a very positive character (she 

builds an outdoor gym on Hampstead Heath). The 

story subtly imparts that the 1950s were not as 

all-white and nuclear-family-dominated as some 

might think (e.g. Caro’s parents are a same-sex 

couple). Attractive greyscale illustrations by Kim 

Geyer head each chapter. This action-packed 

book would be good for key stages 2 and 3, and 

for fans of the Famous Five who are ready for 

something more complex. 

Anna Quick 


Books: 8 – 12 

Edge, Christopher, 


David Dean 

Black Hole 

Cinema Club 

Nosy Crow, 2024, 256pp, 

£7.99, 9781839942730 

Science Fiction. Adventure. Black Holes 

Lucas, Ash, Finn, Caitlin, and Maya are members 

of the Black Hole Cinema Club, which gains them 

exclusive screenings of all the best cult films. But 

the latest screening is in 4Di, promising a truly 

interactive experience. Pulled into another reality, 

they find themselves playing different roles, battling 

to save the Earth over and over again. Will they ever 

escape? Is it just a story, or something real? A very 

immersive read packed with action and thrills and 

fascinating ideas that will keep readers on the edge 

of their seats. Another great read from Christopher 

Edge, for readers of 9+. 


Eldredge, Jan 

Nimbus 


£7.99, 9781407181035 

Cats. Witches. Magic 

Animal lovers will adore this 

magical adventure starring 

Nimbus the black cat and her Shakespeare-quoting 

rat friend Rhett. After being adopted as a kitten by 

Fletcher, Nimbus adores her human rescuer. When 

a nightmare demon is unleashed in their home, 

Fletcher’s aunt blames Nimbus and dumps her, 

leaving her for dead. Fortunately, Nim is rescued 

by a kindly witch who takes her home to live with 

her and her array of cats. Discovering she has new 

magic powers, Nim must accept help and learn 

from her new friends in order to find a way to 

return to her beloved Fletcher. This is an appealing, 

well-written middle-grade adventure story with the 

importance of friendship and self-belief at its core. It 

builds to a satisfying conclusion, with only the most 

sensitive readers likely to find anything to disturb 

them along the way. 

Shona Page 

Flanagan, Liz 

Dragon Daughter 

(Legends of the Sky) 

UCLan Publishing, 2023, 346pp, 

£8.99, 9781915235640 

Adventure. Betrayal. Fantasy 

A wonderful fantasy novel for 

fans who have out grown How to Train your 

Dragon, as this has more fire. The story follows 

Milla, a servant girl, as she witnesses a murder and 

discovers a secret clutch of dragon eggs. With a 

Duke who wants to control the dragons and the 

island creating discord with his family and the 

people of the island, can Milla and her friends keep 

their dragons, each other, and the people safe, to 

bring peace back to the land. Liz Flannigan weaves 

a tale of wonder in vivid descriptions and delightful 

storytelling. She’s not afraid to shy away from darker 

topics such as murder, death, betrayal, and abuse. 

She touches on these in an appropriate and child 

friendly way that feels real enough without being 

too much, or sugar-coated. Ideal for lovers of 

fantasy, coming-of-age, and self-discovery tales. 

Nicola Bowie 

French, Jess, 


George Ermos 

Race to Frostfall 

Mountain (Beastlands) 

Piccadilly Press, 2024, 352pp, 

£7.99, 9781800784062 

Adventure. Fantasy. Mystery 

This is a must-read book for all those who love 

fantasy and quest stories. It is set on the island of 

Ramoa, where humans co-exist with a wide range 

of other creatures, some of which have reached 

almost mythical status. However, all of the cities 

are being attacked by a mysterious disease called 

the Scourge, but all remedies have failed to cure it. 

When three unlikely heroes are brought together 

by circumstances, they find that they might be 

part of a prophesy about the future of their lands. 

Can they overcome their antipathy, find a cure and 

retrieve two stolen ‘dragons’? It is fascinating to see 

the interaction of such dissimilar characters and to 

follow them as they learn to work together in order 

to save those they love. It is an action-packed story 

that had me reading ever faster in order to keep up 

with the storyline. This series will be a firm favourite 

with key stage 2 afficionados of the genre as well 

as new followers. 


Harrison, Michelle, 


Natalie Smillie 

Twice Upon a Time 


£12.99, 9781471197673 

Murder. Mystery. Time 

This adventure story by the bestselling author of 

The Pinch of Magic series, focuses on the Morrow 

twins, who were born 13 minutes apart on New 

Year’s Eve (Merry) and New Year’s Day (Spike) 

respectively. The girls have always had a strange 

effect on clocks and watches, and they are even 

able to pause time. This proves very useful when 

their mum’s work takes them to Fox House, the 

home of Lady Belmont, where one of the members 

of staff, Jenny Crocker, disappeared in mysterious 

circumstances 13 years ago, shortly before the 

death of Lord Belmont. Together with a local boy, 

Ben, the girls start to uncover more questions 

which only their special time-freezing skills can 

help answer. But Lady Belmont’s nephew, Alastair, is 

determined to stop the twins and Ben from finding 

out what really happened … A satisfying murder 

mystery with plenty of twists and excitement. 

Kathy Holman 

Hastings, Natasha, 

illustrated by Alex T Smith 

The Frost Fair 

(The Miraculous 

Sweetmakers) 


£7.99, 9780008496081 

Magical. Friendship. Loss 

Four years ago, Arthur died. Thomasina greatly 

misses her twin brother, and her and her family 

are still struggling to come to terms with the loss. 

She imagines she can still hear his voice, and has 

conversations with him, wishing with all her might 

that he could come back. It is the Great Frost of 

1683 and the Thames has frozen over. Thomasina 

and her best friend Anne sell their sweets, amongst 

other traders on the frozen river. But at night, 

the frozen river is home to a magical world, with 

strange creatures, people made of ice, and the 

chance for Father Winter to make your wishes 

come true. Thomasina wishes that her brother 

could be brought back to life, but once her and 

Anne discover more about this icy kingdom, it 

would seem that all is not what is appears to be and 

wishes come with a price! An enchanted and heartwarming 

story set in historic London. Definitely one 

to cosy up to during the winter months. 




Hogan, Bex, illustrated 

by Hannah McCaffery 

Bronte Tempestra and 

the Lightning Seeds 

Piccadilly Press, 2024, 224pp, 

£7.99, 9781800784697 

Fantasy. Adventure. Schools 

The first in a new series of fantasy adventures for 

young readers, this features Bronte Tempestra as 

a spirited princess who would rather be a knight. 

To her great delight, Sir Sebastian’s School for 

Squires has finally decided to allow girls in, and 

her parents have agreed she can attend. Arriving 

expecting bravery, battles and challenging lessons 

in knighthood, Bronte is disappointed to discover 

this school for knights is not exciting, and the 

teachers are not interested in adventures. However, 

trouble seems to be brewing in the forest: magical 

creatures are changing and behaving in strange 

and worrying ways. Bronte realises she will have to 

take action herself, helped by a new friend and the 

only other female knight there, if she is to save the 

Kingdom and the restore the Lightning Steeds to 

freedom. Suitable for 7- to 9-year-olds, this would 

also make an enjoyable chapter book for bedtime 

reading for younger children. 

Alex Mallin-Jones 

Isdahl, Nansubuga 

Nagadya 

Girl on the Fly 

David Fickling, 2024, 352pp, 

£7.99, 9781788451840 

Change. Family. Friends 

Girl on the Fly is an inspiring 

story of Kamaria, a determined 13-year-old girl in 

middle school, dealing with all the changes that 

life throws her at once, but trying to stay focused 

on her goal, even if that changes too. She deals 

with her rhythm being altered by her aunt visiting 

from Tanzania, falling out with her best friend, 

and setbacks in her track life. Ultimately, she must 

learn to let the changes in instead of resenting 

them, which leads to her finding her new rhythm, 

developing the skills to cope with change, and 

learning that sometimes being part of a team is 

more important than winning. A great coming-ofage 

story for preteens, with believable characters 

and friendships, though some of the 90s references 

will go over their heads! 

Jess Young 

Jeffers, Oliver 

Begin Again 


£20, 9780008579593 

Humanity. Earth. Future 

EDITOR'S PICK 

Oliver Jeffers inspires once again! His beautiful 

picture books appeal to all ages and although 

this is aimed at adults, it would be a wonderful 

book to talk to children about the world and how 

we live in it. Subtitled: The Story of How We Got 

Here and Where We Might Go, the book follows 

humankind on its journey through history, sharing 

profound, and sometimes poignant, thoughts 

about the present and the future. The challenge 

is, Where do we go from here? Oliver says if his 

book can accomplish only one thing, he would 

want it to ‘dissuade indifference in anyone who 

reads it, inspire[s] them to change the way they 

act, speak, and more importantly, the way they 

think about their role …’ He is actively working to 

raise awareness about climate change. We know 

that storytelling is powerful and this stunning book 

embodies that power. 

Sue Bastone 

Kecojevic, Angela 

Scareground 

Neem Tree Press, 2023, 354pp, 

£8.99, 9781915584212 

Horror. Fairgrounds. Magic 

This deliciously spooky Victorian 

gothic adventure features Nancy, 

a girl who was adopted 12 years ago by the aptly 

named Crumpets (they are bakers, and Nancy 

desperately wants to follow in their footsteps). She 

lives in Greenwich and has a best friend called 

Arthur Green who, although from a far more 

privileged background, has his own problems and 

fears. Both are engaging characters who have 

a touching and believable friendship. Her whole 

life changes when a fair comes to town and she 

gets the chance to find out who her real parents 

were and why was she left abandoned in the park. 

Nancy also discovers she has the magical ability to 

read the sky, and encounters a phantom carousel, 

a spectacular sky ship, and a horrible demon 

who seems to leave hideous black slugs in his 

wake, making this a page-turning, spine-chilling 

adventure which is also an empathetic, hopeful tale 

of love, bravery, and belonging. 

Joy Court 

Kothari, Dev 

Bringing Back Kay-Kay 

Walker, 2024, 304pp, £7.99, 

9781529516043 

Mystery. Siblings. Poetry 

Bringing Back Kay-Kay by Dev 

Kothari is a gentle, thoughtful 

mystery set in India. Lena’s family are brokenhearted 

when her older brother Karthik goes 

missing from the train that’s meant to be bringing 

him home from summer camp. The story is told 

from Lena’s viewpoint, and she addresses her 

narrative to her missing brother, whom she calls 

Kay-Kay. We hear the voice of Kay-Kay through 

his poetry which Lena finds hidden in his room. 

The importance of poetry is a recurring theme 

throughout the book. The Indian setting comes 

wonderfully alive through Kothari’s writing, 

and her characters are equally vivid. With just a 

few words she creates characters who are both 

authentic and memorable. Lena is a caring, 

brave, and endearing protagonist who the 

reader is rooting for from the beginning of the 

story. Bringing Back Kay-Kay is a warm-hearted, 

engaging debut that celebrates the bond between 

siblings. Suitable for readers aged 9 and up. 

Mrs. Katrina Reilly 

Lawrence, Iszi 

City of Spies 


£7.99, 9781801991018 

History. America. Spies 

Set in New York during the 

American War of Independence 

in 1780, the story follows 12-year-old Aiden Blaise 

who is a British boy living as a printer’s apprentice. 

Aiden is sure that the British will soon win when 

he gets caught up with spies after finding a coded 

message. Aiden’s curiosity leads him to some 

tricky situations as he tries to work out where his 

loyalties lie, and who he can trust. Packed with 

lots of action and twists and turns, and based 

largely on facts, this is a gripping historical novel 

full of traitors, spies, and tricky decisions. There 

are a lot of key figures and historical detail with 

a glossary of some of the historical terms at the 

back. A good book, well written and with an 

interesting plot. Sadly, I’m just not into historical 

stories so found it to drag a little at times. 



Books: 8 – 12 

Lightbown, Stephen, 


Shih-Yu Lin 

And I Climbed 

and I Climbed 

Troika Books, 2023, 96pp, 

£8.99, 9781912745296 

Disability. Family. Nature 

POETRY 

This moving sequence of poems presents a boy 

named Cosmo who has fallen from a tree, broken 

his spine, and is now a permanent wheelchair user. 

It’s party autobiographical because the poet had a 

sledging accident in childhood and, like his narrator 

Cosmo, negotiates life from a wheelchair. Many of 

the poems are addressed to the tree which is still 

there, and we travel with Cosmo through anger, 

wonder, frustration, resignation, wistfulness and 

more. ‘You’re a good listener’ he says. The poems 

take various forms, with one being a rather good 

Kenning, but the language is always straightforward 

as Cosmo tells us about all the custard he ate in 

hospital, going on a bus for the first time in his 

wheelchair (driver not very welcoming), dreaming 

about being able to run and jump, dance classes 

in his wheelchair, and reflecting on a fallen tree 

elsewhere. We meet his family too. Shih-Yu Lin’s 

often understated illustrations are poignant without 

ever being mawkish and fit the mood perfectly. 


Marchant, Luke, 

illustrated by Rory Walker 

The Narzat 

Everything with Words, 2024, 

204pp, £7.99, 9781911427384 

Creatures. Friends. Greed 

Imagine Dahlesque villains in a 

jungle with a Walliams-style storyline championing 

friendship and kindness, and a lot of silly made 

up names and plants along the way, and you’ve 

got The Narzat! This is Luke Marchant’s first book 

for children, but it’s sure not to be his last. The 

Narzat is a fun loving, full-of-heart creature living 

an innocent life in the jungle with his friends the 

Chatty Chiwunga and the Looky Looky Lizard, 

until their world is invaded by Lord and Lady Snide, 

greedy and rotten, and on a mission to take his 

most treasured possession … Full of fun similes and 

colourful descriptive vocabulary, Marchant’s writing 

is a gift for teachers wanting to enthuse pupils with 

a love of language. This book is heart-warming, 

good fun, and sometimes just downright silly – sure 

to be a hit with key stage 2 readers everywhere! 

Mrs. Fliss Riste 

Marr, Shirley 

Countdown to 

Yesterday 

Usborne, 2024, 336pp, 

£7.99, 9781805073628 

Family. Separation. Time Travel 

Shirley Marr writes absorbing 

standalone middle-grade books. Her skill with 

taking words and making them into a story makes 

this one authentic, and powerful storytelling lets the 

reader feel at one with the story. James feels stuck 

in the present; it’s the last place that he wants to be. 

After the sudden decision by his parents to separate, 

James is forced to learn how to live two completely 

different lives. It is almost as though he must be two 

different people. He has two homes, meaning two 

bedrooms, in turn meaning dividing all his things 

between them. Then, as the homes are in different 

places, he must learn two different routes to school. 

James used to think that he had a great life and 

wishes that it was possible to go back, to that past, 

to enjoy his top six memories with his parents. Then 

James meets Yan, the enigmatic girl who sees the 

world through X-ray glasses. Travelling back in time 

may not be as impossible as he imagined but are the 

memories are as perfect as he has made them? 

Mrs. Louise Ellis-Barrett 

Murphy, Mary 

The Minute Minders 

Pushkin Press, 2024, 304pp, 

£8.99, 9781782694229 

Fantasy. Kindness. Resilience 

Stevie and her father are fidders – 

tiny people whose job is to work 

alongside humans, helping them out with their 

problems. Humans can’t see fidders and the 

most important rule of all is that fidders can’t 

let humans know they exist. Fidders all have 

different jobs to do helping humans but are 

constantly observed for errors and moved on 

where necessary. When Stevie meets a little girl 

with some very big issues, she senses a friend in 

need and those fidder rules become increasingly 

difficult to follow, even if it means losing out 

on a reward dream holiday with her dad … The 

Minute Minders is the first in a very funny fantasy 

adventure series with just the right amount 

of suspense and danger, while the soft pencil 

sketches give a warm, cosy feel. This is a real 

empathy-builder, emphasising the importance 

of kindness, resilience, and looking out for each 

other. Perfect for lower key stage 2 and with 

a superb downloadable activity pack on the 

publisher website. 

Eileen Armstrong 

Pearson, Jenny, 


Aleksei Bitskoff 

Marvin and the 

Book of Magic 

Barrington Stoke, 2024, 88pp, 

£7.99, 9781800902695 

Magic. Puzzles. Skills 

Having produced a first book of magic many years 

ago, I was intrigued to receive this story which 

follows the adventures of young Marvin who is 

trying to make his way as a magician. Whilst his early 

attempts are not very successful due to an itinerant 

squirrel, he does come across a rather special magic 

book which helps him on his way. His best friend 

Asah then encourages him to take part in a school 

talent show which goes very well. I certainly found 

it a great read and easy to follow. I am sure that 

youngsters will be able to relate to the characters 

and ideas in the story. The magic book that Marvin 

is given has some very unusual features. Magic is a 

great topic to cover and there are so many simple 

tricks and puzzles that children can try that will 

amaze and baffle their friends. There is, however, 

a lot more to Marvin’s magic than you might think. 

Ideal for class or school libraries. 

Godfrey Hall 

Penfold, Nicola 

When the Wild Calls 

(Where the World 

Turns Wild) 

Little Tiger, 2024, 352pp, £7.99, 

9781788956215 

Climate. Corruption. Dystopia 

When the Wild Calls is Nicola Penfold’s follow up to 

the fantastic When the World Turns Wild. The story 

opens with Juniper and Bear in their new home 

of Ennerdale having escaped the city. However, 

Juniper cannot settle – she senses she is not fully 

accepted in her new community and has a lingering 

feeling that there is unfinished business in the 

city. When she discovers that the city has become 

riddled with disease, Juniper is determined to return 

and rescue the loved ones they left behind. We get 

an insight into the horrors of life in the city as this 

time we also have Etienne’s story running alongside 

Juniper’s, allowing a welcome development of his 

character. As with the first book, Penfold manages 

to weave thought-provoking themes and topics 

through this thrillingly adventurous dystopia. There 

are environmental and climate issues, alongside 

questions of power, corruption, and trust. A fantastic 

return to a terrifying world. 

Josie Bousfield 



Percival, Tom 

The Wrong Shoes 


£12.99, 9781398527126 

Blended families. Deprivation. 

Friendship 

Since Will’s parents split up, 

money has become very tight. Will spends half his 

week with each parent. His mother’s circumstances 

slightly improve when she moves in with Greg, 

although at first Will resents him. However his 

father has an accident at work and subsequently 

loses his job so has absolutely no money. But Will is 

very understanding and their love for one another 

is clearly demonstrated. Will’s best friend Cameron 

means well, but they fall out when Cameron 

offers Will some cast-off trainers. This has the 

effect of pushing Will to make unwise decisions 

with a crowd of boys well known for bullying. 

There is a way out and both Will and his dad make 

decisions they later regret. Only once Will can see 

his true friendships can help start to improve their 

prospects. A much needed novel reflecting the 

lives of many of our children. 

Dawn Woods 

Rainbow, Anna 

Your Magic or 

Your Life 

(Diamond Jack) 

Chicken House, 2024, 288pp, 

£7.99, 9781913322724 

Swashbuckling. Magical. 

Adventure 

A thrilling adventure book which I struggled to put 

down. This book really does take you back in time 

to a fantasy world of highway robbers. It’s a mash 

up of classic tales such as ‘The Red Shoes’, ‘The 

Three Musketeers’ and ‘Robin Hood’. Bramble is 

just helping out her sister at her grandpa's magical 

emporium when she discovers out the back a 

very special scarlet mask. She can’t help it, but the 

mask makes it on to her face and when she looks 

in the mirror, the face of the missing highway man 

Diamond Jack, believed dead, is looking back at 

her. It appears that Bramble has been selected 

for a mission. It seems that Bramble needs to 

step forward and be counted in order to rescue 

her grandpa but also to find out what actually 

happened to her parents and what her sister’s 

involvement in this mission is. This is a story of 

strength and female leadership as Bramble begins 

to believe in her own ability and talent. 


Rosen, Michael, 


Viviane Schwarz 

The Incredible 

Adventures of 

Gaston Le Dog 

Walker, 2023, 160pp, £12.99, 

9781529501209 

Adventure. Friends. Journey 

I clearly remember the conference where I first 

heard Michael Rosen speak. His talk was inspiring, 

original, and skilful, and so is this adventure story. 

Rosen is an expert in his field: he was Children’s 

Laureate 2007–2009 and is now Professor of 

Children’s Literature at Goldsmiths, University 

of London. As we follow the various adventures 

of Gaston Le Dog and his friends when they 

endeavour to journey to the sea, we always want to 

read on. This book has all the ingredients of a fine 

story and was inspired by both The Odyssey and 

Puss in Boots. Young people will relish the humour 

throughout the tale and be amazed at the obstacles 

the protagonist and his fellow travellers struggle 

to overcome together. The illustrations by talented 

artist Viviane Schwarz always work well with the 

text. Rosen is an outstanding craftsman, frequently 

using repetition and the sounds of words to great 

effect. His clever use of French, particularly names 

of characters and places, is magnifique! Enjoy! 

Janet Syme 

Sanghani, Radhika 

The Girl Who 

Couldn’t Lie 

Usborne, 2024, 304pp, £7.99, 

9781805316749 

Family. Honesty. Magic 

In spite of Priya pretending that 

everything in her life is perfect – it isn’t. She 

misses her grandmother Ba terribly, but no one 

else seems to want to talk about her. Her parents 

are constantly arguing, but claim divorce isn’t an 

option. Gymnastics always takes priority, often 

at the expense of missing important events with 

her friends. And then there’s the impact of her 

younger sister’s ADHD and the school bully’s 

demands on her time … But when Priya puts on a 

bangle left to her by Ba – the one person she was 

always honest with – she finds herself unable to 

lie anymore about how she really feels. So begins 

a steep learning curve about family and friends, 

and how to be honest without hurting anyone. A 

warm-hearted, funny, contemporary story with a 

little twist of magic. 

Chris Routh 

Saunders, Kate 

A Drop of Golden Sun 

Faber Childrens, 2024, £7.99, 

9780571310982 

Friendships. Film-Making. 

Historical 

It’s 1973 and Jenny and her 

mum are on their way to a final audition in a big 

film. This is not Jenny’s usual world and her mum 

is more nervous than Jenny. Amazingly Jenny is 

cast in a leading role and her life changes for a 

few weeks. The acting family of four siblings are 

very different characters, as are their mothers and 

also the more famous adult actors. Somehow 

they all have to get on enough to make a film and 

survive the ups and downs of living in such close 

proximity to others. With some insightful children, 

they all do last, with each learning a bit more 

about themselves. The clue in the title gives away 

the film around which this is based and is the final 

light-hearted read for upper primary pupils by an 

author stopped before her time – a great loss to the 

children’s book world. 

Dawn Woods 

Schenkel, Katie, 

illustrated by Lelo Alves 

Trust on Thin Ice 

(Sports Stories: 

Graphic Novels) 

Raintree, 2023, 72pp, £8.99, 

9781398251151 

Friendship. Sport. Skating 

Mina is an ice skater and is keen to try out pairs 

skating for the first time, but she has second 

thoughts when she has difficulty getting along with 

her new partner Luke. Can she help him overcome 

his shyness and achieve her dream? This is a new 

addition to the popular Sport Stories Graphic Novels 

collection and, as always, is a high-quality read. The 

illustrations are bright and enticing and the text is 

engaging as well as accessible. 

Beth Jenkinson 


Books: 8 – 12 

Seabolt, Tricia, 

illustrated by Lucy Rogers 

Ellie and the 

Marriage List 

Lantana, 2024, 224pp, £7.99, 

9781915244796 

Family. Individuality. Special Needs 

A story about two best friends, Ellie and Ling, trying 

to navigate their way through family changes. Ellie 

is concerned that her brother Ben is only interested 

in impressing their new neighbour, Sara, and is not 

interested in doing things with her anymore. Ling 

introduces Ellie to the ‘Marriage List’ which lists the 

things to look out for that show a couple is heading 

towards marriage. Ellie becomes obsessed with the 

list and whether Ben and Sara are moving through 

the things on it. Can she stop a wedding before it 

happens? Ellie is worried she will lose the things she 

loves most, including the willow tree in the garden 

that her parents want to cut down. Can Ellie win 

back her brother and save the tree? An enchanting 

tale championing a 10-year-old main character with 

Downs Syndrome, touching on some of the things 

younger children can get hung up on in finding 

their place with their siblings as they grow up. 

Mrs. Michelle Armstrong-Harris 

Sedgman, Sam 

The Clockwork 

Conspiracy 


£7.99, 9781526665386 

Mystery. Time. Parliament 

Eoin Colfer has described this as 

clever and inventive and it certainly is, though quite 

complicated. For that reason only I would suggest 

this book is probably 10+, even though a younger 

child could read it. It is a very interesting story about 

Big Ben and the workings of Time. Isaac’s dad is 

the horologist in charge of Big Ben and when he 

vanishes from the belfry on the night the clocks 

go back, leaving behind only a smashed pocket 

watch and a cryptic message, Isaac is determined 

to find him. With his new friend Hattie (the Speaker’s 

daughter!) Isaac follows clues, chased by a shadowy 

villain, and discovers the secret society dedicated to 

keeping Time. I learnt quite a lot about timekeepers, 

with real facts about clocks around the world. It also 

opens up the world of Parliament and the House of 

Commons, giving children lots of new knowledge 

about the workings of the country. Good fun and 

highly recommended. 

Sue Bastone 

Smith, Alex T. 

Attack of the Snailiens 

(Astrid and the 

Space Cadets) 

Pan Macmillan Children’s, 2024, 

176pp, £7.99, 9781035019748 

Aliens. Fantasy. 

Non-Traditional Families 

Astrid, a young girl who is being raised by two 

dads, has a dream in which she and her friends, 

one of whom is a non-binary alien called Zoink, 

have to rescue prized, giant, pink potatoes from 

the potato-loving Snaliens. This they do and they 

clean up space junk on the way. A really engaging, 

highly illustrated fantasy. 

Rebecca Butler 

Staff, P. A., illustrated by 

Nathan Collins 

Casander Darkbloom 

and the Threads 

of Power 

Walker, 2023, 384pp, £7.99, 

9781529506280 

Adventure. Magic. Friendship 

Set in a parallel world of magic, where leaping 

through a reflective surface in our world is enough 

to move between the Normie world and Wayward, 

this cracking adventure follows Cas as he discovers 

that he is the prophesied Foretold. Add a villain 

who is never spoken of by name, and a school for 

children with powers (who, yes, are sorted into 

houses by an oracle), and you might start to feel 

as if you’ve read this story before – but wait … The 

writing is pacy and compelling and although the 

story might tread some well-worn paths through a 

magical school with hidden rooms and unfriendly 

cliques, it pays more than lip service to diversity and 

manages to avoid caricatures. The story itself is very 

well wrought, with some foreshadowed surprises 

and one that even a cynical old librarian like me 

didn’t expect! The first in a series, this will delight 

fans of magical adventure. 


Woods, Matilda, 


Penny Neville-Lee 

The Night Train 

Stripes Publishing, 2023, 90pp, 

£6.99, 9781788952248 

Journey. Collaboration. 

Friendship 

A heart-warming read, crammed full of wonderful 

colour illustrations on each page, giving the early 

reader a real insight into the story. The dream 

locomotive is heading to Sleepy Town in time for 

midnight and it’s filled with characters from the 

children’s dreams. An ex-footballer now ballet 

dancer, a misunderstood monster, a tea-drinking 

yeti and an empowered princess and her dragon! 

But then the train gets stuck, and they all have to 

work together to save the children’s dreams. A really 

adorable and wonderful book and a great option for 

children bridging that gap between picture books 

and longer chapter books. 


Our Earth is a Poem: 

Poetry About Nature 


£12.99, 9781838915551 

Environment. Animals. 

Weather 

POETRY 

Honestly, I adored this book. 

The cover and illustrations are beautiful and 

complement the writing perfectly. Each poem 

is so different and covers different parts of our 

world, from the rivers to the weather to specific 

animals. They range from the thought-provoking 

to funny and each is so unique. All of the 

poems are gorgeous, though some are definite 

favourites! I firmly believe younger students and 

those with a passion for the world around them 

will enjoy this book. 

Natalie McQuillan 


Books: 8 – 12 | Information 

Belyaev, Roman 

How Does a 

Lighthouse Work? 

b small, 2024, 40pp, £8.99, 

9781913918903 

Buildings. Architecture. 

Lighthouses 

This new paperback edition of a 2018 publication 

provides an interesting insight into the history, 

geography, science, and engineering behind these 

fascinating and dramatic structures. In this narrative 

non-fiction book, constructed around an imagined 

school trip, the author poses a series of questions, 

one to each double-page spread, e.g. What is a 

lighthouse for? How does the light shine so far? and 

How are lighthouses built? The answers, together 

with associated interesting facts are presented in a 

logical and easily understood manner in clear and 

accessible blocks of text. The author’s illustrations, 

which were nominated for the Kate Greenaway 

Medal, are strikingly simple yet effective drawings in 

a limited colour palette and perfectly complement 

the clear, informative text. The book concludes with 

an invitation for budding architects and engineers to 

design their own lighthouse based on all the things 

they have learned. Ideal for STEM project support in 

key stage 2. 

Lynn Marshall 

Bryson, Bill 

A Really Short Journey 

Through the Body 

Puffin, 2023, 144pp, £25.00, 

9780241606223 

Health. Human Body. Science 

A non-fiction book packed full of facts and figures, 

taking the reader on a tour of the human body 

from head to toe. Using all the conventions of a 

non-fiction book – contents, index, images and 

diagrams – this is an accessible book for middle 

years readers. Through 130 pages jam-packed with 

information, explanation, and some humour, the 

reader learns about how the body works and what 

is needed to keep it healthy. Including sections on 

conception, disease and death, the book provides 

opportunities to talk about serious matters of the 

body. The content will also support learning in key 

stage 2 and 3 science. 


Campbell, James, 

illustrated by Rob Jones 

Don’t Panic! We 

CAN Save the Planet! 


£7.99, 9781526658944 

Climate Change. 

Environment. Humour 

A great book that introduces climate change and 

what we can do to stop it. James Campbell, who 

lives off-grid and owns a compost loo, makes 

readers laugh, but the message is serious. We 

are encouraged to start reading the book on 

any page we fancy, and we can dip in and jump 

around. Chapters are short, and facts are presented 

in accessible formats. Rob Jones’s hilarious 

illustrations make the book engaging. Information 

is not dumbed down. I loved the graphic that 

shows in bath years the amount of water used 

to produce certain items. The average car takes 

40,000 gallons of water – eight bath years – to 

make. Campbell includes inspirational planetsaving 

heroes like Morag Gamble, Dr Ella Gilbert, 

Sir David Attenborough, Buckminster Fuller, and 

Greta Thunberg. There are plenty of suggestions of 

things ‘we can do about it now’. The tone is upbeat 

and positive. This is a key message of the book – we 

CAN turn things round. Perfect for children aged 7+. 


Cole, Steve & Peake, Tim, 


Max Rambaldi 

The Cosmic Diary 

of Our Incredible 

Universe 

Wren & Rook, 2023, 240pp, 

£7.99, 9781526364913 

Scientists. Space. Universe 

For any children interested in the universe, stars, 

planets and black holes, The Cosmic Diary of Our 

Incredible Universe is a fun-filled, informationpacked 

guide. It is stylishly printed in black, white, 

and orange and includes chapters on ‘the Big Bang’, 

‘Galaxies’, and ‘Particles’. The reader is led through 

the information by a group of avatars – astronaut 

Tim, particle physicist Malika, and cosmologists 

Ben and Ciara. There are also excerpts from a diary 

charting the development of the universe and 

bite-sized fact boxes. Finally, at the end of the book 

there is a section on trailblazing scientists, a glossary 

and an index. The Cosmic Diary of Our Incredible 

Universe is a superb introduction to the wonders 

of the space. It is full of amazing facts that are 

presented in an extremely enjoyable and accessible 

way. The layout aids understanding and the text 

engages the reader throughout. It will definitely 

appeal to any child interested in space. 

Andrea Rayner 

Dinosaurs and Other 

Prehistoric Creatures 

(Factology) 

Button Books, 2023, 96pp, 

£12.99, 9781787081499 

Dinosaurs. Educational. 

Prehistory 

A thoroughly entertaining, fact-filled non-fiction 

book, containing everything you wanted to know 

about dinosaurs. It is split into three chapters. The 

first, ‘Dinosaur World’, informs the reader about 

the evolution of the creature, their life on Earth 

and ultimately how they were wiped out. The 

opening of this book is particularly different as it is 

laid out in easy-to-read table and format – using 

visuals instead of words – particularly helpful for 

younger readers. Chapter two, ‘Prehistoric Safari’, 

breaks down the types of dinosaurs, from flying 

to underwater through to the last dinosaurs that 

roamed the earth. Chapter three, ‘Dino Science’, 

concludes with information on Mary Anning 

and what a palaeontologist is, and there is a ‘test 

yourself’ quiz at the end. A wonderfully illustrated, 

informative book. 

Mrs. Emma Nelson 

Robots & AI 

(Factology) 

Button Books, 2024, 96pp, 

£12.99, 9781787081482 

AI. Robots. Technology 

Part of the Factology series, 

this book is certainly packed 

with many fascinating facts, diagrams, and 

illustrations about robots and AI. It poses 

key questions of ethics and shows the many 

applications robots are currently used for, as well as 

possible future developments. Although it doesn’t 

give vast amounts of info on each point, it is all 

interesting for those wanting to find out more about 

the topic. The quiz at the end of the book asks 

questions relating to the facts given, and a glossary 

of terms helps with some technical terminology as 

well as some terms in everyday use and how, in the 

context of AI, it relates to the subject. The editorial 

team are listed, which may be the same for the 

whole series, but they will have fact checked the 

information for publication. Most suitable for upper 

key stage 2, the book also acts as an introduction 

for key stage 3. 

Dawn Woods 


IBA Longlist Insights 

April 2024 

0–7 years 

24 Hours in a Zoo 

A charming and vivid journey 

through the zoo, full of facts 

about the inner workings of the 

site and the animals themselves. 

Wonderful to explore for animal 

lovers, with a hopeful and 

aspirational tone. 

Darwin’s Super-Pooping 

Worm Spectacular 

This is a fascinating and informative 

tale, which stuns with empathetic 

and heartfelt illustrations. I really 

felt for Darwin on his journey, 

and it made me laugh too! Children will love reading 

about the magic of Darwin’s worms – and their poo. 

Does a Monkey 

Get Grumpy? 

A delightfully funny take on 

emotions and the fact that the 

animal world has the same issues 

as humans. It is a fascinating look at how different 

animals react to situations and is full of information. 

Mama Mammals 

Beautifully illustrated, this 

sensitively written guide through 

the cycles of reproduction and 

birth in mammals shows our links 

to fellow mammals in a charming 

and accessible way. 

Plant 

Plant is pure joy! Perfectly 

pitched for this age group with 

a magnificent cover and just 

the right mix of information and 

activities inside. It feels lovely to 

handle and is sure to entice keen 

readers and plant lovers alike. 

Please Don’t Bite Me 

An exciting look at the less 

fashionable bugs of the insect 

world. Bite-sized chunks about 

fleas, wasps and lice amongst 

others make this amazing, 

illustrated book really come to life. 

Salat in Secret 

This book is an essential addition 

to any primary school library 

seeking to build an inclusive 

collection where every pupil 


can feel seen. Muhammad is given a salat rug on his 

seventh birthday and encouraged to pray five times a 

day. Unfortunately this turns out to be harder than it 

sounds as Muhammad struggles to summon up the 

courage to ask his teacher for a suitable place to pray. 

I highly recommend this big-hearted and emotional 

read with bold and memorable illustrations that bring 

the narrative vividly to life. 

That’s Mathematics 

This is an exuberant and 

fascinating introduction to the 

fact that mathematics is all 

around us. It is based on lyrics 

by the songwriter Tom Lehrer, 

so we feel the rhythm of the 

words and the humour of some situations. Full of 

facts and suggestions for things to do. 

The Tyrannosaur’s 

Feathers 

This is a dinosaur book like no 

other. Smith and Emmet’s second 

humorous foray into prehistoric 

mythology is a fact-packed blast 

of newly unearthed scientific 

evidence as told by a cheeky velociraptor to a 

confused T-Rex. Guaranteed to pique the reader’s 

curiosity whether dino mad or not, budding 

historian or scientist, this is a rare gem conveying 

a vital message about the value of research in the 

lightest possible way. 

We Are All Astronauts 

A journey of discovery through 

space in the company of 

character Luna Scope, every 

page is packed with information, 

every space is filled with facts 

about everything from blast off to touchdown 

and everything in between. 

Welcome to Our Table 

Broad in scope and truly 

welcoming in tone, the well 

organised bite-sized facts are 

both informative and fun. Great 

to spend hours poring over, 

and ideal to encourage an interest in food, and in 

different cultures. 

Who Ate All the Bugs? 

A gleeful first look at food chains 

and common creatures that 

balances the good-humoured 

story and low-level facts perfectly. 

A very engaging and lively read 

that’s sure to hold the attention of young readers. 

8–12 years 

Against the Odds 

Fantastic illustrated stories of 

expeditions across history that 

were successful against the odds. 

These are stories about lots of 

lesser-known adventurers and are 

stories full of courage, belief, and 

resilience to triumph over adversity. 

Arthur Who Wrote 

Sherlock 

Outstanding, characterful 

illustrations add a great deal of 

depth and personality to a very 

engaging biography. Conan- 

Doyle’s story has facets that every 

child can relate to, and the look at his creative drive 

and frustrations make for a well-rounded impression 

of him. Wonderful for young literature buffs. 

Brilliant Black 

British History 

This celebratory volume is packed 

with facts and a diverse range 

of inspirational figures from the 

past and present, including ballet 

dancer Solomon Golding, football coach and men’s 

game referee Jawahir Robie and lawyer Patricia 

Scotland who made domestic violence a crime. 

A contents page that doubles as a timeline, plus a 

glossary and suggested further reading help to set 

this volume into the wider context of Black British 

history. The title does not over-promise: this book 

really is brilliant. 

Can You Get 

Rainbows in Space? 

Brimming with facts, and a 

feast for the eyes, this book is a 

guaranteed hit for wet break dip 

in and out entertainment and a 

sure-fire winner for the spongebrained 

super curious. Kay’s bold illustrations and 

vivid palette mean that this book is a happy place, 

perfectly bringing the text to life; science doesn’t get 

much more joyful than this. 

Evolution 

A wonderfully clear and 

knowledgeable look at evolution 

in all of its forms. The writers are 

both scientists, including the great 

great-granddaughter of Charles 

Darwin, but the text is readable and understandable 

for the reader. It comes with an excellent index 

and list of further resources. Without doubt this is a 

brilliant addition to the primary classroom or library.

Hear Our Voices 

Exceptionally well-chosen 

viewpoints that tell the tale of 

the British Empire’s injustice 

and the opposing actions 

skilfully and movingly, without 

putting the burden of guilt or shame upon the 

modern reader. An ideal introduction to an 

underrepresented part of British history. 

How to be a Detective and 

Other Crime-Fighting Jobs 

A very approachable overview 

of how the police work, 

and what sort of jobs law 

enforcement and detection can 

be broken down into. Its light 

approach is engaging and enjoyable, yet it doesn’t 

shy away from some of the realities of crime. Well 

rounded and appealing. 

Human 2.0 

This incredible book celebrates 

human bionics and the 

perception of disability through 

the magnificent and remarkable 

developments and achievements 

being made in medical 

engineering. I am confident pupils will be inspired to 

start their own journey into this field, becoming the 

next generation of scientists and inventors. 

Lessons from Our 

Ancestors 

This is a vital addition to all 

school libraries, complimenting 

a broad teaching curriculum and 

will be thoroughly enjoyed by 

the whole school community. 

These forgotten histories need to be shared, and with 

superb illustrations and a striking cover, this is just the 

book for the job. 

Stand Up and Speak Out 

Against Racism 

This vibrant and interactive book 

bursting with positivity is designed 

to empower children to tackle 

racism. Abdel-Magied uses a 

mountain climbing analogy to 

convey how racism contributes to the uneven playing 

field regarding opportunity and life options. 

Truth Detective 

In a world of fake news and 

uncertainty, this book looks at 

ways that you can check your 

understanding of events and 

the world in general. It is easy to 

read, and the author explains the 

concepts and issues to help us understand and to use 

critical thinking to make the right decisions. 

Unspoken 

This incredible book brought 

me to tears. It was born from a 

fear of teaching the impact and 

trauma of enslavement, and the resulting book is 

both an imperative read and crucial addition to 

our collections. The mixed-media illustrations are 

astonishing, alongside heartbreaking history in verse 

form, about a story that must be told. 

13–16 years 

Bright Stars of 

Black History 

A wonderful informative book 

profiling prominent Black British 

people from across history. 

The reader finds out about 14 

remarkable individuals whose 

talents have left a lasting mark on our history – 

presented alongside a wonderful full page portrait 

of them in the book. 

Cash Is Queen 

An intriguing book about helping 

young women understand and 

look after money. It focuses 

on all areas and not just those 

usually associated with women, 

so despite its title, it is a book that 

everyone can learn from. 

Engineers Making a 

Difference 

An incredible book that opens 

up the huge range of work 

being undertaken by engineers. 

It is perfect for inspiring young 

people to work in the fields of 

STEM; and in doing so they will 

make discoveries that will help save our world. 

Growing Up 

This inclusive and joyful 

guide states that ‘there are 

lots of different ways to be 

a grown up’ and sets out to 

show the reader what their 

journey to becoming a grown up might look like, 

encompassing not just the physical changes but 

also emotions and wellbeing. This book is an older 

sibling or cousin offering kindly reassurance and 

encouragement for what can be an overwhelming 

time for many young people in which (almost?) 

everyone can hopefully feel seen. 

How to Love: A Guide to 

Feelings and Relationships 

for Everyone 

The irreverent style and simple 

art deceptively hide a very 

insightful and reassuring guide 

to developing healthy and equal relationships – with 

romantic partners, with friends, and with oneself. 

Charming, inclusive, and uplifting, it’s one to come 

back to again and again. 

Lads 

Lads is a refreshing and essential 

addition to any teenager’s 

bookshelf today. Motivated to 

ensure his sons don’t become 

“that guy”, Bissett uses himself as a 

case study to highlight how wellintentioned 

behaviour seen through a #MeToo lens 

may actually be rather creepy. Not just for boys or 

teenagers, this engaging book with a straight-talking 

aesthetic is also highly recommended for teachers 

and parents. 

Musical World 

A highly engaging and accessible 

book about modern world history 

through incredible music. I wish my 

history books were like this when 

I was at school – if only they had 

had this warmth and passion. With 

a brilliant cover too, Musical World sparks a desire to 

enjoy the songs over and over, whilst devouring the 

history told. 

Rise Up and Sing 

A dense but captivating tour 

through the modern history of 

musical activism, including a 

range of performers that modern 

young people will already know 

and look up to. A wonderful 

access hatch into the world of political action 

and social history. 

Story of Now 

Story of Now will inspire 

our children to gain a better 

understanding of the world they 

live in; how it came to be; and how 

to look to the future to shape their 

own story. It is an essential read 

for pupils and teachers alike to better challenge and 

comprehend the on-going impact of the British 

Empire in the classroom and further afield. 

Welcome to the Arts: 

Dance 

Produced in association with 

Sadler’s Wells and written by 

Sir Alastair Spalding, the artistic 

director and chief exec of the 

theatre since 2004, this captivating 

large format volume is a feast for the eyes and 

mind. A luxurious treat of a book that is packed with 

content and will not fail to razzle dazzle its reader. 

You Grow Girl! 

This is aimed at answering all of 

those questions you have about 

growing up and even some that 

you had not thought of. It is a 

clear and factual guide that should 

be read by young people as they 

navigate this time in their lives. 



Farooki, Dr Roopa, 


Viola Wang 

The Brilliant Brain 


9781529504507 

Biology. Human Body. Science 

A thought-provoking book for young readers 

around the brain and how it works. The brain is a 

complex centre of the human body but it is not 

always easy to understand. Dr Roopa Farooki has 

set the workings and parts out brilliantly. Simply 

explained, the brain makes more sense now. 

Children will love learning about the technical 

terms used to describe different areas that have 

different jobs. Things we quickly take for granted 

are explained and shared. The excellent visuals 

and illustrations in this book help to form clear 

images of what nerves do and how messages are 

sent to and from the brain. An excellent resource 

for young readers! 

Mrs. Erin Hamilton 

Harper, Benjamin 

The Secret Life of 

the Loch Ness 

Monster (Secret Lives 

of Cryptids) 

Raintree, 2023, 32pp, £13.99, 

9781398250154 

Monsters. Mysteries. Legends 

This is one of the Secret Lives of Cryptoids series 

which explores the mysteries surrounding animals 

that people say they have seen, but which no one 

has been able to prove are real. Presented like a 

traditional non-fiction book with contents, glossary, 

further reading, and an index, this gathers together 

the small amount of tantalizing ‘information’ 

that exists about ‘Nessie’, including some grainy 

photographs. The subject matter is bound to 

capture the imagination of young readers – and 

particularly reluctant and struggling readers – 

though the book doesn’t provide any definitive 

answers to this particular real-life mystery! 

Chris Routh 

Jackson, Tom, 


Val Walerczuk 

The Magnificent Book 

of Ocean Creatures 

Weldon Owen, 2024, 80pp, 

£14.99, 9781915588401 

Habitats. Oceans. Animals 

This beautiful book is crammed full of information and 

superb illustrations. Ideal as a reference book or as a 

starting point for a project, it will certainly enthral and 

enchant all ages. From the clownfish which makes its 

home in the tentacle of sea anemones to the huge 

blue whale, there is a sensitive balance between its 

amazing illustrations and the accompanying text. 

Each double page features an illustration which is 

then supported by limited text and a fact file. Great for 

discussion or work in small groups, I am sure that the 

book will not only stimulate further discussion on the 

creatures but also lead to great deal of research. I can 

thoroughly recommend this for inclusion in class or 

school libraries as I am positive that it will be extremely 

popular. I was particularly taken by the drawings of 

the orca whale and giant Pacific octopus which were 

quite superb. It is the kind of book that children will 

want to visit over and over again as they find out more 

about these fascinating ocean animals. 

Godfrey Hall 

Jackson, Tom 

The Expanding World 

of Data (Very Short 

Introductions for 

Curious Minds) 

OUP, 2023, 96pp, £7.99, 

9780192783165 

Data. History. Statistics 

I found this ninth title in the Very Short Introductions 

for Curious Young Minds series fascinating and very 

enlightening. Not only does it cover the history 

of collecting data and how data is used to make 

predictions, but it also details, ‘What it is recording 

about us as individuals’ (p.66). Sections explaining 

facts concerning data appear in the ‘Speak Like 

a Scientist’ sections and these are very helpful. 

Similarly, the information on ‘Data Heroes’ is very 

interesting. The text works well with a variety of types 

of illustrations: I loved the picture of the elephant 

comprising 0s and 1s on page 83 showing hidden 

patterns. Congratulations to the team of writers and 

illustrators on producing such a colourful, pocketsized 

book which demystifies a complex subject. 

Topics covered are very useful and current for young 

readers, especially when the difference between 

what is public and private regarding social media is 

explained (p.73), for example. I look forward to more 

titles in this successful series from OUP. 

Janet Syme 

Jacobs, Robin, 


Ben Javens 

All About Flags 

Cicada Books, 2024, 104pp, 

£16.99, 9781800660458 

Flags. Information. Facts 

Discover all you ever wanted to know about 

country flags of the world in this exceptional 

book. Sumptuously illustrated with engaging 

text, All About Flags tells you the story behind the 

flags. Broken down into continents, each section 

starts with a map and list of country flags before 

giving more in-depth information on them. Many 

feature great information about their history and 

significance, and some flags are gathered into 

interesting groupings, such as flags with coats of 

arms on them and flags with crescents on them, 

adding to the interest. There are also fascinating 

flag fact boxes that pop up on some pages, too, 

which I enjoyed. At the start of the book is a fine 

introduction to the history and meaning of flags, as 

well as sections on symbols and colours in flags. A 

great glossary concludes the book. All About Flags 

is highly visual and a delight to read. This is definitely 

one for the classroom, school library, and for young 

vexillologists everywhere! 


Laboucarie, Sandra, 


Benjamin Bécue 

The Ultimate Book 

of Dinosaurs and 

Other Prehistoric Creatures 

Bayard Editions, 2023, 18pp, £18.99, 9791036353079 

Dinosaurs. Interactive. Prehistory 

Regardless of whether you like dinosaurs, you can’t 

help but love this book! Every page is packed full 

of brilliant interactive elements: flaps to lift, wheels 

to spin, strips to pull, plus foldouts and impressive 

3D pop-ups. The book is arranged chronologically, 

with each double-page spread focussing on 

the characteristics of dinosaurs and prehistoric 

creatures from different eras. The format is clear 

and engaging, with small and informative chunks of 

text supporting the bold and colourful illustrations. 

The text itself is fairly small, and there are a lot of 

tricky-to-read words – especially the names of 

many of the dinosaurs – so this book would be 

well-suited for group reading with adult supervision 

for help with pronunciation. It’s also a great book to 

dip into and use as a reference as there is a wealth 

of information that will appeal to children of all ages 

(and adults too!). Highly recommend for children of 

any age and particularly reluctant readers who enjoy 

the experience of reading interactive books. 

Louise Davis 


Books: 8 – 12 

Peters, Stephanie True, 


Scott Jeralds 

The Unusual Journey 

from Pebbles to 

Continents 

(Graphics Library: 

Earth’s Amazing Journey) 

Raintree, 2023, 32pp, £8.99, 9781398251663 

Earth. History. Geology 

Join time-travelling teen Crystal on a journey to 

discover the Earth’s rocky past and unlock the 

mysteries of the Earth’s continents. The book is 

presented in graphic novel format with photos 

included. Crystal tells the story of how the earth 

came to be, along with continents and concepts 

like plate tectonics. This is an entertaining and 

educational introduction to Earth science and the 

forces that created the Earth we have today. The 

text is well paced, and the graphic format works 

well in breaking down information and concepts 

into bitesize and accessible pieces. Definitions are 

used throughout the book and are reinforced in the 

bibliography at the back of the book. The inclusion 

of suggested further reading and websites also help 

make this an excellent introduction to geoscience 

for young readers, and forms part of a series by 

Raintree called Earth’s Amazing Journey. A good 

book for the classroom. 


Peterson, Megan Cooley 

Benjamin Franklin 

and the Discovery of 

Electricity (Fact vs 

Fiction History) 

Raintree, 2023, 32pp, £13.99, 

9781398251540 

Electricty. Forces. Narrative 

A fantastic introduction to Benjamin Franklin 

and his role in the study of electricity. This is a 

clear and concise guide, separating the fact from 

the fiction: ‘Benjamin Franklin the man who 

discovered electricity.’ This book opens us up to 

the history behind this statement. Electricity was 

actually first written about in 600BC by the Greeks. 

This book highlights the vital studies and the 

influence they had on furthering our knowledge 

and understanding of electricity and its power. 

Its biggest myth buster is the legend of Benjamin 

Franklin and his young son discovering electricity by 

flying a kite, but you’ll need to read the book for the 

real story. An insightful book pitched perfectly for 

key stage 2 and with a useful glossary for new terms. 

Nicola Bowie 

Platt, Michael, 


Alleanna Harris 

Recipes for Change 

Magic Cat, 2023, 40pp, 

£12.99, 9781913520557 

Food. Black History. Biography 

An unusual book that combines the biographies 

of key figures in Black history with recipes. We 

learn about 12 important months in the Civil Rights 

movement and are given recipes for the food 

associated with them – the Black Panther Party’s 

creamy grits; the Greensboro Sit-In’s cherry protest 

pie; the Selma March’s carry-on cornbread; the 

Underground Railroad’s freedom fish; the Freedom 

Riders’ gumbo; Juneteenth’s red ice lollies; Bakers 

Against Racism’s sweet potato hand pie; Martin 

Luther King Jr’s favourite pecan pie; Paschal’s fried 

chicken; the Black Power Salute’s Olympic gold 

cookies; the Christmas Sacrifice’s banana pudding; 

and the Montgomery Bus Boycott’s pound cake. 

The recipes help the reader connect with important 

figures. Pages are well designed with a good 

balance between text and illustrations. At the back 

of the book there are 21 biographies, a glossary and 

ideas for further reading. A great book that teaches 

about Black empowerment and African American 

culture, and inspires future trailblazers and cooks. 


Ralphs, Matt, 


Dieter Brown 

Aviation 

Big Picture Press, 2024, 

64pp, £16.99, 9781800784918 

Aviation. Aeroplanes. 

Human Flight 

From hot air balloons to super-sonic aircraft, this is 

a fairly comprehensive account of aviation history, 

copiously illustrated with artists’ impressions of 

the general appearance of the planes mentioned 

in the text. Cut-away diagrams would have been 

useful (the exception is Air Force One), as would 

explanations of such things as the workings of a 

jet engine. Unfortunately, there is no bibliography, 

essential if readers are to explore topics such as 

the World Wars in more detail. The index was 

reasonable but the use of a mixture of singular and 

plural terms when listing subjects such as airport 

terminal buildings ignored the standard rule of using 

plurals. To find Leonardo da Vinci listed as ‘da Vinci, 

Leonardo’ was wince-inducing. No doubt the book 

will be highly popular with aeroplane enthusiasts, 

however, and justifiably so. 

Peter Andrews 

Rice, Eleanor Spicer, 

illustrated by Rob Wilson 

Unseen Jungle 

Walker, 2023, 176pp, £7.99, 

9781529512144 

Microbes. Science. Biology 

Most of us don’t really like to 

think about microbes – they do terrible things 

like make people sick, make zombies of innocent 

insects, or produce methane gas that contributes 

to global warming. But others support life on 

this planet, including helping with digestion, 

recycling by decomposition, and vector-borne 

disease control. This is a completely fascinating, 

occasionally gross, but always engaging guide 

to the microbiological world; the enthusiasm 

of the entomologist author, the jokey tone, and 

the amusing cartoon illustrations, together with 

the interviews with interesting scientists who are 

working with and researching how microbes help 

us, make this a brilliant read. It is an American text 

but for the readers of 10+ who are used to comics, 

games, and films using Americanisms, this will 

not prove a barrier. There is no index but a very 

extensive bibliography is useful. 

Joy Court 

Rivers, Kristine & 

Dove, Carla J. 

Bird Detectives 

Raintree, 2023, 32pp, £13.99, 

9781398251113 

Birds. Detective. Aeroplanes 

This fascinating information 

book teaches us about the job of ‘bird detectives’. 

This role was created by a female scientist in the 

1960s at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of 

Natural History in the Division of Birds in the USA, 

during a time when most of these jobs were given 

to men. From the 1950s onwards, bird strikes had 

become an important issue for aeroplane safety 

due to the increasing popularity of passenger 

aeroplanes. Sometimes aircraft were damaged but 

also vitally people and birds, and something needed 

to change. Over many decades, samples from these 

birds have been collected from the remains of bird 

strikes to study the birds and help us to understand 

these types of human-wildlife conflicts, with the 

aim of reducing and hoping to prevent future bird 

strikes. This well-written and perfectly pitched 

book for key stage 2 pupils gives us many of the 

tools we need to have a go at learning to identify 

birds ourselves. There is a helpful glossary and 

information about a career as a scientist. 




Rodriguez, Cindy L., 


Paul McCaffrey 

The Mount Everest 

Disaster of 1996 

(Graphic Library: 

Deadly Expeditions) 

Raintree, 2023, 32pp, £9.99, 9781398251410 

Adventure. Expeditions. Mountains 

This is one of the Deadly Expeditions series which 

explores some gripping real-life adventures that 

have ended tragically. Presented as a graphic 

novel, this 32-page book has some traditional 

non-fiction features, including contents, glossary, 

and recommended reading. There is also a map 

and further information about the fated expedition. 

This potted version of the story which saw the 

worst loss of life on Mount Everest on a single 

day, is likely to raise questions about what drove 

four different expeditions to tackle the climb on 

the same day and whether the death of 8 people 

could have been avoided. Not all stories of human 

endeavour end happily. The subject matter and 

style of presentation will make this appealing for 

reluctant and struggling readers. 

Chris Routh 

Stavaric, Michael, 

translated by 

Oliver Latsch, 


Michele Ganser 

Amazing Octopus 

Pushkin Children’s Books, 2023, 

140pp, £20.00, 9781782694243 

Octopus. Oceans. Science 

The cover of this book is so beautiful and certainly 

encourages the reader to want to delve into 

the pages. From the quality of the paper to the 

images within the book and the mature way the 

authors treat the reader, this is a truly beautiful 

read. Presented in black and white with touches 

of gold, it is so aesthetically pleasing. Addressing 

the reader directly, the book provides authority 

on octopuses through text, images, and activity 

pages. ‘Bright Minds’ text boxes extend the detail 

for the reader, taking them into some higher level 

concepts. This book would be a fantastic addition 

to any school library and would be valuable for 

encouraging those readers who might prefer nonfiction 

to fiction texts. It gives the opportunity to 

really learn about these fascinating creatures and 

their place in the universe. 


Thomas, Isobel, 

illustrated by Octavia 

Bromell & Crissie Rodda 

The Earth’s Essential 

Rainforests (Very 

Short Introductions 

for Curious Minds) 

OUP, 2023, 96pp, £7.99, 9780192782939 

Rainforests. Science. Amazon 

Here is an attractive, very portable, and accessible 

guide to the all-important rainforests in our world. 

This is book 10 in the Very Short Introductions for 

Curious Young Minds series, and this publication 

immediately hooks me in to learn more about this 

engaging subject. Chapters of differing lengths 

cover the main topics connected with rainforests, 

the longest chapter focussing on the Amazon 

Rainforest which is, ‘So big that if it were a country, 

it would be the seventh largest’ (p.20). I especially 

liked the ‘Speak like a Scientist’ sections which are 

peppered throughout the book and give scientific 

facts and explanations. People who have been key 

in the history of the conservation of rainforests 

appear as ‘Rainforest Heroes’. Written by experts and 

illustrated by three people, I can highly recommend 

this title. With its photographs, comic strips, 

diagrams, and illustrations, there is plenty to appeal 

to young readers. All you need to know about these 

ecosystems is within its pages, including a handy 

glossary, timeline, and index. 

Janet Syme 

Williams, J. T., illustrated 

by Angela Vives 

Bright Stars of 

Black History 

Thames & Hudson, 2023, 

160pp, £16.99, 9780500652923 

Biography. Black British History. 

Slavery 

This bok includes 14 detailed biographies over five 

centuries, punctuated with summaries of historical 

context. ‘Black’ denotes people of African descent, 

including Roman Emperor Severus. Beautiful 

illustrations complement a wealth of information in 

160 well-written, text-rich pages that chart the rise 

and fall of Atlantic slavery: how slaves were traded, 

gifted, renamed, denied family life and literacy, 

and even continued to work unpaid after abolition. 

Indian Ocean and Saharan slave trades aren’t 

mentioned – this is British history. Despite the stars’ 

amazing stories and pivotal contributions to Britain’s 

abolition and equality legislation, the engaging 

introduction invites readers also to ‘honour … 

(unknown) people who … work for change …’ ‘the 

stars in between ... join the bright stars together 

to make up the constellations.’ Excellent read and 

inspiring history reference; also for older readers. 

With a useful glossary, bibliography, and index. 

Dr. Henrietta Jane Price 

Williams, Rachel, 


Ksenia Bakhareva 

A Natural History 

Hide-and-Seek 

(Picture Puzzler) 

Godfrey Hall 


Magic Cat, 2023, 48pp, 

£14.99, 9781913520984 

Envirnoments. Habitats. Puzzles 

Designed as a book for solving puzzles, this features 

six different habitats, from the heat of the Sahara in 

Africa to the freezing cold of Svalbard in Norway. 

Using clues on each page, the reader is asked to 

find particular creatures within the double-page 

spreads. The answers can then be found at the 

back of the book. Each animal is described in a few 

words, and it is then your task to locate it. Designed 

for the younger age range, this is a book that could 

also be used as a springboard for future studies. 

Within the pages are several sections providing extra 

information and notes on the different environments. 

The book is packed with facts about each area. 

The text is well presented and linked closely with 

the drawings. There is plenty for discussion and 

an opportunity to explore the different habitats 

comparing and contrasting the creatures that live 

there. A lot of the animals featured are masters of 

disguise, and I am sure children of all ages will enjoy 

finding them hidden amongst the pages. 

Rebel Girls: Level Up 

Rebel Girls, 2023, 64pp, 

£6.99, 9781953424464 

Biography. Empowerment. 

Gaming 

A bright, diverse collection of 

stories highlighting 25 amazing 

women and their remarkable achievements in the 

field of gaming. Centring pioneers, streamers, and 

influencers, as well as creators, Rebel Girls: Level 

Up explores their remarkable talents. Presented in 

a fun, friendly style packed with bright colours and 

dynamic visuals, the book features women from 

a range of different cultures and backgrounds, 

making positive representation one of its biggest 

strengths. The illustrations have been used to 

support and enhance the text, meaning the images 

are presented in a range of styles and are sure to 

create points of interest. In a few cases, AI generated 

images have been used, with a supporting 

explanation included within the notes section at 

the back of the book. The title also contains some 

interactive features, such as space for the reader to 

scribble their own notes and sketch a self-portrait. 

Teeming with information and inspiration, this book 

is a terrific springboard for inquisitive young minds. 

Alison King

Books to Create Collaboration 

8-12 year olds 

ANIMALS 

How to Chat 

Chicken, Gossip 

Gorilla, Babble 

Bee, Gab Gecko 

and Talk in 66 

Other Animal 

Languages 

9781804660423, What on Earth!, 2023 

How to Spaghettify Your Dog 

9781526627810, 

Bloomsbury Children’s Books, 2023 

Real-life Sea Monsters and Their 

Stories of Survival 

9781526322951, Wayland, 2023 

Sharks! Sharks! Sharks! 

9781913918729, b small publishing, 2023 

The Tigers’ Tale 

9781526626554, 

Bloomsbury Children’s Books, 2023 

PSHE AND 

THE WORLD WE LIVE IN 

Friendship 

Survival Guide 

9781803704616, 

Usborne, 2023 

Great Minds 

9781800783539, 

Templar, 2023 

We’ve Got This! 

9780711284920, The Quarto Group, 2023 

Drawn to Change the World 

Graphic Novel Collection 

9780063084216, HarperAlley, 2023 

Lift-the-Flap Questions and 

Answers about Refugees 

9781803709987, Usborne, 2023 

Stand Up and Speak Out 

Against Racism 

9781406393712, Walker Books, 2023 

SCIENCE 

Stories and 

Secrets of Colour 

9780753448274, 

Macmillan Children’s 

Books, 2023 

Dogs Do Science: 

Sound 

9781526321824, Wayland, 2023 

What’s Science? 

9781913918682, b small publishing, 2023 

How It Works: Light 

9781474998895, Usborne, 2023 

The Wonders of Time 

9781526318244, Wayland, 2023 

THE PLANET 

HISTORY 

GENERAL KNOWLEDGE 

Extreme Planet: 

The Deep 

9781801313124, 

Usborne, 2023 

Mission: Arctic 

9781771649568, 

Greystone Kids, 2023 

National Trust: Out and 

About Sky Explorer 

9781839948480, Nosy Crow, 2023 

Scientists in the Wild: Galápagos 

9781838740931, Flying Eye Books, 2023 

Up and Down 

9780753447864, 

Macmillan Children’s Books, 2023 

The British 

Museum: The 

Plot Against 

the Emperor 

9781839946455, 

Nosy Crow, 2023 

Very Short Introduction 

for Curious Young Minds: 

Ancient Myths, Legends 

and Superheroes 

9780192782892, Oxford University Press, 2023 

The British Museum: So You 

Think You've Got it Bad? 

A Kid’s Life as a Viking 

9781839946363, Nosy Crow, 2023 

History FACTopia!: Follow 

Ye Olde Trail of 400 Facts 

9781804660409, What on Earth!, 2023 

Britannica’s 

Encyclopedia 

Infographica 

9781913750459, 

Britannica Books, 2023 

Eyewitness 

Encyclopedia of Everything: 

The Ultimate Guide to the 

World Around You 

9780241595749, DK, 2023 

Big Book of Things to Know 

9781805074113, Usborne, 2023 

Young, Gifted and Black Too 

9780711277007, The Quarto Group, 2023 

Lift-the-Flap Questions and 

Answers about Money 

9781803702513, Usborne, 2023 



Àbìké-Íyìmìdé, Faridah 

Where Sleeping 

Girls Lie 

Usborne, 2024, 576pp, 

£8.99, 9781474967549 

Mystery. Thriller. LGBTQ+ 

Considering its 550+ pages, 

Where Sleeping Girls Lie is actually quite a speedy 

read. Faridah Àbìké-Íyìmìdé does a great job of 

making sure each chapter leaves you wanting to 

know more, and doesn’t bog the reader down in 

too much unnecessary detail. It’s a gripping mystery 

story, with multiple threads from main character 

Sade’s past and present, that eventually weave 

together. We meet Sade as she joins Alfred Nobel 

Academy, an elite boarding school with a whole 

cast of intriguing characters, and within a day her 

new roommate has gone missing. Although on the 

surface there appears to be the usual collection of 

‘geeks’, ‘jocks’ and ‘outsiders’, the characters are 

generally more nuanced, and the book manages to 

introduce plenty of suspects without overwhelming 

the reader with too many names and facts. It 

is definitely an older teen read, with frequent 

references to drinking, drug use, and sexual 

assault. However, nothing graphic takes place on 

the page, and it is all relevant to the story. Highly 

recommended for competent readers! 

Heather Grainger 

Adamo, Meredith 

Not Like Other Girls 


£8.99, 9781526669865 

Consent. Friendship. Social Media 

EDITOR'S PICK 

Jo is a girl who has a reputation 

of not being like other girls due 

to her liking for hanging out with guys and 

for a pic that was circulated by someone she 

trusted in the past. She was one of the popular 

kids but now tries to keep herself to herself. 

When a former friend asks her for help and then 

promptly disappears, she decides to investigate 

what’s happened, as she is very concerned that 

something might have happened to hurt the girl. 

Jo’s family are not very supportive and her feeling 

of aloneness is causing her to underachieve at 

school. This story has a lot to say about consent, 

blame culture, and also friendship, and is a hard 

hitting but very relatable read. It’s an important 

book that shines a light on the issues that modern 

day teens have to face and cope with whilst also 

focussing on studying in order to get on in life. I 

felt very protective towards Jo in the end and her 

story will stay with me for a long time, I suspect. 

Bev Humphrey 

Anyakwo, Diana 

My Life as a 

Chameleon 

Atom, 2023, 304pp, £8.99, 

9781472156150 

Racism. Mental Illness. 

Adaptation 

Lily, 15, has been sent from her home in Lagos, 

Nigeria to stay with a family in Manchester due to 

a family crisis. She is at first happy about this as 

she thinks it will be a chance to reinvent herself 

and become more confident and happy, but sadly 

it isn’t that easy. This causes her to reflect on her 

childhood and the trauma that deeply affected her; 

her father was schizophrenic and she is only now 

starting to understand this. My Life as a Chameleon 

is a debut novel and is very well written. The 

powerful themes of violence, racism, mental illness, 

and adaptation are sensitively dealt with and this 

coming-of-age story is touching and relatable. The 

chameleon metaphor in the title is very clever as Lily 

feels she has to change all the time to be accepted 

by different people. I was unaware of the attitudes 

that existed towards ‘nigerwives’, white women 

married to Nigerian men in the 1970s and 1980s, so 

this aspect was both interesting and disturbing. 

Bev Humphrey 

Bayron, Kalynn 

Sleep Like Death 


£8.99, 9781526641090 

Fantasy. Young Adult. Mystery 

Oh, another retelling of a classic 

fairy tale? Don’t mind if I do. 

Despite the many retellings that are being spawned 

in the 2020s, many do retain some aspect of 

uniqueness that allow readers to differentiate 

between them all. However, unlike them all, Bayron 

chooses to not just delve into Cinderella, but into 

Snow White as well. Perfect for young readers 

who would like to bridge the gap between Disney 

storytelling and Twilight, Sleep Like Death (and its 

predecessor Cinderella is Dead) is an easy read for 

teenagers starting their high school journey. Female 

centred, a mysterious plot, a fairytale universe, and 

a prince charming, what more could you ask for? 

Rabia Arif 

Cunningham, Sue H. 

Totally Deceased 

Scolastic, 2023, 352pp, £8.99, 

9780702325854 

Tension. Friendship. Mystery 

As the basis for a plot, the idea of 

the protagonist recovering from a 

heart transplant and being haunted by the ghost 

of her donor is hard to beat. Tilly is determined 

to remain closer than close to Jess until together 

they solve the mystery of her (Tilly’s) death. Jess, 

recovering from her heart transplant, becomes 

aware of the presence of another individual, first 

of all beside her in bed, and her account is suitably 

eerie: ‘I can feel breathing …’ Jess presents her story 

in the context of her parents’ divorce. The main 

characters, Jess and Tilly, come to life through the 

(imaginary) friendship which develops between 

them. As their efforts to get to the bottom of Tilly’s 

death progress, Tilly’s luxurious lifestyle is revealed. 

Hers was a background of private schools and all 

the comforts that wealth can bring. Many dark 

secrets, however, come to light before it is finally 

established that Tilly was in fact murdered and the 

guilty parties are brought to justice. Paradoxically 

both a gruesome and a lighthearted read. 

Elizabeth Frew Finlayson 

Erlandsson, Karin, 

translated by Annie Prime 

The Victor 

Dedalus Press, 2024, 204pp, 

£7.99, 9781915568359 

Adventure. Fantasy. Trust 

What a fab ending! This book was 

extremely compelling and I loved how the 

characters interacted with each other. I thought 

that the messaging of ‘getting what you desire 

most might not be the best thing’ is an important 

theme for children to understand. The ending 

was heartbreaking and so wholesome. I thought 

the translation was quite well done. I would 

recommend this series to Year 7 and up. 

Jasmine Brown 


Books: 13 – 16 

Verse Novels 


Camden, Steve 

Stand Up Ferran Burke 

Macmillan, 2023, 208pp, £8.99, 

9781529067767 

Friendship. Identity. School 

Family, friendships, and the 

importance of finding your people. 

This novel follows Ferran through 

secondary school and provides 

depth and insight. 

Crossan, Sarah 

Where the Heart 

Should Be 

Bloomsbury, 2024, 432pp, £14.99, 

9781526666598 

History. Romance. Wealth 

Nell’s family is a tenant on the 

estate of Lord Wicken, a wealthy 

English aristocrat, in the time of 

the Irish famine. 

Hickson-Lovence, Ashley 

Wild East 

Penguin, 2024, 320pp, £8.99, 

9780241645444 

Identity. Music. Poetry 

Ronny’s mum decides they’re 

moving out of London. When a 

local poet comes into his new 

class, he opens Ronny’s world to 

something new. 

Schu, John 

Louder than Hunger 

Walker Books, 2024, 528pp, 

£9.99, 9781529514568 

Eating Disorder. Families. Loneliness 

A powerful, authentic verse novel 

exploring a teen boy’s experience 

with disordered eating, charting 

the successes and setbacks of his 

journey toward recovery. 

Cole, Olivia A. 

Dear Medusa 

Random House, 2024, 384pp, 

£15.99, 9780593485767 

Abuse. Bullying. Feminism 

A 16-year-old girl copes with 

sexual abuse when she is being 

blamed. How anger can be a 

catalyst for healing. 

Grehan, Meg, illustrated 

by Nene Lonergan 

The Lonely Book 

Little Island, 2023, 176pp, £8.99, 

9781915071446 

Books. Families. Identity 

A book about a bookshop. Gender 

identity and blended families are 

important themes in this lovely story. 

Lai, Thanhha 

Inside Out & Back Again 

Puffin, 2023, 274pp, £7.99, 

9780241613061 

Change. History. Refugees 

Through a series of poems, a young 

girl chronicles the life-changing 

year of 1975, when she, her mother, 

and her brother leave Vietnam and 

resettle in Alabama. 

Sheibani, Jion 

The Silver Chain 

Hot Key Books, 2023, 352pp, 

£8.99, 9781471411526 

Friendship. Mental Health. Music 

Azadeh is a budding violinist on a 

music scholarship at an expensive 

private school. Then as her mum’s 

mental health spirals out of control, 

Azadeh’s world starts to unravel. 

Fraillon, Zana, illustrated 

by Bren MacDibble 

The Raven’s Song 

Old Barn Books, 2023, 288pp, 

£7.99, 9781910646854 

Dystopia. Empathy. Post-Pandemic 

Such an interesting concept! 

The setting of a post-pandemic world which has 

fallen apart was quite a different and interesting 

choice – you don’t know this fully until later 

on. The dual narrative of Shelby and Phoenix 

intertwines in a very surprising way. The setting is 

bleak, but there are also elements of hope. I did 

have tears at points and was shocked at some of 

the developments for Phoenix. I highly recommend 

this for dystopia lovers! I think it would be a very 

strong addition to a school library. 

Jasmine Brown 

Gourlay, Candy 

Wild Song 


£7.99, 9781788452083 

Historical. Coming-of-Age. 

Colonialism 

Wild Song is the sequel to 

Candy’s previous novel Bone Talk but it can be read 

as a standalone story. It is set in the Philippines 

in 1904; Luki wants to be a hunter but the elders 

in her village expect her to settle down and get 

married like the other girls. So when she hears 

about the St Louis World’s Fair, she signs up to join 

the Igorot contingent and travel to America. At first 

it is an exciting adventure, but soon Luki realises 

that she is expected to pander and perform to the 

expectations of the American public, who only see 

the Igorot as ignorant savages. This story includes 

historical figures like Truman Hunt, who really 

did transport a large group of Igorot people to St 

Louis in 1904, and then continued to exhibit and 

exploit them long after the World’s Fair. This is an 

important but brutal story – the lyrical, pared-back 

prose makes it a quick read, but the atrocities are 

even more stark and shocking by comparison. I’d 

highly recommend this brilliant book about a littleknown 

part of history. 


Hall, T. K. 

Shadow of the Wolf 

(The Blind Bowman) 


£8.99, 9781788453233 

Adventure. Legends. Fantasy 

This retelling of ‘Robin Hood’ is 

utterly captivating! Nature, adventure, romance 

and humanity, enjoy symbiosis in a way that is a 

great introduction to fantasy fiction for anyone 

new to the genre, as well as an existing fan. This is 

an alluring reimagining of a story we have all heard 

and read about so much before, but with new 

characters to add to familiar ones. The references 

to nature take a pivotal role and are as tempting to 

the reader as they are to Robin. Suitable for all 12+ 

readers and their teachers. 

Lisa Daisy 


Books: 13 – 16 

Le, Vanessa 

The Last Bloodcarver 

Rock the Boat, 2024, 384pp, 

£8.99, 9780861547968 

Fantasy. Culture. Magic 

Set in a fantasy world inspired by 

Vietnam and its culture, this book 

tells the story of Nhika, a bloodcarver with the 

power to alter someone’s biology with a single 

touch. For some, this power is a curse used to 

kill, while others view her as a healer. When she 

is sold to a girl who needs her to heal the only 

witness to her father’s murder, she is drawn 

into a mystery which pulls her deeper into the 

underworld. The worldbuilding in this book is 

intricate and provides representation of other 

world cultures which otherwise don’t get as much 

exposure. Nhika is a very strong and well-written 

protagonist, and her choices and outlook are very 

believable given her personal situation. This is the 

first book in a projected duology, and it sets the 

stage perfectly for the ongoing story while being 

a well-contained tale in itself. 

Ms. Beth Gilchrist 

Marino, Andy 

Escape from Stalingrad 


£7.99, 9780702331305 

Historical Fiction. Russia. 

World War II 

Another powerful volume in the 

series, inspired by true events. Artem and his 

mother live in Stalingrad, and his older brother 

Vasily has just joined the Red Army, and is ready 

to fight the Nazis. But when Stalingrad is attacked, 

Artem and his mother find themselves on the front 

lines. Artem struggles to keep them alive, which 

means doing a deal with the enemy … Can they 

survive against the odds? A gripping story about 

a young boy faced with impossible choices, that 

brings history vividly to life. 


McGuiness, Jay 

Blood Flowers 

Scholastic, 2024, 432pp, £8.99, 

9780702328770 

Fantasy. Dystopia. Inequality 

Calleston is a town that is starkly 

divided between the rich 

Roofsiders and the poor Cobblesiders. Bear, a 

17-year-old Cobblesider, dreams of the day when 

he can escape. His opportunity comes during the 

town’s annual Field Day, where those who have 

recently come of age test their sinsenn – the crop 

around which Calleston’s economy relies – growing 

capabilities. Bear’s magical abilities propel him 

into the upper echelons of society, where he 

discovers that all is not what he expected … Despite 

its billing as a romantasy, Blood Flowers features 

only a small amount of romance. However, it does 

have plenty of pacy action, which will appeal to 

younger teenage readers. The book’s themes look 

at inequality and corruption in society, as well as 

substance/alcohol abuse. This dystopian fantasy 

will appeal to fans of The Hunger Games, and, 

of course, the band The Wanted. The cliffhanger 

ending leaves things open for a sequel. 

Shona Page 

Meloy, Colin, illustrated 

by Carson Ellis 

The Stars Did 

Wander Darkling 

Walker, 2023, 352pp, £8.99, 

9781529517286 

Horror. Mystery. Suspense 

Suspenseful horror adventure set in an 80s 

Oregon town. Thirteen-year-old Archie’s unease 

grows as neighbours and family behave strangely, 

mysterious pennies appear on doormats, three 

odd figures in brown suits turn up, and he and 

his friends hear persistent axe chopping sounds 

in the woods. He discovers that the strange 

events are linked to the new development next 

to creepy Langdon House where contractors 

have dug too deeply on the clifftop and found a 

cave. An ancient evil has re-awoken and calls to 

others who are intent on reaching and releasing 

it. One of Archie’s gang has disturbing visions of 

foreboding that urge them to stop this happening 

and they race to reach the cave’s inhabitant 

before the mannequin-like creatures who have 

replaced many of the local inhabitants get there 

first. Differing viewpoints are reflected through 

the narrative, including the contrasting thoughts 

of the trio of otherworldly villains directing the 

replicants to complete their task. The ending is 

quite dark, raising questions for the reader. 

Sue Polchow 

Morani, Djamila, 


Sawad Hussain 

The Djinn’s Apple 

NeemTree Press, 2024, 160pp, 

£8.99, 9781911107859 

Crime. Historical. Loss 

When a group of angry men, swords drawn, burst 

into Nardeen’s family home in search of something, 

or someone, she alone manages to escape. With 

the rest of her family brutally murdered, 16-yearold 

Nardeen turns detective, determined to wreak 

revenge and bring the ruthless killers to justice. But 

at what cost to her own dreams and ambitions? 

Set in Abbasid, the Golden Age of Baghdad, this 

beautifully-written historical YA murder mystery 

races along at a breathtaking pace. Morani skilfully 

weaves together magic and medicine and a 

mysterious manuscript, with plantlore, political 

intrigue, and power struggles. Not to mention big 

themes of love, loss, female ambition, and family 

relationships with a captivating romance and a 

killer ending. The Djinn’s Apple is perfect for fans of 

crime fiction, courageous heroines, and reimagined 

myths. With short chapters, a contextual map, 

readers discussion guide, historical endnotes, and 

at only 125 pages in length, this would also make a 

perfect, intriguing, and unforgettable class read. 


Nadel, Estelle, illustrated 

by Sammy Savos 

The Girl Who Sang 

Hodder, 2024, 244pp, £19.99, 

9781444975819 

War. Poland. Safety 

As a young girl, Enia Feld lived 

in Borek, Poland, with extended family nearby. 

On moving to the U.S, Enia took the name Estelle 

Nadel. This graphic novel biography shares 

the experiences of Estelle’s family – and their 

‘rescuers’ – during the Holocaust. Estelle hopes 

it will encourage younger generations to tell and 

honour Holocaust stories after the survivors are 

gone. As we would expect, The Girl Who Sang 

is sometimes an upsetting and unsettling read. 

Although Estelle’s own story is one of survival and 

hope, not all in her family and community were as 

lucky. The graphic novel does not shy away from 

the dreadful acts and effects of the Holocaust. The 

hand-drawn style gives a powerful immediacy and 

intimacy. However, the content is not gratuitous; it 

is appropriate for the age of the intended audience 

and highlights instances of bravery, care, and 

survival. Suitable for readers in Year 7 and above, 

according to your context. 




Oh, Axie 

ASAP 

Harper Teen, 2024, 352pp, 

£14.99, 9780063299306 

Romance. K-Pop. Friendship 

Daughter of a media CEO, Sori is 

on the path to join the music 

celebrities she grew up with, but isn’t sure it’s what 

she wants. Her friend and ex-boyfriend, Nathaniel, 

is in popular K-Pop band XOXO, forbidden from 

dating and scrutinised by the Press. When scandals 

rock the band, the industry, and Sori’s family, will 

they throw the two back together and offer them a 

second chance at love? A companion novel to fan 

favourite XOXO, ASAP can also be read as a standalone 

story. ASAP is a charming, clean romance 

full of familiar tropes and K-culture references. 

Sori’s story of finding your true path through family 

expectations gives this novel a little more depth. 

Sori and Nathaniel are likeable characters amongst a 

full and well-written cast. Although there is, perhaps 

inevitably, some preoccupation with beauty and 

image within the tale, the importance of honesty 

and friendships old and new are by far the strongest 

messages. A cute read, perfect for Year 9 and above. 


Piumini, Roberto, 

translated by 

Leah Janeczko 

Glowrushes 

Pushkin Children’s Books, 2023, 

128pp, £8.99, 9781782693833 

Art. Illness. Imagination 

Published in Italian over 30 years ago, this is the tale 

of a rich lord, worried about his sick son. He sends 

for Sakumat, a painter with a glowing reputation to 

help. His son, confined to darkened rooms because 

of sunlight and even dust affecting his skin, wants to 

bring the outside world inside. The painter spends 

some time getting to know Madurer before putting 

his brush to the walls and, listening carefully to 

Madurer’s dreams, he then proceeds to transform 

plain walls with beautiful murals. The description 

of the depicted scenes is lyrical, as is the friendship 

between the two very different characters. 

Today’s children will resonate with the feelings 

of confinement after their experiences of the 

pandemic. Not a book for those who like action but 

one for thoughtful readers aged 10 and up; there 

is much to ponder over of our relationship with art 

and where it comes from and how it affects us. 

Dawn Woods 

Quirke, Anna Zoe 

Something to be 

Proud Of 

Little Tiger, 2024, 352pp, 

£8.99, 9781788956901 

Inequality. Identity. LGBTQ+ 

An absolute riot to read! This 

novel is told from dual perspectives, that of 

Imogen Quinn, a Bisexual, autistic girl with dreams 

of becoming a stand-up comedian, and Ollie 

Armstrong, the openly gay captain of the football 

team who’s trying to survive his parents’ divorce. We 

follow these two very unlikely friends on a journey 

to raise awareness, starting an activist group to 

solve inequality and injustice in their school and 

beyond, with the ultimate goal of putting on an 

inclusive Pride festival. This is an enchanting tale of 

how our differences and uniqueness can unite us, 

while also becoming a journey of self-discovery. 

With others we can find the strength to become 

our true self. Something to be Proud of also shows 

us how we can break out of the stereotypes that 

we box people into. Full of fun, laughter, and a few 

tears, this is a book as diverse as the characters 

within it. A must read for fans of LGBTQ+ fiction. 

Nicola Bowie 

Roumani, Rhonda 

Tagging Freedom 

Union Square Kids, 2024, 288pp, 

£7.99, 9781454950721 

Activism. Freedom. Politics 

When a boy dies in custody and 

subversive slogans appear around 

Damascus, Kareem and his friends secretly tag 

messages of freedom around the city, speaking out 

against the Syrian government. His worried parents 

pack him off to stay with family in the US, where 

his artistic cousin Samira has joined the popular 

Spirit Squad, ignoring the xenophobic jibes of its 

bullying leader in an attempt to fit in. Joining forces 

with Sam’s Jewish friend, Ellie, Kareem secretly 

spray paints the town to raise awareness of events 

at home, leaving Sam to make a huge choice. 

Tagging Freedom is an exceptional novel, a timely, 

thoughtful and thought-provoking insight into the 

Arab Spring, the immigrant experience, the abuse 

of power, and the impact of war on young people. 

With strong characterisation, alternating chapter 

voices, and relatable themes, it highlights art as 

activism as well as the importance of standing up 

for yourself, for others, for what you believe in, and 

for freedom. An unmissable and inspirational read. 


Sain, Ginny Myers 

One Last Breath 

Electric Monkey, 2024, 432pp, 

£8.99, 9780008626631 

Mystery. Thriller. LGBTQ+ 

Trulee has been haunted her 

whole life by dreams and 

memories which aren’t her own – rather, those of 

one of the victims of an unsolved local murder 20 

years prior. When fellow diver Rio arrives in town, 

Trulee immediately feels a kinship with her; the 

two share an unexplainable fascination with this 

grisly murder case. This is an atmospheric mystery 

thriller, taking place in a small town in Florida. 

The plot and setting is reminiscent of other recent 

YA thrillers such as We Were Liars, with lots of 

twists and turns to keep readers on their toes and 

a supernatural edge to the relationship between 

Trulee and Rio. This would be perfect for readers 

in Year 9 and above. 

Ms. Beth Gilchrist 

Shaid, Rebeka 

Seven Days 


9781529513967 

POC. Love. Grief 

Seven Days offers a fairly 

Shakespearean twist on the 

classic Romeo and Juliet, but multicultural and 

surprisingly poignant in its delivery of grief and 

love as its core themes that travel with the main 

protagonist Noori. Like many new YA novels, Seven 

Days offers split narrative perspective between 

Noori and her love interest Aamir which makes 

reading a far more immersive experience and 

digestible for the younger teens. It is packed with 

references to South Asia, but don’t let that stop you 

from reading! It’s fresh and layman’s prose does a 

great job at representing the struggles that come 

from the heart of the ‘desi’ community and offers 

a great insight into coming of age in a world that is 

more interconnected than we think. 

Miss Rabia Arif 


Books: 13 – 16 

Silver, Josh 

Dead Happy 

(Happy Head) 

Rock the Boat, 2024, 416pp, 

£8.99, 9780861547821 

Adventure. LGBTQ+. Mental Health 

A lengthy read, but one which 

will be eagerly welcomed by those who enjoyed 

its 2023 prequel Happy Head, a debut novel which 

was highly praised and shortlisted for several literary 

awards. The hero, Seb, returns, as does Eleanor, 

and they find themselves on a remote island, 

Elmhallow, with eight other boys and girls. They 

are under the supervision of a strange couple. 

Here are all the ingredients of an exciting tale 

of adventure. The story is told by Seb who, like 

the author of the book, is gay, a feature which is 

perhaps refreshingly different, a novel feature which 

as such will appeal to a young adult audience. His 

is a conversational style using strong language with 

which again readers in their mid-teens will readily 

identify. The prose writing – mainly dialogue – is 

dynamic and effective in advancing the narrative 

at a cracking pace, establishing an atmosphere of 

tension and excitement which never flags, while 

also developing interest in the characters. An 

accessible and enjoyable read. 


Steven, Laura 

Every Exquisite Thing 


£8.99, 9780008627355 

Horror. LGBTQ+. Eating Disorders 

The Picture of Dorian Gray is a 

classic novel that seems to have 

a perennial appeal to teenagers. This 

contemporary reimagining is set at the Dorian 

Drama Academy. Penny Paxton is the daughter 

of a beautiful but troubled film star, but she’s 

determined to prove herself. When her mentor 

offers her a way to stay beautiful and thin 

forever, she allows her portrait to be painted 

by a mysterious masked artist and hung in a 

secret gallery along with other Dorian Academy 

alumni, including her mother. But her decision 

has unintended consequences and when her 

mentor is brutally murdered, via her painting, 

Penny realises that she could be the next victim. 

I was thoroughly hooked on this dark, pageturning 

thriller, although it does have strong 

elements of body horror and scenes that pupils 

may find disturbing. Like the original, it is also 

a thought-provoking read and is particularly 

focused on disordered eating and societal beauty 

expectations placed on girls and women – perfect 

for fans of Holly Bourne’s You Could Be So Pretty. 


Williamson, Victoria 

Feast of Ashes 

(Feast of Ashes) 

Neem Tree Press, 2023, 327pp, 

£8.99, 9781911107873 

Dystopian Future. Africa. 

Environmental Concerns 

It’s the year 2123, and 16-year-old Adina and 

her family live with 14,000 other people in the 

eco-bubble of Eden Five. It protects them from the 

complete ecosystem collapse that has poisoned 

the air, killed the animals and given rise to the 

Nomalies. But when an explosion destroys the 

dome, Adina and a handful of others try to cross 

the desolate land to reach the next eco-dome. 

Along the way they will discover that they have 

been fed lies all their life and that not all of them 

will make it. It makes a change to have a dystopian 

story set entirely in Africa with a deeply flawed main 

protagonist who is complex and not particularly 

likeable. There is also little romance which is 

refreshing for a fantasy YA book; instead, there is 

page-turning action and dramatic secret reveals. It 

does raise some interesting questions about how 

technology, capitalism, and colonialist thinking in 

the Western world could work together to destroy 

Africa through the increased commercialisation of 

farming by huge corporations. 

Ms. Isobel Powell 

Dates For Your Diary 

JUNE 2024 JULY 2024 AUGUST 2024 

1st–30th Pride Month 

4th–9th Cheltenham Science Festival 

5th World Environment Day 

6th Empathy Day 

11th The Week Junior Book Awards 

Shortlist 

17th–23rd Refugee Week 

20th YoTo Carnegies winners 

announced 

22nd Windrush Day 

24th–28th School Diversity Week 

Plastic-Free July 

1st International Joke Day 

1st–14th Wimbledon Fortnight 

6th Alice’s Day (Alice in Wonderland) 

10th–11th CILIP conference, 

Birmingham 

14th Shark Awareness Day 

26th Olympic Games, Paris, starts 

30th World Friendship Day 

31st Harry Potter’s Birthday 

Summer Reading Challenge 

Theme – Marvellous Makers 

Teachers’ Reading Challenge 

10th–25th Edinburgh International 

Book Festival 

10th World Lion Day 

12th International Youth Day 

12th World Elephant Day 

13th Left Handers’ Day 

19th International Orangutan Day 

22nd Bookseller YA Book Prize Winner 

announcement at Edinburgh 

Festival 



Diop, Leon & 

Fitzsimons, Briana, 

illustrated by Jessica Louis 

Black and Irish 

Little Island, 2023, 224pp, £11.99, 

9781915071231 

Inspiration. Real Life. Biography 

Showcasing the stories, motivations and 

achievements of Black and mixed race people from 

all over Ireland, this book gives a platform to the 

stories of 25 people which will inspire the young 

people who read about them. The book includes 

historic figures as well as current figures and some 

lesser known figures, but all have made significant 

contributions to Irish communities. The book 

takes each figure in turn, giving a biography and 

making links to another figure with similar interests. 

Definitions and further explanations are given to 

vocabulary or ideas mentioned in the main text 

in separate sections on the pages. With brightly 

coloured pages and text, the book is inviting and 

accessible to readers. This book is a great source of 

inspirational people that could be used to enhance 

work in all areas of the curriculum and in PSHE as 

well as provide examples of biography writing. 


Kang, Dr Melissa & 

Stynes, Yumi, illustrated 

by Jenny Latham 

Welcome to Sex 


£10.99, 9781398533202 

Bodies. PSHE. Sex Education 

A complete and thorough introduction to sex. 

Aimed at older teens, this comprehensive guide 

discusses important topics which are not covered 

by the national curriculum. In one handy book it 

offers information which teenagers may not want 

to discuss with an adult. Accompanying illustrations 

are detailed and helpful, too. Extremely useful to 

have on the school library shelves even if it is not 

borrowed but taken off the shelves and giggled 

over – at least young people are being told in an 

informative way. 

Mrs. Emma Nelson 

Menzies, Jean, 

illustrated by Taylor Dolan 

Live Like a Goddess 

Wren & Rook, 2023, 192pp, 

£12.99, 9781526365798 

Myths. Goddesses. Self-Confidence 

This is a book full of empowering 

stories about brave goddesses and mythical women 

– 21 deities from around the world. As well as telling 

their stories, the book aims to help the reader feel 

more positive about the world and to inspire them 

to take on problems the way the goddesses did. 

Each chapter presents a goddess and explains their 

background and what they stood for. It then goes 

on to tell their story, and then explains how you can 

‘be more like’ her. As well as the more commonly 

known Greek goddesses like Artemis and Demeter, 

we also learn how to set boundaries like Freyja 

the Norse goddess, and to trust your feelings like 

Ma – the African goddess. It would engage a more 

mature reader, mostly women and teach them how 

to live their lives fearlessly and confidently. 


Morgan, Nicola 

No Worries 

Walker, 2023, 208pp, £7.99, 

9781529512564 

Self-Help. Emotions. 

Mental Health 

With the fallout from the 

pandemic still affecting our young people, 

it’s more important than ever to foster spaces 

that are supportive, inclusive, and provide the 

information needed for young people to improve 

their wellbeing and further their knowledge of 

mental health. Anxiety is the word teens use most 

when discussing their mental health, so it’s only 

right that wellbeing expert Nicola Morgan returns 

with a practical and accessible guide for teens 

to better understand anxiety. This is an essential 

addition to any secondary library or provision for 

teens and young adults. Packed with practical tips, 

techniques, and strategies for tackling anxious 

thoughts and embracing calm, Morgan delivers a 

powerful mix of important educational background 

and practical ways for young people to bolster 

their mental and emotional wellbeing. Never 

patronising, this is an engaging, relatable selfhelp 

book that should be present and promoted 

throughout schools as a matter of course. 

Becca Watts 

Spalding, Alistair, 

illustrated by Jason Raish 

Welcome to the Arts: 

Dance 

Templar, 2023, 112pp, £25.00, 

9781800783362 

Dance. Drama. Theatre 

The huge size of this book gets it noticed and then 

there is the striking picture on the front cover of 

the (male) dancer in full flow. The end pages of a 

Fred Astaire type figure with Art Deco background 

are all before you even read inside. The coverage 

is wide – contemporary, folk, ceremonial, and 

of course ballet. The book invites you in for a 

performance, guiding you within the book to 

show you the way to your seat. It discusses set 

design and lighting, prop and costume design, the 

backstage preparation which gets forgotten during 

a performance. Great dancers are mentioned from 

all fields and I’m not sure how much information 

watchers of Strictly are given, but this book sets the 

scene for staples of the ballroom. A comprehensive 

index completes this magnificant volume. For 

drama, dance and theatre studies this is a great 

starting point and of interest to all. 

Dawn Woods 

Yendle, Jessie 

Let’s Talk 


£12.99, 9780702329234 

Empowering. Positivity. Stammer 

I must confess that before I had 

been sent this book I had not 

heard of Jessie Yendle, but what she has achieved 

and the confidence she demonstrates to others is 

fantastic. Jessie has a stammer and became a social 

media sensation after filming herself ordering a 

coffee and then posting her video on TikTok. Since 

then, Jessie has recorded herself doing lots of 

speaking challenges, earning herself a massive 3.7 

million followers and demonstrating to others how 

she lives with her stammer. Throughout the book, 

Jessie refers to herself as the big sister to the reader, 

providing them with information on styling, makeup 

tutorials, and skincare as well as techniques for 

dealing with and promoting positive mental health, 

body confidence, friendships and emotions. I really 

enjoyed this colourful book that is full of pictures, 

positive affirmations, and how-to guides. It is a 

really positive book that is a great addition to the 

school library and I will definitely be promoting it to 

students as well as to the pastoral team. 

Charlotte Cole 


Books: 17 – 19 

Adcock, Fleur 

Collected Poems 

Bloodaxe Books, 2024, 624pp, 

£25, 9781780376837 

Humour. Observational. 

Experience 

POETRY 

Published to celebrate her 

ninetieth birthday, this collection brings together 

Adcock’s work from between 1964 and 2021, 

adding 20 poems written this year and ending 

with the summative ‘Being Ninety’. It is superb, 

her informality, remarkable talent for pointed 

understatement and startling juxtapositions 

demonstrated throughout. Open at any page and 

there will be an image or reference which raises 

eyebrows, from glow-worms in a Marmite jar to Bing 

Crosby’s trousers, consistently catching our attention 

with opening lines that intrigue, making us want to 

see where she’s taking them: ‘when you’re fifteen, 

no-one understands you’; ‘it’s hard to stay angry 

with a buttercup’. Her New Zealand origins are never 

far below the surface, and questions of national 

identity are recurring themes. In a collection this 

size, spanning this many years, the range of subject 

matters and moods is immense, but the voice, direct 

and unsentimental, mischievous – is smoking really 

safer than sex? – ironic and often moving, however 

obliquely, is consistent. 

Frank Startup 

Albert, Melissa 

The Bad Ones 

Penguin, 2024, 320pp, £8.99, 

9780241662038 

Friendship. Mystery. Thriller 

Twisty, terrifying, utterly 

absorbing, this is a cracking 

read for Year 10 and up who are fans of Karen 

McManus, Holly Jackson, Krystal Sutherland, and 

Stranger Things. We open with three snapshots 

of victims at the point of their murder. We meet 

Nora and follow her community’s discovery 

that four people have disappeared. One, Becca, 

is Nora’s best friend, but her disappearance 

seems intentional. As Nora uncovers pieces of a 

complicated mystery, flashback chapters take us 

to Becca’s experiences, working forwards from 

six months previously. These give us a different 

picture and a deeper understanding of their close 

friendship. Nora discovers friends she didn’t know 

she had, as they help to discover the source and 

motivations behind a truly scary supernatural 

protagonist. Set so securely in a school detective 

story but with hints of the supernatural throughout, 

the pace, writing, complicated relationships and 

careful detail make the fantasy element entirely 

believable. It seems absolutely right when the 

explosive ending goes fully alien. 

Rachel Ayers Nelson 

Barrow, Rebecca 

And Don’t Look Back 

Hot Key Books, 2023, 336pp, 

£8.99, 9781471413674 

Family. Conflict. Bereavement 

Seventeen-year-old Harlow and 

her mother are constantly moving 

from town to town, each time re-inventing 

themselves with new names and identities. Harlow 

accepts this way of life without question, but when 

her mother is killed in a road accident, Harlow 

has to confront her mother’s secrets. Documents 

long hidden in a safety deposit box take her to the 

small town where her mother grew up and Harlow 

slowly begins to piece together her mother’s story. 

Assuming her own identity at last, Harlow decides 

to stay in the family home, now empty, while she 

unravels the mystery which led her mother to 

begin a life on the run. She also meets an attractive 

girl who provides another reason for Harlow to 

stay. But while Harlow enjoys the freedom which 

comes from being her authentic self, the danger 

her mother tried to protect her from comes closer. 

She is forced to learn quickly that not everyone is 

who they seem. A taut and compelling thriller with 

a surprise ending. 

Mrs. Sandra Bennett 

Clack, A.J. 

Lie or Die 

Firefly, 2024, 304pp, £8.99, 

9781915444417 

Adventure. Crime. Thriller 

The opening chapter starts with 

Thea, Kass and Lewis, best friends 

who audition for a reality TV game show where 

‘Lies are the new Truth’. This has consequences 

of life and death and suddenly death is a reality. 

Mystery and suspense, this was a page turner to the 

end; even the end pages leave you trying to figure 

out who done it … 

Jacqueline Blair 

Forna, Namina 

The Eternal Ones 

(Gilded) 

Usborne, 2024, 480pp, £8.99, 

9781474959599 

Personal Discovery. Friendship. 

Strong Female Lead 

In this final installment of Namina Forna’s Gilded 

Ones trilogy, Deka must leave the kingdom of Otera 

in order to defeat the gods threatening to destroy it. 

With the knowledge of her own divine fate haunting 

her, and causing her devastating physical harm, 

she and her friends make the perilous journey to 

find her mother and meet her fate. Along the way, 

she makes discoveries about her friends and family, 

how things may not always be as they have been 

presented, and most importantly about herself. As 

she struggles with the mortal and divine aspects 

of herself, she must find the courage to do the 

right thing even when that seems impossible. 

This is a magical book, with strong central female 

characters. It draws on our fascination with the 

mythical and takes us on a journey humanizing 

the divine. This is a powerful story of kinship, 

sisterhood, and self-discovery. 

Julie Baugh 

Hardie, Kerry 

We Go On 


£12, 9781780377018 

Change. Nature. Relationships 

POETRY 

Kerrie Hardie has produced a 

deceptively serene collection of 

poems which explore the immutable truth of 

change. She writes of the never-ending cycle of 

life and death in all its forms, including illness, 

unnatural untimely death, and the end of 

relationships, with the certainty of the continuation 

of nature despite the devastation of personal loss 

and pain proving strangely reassuring. Alongside 

the finality of endings, she shines a light on the 

potential for personal renewal, reinvention, and 

rediscovery, much like the seasonal rebirth and 

regrowth that surrounds us. Hardie juxtaposes the 

transitory mundanity of our everyday lives with 

the timelessness of nature. In her title poem, ‘We 

Go On’, I feel the whole mood of the collection 

is summed up in the line: ‘though it’s dark out 

there, we’ll still muddle through’. This is a moving, 

relatable collection, weaving the human experience 

with the indisputable certainty of nature. 

Julie Baugh 


Books: 17 – 19 

Culture/Hobbies 


Ashley, Amanda J., 

Bubb, Matilda Rose, 

Goldberg-Miller, Shoshanah 

B.D., Loh, Carolyn G. 

The Creative Economy 

Routledge, 2024, 318pp, £39.99, 

9780367707231. Series: Discovering 

the Creative Industries 

Creativity. Culture. Society 

Looking at people, place, policy, and 

market forces, this is a comprehensive 

perspective on arts and culture, in 

both economic and social life. 

Blair, John 

A Culture of Kits 

Pitch Publishing, 2024, 288pp, 

£30.00, 9781801506670 

Fashion. Football. Hobbies 

Growth of the culture and 

community around vintage 

football shirt collecting, from 

hobby to business. 

Cermak-Sassenrath, Daniel 

Introduction to Game 

Programming Using 

Processing 

CRC Press, 2024, 304pp, £44.99, 

9781032386133 

Gaming. Programming. Technology 

A great resource for students looking 

for an approachable entry into game 

programming. Additional support 

materials are available to download 

from the book’s webpage. 

Chandler, Clare & 

Gowland, Gus Ed 

Contemporary 

British Musicals 

Methuen Drama, 2024, 240pp, 

£24.99, 9781350268036 

Culture. Music. Theatre 

With chapters on different 

theatrical elements, from 

dramaturgy and musicology 

to reception, this also includes 

an interview with a practitioner 

related to each musical discussed. 

Konner, Julia 

Perfect Balance 

Ulysses Press, 2024, 168pp, £20.99, 

9781646046980 

Gymnastics. Health. Sport 

Tips, strategies, advice, and 

information on all aspects of the 

sport for young athletes. 

Puchner, Martin 

Culture 

Bonnier Books, 2024, 384pp, 

£12.99, 9781804182543 

Art. Culture. Worldwide 

Demonstrating how art forms have 

crossed continents, sharing ideas 

over centuries to produce the art 

we love today. 

Quek, Sam 

Roar 

Atlantic Books, 2023, 288pp, 

£9.99, 9781838959173 

Adversity. Prejudice. Sport 

A look at some of sport’s most 

high-profile female athletes and 

what they have had to do to 

succeed at their game. 

Wiegman, Sarina & 

Visscher, Jeroen 

What It Takes 


£9.99, 9780008648077 

Dedication. Football. Leadership 

A personal account of the journey of 

one of the most successful coaches 

in football history, with her key 

moments highlighted. 

Lyall, Aoife 

The Day Before 


£12, 9781780376905 

Contempory. Poetry. Reflective 

POETRY 

A beautifully presented volume 

of poems, attractive for both its 

tactile and visual qualities. Its wrap-around cover 

featuring a photograph – a land/seascape – is a 

foretaste of what is within. Redolent of both Ireland 

and Scotland, redolent of the here and now, of the 

everyday, of the commonplace, this is poetry for 

today, poetry that, while in many ways timeless in its 

scrutiny of life as we all live it, is essentially moving 

the genre firmly into the lives and experience of 

today’s young people. Not a golden daffodil in sight! 

But instead we have ‘Wildflowers’, a beautiful poem 

of love to mark a wedding anniversary, celebrating 

togetherness, continuity from present to future, 

nature hand in hand with nurturing and tending by 

a human being. A must-have, not only for the library 

but importantly for the English classroom: a means 

of presenting/introducing poetry as something 

of value for everyone, a compendium of poems 

certainly for individual reading but also for group 

reading, to tease out meaning and share responses. 


Moore, C. G. 

Trigger 

Little Island, 2024, 198pp, 

£8.99, 9781915071538 

Abuse. Verse Novel. Trust 

EDITOR'S PICK 

This book pretty much broke me 

and it will stay with me for a long 

time. It’s a verse novel written from the perspective 

of a teenage boy who was gang raped, having been 

set up by someone he thought was his boyfriend. 

The verse format does lend itself to quicker reading, 

at least for me, so there were several moments 

where I had to stop and go back and reread the 

text because it was so impactful and I wanted to 

do it justice by giving it my full consideration and 

attention. It’s raw, disturbing, upsetting, and so 

well written. The author notes that they have been 

sexually assaulted twice, which is shocking in itself 

and they have certainly used those experiences to 

make this story realistic and feel personal. I would 

recommend this for more mature readers because 

of the subject content but in no way is the text ever 

very graphic, much is alluded to without the full 

details being given. 

Bev Humphrey 

Oseman, Alice 

Heartstopper 5 

(Heartstopper) 

Hodder, 2023, 384pp, £12.99, 

9781444957655 

Romance. LGBTQ+. Graphic Novel 

In this next instalment of 

Heartstopper, the penultimate book in the series, 

Nick and Charlie continue to cherish their deep 

affection for each other. As they ponder the 

prospect of advancing their relationship, uncertainty 

looms over how to broach the subject with one 

another. The story delves into their collaborative 

journey in navigating this juncture and determining 

what best suits their mutual desires. Nick is looking 

at different universities for next year and embarks 

on a road trip with friends to see what is on offer. He 

is very conscious of being away from Charlie and 

this begins to affect his decision. Charlie is taking 

his GCSE exams. To add to his stress and anxiety he 

is nominated to apply to be head student, but his 

lack of confidence makes him think that he isn’t 

suitable. This book is filled with endearing moments 

shared by the main characters and explores themes 

of sex, gender, independence, and typical teenage 

experiences in a thoughtful and relatable manner, 

making it an excellent addition to the school library. 

Charlotte Cole 


Books: Professional 

Beardon, Luke 

What Works for 

Autistic Adults 

Sheldon Press, 2023, 160pp, 

£12.99, 9781399804639 

Education. Neurodiversity. 

Self-Help 

Conversationalist, and with you – the reader – at 

its core, What Works for Autistic Adults certainly 

avoids the clunkiness of academic jargon in favour 

of a simplistic and logical thread of what it may 

mean to look and experience the world as someone 

who may be autistic. Masterfully executed, Dr 

Beardon provides a window that encompasses the 

experiences of the autistic; from emotion regulation 

to the attachment to a fuzzy blanket, this book 

serves as an informative read to those who may 

have trouble grasping the small concepts that get 

overlooked when discussing autism. For those 

in the teaching/mentoring profession, I cannot 

recommend this book enough, if only to provide 

some insights into the life and behaviours of any 

students who are on the spectrum. 

Miss Rabia Arif 

Bromley, Matt & Griffin, Andy 

The Working Classroom: 

How to Make School 

Work for Working-Class 

Students 

Crown House, 2023, 220pp, £18.99, 9781785836985 

Cultural Capital. Disadvantaged Students. Classism 

Poverty removes choices and denies access; 

students from disadvantaged backgrounds often 

have knowledge gaps, low aspirations, and 

cultural poverty. This comprehensive and inspiring 

book looks at how working-class students are 

disadvantaged by the secondary education system, 

and offers strategies and tools to address this. It 

looks at the evidence for and impact of classism and 

considers various approaches via the curriculum, 

adaptive teaching practices, and interventions. 

There are suggestions on how to improve cultural 

capital and create a more inclusive and equitable 

learning environment – actions that are within 

the control of the school, practical case studies, 

powerful personal stories, and reflective questions 

for the reader to consider. The authors, both of 

whom are committed to social justice and have 

a wealth of experience, have written a wellresearched 

and accessible resource that would be a 

valuable addition to many staff libraries. 

Barbara Band 

Hook, Joshua N., 

Davis, Don E. & 

Van Tongeren, Daryl R. 

The Complete Researcher: 

A Practical Guide for 

Graduate Students and 

Early Career Professionals 

American Psychological Assoc, 2023, 257pp, 

£37.00, 9781433839054 

Research. Education. Professional Development 

This book is helpfully divided into three sections: 

‘Principles’, ‘Plan’, and ‘Program’. The language and 

approach is very accessible; the authors illustrate 

how to thrive and excel in this field. The first section 

examines the overarching principles of an effective 

researcher. The second section details how to get 

started, a practical step-by-step guide to choosing 

your topic of research, preparing your project and 

getting published. The third section covers developing 

a research programme, collaboration, and mentoring. 

The focus is on the subject of psychology; however 

this book is an insightful guide to any professional or 

student interested in looking at how to develop an 

educational programme or research project that will 

provide an outcome with relevant data to support 

evidence-informed practice. This book would be an 

excellent addition to staff CPD libraries and a useful 

resource for students age 16+ undertaking EPQ. 

George Thomas 


Books: Review Index 

Page numbers in italics indicate a book that features 

in the Editor’s Picks highlight box on that page. 

A 

Àbìké-Íyìmìdé, Faridah – Where Sleeping Girls Lie 60 

Adamo, Meredith – Not Like Other Girls 60 

Adcock, Fleur – Collected Poems 68 

Ahmed, Sufiya – The Best Eid Ever 34 

Albert, Melissa – The Bad Ones 68 

Almond, David – A Way to the Stars 34 

Anderson, Laura Ellen – Marnie Midnight and the 

Moon Mystery (Marnie Midnight) 44 

Anderson, Jessica Lee – Saving Snakes 44 

Antony, Steve – Rainbowsaurus 34 

Anyakwo, Diana – My Life as a Chameleon 60 

Ashley, Amanda J., Bubb, Matilda Rose, Goldberg-Miller, 

Shoshanah B.D., Loh, Carolyn G. – The Creative Economy 69 

Atta, Dean – Confetti 34 

B 

Bailey, Lily – When I Feel Red 44 

Barnett, David – Lowborn High 45 

Barr-Green, Craig – Gina Kaminski Saves the Wolf 34 

Barrow, Rebecca – And Don’t Look Back 68 

Bass, Guy – Taking Shelter (Hugh Dunnit Mystery) 44 

Bayron, Kalynn – Sleep Like Death 60 

Beardon, Luke – What Works for Autistic Adults 71 

Beckett-King, Alasdair – Death at the Lighthouse 44 

Bell, Alex – The Glorious Race of Magical Beasts 44 

Belyaev, Roman – How Does a Lighthouse Work 52 

Best, Anna – Aunt Grizelda’s Monstrous Myths 45 

Biddulph, Rob – Gigantic 34 

Blair, John – A Culture of Kits Chandler, Clare & Gowland, 

Gus Ed – Contemporary British Musicals 69 

Bright, Rachel – Snail in Space 35 

Bright, Rachel – The Pandas Who Promised 35 

Bromley, Matt & Griffin, Andy – The Working Classroom: 

How to Make School Work for Working-Class Students 71 

Brooks, Charlie P. – Sammy and the Extra Hot Chilli Powder 45 

Browne, Anthony – A Boy, His Dog and the Sea 35 

Brundle, Joanna – Celebrations Around the World 35 

Bryson, Bill – A Really Short Journey Through the Body 52 

Bunzl, Peter – Glassborn (Magicborn) 45 

Butchart, Pamela – The Pirate Cat 45 

C 

Camden, Steve – Stand Up Ferran Burke 61 

Campbell, James – Don’t Panic! We CAN Save the Planet! 52 

Carswell, Fiona – The Boy Who Loves to Lick the Wind 36 

Cermak-Sassenrath, Daniel – Introduction to Game 

Programming Using Processing 69 

Chandler, Clare & Gowland, Gus Ed – 

Contemporary British Musicals 69 

Clack, A.J. – Lie or Die 68 

Coelho, Joseph – Ten-Word Tiny Tales 36 

Cole, Olivia A. – Dear Medusa 61 

Cole, Steve & Peake, Tim – The Cosmic Diary of 

Our Incredible Universe 52 

Coppo, Marianna – The Best Bad Day Ever 36 

Coven, Wanda – Worst Love Spell Ever! 45 

Crossan, Sarah – Where the Heart Should Be 61 

Cunningham, Sue H. – Totally Deceased 60 

D 

Daley, Tom & Green, Simon James – Jack Splash 45 

Dasgupta, Piu – Secrets of the Snakestone 46 

Daymond, Jonny – Rainforest Rescue (Globe Defenders) 46 

Daywalt, Drew – The Crayons Love Our Planet 36 

De La Bedoyere, Camilla – There Are Birds Everywhere 36 

DiCamillo, Kate – The Puppets of Spelhorst 46 

Diop, Leon & Fitzsimons, Briana – Black and Irish 66 

Doyle, Catherine – Pirates of Darksea 46 

Driver, Sarah – The Night Train (Dreamstalker) 46 

Duff, Meghan Wilson – How Are You, Verity? 36 

E 

Eagle, Judith – The Stolen Songbird 46 

Edge, Christopher – Black Hole Cinema Club 47 

Eldredge, Jan – Nimbus 47 

Emenanjo, Bunmi, – I’ll See You in Ijebu 35 

Erlandsson, Karin – The Victor 60 

F 

(Factology) Dinosaurs and Other Prehistoric Creatures 52 

(Factology) Robots & AI 52 

Fang, X – Dim Sum Palace 37 

Farooki, Dr Roopa – The Brilliant Brain 56 

Flanagan, Liz – Dragon Daughter (Legends of the Sky) 47 

Forna, Namina – The Eternal Ones (Gilded) 68 

Fraillon, Zana – The Raven’s Song 61 

French, Jess – Race to Frostfall Mountain (Beastlands) 47 

G 

Gamboa, Jaime – The Invisible Story 37 

Giddens, Rhiannon – We Could Fly 37 

Gill, Nikita – Animal Tales from India 37 

Gourlay, Candy – Wild Song 61 

Greene, Jarad – A for Effort 45 

Grehan, Meg – The Lonely Book 61 

Griswold, David – Meltdown 37 

H 

Hall, T. K. – Shadow of the Wolf (The Blind Bowman) 61 

Hancocks, Helen – I Really Want to Be a Cat 37 

Hardie, Kerry – We Go On 68 

Harper, Benjamin – The Secret Life of the Loch Ness Monster 

(Secret Lives of Cryptids) 56 

Harrison, Michelle – Twice Upon a Time 47 

Hastings, Natasha – The Frost Fair (The Miraculous Sweetmakers) 47 

Heald, Robin – The Light from My Menorah 35 

Hickson-Lovence, Ashley – Wild East 61 

Hodgkinson, Leigh – The Princess and the (Greedy) Pea 39 

Hogan, Bex – Bronte Tempestra and the Lightning Seeds 48 

Hook, Joshua N., Davis, Don E. & Van Tongeren, Daryl R. – 

The Complete Researcher: A Practical Guide for 

Graduate Students and Early Career Professionals 71 

I 

Isdahl, Nansubuga Nagadya – Girl on the Fly 48 

J 

Jackson, Tom – The Magnificent Book of Ocean Creatures 56 

Jackson, Tom – The Expanding World of Data 

(Very Short Introductions for Curious Minds) 56 

Jacobs, Robin – All About Flags 56 

Jeffers, Oliver – Begin Again 48 

Jones, Huw Lewis – Clive Penguin 39 

K 

Kang, Dr Melissa & Stynes, Yumi – Welcome to Sex 66 

Kaur, Jaspreet – The Spaces In Between 39 

Kecojevic, Angela – Scareground 48 

Khan, Sara – Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr 35 

Kirst, Seamus – Once Upon My Dad’s Divorce 39 

Konner, Julia – Perfect Balance 69 

Koster, Gloria – Rosh Hashanah 35 

Kothari, Dev – Bringing Back Kay-Kay 48 

Kramer, Jackie Azúra – Rhythm 39 

L 

Laboucarie, Sandra – The Ultimate Book of Dinosaurs 

and Other Prehistoric Creatures 56 

Lai, Thanhha – Inside Out & Back Again 61 

Lara, Carrie – A Year of Celebraciones 39 

Lawrence, Iszi – City of Spies 48 

Lawrence, Patrice – Is That Your Mama? 40 

Le, Vanessa – The Last Bloodcarver 63 

Lightbown, Stephen – And I Climbed and I Climbed 49 

Lyall, Aoife – The Day Before 69 

M 

Malik, Humera – The Great Henna Party 40 

Marchant, Luke – The Narzat 49 

Marino, Andy – Escape from Stalingrad 63 

Marr, Shirley – Countdown to Yesterday 49 

Marzo, Bridget – Mo’s Best Friend 40 

McGuiness, Jay – Blood Flowers 63 

McQuinn, Anna – Zeki Hikes with Daddy 40 

Meloy, Colin – The Stars Did 63 

Menzies, Jean – Live Like a Goddess 66 

Milbourne, Anna – I’m Feeling (a Little Bit) Shy 40 

Millward, Gwen – Meet the Wildlings 40 

Morani, Djamila – The Djinn’s Apple 63 

Moore, C. G. – Trigger 69 

Morgan, Nicola – No Worries 66 

Morpurgo, Michael – The Ogre Who Wasn't 41 

Mucha, Laura – Celebrate! 35 

Murphy, Mary – The Minute Minders 49 

N 

Nadel, Estelle – The Girl Who Sang 63 

Nainy, Mamta – My Momo-La is a Museum 41 

O 

Oh, Axie – ASAP 64 

Oseman, Alice – Heartstopper 5 (Heartstopper) 69 

Owen, Ruth – Memories of Holidays and Having Fun 35 

Our Earth is a Poem: Poetry About Nature 51 

P 

Pearson, Jenny – Marvin and the Book of Magic 49 

Peirce, Lincoln – This Means War! 45 

Penfold, Nicola – When the Wild Calls (Where the World Turns Wild) 49 

Percival, Tom – The Wrong Shoes 50 

Peters, Stephanie True – The Unusual Journey from Pebbles to 

Continents (Graphics Library: Earth’s Amazing Journey) 57 

Peterson, Megan Cooley – Benjamin Franklin and the 

Discovery of Electricity (Fact vs Fiction History) 57 

Piumini, Roberto – Glowrushes 64 

Platt, Michael – Recipes for Change 57 

Puchner, Martin – Culture 69 

Q 

Quek, Sam – Roar 69 

Quirke, Anna Zoe – Something to be Proud Of 64 

R 

Rahman, Jumana – Bhorta Bhorta Baby 41 

Rainbow, Anna – Your Magic or Your Life (Diamond Jack) 50 

Ralphs, Matt – Aviation 57 

Rebel Girls: Level Up 58 

Rice, Eleanor Spicer – Unseen Jungle 57 

Rivers, Kristine & Dove, Carla J. – Bird Detectives 57 

Rodriguez, Cindy L. – The Mount Everest Disaster of 1996 

(Graphic Library: Deadly Expeditions) 58 

Rolfe, Kate – Wolf and Bear 41 

Rosen, Michael – The Incredible Adventures of Gaston Le Dog 50 

Roumani, Rhonda – Tagging Freedom 64 

Russell, Rachel Renee & Russell, Nikki – I Love Paris! 45 

S 

Sain, Ginny Myers – One Last Breath 64 

Sanghani, Radhika – The Girl Who Couldn’t Lie 50 

Saunders, Kate – A Drop of Golden Sun 50 

Schenkel, Katie – Trust on Thin Ice (Sports Stories: Graphic Novels) 50 

Schu, John – Louder than Hunger 61 

Seabolt, Tricia – Ellie and the Marriage List 51 

Sedgman, Sam – The Clockwork Conspiracy 51 

Shaha, Alom – How to Find a Rainbow 41 

Shaid, Rebeka – Seven Days 64 

Sheers, Owen – Drew, Moo and Bunny, Too 41 

Sheibani, Jion – The Silver Chain 61 

Silver, Josh – Dead Happy (Happy Head) 65 

Smith, Alex T. – Attack of the Snailiens (Astrid and the Space Cadets) 51 

Smith, Maudie – A Hat Full of Sea 42 

Song, Mika – Donut Feed the Squirrels (Norma and Belly) 42 

Spalding, Alistair – Welcome to the Arts: Dance 66 

Staff, P. A. – Casander Darkbloom and the Threads of Power 51 

Stavaric, Michael – Amazing Octopus 58 

Stewart, Whitney – What Do You Celebrate?: 

Holidays and Festivals Around the World 35 

Steven, Laura – Every Exquisite Thing 65 

T 

Thomas, Isobel – The Earth’s Essential Rainforests 

(Very Short Introductions for Curious Minds) 58 

Tregoning, Robert – The Dress in the Window 42 

V 

Vaughan, David – Harry Heal the Friendly Footballer 42 

W 

Wiegman, Sarina & Visscher, Jeroen – What It Takes 69 

Williams, J. T. – Bright Stars of Black History 58 

Williamson, Lisa – Double Drama 45 

Williams, Rachel – A Natural History Hide-and-Seek 

(Picture Puzzler) 58 

Williamson, Victoria – Feast of Ashes (Feast of Ashes) 65 

Woods, Matilda – The Night Train 51 

Y 

Yendle, Jessie – Let’s Talk 66 

Yun, Dai & Mixter, Helen – Where Can We Go? 

A Tale of Four Bears (Aldana Libros) 42 

Z 

Zhang, Vikki – The Lucky Red Envelope 42 

72 TSL VOLUME 72 NUMBER 2 SUMMER 2024

The School Librarian 72-2 Summer 2024

Transform your PDFs into Flipbooks and boost your revenue!

Delete template?

Save as template ?