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Books beginning with: T

• A Beginner’s Guide to Ruling the Galaxy

  Author: David Solomons
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9-11

  From the most mundane town in the universe to the chaos and exhilaration of battles in outer space and the trauma of almost being eaten by a drooling alien, this surreal, sci-fi adventure will take you on the ride of your life.

• A Double Detectives Medical Mystery: The Cure for a Crime

  Author: Roopa Farooki
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  When Ali and Tulip's surgeon mum starts acting strangely, it's up to the Double Detectives to solve the mystery.

• A Passing on of Shells

  Author: Simon Lamb Illustrator: Chris Riddell
  Publisher: Scallywag Press
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 7+

  This collection of 50 poems, each written in 50 words, will inspire young readers – and make them laugh too. Chris Riddell’s stunning illustrations make this the perfect poetry package.

• Adventures on Trains: The Highland Falcon Thief

  Author: M.G. Leonard and Sam Sedgman Illustrator: Elisa Paganelli
  Publisher: Macmillan
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Hal doesn't want to join his uncle on the Highland Falcon as it makes its way to Scotland - but when he meets Lenny, a stowaway train enthusiast and the driver's daughter, the two embark on a thrilling adventure to find missing jewels and identify the culprit. Ideal for independent readers who love a good old-fashioned mystery.

• Bedtime Stories: Incredible Irish Tales from the Past

  Author: Rachel Pierce (and 11-year-old Lola-Mae McCormack) Illustrator: Donough O’Malley Erin Brown Eva Byrne Linda Fahrlin Lydia Hughes Róisín and Úna Woods (cover endpapers and border Jennifer Davison)
  Publisher: Scholastic Children’s Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  This entertaining and informative collection of illustrated short stories shines a light on key people and events from Irish history.

• Black Poppies

  Author: Stephen Bourne
  Publisher: The History Press
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  This informative and thought-provoking collection of true stories shines a light on the contributions made by Britain’s Black community during the First World War.

• Gamayun Tales I

  Author: Alexander Utkin Translator: Lada Morozova
  Publisher: Nobrow
  Interest age: 7-10
  Reading age: 8+

  Gamayun, the magical human-faced bird of Slavic mythology, narrates this vibrant and luxurious graphic novel for younger readers. The story is magical and full of the strangeness of the original fairytale that inspired it.

• Lilly & Myles: The Torch

  Author: Jon Roberts and Hannah Rounding
  Publisher: Graffeg Books
  Interest age: 3-8
  Reading age: 6+

  Lilly is holidaying at Grandma’s seaside house in Wales.  She always enjoys her gran’s tall stories about sea monsters living in a cave nearby. When it finally stops raining, Lilly can’t wait to get outside and explore - especially as she’s found an old torch to play with. 

• Secret Beast Club: The Unicorns of Silver Street

  Author: Robin Birch Illustrator: Jobe Anderson
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  When best friends Aisha and Jayden become members of the Secret Beast Club, their first magical mission is to rescue a lost unicorn foal before he falls into the wrong hands. An exciting fantasy adventure for confident young readers.

  ---

  Y llyfr llawn cyffro hwn ydy'r cyntaf yn y gyfres Secret Beast Club ac mae'n cynnwys prif gymeriadau Duon ac mae'n ddelfrydol…

• Sticky Pines: The Bigwoof Conspiracy

  Author: Dashe Roberts
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Strange things are happening in the town of Sticky Pines: odd lights in the sky, people disappearing, and now a huge, hairy creature is hanging out in the woods. Can Lucy and Milo unravel the mystery of Bigwoof? Written with wit and humour, Roberts has created a fun new series reminiscent of the X-Files and pitched perfectly for 9-12 year-olds.

• Tabby McTat

  Author: Julia Donaldson Illustrator: Axel Scheffler
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 4-6
  Reading age: 6+

  A poetic story of love, adventure and music that demands to be read aloud or possibly sung, depending on the power of the reader's purr.

• Tacos: An Interactive Recipe Book

  Author: Lotta Nieminen
  Publisher: Phaidon
  Interest age: 2-4
  

  Learn how to make delicious tacos with this fun, interactive, pull-out-and-slide recipe book.

• Ta-Da!

  Author: Kathy Ellen Davis Illustrator: Kaylani Juanita
  Publisher: Chronicle Books
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 5+

  A girl and boy play together with their toys, imagining crystal castles, dragons, pirates and magic wands. This humorous picture book about imaginative play and friendship demonstrates that – with a little give and take – a game shared can be double the fun.

• Tail-end Charlie

  Author: Mick Manning & Brita Granstrom
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Mick Manning has carefully recreated the hair-raising tales his father told him about life as an RAF tail-gunner during the Second World War

• Take Back the Skies

  Author: Lucy Saxon
  Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's
  Interest age: 11-14
  Reading age: 10+

  As an introduction to other-world fantasy fiction this is engaging and accessible but it will appeal most to younger teens.

• Take the Lead: How to Care for Your Dog

  Author: Elena Browne Illustrator: Jennifer Farley
  Publisher: O'Brien
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  This is an excellent handbook for those who are looking for a four-legged addition to grow their family, detailing everything from choosing a breed to grooming to health and well-being.

• Takeshita Demons

  Author: Cristy Burne
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9+

  When Miku moved to England from Japan, she never imagined that evil spirits would follow her. But one day an unusual looking supply teacher appears at school, and Miku suspects she may be a demon in disguise.

• Taking Shelter (A Hugh Dunnit Mystery)

  Author: Guy Bass Illustrator: Lee Cosgrove
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Hugh is determined to clear his dog's name when she's accused of eating his homework. This hilarious chapter book is full of witty one-liners, daft puns and dynamic black-and-white illustrations.

• Tales From Acorn Wood: Cat’s Cookbook

  Author: Julia Donaldson Illustrator: Axel Scheffler
  Publisher: Macmillan
  

  Part of the adorable Acorn Wood series, Cat’s Cookbook extols the importance of libraries in a fun way, reminding us how nice it is to browse for a book and also find exactly the one we wanted.

• Tales from Acorn Wood: Opposites

  Author: Julia Donaldson Illustrator: Axel Scheffler
  Publisher: Macmillan Children’s Books
  

  Donaldson and Scheffler are already household names for those with young children, and now even the very newest members of the family can enjoy their work in this lovely board book about opposites, full of traditional illustration.

• Tales from Africa

  Author: K P Kojo Illustrator: Joe Lillington
  Publisher: Puffin Classics
  Interest age: 10-12
  Reading age: 10+

  A collection of nine diverse African folktales reflecting both the good and bad sides of human nature. Rich and humorous, they will resonate in any culture.

• Tales From Beyond The Rainbow

  Author: Collected and adapted by Pete Jordi Wood
  Publisher: Penguin Random House
  Interest age: 8-10
  Reading age: 9+

  Ancient folklore celebrating LGBTQ+ stories is unearthed and retold in this stunningly illustrated collection of queer fairy tales.

• Tales from India

  Author: Bali Rai
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 7-10
  Reading age: 8+

  Discover India’s rich folk-tale heritage and ancient cultures, with this captivating collection of both popular and lesser known, mostly secular Indian folk tales – reworked for a modern audience.

• Tales from Old Ireland

  Author: Malachy Doyle Illustrator: Niamh Sharkey
  Publisher: Barefoot Books
  Interest age: 6-12
  Reading age: 8+

  This stunningly illustrated collection of stories has its roots in oral storytelling and features giants, demons and wicked stepmothers, with a good dose of magic, cruelty and gentle humour.

• Tales From Outer Suburbia

  Author: Shaun Tan
  Publisher: Templar
  Interest age: 11-12
  Reading age: 10+

  These often thought-provoking stories look at the reactions ordinary people have to the unusual situations they find themselves in and feature a host of different illustrative styles ranging from collage to painterly Edward Hopper-esque scenes.

• Tales from Schwartzgarten: Osbert the Avenger

  Author: Christopher William Hill
  Publisher: Orchard Books
  Interest age: 11-12
  Reading age: 9+

  A macabre tale full of ghoulish and gruesome escapades.

• Tales from the Caribbean

  Author: Trish Cooke
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 6-9
  Reading age: 8+

  Here’s a brilliant collection of tales from all over the Caribbean, perfect for children to read to themselves, but best of all to read together out loud. Some of the stories are famous but each one in this book feels fresh with Trish’s brilliant retelling.

• Tales from the Celtic Countries

  Author: Rhiannon Ifans Illustrator: Margaret Jones
  Publisher: Y Lolfa
  Interest age: 6-13
  Reading age: 8+

  This unusual story collection features a total of 12 tales from the six Celtic countries. Fabulous, ethereal illustrations capture the magical nature of the narratives which, like all the oldest fables, are rather grisly but also hilarious and quirky.

• Tales from the Dead of Night

  Author: Cecily Gayford
  Publisher: Profile Books
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 14+

  Prepare to be scared! Collecting the best of classic ghost stories from E.Nesbit to Ruth Rendell, this anthology is the perfect match to any Halloween party.

• Tales From Weird Street

  Author: Anne Fine Illustrator: Vicki Gausden
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 8-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Interspersed with black-and-white illustrations to complement the super readable text, this masterclass in storytelling from a distinguished author is fascinating, entertaining and just creepy enough to leave readers feeling a little bit uneasy.

• Tales of Terror from the Black Ship

  Author: Chris Priestley Illustrator: David Roberts
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 11-12
  Reading age: 11+

  Deliciously chilling tales of demons, horrors, curses and hauntings.

• Tales of Terror from the Tunnel's Mouth

  Author: Chris Priestley Illustrator: David Roberts
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 10-12
  Reading age: 9+

  The nine tales are contained within an other tale, each as delightfully horrible as the next, and perfect for dark winter nights, to be read out loud or to oneself.

• Tales of the Otori: Across the Nightingale Floor

  Author:
  Publisher: Pan Macmillan
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 12+

  A taut, compelling tale in the Samurai warrior tradition

• Tales of World War II: Amazing True Stories from the War that Shook the World

  Author: Dr Hattie Hearn Illustrator: Margarida Esteves
  Publisher: Neon Squid
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Dr Hattie Hearn’s fascinating book of true stories from World War II, which begins with the reasons the war began and takes the reader through the main events and on towards peace, focuses on the human stories behind such a bewildering global event.

• Talking is Not My Thing!

  Author: Rose Robbins
  Publisher: Scallywag Press
  Interest age: 3-7
  Reading age: 3-7

  With speech bubbles, bright colours and characters so lively they leap off the page, this is a vibrant and happy book with a lead character who is non-verbal.

• Talking to Alaska

  Author: Anna Woltz Translator: Laura Watkinson
  Publisher: OneWorld
  Interest age: 10-13
  Reading age: 11+

  It only takes one day at their new school for Parker and Sven to become mortal enemies. Parker’s had a terrible summer and just wants to be invisible, while Sven is desperate to make an impression and be known as anything other than ‘that kid with epilepsy.’

  When Parker discovers her beloved dog Alaska – who she had to give away last year – now belongs to Sv…

• Talking to the Moon

  Author: S.E. Durrant
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Iris’ grandmother is losing her memory. While protecting her, Iris tracks down the secret behind a bracelet and develops a tentative friendship with the boy next door.

• Tall Story

  Author: Candy Gourlay
  Publisher: David Fickling Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Engagingly told in alternate chapters by four-foot, thirteen year-old Andi, in the UK, and her eight-foot, sixteen year-old half brother Bernardo, in the Philippines

• Tall, Thin and Blonde

  Author:
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 11+

  Jen and Amy have been best friends forever, but when they start High School, they find themselves growing apart.

• Tally & Squill: in a sticky situation

  Author: Abie Longstaff Illustrator: James Brown
  Publisher: Little Brown
  Interest age: 5-9
  Reading age: 8+

  A magical adventure story set in a huge, old house, where a fesity young girl and her pet squirrel must use ancient secrets to solve the mystery of a midnight burglary. 

• Tamar

  Author: Mal Peet
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 9+

  When Tamar's grandfather dies, he leaves behind a box with her name on it. Inside she finds a series of clues and hidden messages which she and her cousin follow...

• Tamara Small and the Monster's Ball

  Author: Giles Paley-Philips Illustrator: Gabriele Antonini
  Publisher: Maverick Arts Publishing
  Reading age: 6+

  It’s a dark night and Tamara Small is whisked away from her bed by a hairy monster to join the Monsters' Ball

• Tamarind and the Star of Ishta

  Author: Jasbinder Bilan
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Tamarind's mum died when she was a baby, so when she goes to stay with her family deep in the Himalayan mountains she's destermined to find out all she can about her. But the house - and family - holds many more secrets than Tamarind thought...

• Tamburlaine's Elephants

  Author: Geraldine McCaughrean
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 10-11
  Reading age: 10+

  Rusti, a young nomad, lives on the fringes of the warrior horde of Tamburlaine the Great, a powerful ruler whose brutality is legendary.

• Tamsin and the Deep

  Author: Neill Cameron and Kate Brown
  Publisher: David Fickling Books
  Interest age: 8-12
  Reading age: 8-12

  A fantastic graphic novel from the team at children's comic The Phoenix, this is a page-turning adventure with a great main character in brave, athletic and reckless Tamsin.

• Tangled Tales: Movies, Magic, Mayhem!

  Author: Jenny Moore Illustrator: Sarah Horne
  Publisher: Maverick Publishing
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Two interlinked stories in one – flip the book to read the second one. Will Derek the vampire and Ruby the unusual fairy become film stars? 

• Tanglewood Animal Park: Baby Zebra Rescue

  Author: Tamsyn Murray
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 7-12
  Reading age: 7+

  Zoe loves her new home at Tanglewood Animal Park. But can she find Flash, the baby zebra, who goes missing on the morning of the grand opening? An exciting animal adventure with lots of interesting facts - perfect for animal lovers.

• Tanglewood Animal Park: The Troublesome Tiger

  Author: Tamsyn Murray
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Zoe is bursting with excitement – Tindu the tiger is arriving today at Tanglewood Animal Park, all the way from a zoo in Berlin. But when Tindu arrives, he won’t come out of his crate. Perfect for animal lovers.

• Tanglewreck

  Author:
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  This complex but utterly readable book, encompasses chaos theory and time travel but is also filled with humorous asides and a cast of memorable characters.

• Tanka Tanka Skunk

  Author: Steve Webb
  Publisher: Random House
  

  • Meet Tanka, the elephant and his friend Skunka.

  • Full of rhythm, great for reading aloud.

  • Enjoy the brightly coloured pictures, this book is bursting with fun!

• Tape

  Author: Steven Camden
  Publisher: HarperCollins
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 13+

  In 1993, Ryan records a diary on a cassette tape. Twenty years later, Ameliah discovers an old tape in her grandmother's spare room: a tape with a boy's voice on it, speaking directly to her.

• Tapper Watson and the Quest for the Nemo Machine

  Author: Claire Fayers
  Publisher: Firefly
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  An action-packed, otherworldly adventure story featuring lobster assassins, an interworld organised crime gang, a talking plant who is very fond of eggs and a river that swallows memories.

• Tarzan: The Greystoke Legacy

  Author: Andy Briggs
  Publisher: Faber Children's Books
  Interest age: 11-12
  Reading age: 11+

  A classic with a 21st century twist, this riveting adventure overflows with suspense, danger, brutality and beauty

• Tarzan: The Jungle Warrior

  Author: Andy Briggs
  Publisher: Faber Children's Books
  Interest age: 10-11
  Reading age: 10+

  Reinvented for the 21st-century by Andy Briggs, Tarzan is an eco-warrior - savage and brutal in his dealings with illegal loggers and hunters who plunder his beloved jungle.

• Tatty Ratty

  Author: Helen Cooper
  Publisher: Random House
  Interest age: 3-7
  Reading age: 5+

  Molly is very upset when she loses her beloved toy, Tatty Ratty. Her parents console her by helping her imagine all the wonderful adventures Tatty Ratty is having while he is away.

• Teacup House: Meet the Twitches

  Author: Hayley Scott Illustrator: Pippa Curnick
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 5-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Delightful illustrations, bursting with colour, bring this gentle adventure to life. This is the first title in what promises to be an enchanting series of chapter books for newly confident readers.

• Teardrop

  Author: Lauren Kate
  Publisher: Doubleday
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 13+

  Ever since her beloved mother died in an astonishing freak accident, Eureka has had little to live for - but then she meets Anders, a strange boy who insists she too is in terrible danger.

• Tease

  Author: Amanda Maciel
  Publisher: Hodder Children’s Books
  Interest age: 13-18
  Reading age: 11+

  Provocative and thought-provoking, this book is sure to divide readers but will certainly get them talking.

• Ted Rules the World

  Author: Frank Cottrell Boyce Illustrator: Cate James (cover illustration Chris Riddell)
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 7-8

  When a new Prime Minister is elected on Ted’s birthday, strange things begin to happen. At first, Ted thinks it’s a happy coincidence that some of his ideas become government policy. However, as his more obscure thoughts are adopted by the Prime Minister, he wonders if he is genuinely influencing parliamentary decisions. 

• Teddy or Train?

  Author: Anthony Lewis
  Publisher: Child's Play
  Reading age: 2+

  This generously-sized sturdy board book is brimful of babies! Babies playing with cars and bricks, babies swinging and babies reading books.

• Teddy Took the Train

  Author: Nicki Greenberg
  Publisher: Allen & Unwin
  Interest age: 3-7
  Reading age: 6+

  Dot and mummy go shopping and take the train home, but leave Teddy on the train! Oh no! This diverse and heartwarming book encourages children not give in to their fears, especially about separation.

• Telephone

  Author: Mac Barnett Illustrator: Jen Corace
  Publisher: Chronicle Books
  Interest age: 3-6
  Reading age: 6+

  A colour and pattern-filled picturebook which builds its story on the old children's game, Chinese Whispers.

• Tell me a Dragon

  Author: Jackie Morris
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 4-8
  Reading age: 5+

  Jackie Morris’s lyrical descriptions imagine each child’s relationship with their own dragon, and the reader is invited to imagine their dragon, too, at the end of the book.

• Tell Me About... Plants

  Author: Emily Dodd Illustrator: Chorkung
  Publisher: Templar Books
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 6+

  Did you know that ant plants have ants living inside them? This fantastic first science book is packed with fascinating facts about plants. Perfect for young school children.

• Tell Me the Day Backwards

  Author: Albert Lamb Illustrator: David McPhail
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Reading age: 6+

  In this delightful bedtime story, a young bear tells his mother all about his exciting day - in reverse - inspiring young listeners/readers to do the same

• Tell Tail

  Author: C. K. Smouha Illustrator: Katie Brosnan
  Publisher: Cicada
  

  Dex the dog is a little different to everyone else - he doesn't bark, dig, or fight, but he is happy, his tail won't stop wagging! His family try and get it to stop - but there's a way everyone can be happy together. A thought provoking story about self-expression and acceptance.

• Tempest

  Author: Julie Cross
  Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 14+

  This gripping time-travel novel fuses the highs and lows of first love with the elements of a fast-paced thriller

• Temple Boys

  Author: Jamie Buxton
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 9-14
  Reading age: 9+

  Flea is a pick-pocket, living in Jerusalem in biblical times. When he meets Yeshua and his side-kick Jude, they set off on a dangerous journey.

• Ten Fat Sausages

  Author: Michelle Robinson Illustrator: Tor Freeman
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 5+

  Everything in this sausagey counting book works perfectly: from the big, bold illustration to the satisfying rhyme that works well for preschoolers. It will also entertain adults and older children, who will really get the silly humour.

• Ten Green Bottoms

  Author: Barry Timms Illustrator: Mike Byrne
  Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
  Interest age: 2-5
  

  Ten green alien bottoms bounce around, causing mayhem. Based on a well-known song, and with buckets of humour and a light counting theme, this is a very enjoyable read.

• Ten Little Ducklings

  Author: Lucy Rowland Illustrator: Aki
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 2-3
  

  A delightful and interactive rhyming book for little ones which uses the Ten Little Ducklings rhyme, but invents a variety of exciting adventures for the ducklings instead, asking readers to play hide and seek with the adorable little ducks. 

• Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes

  Author: Mem Fox Illustrator: Helen Oxenbury
  Publisher: Walker Books
  

  With beautiful illustrations of babies born all over the world and gentle rhyming text, this charming book is perfect for sharing with little ones.

• Ten Little Pirates

  Author:
  Publisher: Orchard Books
  Interest age: 2+
  Reading age: 4+

  A counting adventure with pirates... and a giant squid!

• Ten Minutes to Bed, Little Unicorn

  Author: Rhiannon Fielding and Chris Chatterton
  Publisher: Ladybird Books
  

  It’s ten minutes to bedtime, but Twinkle the little unicorn is showing no sign of sleepiness! This bedtime read, which features a rhyming countdown, is just the thing to help little ones wind down at the end of a busy day.

• Ten Terrible Dinosaurs

  Author: Paul Strickland
  Publisher: Picture Corgi
  Interest age: 3-8
  Reading age: 5+

  A fun rhyming counting book which small children will love. They can learn the words, point at the pictures, count the dinosaurs and copy their comical jigging and jiving. Exuberant and amusing illustrations complement the text in this welcome reprint of a popular classic. 

• Ten Ways to Build a Brilliant Brain

  Author: Nicola Morgan Illustrator: Risa Rodil
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9-11

  We all have a brain, but it’s likely that, ironically, we very rarely ever think about what it’s doing for us all day long (and at night). But it’s doing some pretty amazing things: keeping us breathing, giving us dreams, regulating our blood pressure and all manner of other complicated things.

• Ten-Word Tiny Tales

  Author: Joseph Coelho Illustrator: Various
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 7+

  Twenty different artists illustrate twenty different stories in an atmospheric, thought-provoking volume. A visually striking, inspiring call to creativity and imagination.

• Terra

  Author: Mitch Benn
  Publisher: Gollancz
  Interest age: 11-12
  Reading age: 12+

  Lbbp, resident of the city of Hrrng in the country of Mlml on the distant planet Fnrr, has a problem in the shape of a tiny human baby.

• Terrible Horses

  Author: Raymond Antrobus Illustrator: Ken Wilson Max
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 3-5
  Reading age: 6+

  A young boy looks up to his older sister but feels lonely when they argue. He shares his feelings through pictures, and they grow closer. 

• Terror Kid

  Author: Benjamin Zephaniah
  Publisher: Hot Key
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 13+

  A powerful, accessible and revelatory novel with its finger firmly on the pulse of contemporary social and political issues.

• Terry Perkins and his Upside Down Frown

  Author: Felix Massie
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln Books
  Interest age: 4-6
  Reading age: 6+

  This is a funny, quirky and thought-provoking picture book, with appealing rhyming text.

• Test Trouble

  Author: Serena Patel Illustrator: Louise Forshaw
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 7+

  Arun hates tests, so when his teacher sets a timed maths test, he does everything he can to get out of it. This light-hearted chapter book explores the importance of resilience and is ideal for reluctant readers.

• Thank You

  Author: Joseph Coelho Illustrator: Sam Usher
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 3-6
  Reading age: 6+

  A touching, colourful picture book about gratitude and how a small ‘Thank you!’ can grow and grow and brighten up the world.

• Thanks for the Trouble

  Author: Tommy Wallach
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 12-13
  Reading age: 12+

  Parker Sante hasn't spoken a word in the five years since his father died. However, he's a pretty good writer. This unusual and sensitive love and coming-of-age story features two great lead characters.

• That Asian Kid

  Author: Savita Kalhan
  Publisher: Troika
  Interest age: 12-16
  Reading age: 12+

  Fifteen-year-old Jeevan witnesses two teachers snogging (and more) in the woods, and films it on his phone. But should he share this on social media? Funny, thought-provoking and very well-written, with some truths about racism amid the humour.

• That Burning Summer

  Author: Lydia Syson
  Publisher: Hot Key
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 13+

  In the long hot summer of 1940, planes are doing battle over the channel, and the south coast of England is braced for a German invasion.

• That Pesky Rat

  Author: Lauren Child
  Publisher: Orchard Books
  Interest age: 4-6
  Reading age: 5+

  Pesky Rat lives in Dustbin Number 3, Grubby Alley. People call him 'That Pesky Rat', but he longs for a real name, a home and someone to care for him.

• That Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown

  Author: Cressida Cowell Illustrator: Neal Layton
  Publisher: Hachette
  Interest age: 5-6
  Reading age: 6+

  Emily and her toy rabbit, Stanley, love to go on adventures together.

• That’s Mathematics

  Author: Chris Smith based on lyrics by Tom Lehrer Illustrator: Elīna Brasliņa
  Publisher: Mama Makes Books
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 6+

  A joyful, fun celebration of maths concepts, using everyday activities. Vibrant, energetic illustrations make this a friendly, accessible read.

• That’s Not My Chick

  Author: Fiona Watt Illustrator: Rachel Wells
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 2-3
  Reading age: 4+

  A fun touch and feel board book that encourages little fingers to explore the different shapes and textures on each page

• That’s Not My Name

  Author: Anoosha Syed
  Publisher: Ladybird
  Interest age: 6-8
  

  When Mirha’s new classmates mispronounce her name, she’s too shy to correct them. Instead, she decides to change her name to something less complicated. What will her family think?

• That's My Daddy!

  Author: Ruth Redford Illustrator: Dan Taylor
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  Featuring a lovely array of different dad activities for all manner of different dads, That’s My Daddy! is an inclusive, adorable book that asks children who their daddy is and what he does.

• That's NOT How You Do It!

  Author: Ariane Hofmann-Maniyar
  Publisher: Child's Play
  

  Lucy is a clever little cat who knows how to do everything. She can eat with a spoon and fork, play the xylophone, even fold fabulous paper stars. In fact, all her friends ask her for help if they cannot do something. When Toshi the panda arrives from far away, Lucy doesn't understand why he does everything differently. She becomes increasingly frustrated wh…

• That's Not My Baby...

  Author: Fiona Watt Illustrator: Rachel Wells
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 0+
  Reading age: 0+

  This book is full of bright pictures with touch-and feel patches.

• That's Not My Bear...

  Author: Fiona Watt Illustrator: Rachel Wells
  Publisher: Usborne
  Reading age: 4+

  A different bear is introduced on each page of this colourful board book, but there is something not quite right about most of them.

• That's Not My Fairy...

  Author: Fiona Watt Illustrator: Rachel Wells
  Publisher: Usborne
  Reading age: 4+

  Lots of different fairies are introduced throughout this book, but none of them are quite right. "That’s not my fairy. Her wings are too fluffy."

• That's Not My Frog...

  Author: Fiona Watt Illustrator: Rachel Wells
  Publisher: Usborne
  Reading age: 5+

  This sturdy touch and feel book features a succession of colourful frogs, from one with silky feet, to another with bumpy spots, to another with shiny toes.

• That's Not My Kitten...

  Author: Fiona Watt Illustrator: Rachel Wells
  Publisher: Usborne Books
  Reading age: 0+

  One of a growing series of touch and feel board books with interesting textures and shapes for inquisitive fingers to explore.

• That's Not My Monster...

  Author: Fiona Watt Illustrator: Rachel Wells
  Publisher: Usborne Publishing
  Reading age: 5+

  This monster-themed book is an entertaining addition to the much-loved That's Not My... series.

• That's Not My Pirate...

  Author: Fiona Watt Illustrator: Rachel Wells
  Publisher: Usborne
  Reading age: 4+

  Lovely, colourful, stimulating book for very young children

• That's Not My Princess...

  Author: Fiona Watt Illustrator: Rachel Wells
  Publisher: Usborne Publishing
  Reading age: 4+

  This sturdy and durable board book is perfect for the very youngest children, with touch and feel images full of interesting textures and shapes that are ideal for small fingers to explore.

• That's Not My Teddy...

  Author: Fiona Watt Illustrator: Rachel Wells
  Publisher: Usborne
  Reading age: 4+

  Touch-feely book with colourful illustrations and simply text

• That's Not My Tiger...

  Author: Fiona Watt Illustrator: Rachel Wells
  Publisher: Usborne
  Reading age: 5+

  Small children will love touching the tiger’s fluffy ears, soft paws and bumpy teeth and will particularly like tracing his soft, stripy tail on the very last page.

• The 1,000-Year-Old Boy

  Author: Ross Welford
  Publisher: Harper Collins
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Alfie Monk looks like any other 11-year old boy. However, as the title suggests, he is actually 1,000-years old. A truly original read, the plot’s twists and turns are anchored by the warmth, courage and humour of its varied characters.

• The 100 Society

  Author: Carla Spradbery
  Publisher: Hodder
  Interest age: 13-17
  Reading age: 10+

  Readers who are happy to suspend their disbelief will revel in a plot that races along with thrills, scares and entire shoals of red herrings littering the path to a gripping and tortuous climax. Ideal for lovers of Point Horror.

• The 10pm Question

  Author: Kate Di Goldi
  Publisher: Templar
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 10+

  Like his desk, Frankie likes life to be orderly and neat. But then Sydney arrives, and disturbs Frankie's carefully organised world, forcing him to ask a hitherto unspoken 10pm question.

• The 13-Storey Treehouse

  Author: Andy Griffiths Illustrator: Terry Denton
  Publisher: Macmillan
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 8+

  Griffiths and Denton create a triumph to engage even the most determined hater of books, which includes hilarious cartoon drawings.

• The 5 Misfits

  Author: Beatrice Alemagna
  Publisher: Lincoln Children’s Books
  Interest age: 5-8
  Reading age: 6+

  Beatrice Alemagna’s highly original illustration style is a wonderful mix of collage and pencil, and her quirky, lovable story about the importance of being yourself –  especially when you might be regarded as odd by others –  is a jewel among children’s books. 

• The 5th Wave

  Author:
  Publisher: Penguin Children's Books
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 12+

  A few months ago Cassie's biggest problem was that the boy she liked didn't know she was alive. Now she is alone, fighting for survival in a world ravaged by an alien invasion.

• The 7 Professors of the Far North

  Author: John Fardell Illustrator: John Fardell
  Publisher: Faber Children's Books
  Interest age: 11-12
  Reading age: 9+

  Three children set out to rescue their Professor Ampersand and his six companions from an evil organisation.

• The 78-Storey Treehouse

  Author: Andy Griffiths Illustrator: Terry Denton
  Publisher: Macmillan
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 7-11

  There’s tons of zany fun in this illustrated novel, which is the fifth in the series. With minimal text per page and brilliant black-and-white illustrations taking up most of the space, the story zips past at lightning speed and is a really easy, funny read.

• The 91-Storey Treehouse

  Author: Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton
  Publisher: Macmillan
  Interest age: 7-9
  Reading age: 7+

  Best friends Andy and Terry live in an incredible treehouse, but when their publisher's grandchildren come to stay, things soon get out of control. A laugh-out-loud book perfect for Diary of a Wimpy Kid fans.

• The Abominables

  Author: Eva Ibbotson
  Publisher: Marion Lloyd Books
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 9+

  The incomplete manuscript of this irresistibly charming story was found amongst Eva Ibbotson's papers at  her death in 2010.

• The Abominators

  Author: J L Smith Illustrator: Sam Hearn
  Publisher: Atom
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 8+

  It’s Cecil Trumpington-Potts first day in Year 4 at Grimely East Primary School. In fact, it’s his first day ever at school.

• The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian

  Author: Sherman Alexie
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 12+

  In his first book for young adults, Sherman Alexie tells the story of budding artist Junior, a 14-year-old Native American

• The Accident Season

  Author: Moira Fowley Doyle
  Publisher: Corgi
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 13+

  For as long as she can remember, the end of October has been the beginning of the Accident Season for seventeen-year-old Cara and her family: cuts, falls and broken bones. A spooky and psychological modern classic with a twist.

• The Accidental Diary of B.U.G

  Author: Jen Carney
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 8-10
  Reading age: 8+

  An illustrated diary-style novel in the mode of Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Tom Gates, with a sparky narrator who perfectly captures the voice of an upper primary age girl and her thoughts about life. A sensitive and funny story.

• The Accidental Diary of B.U.G: Basically Famous

  Author: Jen Carney
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Stardom beckons at Billie, aka B.U.G.’s school when a fancy TV company wants to make an advert about school uniforms – but can Billie be the biggest star of them all? More madcap fun from Billie and her doodle-filled diary.

• The Accidental Diary of B.U.G: Sister Act

  Author: Jen Carney Illustrator: Jen Carney
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 8-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Billie Upton Green is about to embark on her third accidental diary (which is cunningly disguised as a Spellings jotter so her Mums think she’s studying and not scribbling). And she has life-changing news.

• The Accidental Father Christmas

  Author: Tom McLaughlin
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 7+

  Father Christmas can’t remember who he is … and it’s all Ben’s fault! Ben must help him deliver the presents in time, or Christmas will be cancelled.

• The Accidental Prime Minister

  Author: Tom McLaughlin
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 8

  Before he knows it, Joe is thrust straight through the limelight and into a seat at Number 10.

• The Accidental Secret Agent

  Author: Tom McLaughlin
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 7-9

  Kevin's just your everyday 13-year-old, obsessed with phones and becoming a secret agent. The only reason readers will put down this book is because they're laughing too much to hold onto it.

• The Accidental Wizard

  Author: Kimberly Pauley Illustrator: Jason Cockroft
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  A boisterous fantasy adventure in which a humble apprentice is accidentally turned into an all-powerful wizard and finds that fame isn’t quite what he expected. 

• The Adventures of Alfie Onion

  Author: Vivian French Illustrator: Marta Kissi
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 8+

  When Alfie Onion helps his brother Magnifico on a quest to secure a princess wife, things don't quite go as his fairytale-obsessed mother had planned. A hero does rise - just not the one everyone expected.

• The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend

  Author: Dan Santat
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  Seeing the world from the imaginary friend's viewpoint, rather than the child's, sheds fresh light on this familiar yet magical friendship. The stylish, striking, images emphasise its vibrancy against everyday drabness.

• The Adventures of Hermes: God of Thieves

  Author: Murielle Szac Translator: Mika Provata-Carlone
  Publisher: Pushkin Children's Books
  Interest age: 10-11
  Reading age: 10+

  This accessible introduction to Greek mythology unrolls in one hundred episodes, focusing on the god, Hermes.

• The Adventures of John Blake

  Author: Philip Pullman Illustrator: Fred Fordham
  Publisher: Fickling Books
  Interest age: 10-12
  Reading age: 10+

  Like the Bourne films with time travel and a ghost ship, Pullman’s story rockets along at thrilling speed, full of secrets, mysterious baddies and emotional drama. Adventure on the high seas meets spy thriller: a fantastically executed, exciting must-read.

• The Adventures of Miss Petitfour

  Author: Anne Michaels Illustrator: Emma Block
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 7+

  A charming collection of short stories about eccentric Miss Petitfour, who loves adventures and always travels by tablecloth with her sixteen cats. A lovely, quirky collection book, with delightful illustrations, that is immensely entertaining.

• The Adventures of Pinocchio

  Author: Carlo Collodi Translator: Anne Lawson
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 7+

  The story of the wooden puppet who learns goodness and becomes a real boy is famous the world over, and has been familiar in English for over a century.

• The Adventures of Robin Hood

  Author: Marcia Williams
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Reading age: 6+

  A retelling of 11 Robin Hood stories, from his fight with Little John to the firing of his last arrow in humorous comic-strip format.

• The Adventures of Team Pom: Squid Happens

  Author: Isabel Roxas
  Publisher: Flying Eye Books
  Interest age: 8-10
  Reading age: 8+

  Isabel Roxas’ super fun and readable comic about friendship, individuality and heroism is a brilliant read for 8-10 year olds looking for something highly visual and original. 

• The Adventures of the Dish and the Spoon

  Author: Mini Grey
  Publisher: Random House
  Reading age: 5+

  We all know that the dish ran away with the spoon but Mini Grey's new book explores what happened to the nursery rhyme characters next.

• The Adventures of the New Cut Gang

  Author: Philip Pullman Illustrator: Martin Brown
  Publisher: David Fickling Books
  Interest age: 8-9
  Reading age: 9+

  The New Cut Gang are a rag-tag group of resourceful young rascals who get up to all manner of adventures on the streets of Victorian Lambeth.

• The Adventures of Tintin

  Author: Hergé Translator: Michael Turner and Leslie Lonsdale-Cooper
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 9+

  Resourceful junior reporter Tintin embarks on a series of exciting international adventures, accompanied by his faithful dog Snowy, in this favourite series.

• The After Christmas Tree

  Author: Bethan Welby
  Publisher: Scallywag Press
  

  When Brian sees an abandoned Christmas trere on the side of the road, he knows he has to take her home. But his family aren't too impressed - can Brian's little tree spread some post-Christmas cheer?

• The Ali-A Adventures: Game On!

  Author: Ali-A and Cavan Scott Illustrator: Aleksandar Sotirovski
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 7-12
  Reading age: 7-11

  Ali-A is a popular YouTube gamer and this is his first book, co-written with Cavan Scott. It's a fast-paced, fun read with amazing visuals that gaming fans will love, as well as anyone else that enjoys a good yarn.

• The Alien Next Door: The New Kid

  Author: A I Newton Illustrator: Anjan Sarkar
  Publisher: Little Bee Books (Bonnier Publishing USA imprint)
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  An alien boy tries to fit in at his new school on earth in the first in a new series aimed at early readers. Filled with humour about the yucky stuff Zeke eats, and wonder at the feats he can perform, this inclusive story makes for a very entertaining tale. 

• The Almost Fearless Hamilton Squidlegger

  Author: Timothy Basil Ering
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Reading age: 7+

  Fantastical illustrations complement this exuberant escapade, starring an almost fearless boy who is a tiny bit terrified of the dark.

• The Almost King

  Author: Lucy Saxon
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 13+
  Reading age: 13+

  Young author Lucy Saxon is sticking firmly with fantasy with her second novel.

• The Amazing Adventures of Groana Schmitt

  Author: Finn-Ole Heinrich Translator: from German by Katy Derbyshire
  Publisher: Carl Hanser Verlag
  

  Mona's parents call her Groana because she's sometimes grumpy and loses her temper. She and her mother have moved out of their home and into a strange flat on the other side of town. Mona doesn't know why, and plans to put things right as soon as possible. At her new school, she reluctantly makes friends with a boy called Mo. Mo knows why the new flat is so …

• The Amazing Edie Eckhart

  Author: Rosie Jones Illustrator: Natalie Smillie
  Publisher: Hodder Children’s Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Edie Eckhart is a feisty, funny 11-year-old who has cerebral palsy. She has to make some new special relationships when she moves to secondary school and her best friend goes into a different class. An entertaining diary-format book that sensitively explores growing up. 

• The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips

  Author: Michael Morpurgo Illustrator: Michael Foreman
  Publisher: HarperCollins
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 8+

  Moving from the present day to wartime diary and back again, this ultimately uplifting novel illuminates the effects of the fateful events on the lives of those involved and the generations that followed.

• The Amazing Tale of Ali Pasha

  Author: Michael Foreman
  Publisher: Templar
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 7+

  The Amazing Tale of Ali Pasha is a wonderful introduction to World War 1 through the story of young seaman Harry Friston and the tortoise he finds in Gallipoli. Based on a true story, this book is beautifully illustrated and gives the horrors of war a human, and animal, heart.

• The Amber Spyglass

  Author: Philip Pullman
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  Lyra and Will, the fiesty protagonists from the first two novels, are reunited to embark on their final, dangerous journey on which the future of all the worlds depend.

• The Amulet of Samarkand: A Bartimaeus Graphic Novel

  Author: Jonathan Stroud
  Publisher: Random House Children's Books
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 9+

  The graphic novel adaptation of the first volume in the best-selling Bartimaeus sequence makes the series more accessible to readers without taking away any of the wit and magic

• The Angel Collector

  Author: Bali Rai
  Publisher: Random House
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 13+

  This is a thriller suffused with an air of menace, of insecurity, of complex personal tensions and violence.

• The Animal Boogie

  Author: Stella Blackstone Illustrator: Debbie Harter
  Publisher: Barefoot Books
  Reading age: 4+

  Boogie along with the jungle inhabitants who flap, shake, flap and slide their way through this colourful book

• The Ant Colony

  Author: Jenny Valentine
  Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
  Interest age: 12-13
  Reading age: 9+

  Sam and Bo reveal their pasts in alternate chapters, each gradually facing the dysfunctional relationships and traumatic incidents which have triggered their current unlikely friendship.

• The Apothecary

  Author: Maile Meloy Illustrator: Ian Schoenherr
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 11+

  Shifting between spy thriller and enchanting fantasy, The Apothecary is a skilful blend of the magical with the very real nuclear threat of the 1950s.

• The Apple Tart of Hope

  Author: Sarah Moore Fitzgerald
  Publisher: Orion Children's Books
  Interest age: 12-13
  Reading age: 12+

  Oscar's apple tarts bring hope to the sad or desperate. He is loved and appreciated for this special gift. Meg is his best friend, but just as their friendship is about to blossom into love she has to go to New Zealand for sixth months.

• The Apprentice Witch

  Author: James Nicol
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 8-9
  Reading age: 8+

  When Arianwyn fails her witch's assessment, she thinks her life is over - but, really, the adventure has only just begun. A great adventure story, filled with wonderful spells and mysterious creatures.

• The Aquanaut

  Author: Dan Santat
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9-11

  When a strange man wearing an old-fashioned diving helmet breaks into her uncle's research lab, Sophia discovers that the aquanaut is in fact a robot controlled by four sea creatures. The creatures in the aquanaut are looking for a safe haven, but when they discover what’s going on at Aqualand, they decide to free the Orca who is kept in a tiny tank and made…

• The Arrival

  Author: Shaun Tan
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 8-9
  Reading age: 8+

  In this unusual book, we follow a young man as he packs his bags and leaves his family to go and start a new life in another country

• The Art of Being Normal

  Author: Lisa Williamson
  Publisher: David Fickling Books
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 13+

  David Piper has always been an outsider, labelled a freak by the school bully. Only his two best friends know the real truth – David wants to be a girl.

• The Art of Protest

  Author: De Nichols
  Publisher: Big Picture Press
  Interest age: 12-16
  Reading age: 12+

  Explaining why art can be so powerful within social movements, and the different forms protest art can take, De Nichols introduces young readers to contemporary artists and young activists, with ideas for making your own protest art. A fascinating and brilliantly designed book. 

• The Artist

  Author: Ed Vere
  Publisher: Penguin Random House
  Interest age: 4-5
  Reading age: 5+

  A young dinosaur artist (looking a bit like a T-rex but a cute one) sees the dinosaur world as full of joy and beauty, something that some dinosaurs are too busy to notice. She sees all that, draws and paints it and makes it into her art. 

  ---

  Mae deinosor ifanc sy'n artist yn gweld y byd fel lle llawn llawenydd a harddwch – rhywbeth y mae rhai deinosoriai…

• The Artist Who Painted A Blue Horse

  Author: Eric Carle
  Publisher: Puffin
  Reading age: 4+

  Eric Carle’s first picture book in four years is a bright, colourful celebration of creativity

• The Ask and the Answer

  Author: Patrick Ness
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 11+

  Themes of dictatorship, terrorism and privacy reign in Ness’s darker science fiction sequel to The Knife of Never Letting Go.

• The Astonishing Case of the Stolen Stories

  Author: Anca Sandu
  Publisher: Jonathan Cape
  Interest age: 5+
  Reading age: 6+

  The little prince is terribly upset; all of his bedtime stories have been stolen! Luckily detectives Cat, Fox and Bear are on the case.

• The Astonishing Future of Alex Nobody

  Author: Kate Gilby Smith Illustrator: Thy Bui
  Publisher: Orion Children’s Books
  Interest age: 11-14
  Reading age: 11+

  Alex has always felt she’s a little different. Home-schooled by an eccentric uncle until year 7, when she joins secondary school she finds it really hard to make friends. Even her teacher nicknames her ‘Alex Nobody’. Then there are the groups of oddly-dressed people that often seem to be following her – that’s not normal, right? But when she meets Jasper, ev…

• The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing

  Author: MT Anderson
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 13+

  This unusual book tells the dark, often harrowing story of Octavian, a boy in the care of a house of rational philosophers in revolutionary Boston.

• The Astounding Broccoli Boy

  Author: Frank Cottrell Boyce Illustrator: Steven Lenton
  Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 9+

  Rory Rooney is unremarkable in almost everything, apart from his capacity to attract the attention of the school bully. But when he suddenly and spectacularly turns green, he becomes a superhero!

• The Atlas of Monsters: Mythical Creatures from Around the World

  Author: Stuart Hill and Sandra Lawrence
  Publisher: Big Picture Press
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 8+

  The Atlas of Monsters takes the interesting angle of looking at each continent from the point of view of its traditional mythology, and also introduces the book itself as a mysterious source object to be investigated inside a story of strange discovery.

• The Awesome Body Book

  Author: Adam Frost
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 7-12
  Reading age: 7-12

  The vibrant infographics bring these facts about the human body to life, and make the book wonderfully fun and colourful. Have you ever wondered how many muscles you use when you smile, or realised that humans shed three types of tears?

• The Awesome Book of Animals

  Author: Adam Frost
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 7+

  If you have ever wondered which animal moves slowest, is the most deadly, or even poos the most – then this is the book for you! Sure to be a hit with fact lovers and animal lovers alike.

   

• The Awesome Book of Awesomeness

  Author: Adam Frost Illustrator: Dan Bramall
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 7+

  This is a super cool non-fiction book, a little bit like a small version of the Guinness Book of Records. It’s packed full of strange and fascinating facts – after reading this book, you will be able to wow everyone you know with your crazy knowledge.

• The Awesome Power of Sleep

  Author: Nicola Morgan
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 12-14
  Reading age: 12+

  This informative non-fiction book looks at the science of sleep and explores the crucial role it plays in the physical and mental health of teenagers.

• The B on Your Thumb: 60 Poems to Boost Reading and Spelling

  Author: Colette Hiller Illustrator: Tor Freeman
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 7+

  A fully illustrated, fun and funky collection of 60 poems to help boost reading and spelling or to enjoy as shared reading.

• The Baby

  Author: Lisa Drakeford
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 14+

  Olivia is in the midst of one of the greatest parties ever - her own 17^th birthday party - when she walks in on her best friend Nicola giving birth on her bathroom floor.

• The Baby and Fly Pie

  Author: Melvin Burgess
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 11-12
  Reading age: 9+

  Fly Pie and Sham are rubbish pickers, who go to the tip every day to pick rubbish for Mother Shelly. Then one day they come across a dying man and a baby.

• The Baby That Roared

  Author: Simon Puttock Illustrator: Nadia Shireen
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 1+
  Reading age: 5+

  Mr and Mrs Deer don’t have any children, but they would love to have a baby of their own to look after. When a mysterious bundle arrives on their doorstep they are overjoyed.

• The Baby Who Wouldn't Go To Bed

  Author: Helen Cooper
  Publisher: Random House
  Interest age: 3-7
  Reading age: 6+

  This determined baby refuses to go to bed. Resolved to stay up all night, he takes off in his car to search for like-minded friends.

• The Baby's Catalogue

  Author: Janet and Allan Ahlberg
  Publisher: Puffin
  Reading age: 3+

  This book's packed with lots of baby pictures and baby items. It's great for learning and making up stories - this fantastic book will lead to lots of talk with your child.

• The Bacteria Book: Gross Germs, Vile Viruses and Funky Fungi

  Author: Steve Mould
  Publisher: DK
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Perfect for fans of the Horrible Science series, this colourful book is full of weird and wonderful facts that will release the science enthusiast inside you. 

• The Bad Bunnies' Magic Show

  Author: Mini Grey
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 4-6
  

  This is a wonderful, inventive and playful picture book about two naughty bunnies and their magic tricks, which will delight young readers and their parents alike.

• The Bad Guys: Episodes 1 and 2

  Author: Aaron Blabey
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 7+

  Written like a comic book, this is a very funny story, full of action and crazy characters. It's lots of fun and will probably make you laugh out loud.

• The Bad Trousers

  Author: Ros Asquith Illustrator: Mairi Hedderwick
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Reading age: 6+

  Children will enjoy this cheeky tale thanks to Asquith's charming writing and Hedderwick's familiar illustrations. A lovely way to make learning to read fun.

• The Bakehouse

  Author: Joy Cowley
  Publisher: Gecko Press
  Interest age: 11-12
  Reading age: 11+

  An elderly Great-Grandfather tells his grandson what happened to him during World War II, and it involves a love affair between Bert's sister and a deserter.

• The Baking Life of Amelie Day

  Author:
  Publisher: Curious Fox
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9+

  In some ways Amelie Day is a teenager like any other, much of her day-to-day life revolving around her best friend, school, loyal boyfriend and fretful mother.  However, in other ways, she is rather less typical...

• The Ballad of Cactus Joe

  Author: Lily Murray Illustrator: Clive McFarland
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 4-5
  

  Cactus Joe is lean and mean and happy by himself. Or is he? Funny and visually enticing, this is a must-read for the grumpy cactus’s expressions alone! 

• The Balloon Thief

  Author: Aneesa Marufu
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 12-16
  Reading age: 12+

  When Khadija flees an unwanted arranged marriage on a hot air balloon, she's soon to discover that the world is full of danger - so what will she fight for? A stunning fantasy novel simmering with tension and excitement.

• The Bandit of Barbel Bay

  Author: Sam Bosma
  Publisher: Nobrow
  Interest age: 7-12
  Reading age: 7-9

  The second in the Fantasy Sports series starts to unfold a slightly more developed backstory. With more epic sports battles and more tongue-in-cheek humour, this high-action tale of good sportsmanship and friendship is another gem. 

• The Bare Bum Gang and the Football Face Off

  Author: Anthony McGowan
  Publisher: Red Fox
  Interest age: 6-7
  Reading age: 8+

  As everyone knows, a gang's den is sacred no matter how dirty, dark or smelly it may be so when the Bare Bum Gang's den is at risk they will do anything they can to save it.

• The Barefoot Book of Children

  Author: Tessa Strickland Kate DePalma and David Dean
  Publisher: Barefoot Books
  Interest age: 4-8
  Reading age: 5+

  This is a beautifully comprehensive and thought-provoking picture of the many different ways in which people live around the world. A book to dip into time and time again; a treasure trove of discussion topics, but also an aesthetic delight.

• The Barefoot Book of Jewish Tales

  Author: Shoshana Boyd Gelfand Illustrator: Amanda Hall
  Publisher: Barefoot Books
  Interest age: 7-9
  Reading age: 7-9

  The eight stories in this thought-provoking collection of traditional Jewish tales combine folklore and scripture, and are retold for children. Gathered from a range of eras and locations, the emphasis of each story is on kindness, compassion and trust in God.

• The Barefoot Books World Atlas

  Author: Nick Crane Illustrator: David Dean
  Publisher: Barefoot Books
  Interest age: 8-9
  Reading age: 9+

  Full of fascinating facts and figures about the earth and beautifully illustrated with David Dean’s bright and colourful maps

• The Bat Book

  Author: Charlotte Milner
  Publisher: Dorling Kindersley
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 7+

  This fabulous all-you-need-to-know book about bats is perfectly pitched for 7-9 year olds. It’s colourful and attractive, with a clear, simple font and an enthusiastic yet factual tone. There’s some lovely tips at the end too for making a bat-friendly garden, making seed balls and supporting bat charities.

• The Battle of the Sun

  Author:
  Publisher: Bloomsbury Childrens Books
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  Jack Snap is a 'boy where magic could happen'; and happen it does when he is imprisoned by a darkly powerful Magus, an alchemist who plans to turn Tudor London into gold.

• The Battlemage

  Author: Taran Matharu
  Publisher: Hodder Children’s Books
  Interest age: 9-12
  Reading age: 9-12

  The conclusion to the incredibly successful Summoner trilogy has plenty of action, and, while it’s emotional to leave Fletcher and the other well-drawn characters, Matharu ends things on a high with dragons, demons, battles and revelations galore.

• The Beanstalk Murder

  Author: P G Bell
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  When a dead giant falls from the sky and squishes their village, two trainee witches find themselves caught up in the hunt for a killer in a land where their suspects could squash them with just a footstep. 

• The Bear

  Author: Raymond Briggs
  Publisher: Penguin
  Interest age: 3-6
  Reading age: 6+

  Young Tilly is delighted when a polar bear clambers through her bedroom window one night - but are mischievous polar bears really ideal domestic pets? The Bear is a warm story about kindness, caring, and letting go.

• The Bear and the Hair

  Author: Claire Evans
  Publisher: Fourth Wall
  Interest age: 3-6
  Reading age: 5+

  Bear wants a 'cool' new haircut, so off he goes to the hairdressers - but which style will suit him best? A fun story with an attached bear puppet to really bring the tale to life.

• The Bear and the Piano

  Author: David Litchfield
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 5-8
  Reading age: 5+

  A bear's piano playing makes him a huge star, but he misses the friends and family he has left behind. A moving tale of exploration and belonging from an exciting debut author-illustrator.

• The Bear Cub Bakers

  Author: Caroline Baxter Illustrator: Kathi Ember
  Publisher: Big Sunshine Books
  Reading age: 6+

  A group of young bear cubs go to Miss Betsy Bear's baking school for a week of fun in the kitchen - but who will take home the golden trophy for best baker at the end of the week?

• The Bear in the Cave

  Author: Michael Rosen Illustrator: Adrian Reynolds
  Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books
  Reading age: 6+

  The lonely bear from Rosen’s classic We’re Going on a Bear Hunt sets off one day to follow the sounds of the city.

• The Bear Whispers to Me

  Author: Chang Ying-Tai Translator: Darryl Sterk
  Publisher: Balestier Press
  Interest age: 12-13
  Reading age: 12+

  A short, quiet novel that blurs the lines of fantasy and reality in a dream like fable, The Bear Whispers to Me feels traditional and timeless.

• The Bear Who Did

  Author: Louise Greig Illustrator: Laura Hughes
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 4-5
  

  A hilarious rhyming tale about two bears who aren't very good at sharing - especially when it comes to honey.

• The Bear Who Went Boo!

  Author: David Walliams Illustrator: Tony Ross
  Publisher: HarperCollins Children’s Books
  Interest age: 3-6
  Reading age: 6+

  A comical and entertaining book about a little polar bear with a big voice - BOO!

• The Bear's Sea Escape

  Author: Benjamin Chaud
  Publisher: Chronicle Books
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  Parents and children alike will enjoy this touching tale of a father's mission to find his son in this stylish picture book.

• The Beast is an Animal

  Author: Peternelle van Arsdale
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 11-15
  Reading age: 11+

  When unimaginable tragedy strikes her village, Alys is only seven years old, yet she can’t stop thinking that she is somehow to blame. An epic story of triumph over adversity in the style of traditional folk tales.

• The Beast of Harwood Forest

  Author: Dan Smith Illustrator: Chris King
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Pete, Krish and Nancy are excited about their Year 8 geography field trip. However, an exciting adventure quickly becomes a terrifying ordeal. This creepy, dyslexia-friendly tale is the follow-up to The Invasion of Crooked Oak, but can be enjoyed as a standalone novel. 

• The Beast Player

  Author: Nahoko Uehashi Translator: Cathy Hirano
  Publisher: Pushkin Press
  Interest age: 12-14
  Reading age: 12+

  Elin's mother has a very special job - caring for the magical Toda which protect their kingdom. But when something goes wrong, Elin must flee and discovers an astonishing talent for communicating with creatures. A sophisticated fantasy that will have teen readers gripped.

• The Beasts Beneath Our Feet

  Author: James Carter Illustrator: Alisa Kosareva
  Publisher: Little Tiger Press
  Interest age: 4-12
  Reading age: 7+

  Dip into prehistoric times with this beautifully illustrated book that combines poetry and non-fiction. Introducing dinosaurs and paleontology, readers meet the trilobites that scuttled across the ocean floor; the Meganeuropsis (a buzzing giant dragonfly); the Diplodocus with its whip-like tail; and of course no dinosaur book is complete without the bone-cru…

• The Beasts of Clawstone Castle

  Author: Eva Ibbotson
  Publisher: Macmillan Children's books
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Madlyn and Rollo are despatched to live for the summer with their reclusive elderly relatives in decrepit Clawstone Castle.

• The Beasts of Knobbly Bottom: Attack of the Vampire Sheep

  Author: Emily-Jane Clark Illustrator: Jeff Crowther
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  After reluctantly moving to the tiny village of Knobbly Bottom, Maggie is astonished when she encounters a flock of vampire sheep who are determined to take over the world. This hilarious chapter book, with a fast-paced plot and dynamic black-and-white illustrations, is the first in a fabulously funny series that is perfect for junior readers.

• The Beaver Who Saved Christmas

  Author: Will Millard Illustrator: Jo Lindley
  Publisher: Hachette
  Interest age: 3-7
  Reading age: 7+

  Elin and her grandad must save a family of beavers after their habitat is filled with plastic and rubbish.A heartwarming story which includes lots of information and an activity inspiration.  

• The Bedtime Bear

  Author: Ian Whybrow Illustrator: Axel Scheffler
  Publisher: Pan Macmillan
  

  Join Bedtime Bear as he journeys to a variety of places on his way to bed, in this superb lift-the-flap book for young children. 

• The Bee's Knees

  Author: Roger McGough
  Publisher: Penguin
  Reading age: 5+

  These, warm, funny poems will amuse children and hopefully get them wanting to share the rhyme and repetition by reading them out loud.

• The Beetle Collector’s Handbook

  Author: M G Leonard
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  A must-have companion for dedicated fans of M G Leonard’s Beetle Boy series, this is the ultimate guide for those who want to find out more about beetles. With illustrations and funny notes in the margins, this is a book for everyone who wants to explore nature.

• The Best Birthday Present Ever

  Author: Ben Mantle
  Publisher: Macmillan
  Interest age: 3-6
  Reading age: 6+

  When Bear sends out invitations to his birthday party, his guests compete with one another to buy the best present in the toyshop.

• The Best Diwali Ever

  Author: Sonali Shah Illustrator: Chaaya Prabhat
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 3-6
  

  Ariana is super excited for Diwali – she’s looking forward to yummy sweets, playing with her cousins, and wearing a lovely outfit – and staying up late to watch fireworks, of course! A gorgeous and relatable book. 

• The Best Eid Ever

  Author: Sufiya Ahmed Illustrator: Hazem Asif
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Eid al-Fitr is Aisha’s favourite festival. Every year, her family hide gifts in a treasure hunt for her Aisha and her brother Samir to find. But between the chaos and celebrations, will Aisha ever get her presents?

• The Best Kind of Bear

  Author: Greg Gormley Illustrator: David Barrow
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  

  Bear is a very sweet little bear, but he doesn’t know what type of bear he is. Spectacled? Grizzly? Polar? He meets them all but none of them seem quite right - until his best friend Nelly helps him discover that he's the best kind of bear there is. An adorable friendship story that's perfect for young animal lovers.

• The Best Me! A first book of self-care for healthy and happy children

  Author: Marvyn Harrison Illustrator: Rochelle Falconer
  Publisher: Macmillan Children’s Books
  Interest age: 4-5
  

  A sweet picture book that boosts children’s self-esteem and encourages them to be their best selves. Lovely to share at any time.

• The Best Medicine

  Author: Christine Hamill
  Publisher: Little Island
  Interest age: 9-14
  Reading age: 9+

  Twelve-year old Philip Wright is a comedian in the making. Then one day, he tells his mother a joke, and she breaks down in tears. It's a brave challenge to unite the themes of cancer and comedy - but this is an entertaining and light-hearted read.

• The Best Mother

  Author: C M Surrisi Illustrator: Diane Goode
  Publisher: Abrams Books for Young Readers
  Interest age: 5-7
  Reading age: 6+

  Maxine suspects that if she had a different mother, things would be much nicer – until she talks to some other mums. A fun, quirky book for children who might have wondered “what if?”, this story celebrates how perfect our own mothers are just for us.

• The Best Mum

  Author: Penny Harrison Illustrator: Sharon Davey
  Publisher: New Frontier Publishing
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  Funny and silly with lots of brilliant detail in the illustrations by Sharon Davey, this is a celebration of all different kinds of mums and a reminder that they love us.

• The Best of Pippi Longstocking

  Author: Astrid Lindgren Illustrator: Tony Ross
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 6-7
  Reading age: 8+

  Pippi is an empowering role model to all young girls; her resourcefulness will inspire all

• The Best of Times

  Author: Michael Morpurgo Illustrator: Emma Chichester Clark
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 8+

  The Prince invites entertainers to the palace to cheer up the Princess. The puppeteers come too and perform the greatest story – the Christmas Nativity story.

• The Best Singer in the World

  Author: Ulf Nilsson Illustrator: Eva Eriksson
  Publisher: Gecko Press
  Reading age: 6+

  Astrid Lindgren award winner Eva Eriksson provides quirky, soft-focus and humorous illustrations for Ulf Nilsson's story about a boy who loves singing but is too shy to perform.

• The Best Worst Day Ever

  Author: Sophy Henn
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  Sophy Henn’s sweet, fun book about tantrums and how we might best work them out is a real winner. There’s a nod to Where The Wild Things Are, as the story accepts Arthur’s wildness and allows a safe space for him to huff it all out.

• The Best You

  Author: Nima Patel Illustrator: Cally Johnson-Isaacs
  Publisher: Little Tiger
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 6+

  In this gentle and uplifting picture book, the common question ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’ is turned on its head. Children are often asked to think about what job they might like to do from an early age. And whilst there is nothing wrong with ambition, this question can feel difficult – after all, there is still so much to learn about the worl…

• The Bet

  Author: David Grant Illustrator: Garry Parsons
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 10-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Ed, Zac, Becca and Kat are all keen to go on a school trip, but then they learn they'll have to earn money to make it there - and soon it's boys versus girls to see who can make the most cash! A dyslexia-friendly book.

• The Betrayal

  Author: Mary Hooper
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 12-13
  Reading age: 9+

  The final novel in Hooper's At the House of the Magician series, in which Lucy is in London, preparing for the imminent arrival of Dr John Dee, the court alchemist and his family.

• The Bewitching of Aveline Jones

  Author: Phil Hickes Illustrator: Keith Robinson
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Aveline loves all things spooky, so is delighted when her mother rents a holiday cottage that overlooks an ancient stone circle, until a mysterious girl appears and strange things start to happen. Convincing characters, an intriguing plot and spine-tingling chills.

• The BFG

  Author: Roald Dahl Illustrator: Quentin Blake
  Publisher: Jonathan Cape
  Interest age: 6-10
  Reading age: 7+

  The BFG stands for Big Friendly Giant, who unexpectedly spirits a little girl named Sophie out of bed, and into the land of the child-eating giants.

• The Big Adventure of the Smalls

  Author: Helen Stephens
  Publisher: Farshore
  Reading age: 7+

  When Paul and Sally Small sneak out of bed to take a peek at the goings-on at the Small Hall Grand Ball, Mr Puddles the teddy bear has a nasty accident - he falls through the banisters and simply has to be rescued.

• The Big Amazing Poetry Book: 52 Weeks of Poetry from 52 Brilliant Poets

  Author: Various chosen by Gaby Morgan foreword by Roger McGough Illustrator: Chris Riddell
  Publisher: Macmillan Children’s Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  There is something for everyone in this superb poetry collection, which features a different poem for every day of the year. Splendidly diverse in subject, genre and style, this rich tapestry of verse is beautifully woven together by Chris Riddell’s characterful line drawings, which adorn every page.

• The Big Book of Beautiful Babies

  Author: David Ellwand
  Publisher: Ragged Bears
  Reading age: 3+

  This book is full of lovely black and white photos – your child will love looking at the pictures of babies’ faces and expressions.

• The Big Book of Football

  Author: Mundial Illustrator: Damien Weighill
  Publisher: Wide Eyed Editions
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  A great introduction to the beautiful game, featuring everything from the evolution of the football boot to players' hairdos and Drogba's perfect attacking headers.

• The Big Book of Magical Mixups

  Author: Hilary Robinson Illustrator: Nick Sharratt
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Reading age: 6+

  If you have ever wished you could turn a weedy uncle into an inflatable fairy or a bad-tempered friend into an exploding pencil case then this is the book for you!

• The Big Book of the Blue

  Author: Yuval Zommer
  Publisher: Thames & Hudson
  Interest age: 5-8
  Reading age: 6+

  This wonderful, beautifully illustrated book about all things fishy (and ocean-y) has a gentle sense of humour: presenting digestible facts, ideal for lower primary children, with a light-hearted twist. 

• The Big Dreaming

  Author: Michael Rosen Illustrator: Daniel Egnéus
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 4-5
  Reading age: 7+

  It’snearly time for the Big Dreaming. Big Bear and Little Bear will sleep through the Winter and wake in Spring. But Little Bear is worried he’ll run out of dreams, so he sets off on an adventure to find some… Perfect for bedtime reading.

• The Big Snuggle-Up

  Author: Brian Pattern Illustrator: Nicola Bayley
  Publisher: Anderson Press
  Reading age: 6+

  The beautifully detailed illustrations by Nicola Bayley capture the warmth and magic of this delightful story

• The Big Story of Being Alive

  Author: Neal Layton
  Publisher: Wren & Rook
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 6+

  In this clever picture book, Neal Layton explains that there are some things that everything alive has in common: they are cellular, they grow and they can reproduce. 

  ---

  Yn y llyfr lluniau clyfar hwn, rydyn ni'n dysgu bod yna rai pethau yn gyffredin i bopeth byw: maen nhw'n gellog, maen nhw'n tyfu ac maen nhw'n gallu atgenhedlu.

• The Bigger Picture: Women Who Changed the Art World

  Author: Sophia Bennett Illustrator: Manjit Thapp
  Publisher: Tate Publishing
  Interest age: 9-14
  Reading age: 9+

  For thousands of years, the work of brilliant female creatives has gone unappreciated, whether they were taking part in weaving, sewing, embroidery or crockery. This fascinating book profiles wonderful women artists from across the world and gives their work the attention it deserves.

• The Biracial Butterfly

  Author: Lennox Benson Illustrator: Hari Conner
  Publisher: Pup Ear Books, an imprint of Dog Horn Publishing
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 7+

  A warm and simple rhyming story that explores mixed heritage and identity in an imaginative, colourful way, and reassures in its acceptance of difference and variety. 

• The Bird Singers

  Author: Eve Wersocki Morris
  Publisher: Hachette
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Sisters Layah and Izzie aren't best pleased when their mum moves them to a sleepy village without their Dad. But they soon discover that the village has more to offer than they first thought.

• The Bison and the Butterfly

  Author: Alice Hemming Illustrator: Nancy Leschnikoff
  Publisher: Ivy Kids
  Interest age: 4-5
  

  Bison learns how vital she is to the woodland, and to fellow creatures like Butterfly. Based on a real rewilding project in Kent, this charming picture book is sweet and surprisingly informative. 

• The Black Book of Colours

  Author: Menena Cottin Illustrator: Rosana Faria
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Reading age: 6+

  A visually impaired boy introduces us to colours as he experiences them – through his senses of hearing, touch, smell and taste.

• The Black Book of Secrets

  Author: F E Higgins
  Publisher: Pan Macmillan
  Interest age: 10-11
  Reading age: 10+

  An original and fascinating book by a talented new writer, which explores themes of trust, redemption, forgiveness and natural justice in the context of a dark and gripping mystery.

• The Black Cat Detectives

  Author: Wendy Meddour
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 8-9
  Reading age: 9+

  Auntie Urooj is lonely so Shaima decides to sign her up with the Truly Deeply Muslims online marriage agency. But her new suitor Rasheed isn't all he appears to be...

• The Black Lotus

  Author: Kierann Fanning
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 9-12
  Reading age: 10+

  Three children, each with their own special ability, are plucked from the streets in different cities around the world. They are brought together and trained as ninjas to continue to protect the Moon Sword - a source of great power.

• The Black Lung Captain: Tales of the Ketty Jay

  Author: Chris Wooding
  Publisher: Indigo
  Interest age: 12-13
  Reading age: 10+

  In the second gripping installment of the adventures of the Ketty Jay, Captain Darien Frey finds himself seeking an alien treasure on a dangerous island.

• The Blackhope Enigma

  Author: Teresa Flavin
  Publisher: Templar
  Interest age: 10-12
  Reading age: 9+

  When Sunni’s step-brother unwittingly unlocks a passage into an old painting, they are transported to Arcadia and must find a way out of this dangerous and exciting land.

• The Blackthorn Key

  Author: Kevin Sands
  Publisher: Simon and Schuster
  Interest age: 10-12
  Reading age: 10+

  A young alchemy apprentice seeks vengeance after his master is murdered by a sinister cult.

• The Blanket Bears

  Author: Samuel Langley-Swain Illustrator: Ashlee Spink
  Publisher: Owlet Press
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  Alone in the snow, two little bears are cold, scared and missing much of their fur. Thankfully, help arrives in the form of Tilly, who hopes them to find another home. A gentle and heartfelt story that shows the adoption process in an honest, reassuring way.
  
  

• The Blood Guard

  Author: Carter Roy
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 10-12
  Reading age: 10+

  Ronan discovers why his mother has filled all his spare time with classes of every kind, from martial arts to fencing. Think Anthony Horowitz meets Dan Brown and be prepared for a fast and spectacular ride in this first book in a series.

• The Blood List

  Author: Sarah Naughton
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 13+

  In 1646, England is gripped by wild tales of witches, murder and changelings.

• The Blue Book of Nebo

  Author: Manon Steffan Ros
  Publisher: Firefly Press
  Interest age: 12-14
  Reading age: 12+

  The End came in the form of a nuclear disaster in Anglesey, and 12-year-old Dylan and his mum are surviving alone in their deserted town, six years on. However, soon tensions begins to surface. A slim book that packs a huge emotional punch.

• The Blue Cat

  Author: Ursula Dubosarky
  Publisher: Allen & Unwin
  Interest age: 10-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Columba, growing up in Australia on the eve of the Second World War, knows Europe only as a far-away place where mysterious events occur and threaten her life. A poetic account of the Second World War.

• The Blue Sword

  Author: Robin McKinley
  Publisher: Firebird
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 12+

  This teen fantasy, originally published in 1982, is a rip-roaring ride filled with fantasy, girl-power, romance and danger.

• The Bluest of Blues: Anna Atkins and the First Book of Photographs

  Author: Fiona Robinson
  Publisher: Abrams Books for Young Readers
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 6+

  Fiona Robinson’s beautifully blue book about the life of 19th-century born Anna Atkins is an inspiring testament to a father’s commitment to his daughter’s education, and to her passion for the natural world. Young nature lovers will be inspired by Anna’s story.

• The Body Book

  Author: Hannah Alice
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 7-13
  Reading age: 7+

  This brilliant introduction to the human body shows readers how our bodies have groups of organs (or ‘systems’) that all work together to keep us eating and breathing – like the different parts of a machine. There’s the muscular system, skeletal system, digestive system, and more. Did you know, for example, that your teeth are actually part of your skeletal …

• The Bog Baby

  Author: Jeanne Willis Illustrator: Gwen Millward
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 2+
  Reading age: 6+

  Two little girls go walking in bluebell wood and rescue a Bog Baby.

• The Bombs That Brought Us Together

  Author: Brian Conaghan
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 12-16
  Reading age: 12+

  Charlie and Pav's friendship becomes something more complex, when the bombs and the Old Country soldiers come. This compulsive teen read successfully achieves a difficult balance: entertainment and social commentary.

• The Bone Dragon

  Author: Alexia Casale
  Publisher: Faber Children's
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 13+

  An intriguing blend of psychological thriller and fantasy, this is an impressive and unusual debut.

• The Bone Sparrow

  Author: Zana Fraillon
  Publisher: Orion Children’s Books
  Interest age: 10-14
  Reading age: 10+

  Focusing on a friendship between two young refugees, The Bone Sparrow is one of those rare, special books that will break your heart with its honesty and beauty - but is ultimately hopeful and uplifting.

• The Bonehill Curse

  Author: Jon Mayhew
  Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 10+

  The year is 1868 and Necessity Bonehill lives miserably in a boarding school for young ladies. Overwhelmed by boredom, she is unable to resist temptation when an exotic-looking bottle arrives from her uncle along with instructions never to open it.

• The Boo! Zoo

  Author: Rod Campbell
  Publisher: Pan Macmillan
  

  Once again set at a zoo, children get to guess which animal lurks behind each large card flap. Be prepared for lots of enthusiastic yelps from the toddlers reading along, when they spot what looks like an elephant trunk or tiger paws peeking out from beneath! 

• The Book Case

  Author: Dave Shelton
  Publisher: David Fickling Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  This sniggeringly funny, totally deadpan adventure is a joy to read. Loosely set in the 1930s, it’s a bit like reading a really well-written and funny Famous Five or Secret Seven by Enid Blyton.

• The Book of Bees

  Author: Piotr Socha and Wojciech Grajkowski Translator: Agnes Monod-Gayraud
  Publisher: Thames & Hudson
  Interest age: 7-9
  Reading age: 7-9

  This glorious book will introduce you to the bee world. It is fantastically illustrated in a cartoonish style that is big, bold and great fun.

• The Book of Blast Off! 15 Real-life Space Missions

  Author: Timothy Knapman Illustrator: Nik Henderson
  Publisher: Magic Cat Publishing
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Discover the details of 15 real-life missions into space – all told in accessible rhyme, and with vibrant illustrations. Not just for space enthusiasts!

• The Book of Blood and Shadow

  Author: Robin Wasserman
  Publisher: Atom
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 13+

  Translating the letters of sixteenth century alchemist's daughter Elizabeth Weston, Nora finds herself on the trail of a powerful secret encoded in the mysterious Voynich Manuscript

• The Book of Clouds

  Author: Juris Kronbergs Illustrator: Anete Melece Translator: Mara Rozīte and Richard O’Brien
  Publisher: The Emma Press
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 8+

  This wonderful book about the magic of clouds is full of surprising and original poems, perfect for upper key stage two children either at school or at home. 

• The Book of Dust 1: La Belle Sauvage

  Author: Philip Pullman Illustrator: Chris Wormell
  Publisher: Penguin
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 10+

  Malcolm is drawn into a dangerous world of secrets and intrigue – and a mission to protect baby Lyra, whatever the cost. La Belle Sauvage gives readers a not-to-be-missed chance to be back in the world of His Dark Materials: full of peril, magic and thrills. 

• The Book of Dust 2: The Secret Commonwealth

  Author: Philip Pullman Illustrator: Chris Wormell
  Publisher: Penguin Books
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 11+

  The Secret Commonwealth is a deeper, darker beast than the previous His Dark Materials trilogy. Some brilliant and excitingly tense set pieces will keep you breathless and with a knot in your stomach – and desperate to know what happens next. 

• The Book of Pearl

  Author: Timothée de Fombelle Translator: Sarah Ardizzone
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 12-13
  Reading age: 12+

  Joshua Pearl is a fairy prince in a human world, trying to make his way back to his one true love through our history. This sweeping fairy tale of love and memory will bewitch readers who long for epic romance and otherworldly magic.

• The Book of Stolen Dreams

  Author: David Farr
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 10-13
  Reading age: 9+

  A tense and exciting fantasy thriller set against the backdrop of a cruel dictatorship. Complex, magical and packed with great characters – both heroic and evil.

• The Book Thief

  Author: Markus Zusak
  Publisher: Black Swan
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 13+

  A powerful story narrated by Death, about: a girl, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist fighter, and quite a lot of thievery

• The Book with No Pictures

  Author: B J Novak
  Publisher: Puffin
  

  Demanding to be shared, this is a fresh and enormously funny book that children will want to hear time and time again.

• The Bookshop Cat

  Author: Cindy Wume
  Publisher: Macmillan
  

  Cindy Wume’s utterly delightful story about a cute little children’s bookshop and a book-loving cat is a perfect cosy read. Cat fans and keen readers will find themselves well catered to here.

• The Bookshop Girl

  Author: Sylvia Bishop Illustrator: Ashley King
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 9+

  When Property Jones's family win the amazing opportunity to take over a huge bookshop in London, they can't wait to move. But Property thinks there's something fishy going on. This crime caper has lots of warmth and laughs.

• The Bookworm

  Author: Debi Gliori
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  

  Max's pet worm loves listening to stories - and also loves curry and chilli crisps. As it grows, Max realises his pet is not a worm after all, but something MUCH bigger. This heartwarming tale of a boy and his unusual pet’s relationship is full of the everyday magic that stories bring.

• The Borrowers

  Author: Mary Norton
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 9+

  The Borrowers are tiny people who live in the secret places of old houses - behind the mantlepiece, inside the harpsichord, under the kitchen clock.

• The Boss Baby

  Author: Marla Frazee
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Books
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 6+

  From the moment the baby arrived, it was obvious that he was the boss

• The Boundless

  Author: Kenneth Oppel
  Publisher: David Fickling Books
  Interest age: 11-12
  Reading age: 11+

  Travelling on a gigantic train, The Boundless, Will witnesses a brutal murder - and it is up to Will to save the train. A rollercoaster of a read, with thrilling turns, dazzling characters and non-stop action.

• The Box of Delights

  Author: John Masefield Illustrator: Quentin Blake
  Publisher: The Box of Delights
  Interest age: 6-10
  Reading age: 6+

  A magical old man has asked Kay to protect the Box of Delights, a Box with which he can travel through time. But Kay is in danger: Abner Brown will stop at nothing to get his hands on it. The police don't believe Kay, so when his family and the Bishop are scrobbled up just before Christmas, he knows he must act alone...

• The Boy and the Globe

  Author: Tony Bradman Illustrator: Tom Morgan-Jones
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke Ltd
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 7+

  When Toby goes to the Globe theatre to thieve, he meets a sad and despairing figure: William Shakespeare. This funny chapter book celebrates the power of art and imagination in all its forms - and has some wonderfully arch illustrations.

• The Boy and the Octopus

  Author: Caryl Lewis Illustrator: Carmen Saldaña
  Publisher: Puffin Books
  Interest age: 4-5
  

  Can Stanley’s octopus help Stanley face his fears? A moving and visually stunning book about expressing your emotions through art – with a lovely father-son relationship at its heart. 

• The Boy at the Back of the Class

  Author: Onjali Q Raúf
  Publisher: Orion
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 10+

  This is the story about how four classmates have a massive impact on the life of Ahmet, a boy that comes to their school as a refugee from Syria. An inspiring and sweet tale that should help children be the best they can be and realise the power of kindness.

• The Boy from France

  Author: Hilary Freeman
  Publisher: Piccadilly Press
  Interest age: 12-13
  Reading age: 10+

  When Vix’s visiting French exchange student turns out to be a boy, her classmates are jealous. But Vix is regretting being a host – she already has enough to do caring for her disabled mother.

• The Boy in the Black Suit

  Author: Jason Reynolds
  Publisher: Faber and Faber
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 14+

  When Matt’s mum tragically dies from cancer, it feels like all the joy is sucked out of his life. Then he meets a girl called Love. This is a profoundly beautiful, open-hearted, funny, tear-jerking, readable and relatable story, which explores grief in the truest sense.

• The Boy in the Dress

  Author: David Walliams Illustrator: Quentin Blake
  Publisher: HarperCollins Childrens Books
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 9+

  Despite its sensitive subject matter, this book is filled with humour

• The Boy in the Smoke

  Author: Rachel Faturoti
  Publisher: Hodder Children’s Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  When Isaiah discovers a time portal in the basement of his tower block, he meets Jacob, who lived in the same building when it was a workhouse in the 1830s. This gripping, multilayered time-slip novel explores poverty from both a historical and contemporary perspective.

• The Boy in the Suit

  Author: James Fox
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  When Solo and his mum gatecrash a celebrity funeral, they find themselves all over the newspapers and the internet – for all the wrong reasons.  

• The Boy in the Tower

  Author: Polly Ho-Yen
  Publisher: Penguin Random House Children's
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 9+

  Taking place in a believable urban, multicultural environment that will be familiar to many young readers, Polly Ho-Yen's debut is an impressively moving and thought-provoking story that will touch children and adults alike.

• The Boy Lost in the Maze

  Author: Joseph Coelho Illustrator: Kate Milner
  Publisher: Otter-Barry Books
  Interest age: 12-14
  Reading age: 12+

  Theo’s search for his father intertwines with the journey of Theseus towards his father. Each boy works out what it is to be a man. A powerful verse novel with stunning illustrations.

• The Boy on the Wooden Box

  Author: Leon Leyson
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 9+

  The harrowing story of Leon Leyson, a Jewish boy who was saved by Oskar Schindler is hard to read at times but it’s wonderfully written and sure to move readers to the core.

• The Boy to Beat the Gods

  Author: Ashley Thorpe
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  With exciting and imaginative battle scenes, and an energetic narrative, this fun-packed fantasy adventure is inspired by aspects of Caribbean and African culture and spirituality. 

• The Boy Who Climbed into the Moon

  Author: David Almond Illustrator: Polly Dunbar
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 8-10
  Reading age: 9+

  A child's imagination is a wonderful thing and Paul's is more wonderful and vivid than many. He has a theory - that the moon is not really the moon but a great big hole in the sky.

• The Boy Who Cried Ghost

  Author: Ian Eagleton
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-11
  

  This insightful, haunting, coming-of-age story is a celebration of friendship, diversity and inclusion that gives readers a glimpse into the mind of someone living with OCD.  

• The Boy Who Didn’t Want to Die

  Author: Peter Lantos
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  The harrowing true story of a Hungarian Jewish boy and his mother and their journey to – and escape from – Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp in the Second World War. Extraordinary and moving.

• The Boy Who Fell Down Exit 43

  Author: Harriet Goodwin
  Publisher: Stripes
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 9+

  A quirky debut novel laced with humour and a dollop of magic

• The Boy Who Fell from the Sky

  Author: Benjamin Dean
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Zed’s dad is the First Hunter of Demons. But when Zed meets a Demon, he discovers that they’renot as terrifying as the myths say. Exciting and full of heart.  

• The Boy Who Flew

  Author: Fleur Hitchcock
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  When Athan Wilde’s mentor, Mr Chen, is brutally murdered, he rescues secret plans that should enable him to complete the old man’s spectacular flying machine. But Athan needs help and he’s not sure who to trust. A tense and imaginative historical thriller.

• The Boy Who Fooled The World

  Author: Lisa Thompson
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  When a famous artist visits his school and is impressed by his artwork, Cole's masterpiece is sold for thousands of pounds. Initially ecstatic, Cole begins to buckle under the media attention and pressure to produce another painting. Lisa Thompson's clever story is full of exciting twists and surprises, while also addressing feelings such as shame and a…

• The Boy Who Grew a Tree

  Author: Polly Ho-Yen Illustrator: Sojung Kim-McCarthy
  Publisher: Knights Of
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 6+

  Timi is a quiet little boy who loves to grow plants and is a keen observer of nature. When his mum becomes pregnant, Timi isn’t that happy about being sent to after school club and looked after more by his auntie, since Mum isn’t feeling as energetic as usual. Yet when Mum has the baby early, she has to stay in hospital until Timi’s new baby sister is big en…

• The Boy Who Hit Play

  Author: Chloe Daykin
  Publisher: Faber & Faber
  Interest age: 10-14
  Reading age: 10+

  A funny, life-affirming quest for identity that sees 12-year old Elvis Crampton Lucas and his adoptive dad racing across Norway, pursued by a shadowy villain. Captivating and thought-provoking.

• The Boy Who Lost His Bumble

  Author: Trudi Esberger
  Publisher: Child's Play
  Interest age: 4-5
  

  A little boy loves the bees in his garden, but as the seasons change, they disappear - will they ever return? A delightful and gently engaging picture book about the cyclical nature of life.

• The Boy Who Loved Everyone

  Author: Jane Porter Illustrator: Maisie Paradise Shearring
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  Dimitri is new at nursery, and no matter how many people (and trees) he says 'I love you' to, no one says it back. Dimitri starts to get really sad. Even the guinea pig seems to want to get away!

  When Mum walks him to nursery the next day, she explains that people show their feelings in different ways: the mean old man on the park bench is telling the stray …

• The Boy Who Made Everyone Laugh

  Author: Helen Rutter
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-13
  Reading age: 9+

  Billy's starting secondary school, but he's worried that his stammer will make it hard to fit in. He has to get rid of it before he can pursue his dream of being a stand-up comedian - so he comes up with an unusual list of ways to deal with it...

• The Boy Who Met A Whale

  Author: Nizrana Farook
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Edge-of-seat thrills contrast with the beauty and wildlife of a remote island nation as three youngsters must use their wits and determination to rescue lost treasure and escape a pair of murderous criminals.

• The Boy Who Sailed the Ocean in an Armchair

  Author: Lara Williamson
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 10-12
  Reading age: 9+

  Becket Rumsey decides to investigate the reasons behind the strange actions of some of the adults in his life. With the help of his brother Billy and his pet snail Brian, he uncovers some difficult truths - and some beautiful ones.

• The Boy Who Sailed the World

  Author: Julia Green Illustrator: Alex Latimer
  Publisher: David Fickling Books
  Interest age: 4-5
  Reading age: 4-5

  A little boy who loves the sea builds a boat and goes on an adventure. When evening falls, he loses his way, but doesn’t give up: the compass will show him where to go. When a storm hits the boat, the little boy holds on and mends his sail.

• The Boy Who Saved a Bear

  Author: Nizrana Farook
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  When 12 year old Nuwan accidentally gets hold of a priceless key, it's the start of an incredible journey - with a ferocious black bear for company!

• The Boy Who Stole the Pharaoh’s Lunch

  Author: Karen McCombie Illustrator: Anneli Bray
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  When Seth is transported back in time to Ancient Egypt, can he save a friendly hyena, who is destined to become the main course at the Pharaoh’s feast? This engaging time-slip adventure is ideal for reluctant or dyslexic readers.

• The Boy Who Swam with Piranhas

  Author: David Almond Illustrator: Oliver Jeffers
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 8-9
  Reading age: 10+

  Multi-award-winning author David Almond returns with this pleasingly eccentric story of a ordinary boy who embarks on an unusual adventure.

• The Boy who Switched off the Sun

  Author: Paul Brown Illustrator: Mark O’Hanlon
  Publisher: Fourth Wall Publishing
  Reading age: 7+

  Marcel turns off the sun and plunges the world into the cold and dark. Can he find a way to put things back to normal – and quickly? Bright, glossy, humorous and thought-provoking.

• The Boy Whose Wishes Came True

  Author: Helen Rutter
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-12
  Reading age: 8+

  Archie Crumb thinks he is nothing special, until a footballing fairy godfather gives him nine wishes and the chance to change everything. A rewarding read that deals with similar issues to Jacqueline Wilson but in a more reassuring way.

• The Boy With the Butterfly Mind

  Author: Victoria Williamson
  Publisher: Floris Books
  Interest age: 10-14
  Reading age: 9+

  The complexities of families divided by break-up and reformed as blended versions of themselves will have been experienced by many readers. Elin and Jamie’s story is a compelling and affecting book about acceptance, openness and family dynamics.

• The Boy With Two Heads

  Author: Andy Mulligan
  Publisher: David Fickling
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 12+

  Richard Westlake is an altogether ordinary boy, until he inexplicably grows another head.

• The Boy With Wings

  Author: Lenny Henry Illustrator: Keenon Ferrell and Mark Buckingham
  Publisher: Macmillan
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  A funny and exciting school story that turns into a wild fantasy adventure when Tunde dicovers he can sprout giant wings and his destiny is to save the world! The book is brilliantly inclusive and handles themes of bullying, racism, and the challenges of being adopted. 

• The Boy, The Bird and the Coffin Maker

  Author: Matilda Woods
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 10-12
  Reading age: 10+

  Allora is a small town so close to the ocean that fish fly out of the tumultuous sea; it's a town so small that secrets are impossible to keep.

• The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse

  Author: Charlie Mackesy
  Publisher: Ebury Publishing
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 6+

  Four new friends explore the world together, reflecting on everything they see and do, and what life actually means. A celebration of love, compassion and kindness, this is a magical book to dip into or read from cover to cover.

• The Boyhood of Burglar Bill

  Author: Allan Ahlberg
  Publisher: Penguin
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  It is 1953, and in Oldbury Town there is to be a football competition. Rood End Primary enters its two best teams, but there are a few others who want to make their mark too.

• The Boys

  Author: Lauren Ace Illustrator: Jenny Lovlie
  Publisher: Little Tiger
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 6+

  This inclusive picture book is very much centred on presenting an alternative to outdated representations of masculinity, and reminding us that boys are just as kind, loving, creative, clever and thoughtful as girls.

• The Brainiac’s Book of Robots and AI

  Author: Paul Virr Illustrator: Harriet Russell
  Publisher: Thames & Hudson
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Enjoyable and fascinating, this non-fiction book explores what robots are and what they can, and might, do. Timely and accessible.

• The Brave Beast

  Author: Chris Judge
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Reading age: 6+

  The Beast is enjoying a lovely bit of peace and quiet when terrified villagers from a nearby island beg for his help in finding the source of a horrifying howling.

• The Brave Little Grork

  Author: Kathryn Cave Illustrator: Nick Maland
  Publisher: Friendly Dragon
  Interest age: 4-8
  Reading age: 6+

  Grorks are shy, easily frightened creatures, and the one in this story is no exception. When his friend, the greep, suggests going for a walk to the wood, the grork is terrified...

• The Bride's Farewell

  Author: Meg Rosoff
  Publisher: Penguin
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 11+

  A gripping, poetic coming-of-age tale, which considers issues as relevant to 21st century teenage experience as they were in Pell’s time; relationships, duty, love and abuse.

• The Brilliant World of Tom Gates

  Author: Liz Pichon
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  This book oozes personality and with so much going on it promises to maintain the attention of young readers for hours at a time

• The Brockenspectre

  Author: Linda Newbery Illustrator: Pam Smy
  Publisher: Random House
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 8+

  Tomas sets out to find his father, terrified that the Brockenspectre - a mountain monster which his father had told him about - has got him.

• The Broken Dragon

  Author: Karen McCombie Illustrator: Anneli Bray
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Tyra loves her new life with Nan but is anxious about starting a new school in case she doesn’t fit in. A heart-warming tale, designed specifically to appeal to reluctant and dyslexic readers.

• The Broken Leg of Doom

  Author: Pamela Butchart Illustrator: Thomas Flintham
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 7-9
  Reading age: 7+

  Maisie's been taken to hospital after some extreme dancing... and now there are some very strange things going on! A laugh-out-loud tale of mummies, mystery, and cursed tuna sandwiches.

• The Broken Road

  Author: B R Collins
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 11-12
  Reading age: 9+

  Celebrating the 800th centenary of the Children's Crusade, The Broken Road imagines the story of a group of young people to Jerusalem to regain the city from the Saracens for the Christianity, which took place in the 13th century.

• The Bubble Boy

  Author: Stewart Foster
  Publisher: Simon and Schuster
  Interest age: 10-11
  Reading age: 10+

  Joe has always lived in a sterile room in a hospital. He's the 'bubble boy': documented on TV because of a rare condition, affecting his immune system, that keeps him vacuum-packed from the rest of society.

• The Bubble Wrap Boy

  Author: Phil Earle
  Publisher: Penguin
  

  Charlie goes in search of something he is good at, that will make him feel better after being picked on at school. When he discovers skateboarding his whole life changes, but can he persuade his overprotective Mum to let him develop his talent?

• The Building Boy

  Author: Ross Montgomery Illustrator: David Litchfield
  Publisher: Faber & Faber
  

  The boy loves his grandmother dearly. Best of all, he loves the stories about her life as a prize-winning architect. One day, she promises she'll build him an extraordinary house. Now his grandmother's gone, and he's heartbroken. But in her garden there are bricks and girder and he begins to build….

• The Bumblebear

  Author: Nadia Shireen
  Publisher: Jonathan Cape
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 5+

  Norman the bear loves honey, so he thinks up an ingenious plan to get his paws on as much as he can eat - by enrolling at Bee School! An endearing tale about friendship and loyalty.

• The Buried Crown

  Author: Ally Sherrick
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  It's World War Two and Britain is on the brink of invasion. George has been sent to live in the countryside  – but he's far from safe. A fast-paced adventure that zips along and mixes up the facts with tantalising mythical and magical elements.

• The Bus is for Us!

  Author: Michael Rosen Illustrator: Gillian Tyler
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Reading age: 7

  With bold, easy to read rhyming text and beautiful pictures to fire the imagination, this book, exploring all manner of transport and adventure, is one to be treasured and shared.

• The Butterfly Clues

  Author: Kate Ellison
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 14+

  Blending a tense and compelling murder mystery with a thoughtful story of self-discovery , this is an impressive debut novel

• The Butterfly Heart

  Author: Paula Leyden
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 11-12
  Reading age: 10+

  Twins Bul-Boo and Madillo are determined to save their friend Winifred from an arranged marriage with her uncle's friend, who is old enough to be her grandfather.

• The Butterfly House

  Author: Katy Flint Illustrator: Alice Pattullo
  Publisher: Lincoln Children’s Books
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 7+

  Inside an imaginary glass butterfly house, we make our way through a variety of butterfly and moth species, all fabulously illustrated by the very talented Alice Pattullo. A very lovely and informative read.

• The Button Book

  Author: Sally Nicholls Illustrator: Bethan Woollvin
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  

  This creative picture book invites children to press a series of buttons – drawn onto the pages and powered by the reader's imagination! – to reveal different sounds or actions. Lots of early learning experiences are packed into this imaginative tale, which is sure to become a firm favourite.

• The Café at the Edge of the Woods

  Author: Mikey Please
  Publisher: HarperCollins
  Interest age: 5-6
  

  Rene opens a café, but her only customer is an ogre! By disguising her food as disgusting bats and battered mice, she becomes a hit with the locals. A brilliantly illustrated, hilarious picture book.  

• The Cake the Wolf and the Witch

  Author: Maudie Smith Illustrator: Tony Ross
  Publisher: Orion
  Interest age: 8-14
  Reading age: 10+

  An imaginative, entertaining story about scary new beginnings, featuring some comical, crazy characters and sprinkled with funny illustrations.

• The Call

  Author: Peadar O’Guilin
  Publisher: David Fickling Books
  Interest age: 13+
  Reading age: 12+

  The Call masterfully blends fantasy, horror and folklore. The Sídhe are vicious fairy-type creatures, banished by humans to another land. They take their revenge by 'calling' teenagers to the Grey Lands - where they are hunted, tortured or killed.

• The Carbon-Neutral Adventures of the Indefatigable Enviroteens

  Author: First Dog On the Moon
  Publisher: Allen&Unwin
  Interest age: 9-13
  Reading age: 10+

  A hilarious graphic novel that manages to be entertaining, informative and utterly bonkers while tackling the very serious issue of global warming and climate change.

• The Cardturner

  Author: Louis Sachar
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 11-12
  Reading age: 9+

  Alton has been unwillingly forced by his parents into being his irrascible, blind, bridge-mad uncle’s cardturner, in the hope that the family will be beneficiaries of the old man’s will.

• The Care and Feeding of a Pet Black Hole

  Author: Michelle Cuevas
  Publisher: Simon and Schuster
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 7-9

  When 11-year-old space mad Stella visits NASA, the last thing she expects is for a black hole to follow her and live in her house as a pet. A heartwarming, sensitively funny and uplifting illustrated story of one girl's journey in confronting her grief.

• The Carhullan Army

  Author: Sarah Hall
  Publisher: Faber
  Interest age: 15-16
  Reading age: 15+

  Britain is in a bad way. Flooding, fuel shortages and overseas military commitments have taken their toll on the environment and the economy.

• The Cartoons That Came To Life

  Author: Tom Ellen Illustrator: Phil Corbett
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  A zany illustrated adventure about comic characters, Arley and Tapper, who step out of Finn’s sketchbook and into his real life, demanding a final showdown with their sworn enemy, Professor Fart-Munch. A well-told story with lots of laughs. 

• The Cartoons that Saved the World

  Author: Tom Ellen Illustrator: Phil Corbett
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Comic-book creators and best buddies Finn and Isha get more than they bargained for when they are blasted into Toon World, where they encounter a bonkers cast of two-dimensional cartoon characters. An offbeat story, bursting with humour, imagination and dynamic cartoon illustrations on every page.

• The Case of the Good-Looking Corpse

  Author: Caroline Lawrence
  Publisher: Orion Children's Books
  Interest age: 8-9
  Reading age: 10+

  P.K. Pinkerton, intrepid 12-year-old Private Eye who (almost) never sleeps, returns in the second book in this lively and original series from Caroline Lawrence, set in America's Wild West.

• The Case of the Lighthouse Intruder

  Author: Kereen Getten Illustrator: Leah Jacobs-Gordon
  Publisher: Pushkin Children’s Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 7+

  Fayson has always dreamed of becoming a detective, so is intrigued when she is invited to her cousins’ fancy holiday home to solve a real-life mystery. Set on a Jamaican island, this lively tale is ideal for confident younger readers.

• The Castle

  Author: Sophia Bennett
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 10-11
  Reading age: 10+

  The Castle is a fast-paced adventure story that is sure to keep readers turning pages. It also touches upon issues of domestic slavery, politics and human rights.

• The Castle Corona

  Author: Sharon Creech
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 10-11
  Reading age: 10+

  Two orphaned peasant children, Pia and Enzio, find a pouch, stolen from the King and dropped in their path. A fairytale about rich and poor.

• The Castle of Inside Out

  Author: David Henry Wilson Illustrator: Chris Riddell
  Publisher: Alma Books Ltd
  Interest age: 7-9
  Reading age: 7-9

  This is a timeless fantastical story about overcoming greed, power and corruption. Lorina is a brave heroine, who fights for what is right against all odds. There are lots of other fun characters, too - all illustrated by the wonderful Chris Riddell.

• The Cat and the Fiddle: A Treasury of Nursery Rhymes

  Author: Jackie Morris
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln Children's Books
  Reading age: 6+

  The bold, earthy colour palate and close observation of the human and natural world make this a striking collection to be treasured – and remembered

• The Cat and the King

  Author: Nick Sharratt
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 6-7
  Reading age: 8-9

  When the royal castle is destroyed in an Unfortunate Incident involving a fire-breathing dragon, the King and his best friend, the cat, are forced to find an alternative home.

• The Cat and the Rat and the Hat

  Author: Em Lynas Illustrator: Matt Hunt
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  

  A raucous, rhyming tale with a fun tongue-twister text, bright neon artwork and  hilarious animal antics.

• The Cat at Night

  Author: Dahlov Ipcar
  Publisher: Pushkin
  Interest age: 3-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Follow a cat’s journey through a farm at night, seeing through the darkness with brilliant night vision. 

• The Cat in the Hat

  Author: Dr Seuss
  Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
  Interest age: 3-6
  

  When Sally and her brother are left alone on a rainy day, they think they are in for a dull time - but then the Cat in the Hat appears.

• The Cat Mummy

  Author: Jacqueline Wilson Illustrator: Nick Sharratt
  Publisher: Yearling
  Interest age: 8-9
  Reading age: 8-9

  A deceptively simple tale which explores the issue of bereavement for younger readers.

• The Cat Who Ate Christmas

  Author: Lil Chase Illustrator: Thomas Docherty
  Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers
  Interest age: 5-8
  Reading age: 6-8

  After causing havoc at home, Jingles the playful kitten disappears, and the family spends Christmas frantically searching for their beloved pet. This amusing festive tale, with comical illustrations, is ideal for newly-confident independent readers.

• The Cat Who Came in Off the Roof

  Author: Annie M G Schmidt Translator: David Colmer
  Publisher: Pushkin Children’s
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 8-9

  This is a humorous, surreal and satisfying story with an old fashioned feel.

• The Catastrophic Friendship Fails of Lottie Brooks

  Author: Katie Kirby
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 9-12
  Reading age: 9-12

  It’s Lottie Brooks’ second term at Kingswood High and she is determined to be less awkward and more resilient – at least that’s the plan. Written in the form of a diary that shows all the awkwardness of teenage life, this laugh-out-loud book is perfect for fans of Louise Rennison.

• The Catlady

  Author: Dick King-Smith Illustrator: John Eastwood
  Publisher: Random House
  Reading age: 7-8

  Miss Ponsonby is reclusive and eccentric. She is certain that she has living with her, in feline form, not only her dead parents and friends, but Queen Victoria.

• The Cave

  Author: Rob Hodgson
  Publisher: Francis Lincoln Children’s Books
  Reading age: 5+

  There is a cave that is home to a creature: a creature that never leaves its cave… Because of the wolf. A laugh-out-loud story with a very BIG surprise and some glorious artwork: perfect for fans of Jon Klassen and Chris Haughton.

• The Chain

  Author: Keith Gray
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 13-14
  Reading age: 8+

  How often do we wonder if things might have turned out differently but for a single random act or event?

• The Changes Trilogy

  Author: Peter Dickinson
  Publisher: Open Road Media
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 13+

  Gripped by a strange fear, England closes its doors to the outside world. In a tunnel beneath Wales one man opens a crack in a mysterious stone wall, and all over the island of Britain people react with horror to perfectly normal machines. Abandoning their cars on the roads and destroying their own factories, many flee the cities for the countryside, wh…

• The Cheat Book

  Author: Ramzee
  Publisher: Hodder Children’s
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Will the Cheat Book really teach Kamal how to be cool? A funny, highly illustrated story about a boy facing many typical school issues.  

• The Cherry Pie Princess

  Author: Vivian French Illustrator: Marta Kissi
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 5-8
  Reading age: 7+

  When a bad fairy plots to kidnap the baby prince, Princess Peony must act fast to save her brother. Engaging characters, plenty of humour and a smattering of magic combine in this contemporary fairy tale for confident independent readers.

• The Chestnut Roaster

  Author: Eve McDonnell
  Publisher: Everything With Words
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  A refreshingly original mystery thriller set in 19^th century Paris featuring Piaf; a girl with a unique mind who battles to find missing children and lost memories in the labyrinth below the city.

• The Chicken Nugget Ambush

  Author: Mark Lowery
  Publisher: Piccadilly Press
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 8+

  Roman has a lot of misadventures, and this book is a non-stop comical disaster ride. Ideal for kids who find bodily functions, scabs, bogeys and toilet humour hilarious.

• The Children of the King

  Author: Sonya Hartnett
  Publisher: Scholastic
  

  Brilliantly written, this is an original and exciting story set in England and London during the Blitz.

• The Children who Smelled a Rat

  Author: Allan Ahlberg Illustrator: Katharine McEwen
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 6-7
  Reading age: 7+

  Ahlberg and McEwen's fourth fast, funny and improbable story about the Gaskitt family is as ingenious as its predecessors.

• The Children’s Book of Birdwatching

  Author: Dan Rouse
  Publisher: DK
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  With bird numbers in decline around the world, it’s more important than ever for us to understand what our feathered friends need and how we can help them, and encourage them back to our outdoor spaces.

• The Child's Elephant

  Author: Rachel Campbell-Johnston
  Publisher: David Fickling Books
  Interest age: 12-13
  Reading age: 11+

  Bat lives with his grandmother in the central African savannah and rears cows. One day he finds an orphaned baby elephant, and so begins a special relationship.

• The Chinese Emperor’s New Clothes

  Author: Ying Chang Compestine Illustrator: David Roberts
  Publisher: Abrams Books for Young Readers
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 6+

  This retelling of Hans Christian Anderson’s classic fairy tale incorporates Compestine’s experiences of growing up in the Chinese Cultural Revolution to provide a thoughtful tale about corruption and poverty. 

• The Chocolate Box Girls: Cherry Crush

  Author: Cathy Cassidy
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 7+

  Cherry’s single Dad has found a new love, but when he and Cherry move to live with her, there are four daughters already in the family, one of whom is not welcoming.

• The Chocolate Dog

  Author: Holly Webb Illustrator: Sharon Rentta
  Publisher: Scholatic
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Amy is feeling alone: mum is pregnant and tired, dad is cross and little sister Lara is annoying. The only one who seems to have any time for her is her loyal dog, Choc.

• The Chosen Ones

  Author: Scarlett Thomas
  Publisher: Canongate
  Interest age: 10-12
  Reading age: 10+

  Set in a dystopian world where technology is flawed and magic abounds, this is the second instalment in the Worldquake sequence. This exciting fantasy adventure is peppered with portals into other dimensions, evil plots and monsters. 

• The Christmas Bear

  Author: Ian Whybrow Illustrator: Axel Scheffler
  Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
  

  When Father Christmas sets off to deliver the presents, poor Bear is left behind in the workshop! How will he make it to Tom's house in time for Christmas morning? Lift the flaps to find out, as he chases Santa's sleigh through icy seas and snowy forests, all the way from the North Pole to Tom's cosy bedroom.

• The Christmas Book

  Author: Dick Bruna
  Publisher: Farshore
  Reading age: 4+

  From the creator of Miffy, comes a beautiful edition of Dick Bruna's charming Christmas Book complete with a press-out crib scene. In this delightful title he retells the birth of Jesus using simple text and charming illustrations

• The Christmas Carrolls

  Author: Mel Taylor-Bessent Illustrator: Selom Sunu
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Holly and her family adore Christmas – but when they move house, they discover that not everyone is quite as obsessed. Can they find a way to spread the cheer? A fantastically festive treat!

• The Christmas Department Store

  Author: Maudie Powell-Tuck Illustrator: Hoang Giang
  Publisher: Little Tiger
  

  Not all families can afford a picture-perfect Christmas and some children may feel sad and left out from the celebrations. This heart-warming book shows littles ones that you don't have to have a lot of money or presents to have a special time at Christmas.

• The Christmas Eve Ghost

  Author: Shirley Hughes
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Reading age: 6+

  In 1930s Liverpool, young Bronwen and Dylan find kindness from an unexpected source when they are frightened by what they think is a ghost on Christmas Eve.

• The Christmas Extravaganza Hotel

  Author: Tracey Corderoy Illustrator: Tiny Neal
  Publisher: Little Tiger Press
  

  Frog turns up at Bear’s door, looking for a Christmas Extravaganza he’s seen advertised. A lovely tale about friendship, kindness, and valuing the wonderful parts of the festive season that aren’t directly about consumerism.

• The Christmas Unicorn

  Author: Anna Currey
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Reading age: 6+

  Milly is awakened in the night by a beautiful unicorn who helps to create a magical Christmas for her family.

• The Christmasaurus

  Author: Tom Fletcher Illustrator: Shane Devries
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 7+

  If you ever doubted that dinosaurs and Christmas would work well together, read this book. It is bursting with loveable characters, fast-paced adventure and, of course, Christmas spirit.

• The Christmasaurus (Picture Book)

  Author: Tom Fletcher Illustrator: Shane Devries
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 4-5
  

  A festive picture book starring the brave, determined Christmasaurus and a friendly little boy.

• The Christmasaurus and the Winter Witch

  Author: Tom Fletcher Illustrator: Shane Devries
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 6+

  The much-adored Christmasaurus is back for more magical adventures in this feel-good sequel to The Christmasaurus. The storybook brings together all the joy of Christmas: warmth, happiness and family squabbles. 

• The Chronicles of Narmo

  Author: Caitlin Moran
  Publisher: Corgi Children's
  Interest age: 10-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Bestselling author and columnist Caitlin Moran wrote The Chronicles of Narmo when she was just a teenager herself

• The Churki-Burki Book of Rhyme

  Author: Gita Wolf Illustrator: Durga Bai
  Publisher: Tara Books
  Reading age: 6+

  An attractive story interspersed with rhymes, telling of two sisters, Churki and Burki, and their dog, based on the artist's own childhood memories in an Indian village.

• The Circle Breakers

  Author: Patience Agbabi
  Publisher: Canongate
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  The third book in The Leap Cycle series, this is a great example of a thrilling timeslip adventure which embraces diversity and inclusion.

• The Circles in the Sky

  Author: Karl James Mountford
  Publisher: Walker
  Interest age: 4-5
  Reading age: 3-4

  Beautifully written and illustrated, this moving story is a sensitive way to talk about death with little ones. 

• The City of Devi

  Author: Manil Suri
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 15-16
  Reading age: 15+

  Manil Suri's new novel, The City of Devi, is a weird postmodern dystopia, a thriller and a love story.

• The City of Secret Rivers

  Author: Jacob Sager Weinstein Illustrator: Euan Cook
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 8-12
  Reading age: 9+

  Hyacinth Hayward is on a mission to save her kidnapped Mum. Unfortunately, this involves travelling the length and breadth of London's sewers and meeting some very unsavoury characters... A delightfully silly, surreal and addictive adventure.

• The Climbers

  Author: Keith Gray
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 12-15
  Reading age: 8+

  This punchy and exciting thriller explores status, friendship and potentially deadly rivalry – and shows how saving face at all costs isn’t necessarily the best strategy. 

• The Clockwork Conspiracy

  Author: Sam Sedgman
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Isaac’s life is thrown into disarray when his dad mysteriously vanishes from the belfry of Big Ben. As they search for him, Isaac and his friend Hattie uncover a sinister plot which threatens Time itself. A fast-paced mystery, which will have readers on the edge of their seats.  

• The Clockwork Crow

  Author: Catherine Fisher
  Publisher: Firefly
  Interest age: 10-13
  Reading age: 10+

  Orphan Seren Rhys has been sent to live with her mysterious Godfather after living for 12 years in an orphanage. The possibility of her first happy family Christmas seems like it might finally be within her reach.

  On her solo journey to Wales, Seren is given a mysterious package to look after by a stranger and ends up feeling obliged to take it with her. But…

• The Cloud

  Author: Hannah Cumming
  Publisher: Child's Play
  Reading age: 6+

  Everyone loves art class; everyone except the little girl who sits alone and draws nothing, a black cloud glowering above her

• The Cloud Horse Chronicles: Guardians of Magic

  Author: Chris Riddell
  Publisher: Macmillan
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  The first in a wildly imaginative fantasy series, in which three brave youngsters join forces against those trying to destroy ancient magic. Packed with beautifully intricate illustrations full of character and passion, it’s absorbing and supremely entertaining. 

• The Cloud Hunters

  Author: Alex Shearer
  Publisher: Hot Key Books
  Interest age: 10-11
  Reading age: 10+

  Many years after an unspecified cataclysm, the Earth has been shattered into a myriad of tiny planetoids floating in a vast ocean of air.

• The Cloudspotter

  Author: Tom McLaughlin
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 3-7
  Reading age: 6+

  Franklin was called 'The Cloudspotter' - and he didn't want to share his clouds with anyone. That's why he pops the infuriating Scruffy Dog into a hot-air balloon and lets her fly away. A charming story about a lonely little boy who finds a friend.

• The Clubhouse Mystery: Cass and the Bubble Street Gang

  Author: Erika McGann Illustrator: Vince Reid
  Publisher: The O’Brien Press
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Best friends Cass, Lex and Nicholas are the Bubble Street Gang. Humour, adventure, mystery and plenty of innocent childhood antics pepper this comical chapter book for young readers.

• The Clue is in the Poo and Other Stuff Too

  Author: Andy Seed Illustrator: Claire Almon
  Publisher: Quarto Publishing
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 7+

  Packed full of fascinating facts and flashes of humour, this non-fiction picture book encourages children to become wildlife detectives. Ideal for any animal enthusiast, this would also be a useful addition to the classroom for use on wildlife projects.

• The Clumsies Make a Mess

  Author: Sorrel Anderson Illustrator: Nicola Slater
  Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 7+

  The Clumsies try to solve lots of Howard’s problems, all with hilarious consequences.

• The Coldest Girl in Coldtown

  Author: Holly Black
  Publisher: Indigo
  Interest age: 14-15
  Reading age: 13+

  Welcome to Coldtown. Once you enter, you can never leave. Delightfully dark and gorgeously gothic, it is certain to enchant fans of all things chilling and supernatural.

• The Collector

  Author: K. R. Alexander
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 11-13
  Reading age: 11+

  There are three rules at Grandma Jeannie’s house: never leave the windows open; no dolls in the house; and never, ever go into the woods. Ideal for readers aged 11+ who enjoy spooky tales about things that go bump in the night. Read on if you dare!

• The Colour Monster

  Author: Anna Llenas
  Publisher: Templar
  Interest age: 3-8
  Reading age: 7+

  An original and entertaining picture book using colour, collage-effect illustrations and a delightfully cute monster to help youngsters identify and understand different emotions.

• The Colour of Home

  Author: Mary Hoffman Illustrator: Karin Littlewood
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 5-9
  Reading age: 7+

  On Hassan's first day at school he paints a colourful picture of his home and family in Somalia, but then adds soldiers, flames and bullets.

• The Colour of Hope

  Author: Ross Mackenzie
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8-9

  This classic good versus evil fantasy adventure builds on a fascinating idea of a world devoid of colour and joy. But there’s much more to it than that.

• The Colour of Revenge

  Author: Cornelia Funke
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Return to the magical world of Inkheart as Dustfinger and his allies struggle against the nefarious motives of a resurgent Orpheus. A brilliantly written and layered fantasy story for new and old fans alike. 

• The Colour of the Sun

  Author: David Almond
  Publisher: Hodder Children’s Books
  Interest age: 12-16
  Reading age: 12+

  David Almond returns to deliver a powerful story centring around the acceptance of loss of one’s childhood after a parent’s death and the journey towards adulthood, which is portrayed beautifully in this coming-of-age novel.

• The Colour Thief

  Author: Andrew Fusek Peters and Polly Peters Illustrator: Karin Littlewood
  Publisher: Wayland
  Interest age: 4-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Drawing on personal experiences of living in a family blighted by depression, this unusual, yet important, book may help youngsters to make sense of an illness they cannot see.

• The Colours of History

  Author: Clive Gifford Illustrator: Marc-Etienne Peintre
  Publisher: QED Publishing
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Full of fascinating facts about colour, this book focuses on a topic that is not often covered in children’s books. It offers a wide range of opportunities and new ideas for parents and schools, working across the curriculum through art, history and beyond.

• The Comet

  Author: Joe Todd-Stanton
  Publisher: Flying Eye Books
  Interest age: 4-8
  

  Joe Todd-Stanton’s new picture book explores how a family can create a home filled with imagination and warmth, even in less than perfect circumstances. It’s a lovely one to read with mid-aged primary school children who might be worried about moving house.

• The Company of Eight

  Author: Harriet Whitehorn
  Publisher: Stripes
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  This adventure book is a total rollercoaster ride that will catch your breath as gutsy Cass weaves in and out of peril. After all, who doesn't want swashbuckling fun and women warriors with the hearts of lions?

• The Company of Ghosts

  Author: Berlie Doherty
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 9+

  Over the past year many things have changed in Ellie’s life. When she is told she must go away with her mum and her stepfather on their honeymoon, it’s the last straw and she decides to run away. Fortunately she meets Morag, a friend from orchestra, who says she can stay at her house.

• The Complete Calvin and Hobbes

  Author:
  Publisher: Andrews McMeel
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 8+

  The comic-strip adventures of Calvin, a naughty boy with a philosophical bent, and his soft toy tiger companion Hobbes, delighted readers from 1985 to 1995. 

• The Concrete Garden

  Author: Bob Graham
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 4-5
  Reading age: 7+

  Children join in to draw a beautiful garden with chalk. A gorgeous picture book celebrating community and the positive effect art has on everyone. 

• The Conquerors

  Author: David McKee
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Reading age: 5+

  The General of a powerful country sends his troops into the last unconquered territory, but to their surprise, when they march across the border, they meet with no resistance.

• The Considine Curse

  Author: Gareth P Jones
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 9-10
  Reading age: 9+

  Ever woken up to an eerie howl in the night and wondered what it was? This creepy tale about the Considine family might just have the answer

• The Cooking Club Detectives

  Author: Ewa Jozefkowicz
  Publisher: Zephyr
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  This delightful detective story has an engaging plot and likable characters. It subtly explores new friendships, the importance of community and issues of food poverty and online bullying, plus includes some easy-to-follow recipes.

• The Coral Kingdom

  Author: Laura Knowles and Jennie Webber
  Publisher: Words & Pictures Press
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 5+

  The great beauty and diversity of the coral reef is explored in this stunningly beautiful picture book, which is a true work of art. The rhyming non-fiction text scans well and the information about coral reef conservation is pitched at the right level.

• The Council of Good Friends

  Author: Nikesh Shukla Illustrator: Rochelle Falconer
  Publisher: Knights Of
  Interest age: 6-9
  Reading age: 7+

  Vinay and his “Council of Friends” are disrupted by the arrival of his cousin. Together, they learn to set aside their differences and empathise with each other’s feelings. 

• The Covers Of My Book Are Too Far Apart! (And Other Grumbles)

  Author: Vivian French
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke (Picture Squirrels)
  Interest age: 5-8
  Reading age: 5-8

  This accessible and diversely illustrated picture book gives helpful suggestions for more or less any reading issue. It's likely to especially interest schools.

• The Cow That Laid an Egg

  Author: Andy Cutbill Illustrator: Russell Ayto
  Publisher: HarperCollins
  Reading age: 4+

  A madcap, yet moving, story about having the courage of one's convictions, even when others doubt you.

• The Cow Who Fell to Earth

  Author: Nadia Shireen
  Publisher: Penguin Random House Children’s Books
  Interest age: 4-6
  Reading age: 5+

  One night, a little cow falls to earth from the moon, but none of the earth animals speak her language. This lovely book about friendship and belonging is beautifully paced and has all of Nadia Shireen’s recognisable cute characters.

• The Crackledawn Dragon

  Author: Abi Elphinstone
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  The third book in the Unmapped Kingdoms series reads very well on its own or as part of the series, with all of Elphinstone’s trademark fantastical beasts and characters.  Most of all, these are stories about friendship, love, and having faith in yourself. 

• The Cradle of All Worlds

  Author: Jeremy Lachlan
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Jane Doe appeared on the steps of the mysterious Manor with her sick father as a baby, and ever since the residents of Bluehaven have considered her The Cursed One. But Jane's about to find out who she really is in a storming, funny and gripping adventure romp.

• The Creakers

  Author: Tom Fletcher Illustrator: Shane Devries
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 7-8
  Reading age: 7+

  The Creakers is a charmingly written adventure story. Monsters under the bed (AKA The Creakers) are acknowledged as scary, but the warm and humorous narrator will make more nervous children feel they are in safe hands. A really lovely, funny book.

• The Creeper Files: The Root of All Evil

  Author: Hacker Murphy
  Publisher: Oxford Press
  Interest age: 8-9
  Reading age: 8+

  After reading this brilliantly creepy book, you'll never look at a potato in the same way again.

• The Creeper Man

  Author: Dawn Kurtagich
  Publisher: Orion
  Interest age: 12-13
  Reading age: 12+

  Kurtagich has created an incredibly assured, claustrophobic horror with a fractured and troubled teen narrator that will have you gripped to the very last page.

• The Croc and the Sock

  Author: Claire Evans
  Publisher: Fourth Wall Publishing
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  Croc wakes up and there’s a sock left on his floor: a smelly, wet, dirty sock. Who has left it, and where is its matching pair? An engaging story with a rhyming text and a fun Croc puppet attached to bring the story to life.

• The Crocodile Under the Bed

  Author: Judith Kerr
  Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
  Interest age: 2-5
  

  Matty is sick, and very sad because he's too sick to go to the Queen's birthday party! But when he gets an unexpected visitor, it seems that Matty might not miss out after all...

• The Crocodile Who Didn't Like Water

  Author: Gemma Merino
  Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
  Interest age: 3-6
  

  Little crocodile doesn't like water. It's cold. It's wet. It's embarrassing.

• The Crooked Sixpence

  Author: Jennifer Bell
  Publisher: Corgi
  Interest age: 10-12
  Reading age: 8+

  Jennifer Bell has built a wonderful new world in which readers can immerse themselves, in this pacey, magical adventure. There are twists and turns, new creatures and strange, 'uncommon' objects to discover around every street corner.

• The Crossing

  Author: Manjeet Mann
  Publisher: Penguin Books
  Interest age: 12-14
  Reading age: 10+

  Sammy wants a new life in Europe, while Natalie wants to escape the realities of her life in the UK. A powerful and hard-hitting verse novel for older readers.

• The Crossover

  Author: Kwame Alexander
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 10-14
  Reading age: 9+

  Dynamically-illustrated graphic novel version of a bestselling, award-winning story of twin basketball players and their coming-of-age. 

• The Crossover: Graphic Novel

  Author: Kwame Alexander Illustrator: Dawud Anyabwile
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 10-14
  Reading age: 9+

  Dynamically-illustrated graphic novel version of a bestselling, award-winning story of twin basketball players and their coming-of-age. 

• The Crow’s Tale

  Author: Naomi Howarth
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 4-8
  Reading age: 6+

  In the dark depths of winter, Brave Crow sets out on a dangerous journey to find the Sun, and beg for warmth. Inspired by a Native American myth, this beautiful picture book shows how courage and kindness are what really matter.

• The Crowfield Curse

  Author: Pat Walsh
  Publisher: Chicken House
  

  Will finds a small creature caught in a trap in the woods; a hob. The discovery of this magical creature signals the beginning of an incredible adventure for Will. A more challenging read that really fires the imagination.

• The Crowstarver

  Author: Dick King-Smith
  Publisher: Random House
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  As ‘Spider’ grows up, it becomes apparent that despite his physical and learning disabilities, he has a remarkable gift for communicating with animals.

• The Cry of the Wolf

  Author: Melvin Burgess
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 11+

  The Hunter is a cold, cruel man who lives only to kill rare animals and collect their skins. When the Hunter discovers that a pack of English wolves, long thought to be extinct, live in the Surrey countryside, he resolves to kill them all at any cost.

• The Culture of Clothes: A Celebration of World Dress

  Author: Giovanna Alessio Illustrator: Chaaya Prabhat
  Publisher: Templar Books
  Interest age: 7-10
  Reading age: 8+

  Perfect for young fashion enthusiasts as well as children interested in world cultures, this is a fascinating read with lots of inspiration for art and crafts, as well as school projects.

• The Cupcake Diaries: Katie and the Cupcake Cure

  Author: Coco Simon
  Publisher: Simon and Schuster
  Interest age: 8+
  Reading age: 8+

  It's Katie Brown's first day at her new school and she's already feeling miserable.

• The Cure for Dreaming

  Author: Cat Winters
  Publisher: Amulet Books
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 8+

  Interspersing her text with archive photos, Cat Winters combines history with the supernatural in her celebration of independent women in early twentieth-century America, and highlights the fight for women's suffrage.

• The Curio Collectors

  Author: Eloise Williams Illustrator: Anna Shepeta
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Can Lily and Tom help their new friend find the special treasure her mother left for her? An engaging historical mystery, set in a dyslexia-friendly way.

• The Curiositree

  Author: Amanda Wood and Mike Jolley Illustrator: Owen Davey
  Publisher: Wide Eyed Editions
  Interest age: 10-16
  Reading age: 10+

  Natural World is an extremely beautiful reference book that explores the way that habitats, plants and animals are connected, and the way that all elements of nature work in harmony.

• The Curious Case of the Missing Mammoth

  Author: Ellie Hattie Illustrator: Karl Kames Mountford
  Publisher: Little Tiger
  Interest age: 4-8
  Reading age: 6+

  Join a young boy named Oscar and a woolly mammoth named Timothy as they race through The Curious Museum trying to track down Timothy’s little brother before the ‘magic hour’ is over – or he gets eaten by a dinosaur!

• The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time

  Author: Mark Haddon
  Publisher: Red Fox
  Interest age: 13+
  Reading age: 13+

  This funny, touching and compelling novel was the winner of the inaugural Booktrust Teenage Prize

• The Curse of the Tomb Robbers

  Author: Andy Seed Illustrator: James Weston Lewis
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9-11

  This clever picture book aimed at older primary readers combines an adventure story with a series of hieroglyph codes to crack, with a comprehensive fold-out guide to hieroglyph meanings and letters at the back of the book. 

• The Dam

  Author: David Almond Illustrator: Levi Pinfold
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 6-10
  Reading age: 7+

  This stunning, wild and atmospheric picture book by two giants of children’s literature tells the true story of a musician father and his daughter who enter each house in the valley to play music and dance, so that they will always contain music – and magic.

• The Danger Gang

  Author: Tom Fletcher Illustrator: Shane Devries
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 7+

  Franky's life is turned upside down following a terrific storm one night, with flashes of eerie green lightning and a definite whiff of poo - then everyone around him begins to act a bit weird... time for the Danger Gang to save the day!

• The Dark

  Author: Lemony Snicket Illustrator: Jon Klassen
  Publisher: Orchard Book
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 6+

  One night, the night-light goes out, and the dark calls Laszlo down into the basement to meet it.

• The Dark and Dangerous Gifts of Delores Mackenzie

  Author: Yvonne Banham
  Publisher: Firefly
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Delores Mackenzie has always seen spirits but now they are trying to kill her.

• The Dark Inside

  Author: Rupert Wallis
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 14+
  Reading age: 14+

  James and Webster, a pair of unlikely friends, embark on a curious rampage across the Devonshire countryside: one to escape life as he knows it, the other on a quest to lift a curse.

• The Dark is Rising

  Author: Susan Cooper
  Publisher: Red Fox
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9+

  This is probably one of the greatest fantasy sequences ever written. Darkly magical and intense Cooper weaves her storytelling wonder over fully realised characters and worlds, drawing in the reader and leading them on a journey that will leave them clambering for the rest of the series.

• The Dark Light

  Author:
  Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
  Interest age: 13+
  Reading age: 10+

  This is a gripping and unsettling story with some disturbing characters and a menacing atmosphere which pervades throughout. A dark but compelling read.

• The Darkest Dark

  Author: Chris Hadfield with Kate Fillion Illustrator: The Fan Brothers
  Publisher: Macmillan
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 6+

  One night as a boy, Chris Hadfield watches the Apollo 11 moon landing and decides to be an astronaut. This atmospheric book draws on the Commander's childhood fear of the dark, and his realisation that dreams can come true.

• The Darkest Part of the Forest

  Author: Holly Black
  Publisher: Hachette
  Interest age: 13+
  Reading age: 13+

  With a refreshing spin on the traditional roles and full of sinister undertones and dark magic, this is a bewitching and exciting modern fairy tale for this generation of readers of YA fiction.

• The Dawn Chorus

  Author: Suzanne Barton
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 5+

  A warm, reassuring tale about individual talents and about belonging, which will appeal to small children everywhere. Glorious illustrations swirl through the pages in a crescendo of appealing, harmonious images.

• The Day I Swapped My Dad For Two Goldfish

  Author: Neil Gaiman Illustrator: Dave McKean
  Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books
  Interest age: 6+
  Reading age: 7+

  When Mike swaps his dad for his friend Nathan’s two goldfish his mum is not pleased. But when Mike tries to get his dad back, he finds he's already been traded for an electric guitar.

• The Day I Was Erased

  Author: Lisa Thompson
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-12
  Reading age: 9+

  A strange turn of events transports Maxwell to a world where nobody, not even his parents or sister, recognise him. The Day I Was Erased captures the vibrancy and buzz of school life and will ultimately leave readers with a warm glow and lots of hope.

• The Day Louis Got Eaten

  Author: John Fardell
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 5+
  Reading age: 7+

  Fardell creates a variation on the Old Woman who swallowed a fly in this hilarious adventure

• The Day My Dog Got Famous

  Author: Jen Carney
  Publisher: Puffin Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Can Ferris train his dog to be an internet sensation in time to save his foster sister’s favourite blanket? A funny, heartfelt story that celebrates family and pets. 

• The Day My Family Disappeared

  Author: Jo Simmons Illustrator: Lee Cosgrove
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 6-10
  Reading age: 8-10

  Bob is the fifth child in a family of creative geniuses: not only is his mum a nature poet, and his dad a banjo-maker, but his brothers and sisters are all exciting things like opera singers and street dancers. Bob, by contrast, enjoys Hula-Hoops and making terrible sculptures out of mashed potato.

• The Day No One Woke Up

  Author: Polly Ho-Yen
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9-11

  A tense and intriguing sci-fi mystery that’s creepy and unnerving with one or two genuinely spine-tingling moments.

• The Day That Aliens Nearly Ate Our Brains

  Author: Tom McLaughlin
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 7-10
  Reading age: 7+

  Freddy and Sal just wanted to watch Wrestlegeddon Smackdown when they tried to hijack next-door’s satellite dish. How were they to know it would pinpoint the exact location of Planet Earth to Alan, the grumpiest alien in the universe?

• The Day the Crayons Came Home

  Author: Drew Daywalt Illustrator: Oliver Jeffers
  Publisher: HarperCollins
  Interest age: 4-6
  Reading age: 6+

  One day, a surprising stack of postcards arrives for Duncan. They are all from his old forgotten crayons, demanding to be brought home to the crayon box. A captivating, comical sequel to The Day the Crayons Quit.

• The Day the Crayons Quit

  Author: Drew Daywalt Illustrator: Oliver Jeffers
  Publisher: HarperCollins
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 7+

  Award-winning illustrator and artist Oliver Jeffers has teamed up with film writer and director Drew Daywalt to create this gorgeously colourful picture book.

• The Day the Rains Fell

  Author: Anne Faundez Illustrator: Karin Littlewood
  Publisher: Tamarind
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 6+

  Long ago, when the world was new, Lindiwe gazed down from the heavens, proud of the earth and the creatures she'd created.

• The Day The Screens Went Blank

  Author: Danny Wallace Illustrator: Gemma Correll
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  When all the screens in the world stop working overnight, Stella and her family embark on a hilarious rescue mission to save Grandma.

• The Day War Came

  Author: Nicola Davies Illustrator: Rebecca Cobb
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 5-8
  Reading age: 6+

  A heartbreaking picture book that perfectly explains the displacement of people, and especially children, in war, and the trauma experienced by people forced to leave their homes. 

• The Day we Saved the Future

  Author: Ashley Banjo and Jordan Banjo with Alexandra Sheppard Illustrator: Brittney Bond
  Publisher: Scholastic Children’s Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  When Earth is threatened by a terrifying supervillain, brothers Micah and Cass travel back in time to stop him. An exciting sci-fi adventure packed with futuristic technology.

• The Dead

  Author: Charlie Higson
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 10+

  Jack and Ed think things are looking up after they escape boarding school in this sequel to The Enemy, but then something terrible happens that will put them in more danger than ever.

• The Dead House

  Author: Dawn Kurtagich
  Publisher: Orion
  Interest age: 14+
  Reading age: 10+

  This is an utterly compelling and creepy psychological thriller which has the reader gripped from the very first page.

• The Dead Men Stood Together

  Author: Chris Priestley
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 12+

  In this reinvention of 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner' a young boy sets out to sea with his uncle, but the voyage is soon damned by a curse that throws them off course.

• The Dead Ways

  Author: Christopher Edge
  Publisher: Catnip
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9+

  The Government has a plan to clean up the environment – closing down motorways and returning the roads to nature. When Scott Williams' father is found dead in his government office, Scott resolves to find out the truth behind his death.

• The Deadlands: Hunted

  Author: Skye Melki-Wegner
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  A brilliantly imagined thriller in which dinosaurs survived an extinction event and developed the ability to think, speak, make alliances and wage war.

• The Deadly Dare Mysteries

  Author: Malorie Blackman
  Publisher: Random House
  Interest age: 8+
  Reading age: 8+

  This is a bind-up of three books - Deadly Dare, Computer Ghost and Lie Detectives, all featuring best friends Theo and Ricky.

• The Deadly Seven

  Author: Garth Jennings
  Publisher: Macmillan
  Interest age: 9-12
  Reading age: 9+

  The story has many twists and turns. Through Uncle Pogo we are introduced to interesting inventions and unusual inventions and the monsters help Nelson to become better at making friends.

• The Death Defying Pepper Roux

  Author: Geraldine McCaughrean
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 11+

  For all of his short life, Pepper Roux has been waiting to die. Now, on his fourteenth birthday, he knows he won't have to wait much longer.

• The Declaration

  Author:
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 8+

  A chilling story of a future where Longevity drugs have made sections of the population almost immortal. This is a thought-provoking read.

• The Deep Dark Wood

  Author: Algy Craig Hall and Ali Pye
  Publisher: Orchard Books
  Interest age: 5-8
  Reading age: 5+

  A sweet little girl happily sets off to visit her best friend for tea through a deep dark wood full of lurking witches, trolls and giants.

• The Demon Collector

  Author: Jon Mayhew
  Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 10+

  Edgy Taylor has a gift - he can see demons in the crowded streets of Victorian London. A gripping, gothic, horror story lightened by its dark humour and unpredictable characters.

• The Demon Dentist

  Author: David Walliams Illustrator: Tony Ross
  Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9+

  Strange things are happening in the dead of night. Children who put a tooth under the pillow for the tooth fairy wake to find... a dead slug; a live spider; or hundreds of earwigs...

• The Demon Notebook

  Author: Erika McGann
  Publisher: The O'Brien Press
  

  Have you ever wondered if magic spells actually work? Well, Grace and her four best-friends have.

• The Demon's Watch

  Author: Conrad Mason
  Publisher: David Fickling Books
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 8+

  Joseph is a half-goblin boy leading a miserable life as a tavern servant. When he finds a mysterious parcel he hopes that by returning it to its owner he might be offered a new, exciting life as a sailor or pirate. But he soon discovers that there are dangerous magical forces abroad that will stop at nothing to regain the package.

• The Den

  Author: Keith Gray
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  The story of teenage boys navigating friendship and family in summer holidays. 

• The Dentist of Darkness

  Author: David O’Connell Illustrator: Claire Powell
  Publisher: Bloomsbury Children’s Books
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 6+

  Funny and fast-paced, this entertaining story is bursting with mystery, sweets and ancient magic. The enthralling plot, wacky characters and larger-than-life villains are brought to life by witty black-and-white illustrations. 

• The Destiny of Minou Moonshine

  Author: Gita Ralleigh
  Publisher: Zephyr
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  A charming, mythical fantasy adventure that is accessible and straightforward with just a few moments of jeopardy but plenty of excitement and personal challenges.

• The Detective Dog

  Author: Julia Donaldson Illustrator: Sara Ogilvie
  Publisher: Macmillan Children’s Books
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 6+

  Detective Dog Nell is famed for her sleuthing skills in this witty detail-packed book, full of exuberant rhyming couplets - perfect for sharing and reading aloud.

• The Detention Detectives

  Author: Lis Jardine Illustrator: Glenn Thomas
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  When Jonno discovers a dead body at school, he and fellow classmates Daniel and Lydia launch their own murder investigation. This extremely funny murder-mystery tale will keep readers guessing to the very end.

• The Deviants

  Author: CJ Skuse
  Publisher: MIRA Ink
  Interest age: 15-18
  Reading age: 11+

  Ella has a secret so toxic she dare not share it - not even with Max, the guy she loves. Soon the couple get caught up in a cycle of revenge and violence, in this pacey and engaging thriller for young adults.

• The Devil Walks

  Author: Anne Fine
  Publisher: Doubleday
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 9+

  A chilling, compulsive horror story pleasantly free from vampires and werewolves

• The Devil's Triangle

  Author: Mark Robson
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Books
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 9+

  Twins Sam and Niamh accompany their father to Florida each summer while he tries to unravel the mystery of their mother's disappearance at sea nine years ago.

• The Diamond Girls

  Author: Jacqueline Wilson Illustrator: Nick Sharratt
  Publisher: Random House
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 10+

  Aimed at older readers, this novel deals with adult themes of birth, sexuality, teen pregnancy, gang-culture, abuse and post-natal depression, but all in Wilson's usual credible, accessible style.

• The Diamond of Drury Lane

  Author: Julia Golding
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 8+

  Winner of the 2006 Ottakar's Children's Book Prize, this is a pacy thriller about a spirited orphan girl employed by Richard Sheridan at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.

• The Diggers are Coming!

  Author: Susan Steggall
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 6+

  Watch as a new estate is built, from the demolition of old properties to families moving into their new homes.

• The Digits: Number Jumble!

  Author: Tony Bradman Illustrator: SR. Sanchez
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 2-3
  

  An accessible and fun book which will help little ones recognise numbers and start to think about their order in a scale.

• The Ding-Dong Bag

  Author: Polly Peters Illustrator: Jess Stockham
  Publisher: Child's Play
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 5+

  The fast-moving and rhythmic text make this great book perfect for reading aloud, and a subtle arm splint on one of the boys is typical of Child’s Play’s inclusive approach to books.

• The Dinner that Cooked Itself

  Author: J C Hysu Illustrator: Kenard Pak
  Publisher: Flying Eye Books
  Interest age: 6-9
  Reading age: 9+

  This retelling of an old Chinese folk tale is beautifully illustrated in a contemporary, cinematic style and offers a glimpse at the culture and traditions of an ancient civilisation. 

• The Dinos on the Bus

  Author: Peter Millett Illustrator: Tony Neal
  Publisher: Ladybird
  

  A dino-tastic spin on the classic nursery rhyme, The Wheels on the Bus, where little dinos travel up and down, round and round, all through the land.

• The Dinosaur that Pooped Christmas

  Author: Tom Fletcher and Dougie Poynter Illustrator: Garry Parsons
  Publisher: Red Fox
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 6+

  Danny is greedy and spoilt - he already has so many toys there is no space in his room. When he sends Santa a long list for Christmas, St Nick decides to teach him a lesson.

• The Dinosaur’s Packed Lunch

  Author: Jacqueline Wilson Illustrator: Nick Sharratt
  Publisher: Corgi Pups
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 5+

  Dinah is having a bad day – nothing seems to be going right: so far she’s made her Dad cross and argued with her best friend

• The Disappearing Children

  Author: Lars Joachim Grimstad Translator: Don Bartlett and Sian Mackie
  Publisher: Phoenix Yard Books
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 8+

  This enjoyable and very funny story of adventure and intrigue is a brilliantly witty political satire appealing to a wide age range from early teens to adult.

• The Disconnect

  Author: Keren David
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 9-14
  Reading age: 9+

  Can Esther give up her phone for two months to win a thousand pounds? A short, snappy and entertaining book with a relatable and healthily balanced premise for teenagers: perfect for supporting conversations about social media, friendship and peer pressure.

• The Disgusting Sandwich

  Author: Gareth Edwards Illustrator: Hannah Shaw
  Publisher: Alison Green Books
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 6+

  When a boy brings his mouth-watering sandwich to the park, he’s not the only one who thinks it looks rather appetizing.

• The Distance Between Me and the Cherry Tree

  Author: Paola Peretti Translator: Denise Muir
  Publisher: Hot Key Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Nine-year-old Mafalda has a degenerative eye condition. She starts to keep a list of all the things she'll miss when her sight goes, but also the constants that surround her. Tender and thought-provoking, with a powerful but unforced message.

• The Diviners

  Author:
  Publisher: Atom
  Interest age: 13+
  Reading age: 13+

  In this lively and atmospheric tale of 1920s New York, party girl Evie finds herself investigating a sinister string of occult murders.

• The Dodo Who Dreamed She Could Fly

  Author: Catherine Emmett Illustrator: Claire Powell
  Publisher: Simon and Schuster
  Interest age: 4-5
  

  A little Dodo has a dream: she wants to fly, even though Dodos are too round and generally not aerodynamic. There has never been a flying Dodo, but this fact doesn’t stop her: she tries and tries, despite some mean Dodos making fun of her not being able to get off the ground when she practises. She reads all the books and researches flying, but, try as she m…

• The Dog Runner

  Author: Bren MacDibble
  Publisher: Old Barn Books
  Interest age: 12-14
  Reading age: 12+

  A perilous adventure with dystopian and environmental themes that cut unnervingly close to potential reality, The Dog Runner is a tense, thrilling adventure full of close calls, but also glowing with heart, whether it's the relationship between Ella and Emery or their love for the "doggos" helping them get to where they need to be.

• The Dog that Ate the World

  Author: Sandra Dieckmann
  Publisher: Flying Eye Books
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 5+

  The valley was a picture of harmony until the dog appeared and ate everything up. This reads like a myth from an ancient culture and could be seen as a warning against greed and rising extinction rates – though the tone is gentle and the illustration sublime.

• The Dog That Saved Christmas

  Author: Nicola Davies Illustrator: Mike Byrne
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  A sensitive and fascinating portrayal of how Christmas might be experienced by a boy on the autistic spectrum, and how a therapy dog provides reassurance and helps him enjoy the festive season.

• The Dog That Saved the World (Cup)

  Author: Phil Earle Illustrator: Elisa Paganelli
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 9-13
  Reading age: 8+

  For Pickles the dog and his owner Elsie, football is everything – they love nothing more than playing the beautiful game together. So when Elsie’s local team win the chance to play a half-time match at the upcoming World Cup, the pair are very excited. But off-pitch, times are hard. Elsie’s dad is struggling to pay for rent and food. To make matters worse, t…

• The Dogs

  Author: Alllan Stratton
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 15+
  Reading age: 14+

  Spooky and atmospheric, The Dogs is everything you could want from a murder mystery and ghost story

• The Doldrums

  Author: Nicholas Gannon
  Publisher: HarperCollins Children’s Books
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9-12

  A fabulous, funny and heart-warming story of adventure and friendship.

• The Dollmaker of Krakow

  Author: R. M. Romero Illustrator: Lisa Perrin
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Doll Karolina is saved from war in her native Land of the Dolls and transported to Poland to live with a man known as the Dollmaker - only for their lives to be turned upside down by World War II. An unusual novel blending reality with folklore and fantasy that will have a lasting impact on readers.

• The Don't Panic Gang

  Author: Mark Sperring Illustrator: Sarah Warburton
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 4-8
  

  The Don’t Panic Gang is a top secret organisation, comprising a doughnut-loving cat, a little blue bird and an unassuming window-box worm - but when they get a call for help, they transform into superheroes! An exciting, funny adventure to read aloud.

• The Door of No Return

  Author: Kwame Alexander
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 12-14
  Reading age: 12+

  In nineteenth-century Ghana, Kofi loves swimming and wants to talk to the beautiful Ama. But he has to fight for his life after a sudden death occurs. A deeply compelling, vital read.

• The Door that Led to Where

  Author: Sally Gardner
  Publisher: Hot Key Books
  Interest age: 14+
  Reading age: 14+

  There's a Dickensian flavour to this satisfying time-travel tale, which takes its teenage hero on a journey from gritty modern-day London, to the city of the 1800s.

• The Double Life of Cassiel Roadnight

  Author: Jenny Valentine
  Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 8+

  Jenny Valentine presents another enthralling, perplexing and thought-provoking novel exploring family, friendship and identity.

• The Double Life of Ted Amos

  Author: Simon James Green Illustrator: Jennifer Jamieson
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9-11

  Edward has reinvented himself as Ted at his dad’s new town. Ted is cool and definitely isn’t bullied. But will his lies catch up with him? Hilarious and moving, this is about being who you really are. 

• The Double Shadow

  Author: Sally Gardner
  Publisher: Orion Children's Books
  Interest age: 14+
  Reading age: 14+

  Sally Gardner lives up to her reputation for delivering ambitious and highly imaginative writing for teenagers in this unusual and complex historical novel.

• The Doughnut of Doom

  Author: Elys Dolan
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 6+

  A giant, police-eating doughnut is wreaking havoc in the town square. Will Nancy, ace reporter and peanut butter sandwich, save the day? Dolan’s food-fabulous picture book is full of punny provisions and delectable double entendres.

• The Dragon and the Nibblesome Knight

  Author: Ella Woollard Illustrator: Benji Davies
  Publisher: Macmillan Children’s Books
  Interest age: 4-8
  Reading age: 7+

  An uplifting story about a timid baby dragon and a friendly young knight who discover they have much more in common than people think - and refuse to fight.

• The Dragon Ark

  Author: Curatoria Draconis Illustrator: Tomislav Tomic
  Publisher: Magic Cat Publishing
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  In this stunning book, Curatoria Draconis - also known as the Dragon Protector - takes us on a journey around the world to meet different kinds of dragons and learn how we can protect them...

• The Dragon in the Bookshop

  Author: Ewa Jozefkowicz
  Publisher: Zephyr
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9-11

  An intriguing mixture of contemporary life and Polish folk tale that explores the desolation and trauma of losing a parent and how one boy finds his way back to his friends and family – by rescuing a desperate city from an angry, and very hungry, dragon.

• The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart

  Author: Stephanie Burgis Illustrator: Freya Hartas (chapter headings)
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 8-12
  Reading age: 8+

  When spirited young dragon Aventurine is tricked into drinking some enchanted hot chocolate, she is turned into a human girl. Dragons, magic and chocolate combine in this captivating fantasy adventure.

• The Dragon with the Blazing Bottom: A Very Fiery Fairy Tale

  Author: Beach
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  A delightfully silly rhyming fairy tale story, The Dragon With the Blazing Bottom has plenty of laughs and zany illustrations, with an adorable dragon and his loyal adversary who is absolutely dedicated to helping out his friend. 

• The Dragon’s Hoard: stories from the Viking Sagas

  Author: Lari Don Illustrator: Cate James
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 7+

  In this collection of 11 stories about Vikings, you will encounter sailors, traders and explorers. Elemental, unadorned and compelling, these engaging retellings of the Sagas are illuminated by earth-toned illustrations.

• The Dragonsitter

  Author: Josh Lacey Illustrator: Garry Parsons
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 6+
  Reading age: 7+

  Eddie's uncle has gone on holiday and he has left his dragon behind for Eddie to look after.

• The Dragonsitter Takes Off

  Author: Josh Lacey Illustrator: Gary Parsons
  Publisher: Anderson Press
  Interest age: 6+
  Reading age: 7+

  It had sounded so easy: Edward was going to look after Uncle Morton's unusual pet for a week while he went on holiday. But soon the fridge is empty, the curtains are blazing, and the postman is fleeing down the garden path.

• The Drama Llama: A story about soothing anxiety

  Author: Rachel Morrisroe Illustrator: Ella Okstad
  Publisher: Puffin
  

  Written in clever rhyming verse, this fun picture book uses humour to tackle big feelings of worry and anxiety.

• The Dreamsnatcher

  Author: Abi Elphinstone
  Publisher: Simon and Schuster
  Interest age: 9-12
  Reading age: 9+

  Moll and her wildcat Gryff must fight dark, magical  forces to protect the world they know. An exceptional debut novel that is packed with adventure, magic and humour.

• The Dress and the Girl

  Author: Camille Andros Illustrator: Julie Morstad
  Publisher: Abrams
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 6+

  Emigrating to America, a girl loses the trunk that contains her beloved dress. The dress then embarks on an epic around-the-world journey to find her. A poetic and exquisitely illustrated story about love, loss, the passing of time and the power of memory.

• The Drum

  Author: Ken Wilson-Max Illustrator: Catell Ronca
  Publisher: Tiny Owl
  Interest age: 0-3
  

  This little but lively book is part of Tiny Owl’s "Children. Music. Life" series, which focuses on musical instruments from around the world, created by award-winning picture book author and artist Ken Wilson-Max. In this book, we meet the drum.

• The Duck Who Didn't Like Water

  Author: Steve Small
  Publisher: Simon and Schuster
  Interest age: 0-5
  

  Duck doesn't like water - but one day he meets Frog, who loves it! An adorable picture book about making friends in the most unlikely of places.

• The Duckling Gets a Cookie!?

  Author: Mo Willems
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 5+

  Mo Willems’ trademark illustrations and sparse text convey a huge range of emotions in a strikingly minimalist style.

• The Duff

  Author: Kody Keplinger
  Publisher: Hodder Children's Books
  Interest age: 15+
  Reading age: 10+

  Seventeen year old Bianca believes her friends are all much more attractive to boys than she is herself. Wesley, a boy whom she hates, confirms this when he tells her she is 'The Duff' - the designated ugly fat friend chosen by other girls to draw attention to themselves.

• The Eagle Trail

  Author: Robert Rigby
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9+

  Paul Hansen must follow the dangerous Eagle Trail through the Pyrenees Mountains to get to England and escape Nazi persecution in this well-researched historical drama.

• The Earth Book

  Author: Jonathan Litton Illustrator: Thomas Hegbrook
  Publisher: 360 Degrees
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 9+

  Learn about the inner workings of our earth, including earthquakes, volcanoes, thunderstorms and tsunamis; animal life on earth; the earth regions and the impact of humans on the planet, including information on migration, population and sustainability in this comprehensive hardback book celebrating the biodiversity and structure of this fascinating planet.

• The Earth is Singing

  Author: Vanessa Curtis
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 12-16
  Reading age: 10+

  Based on true events, this first-person narrative tells the story of the Jews of Riga during World War II. Engaging, harrowing and thought-provoking, this is a story that should not be forgotten.

• The Edge

  Author: Alan Gibbons
  Publisher: Hachette
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 10+

  Danny and his mother Cathy are on the run from her abusive boyfriend, Chris. They go back to the Edge, Cathy's childhood home, which she left after having Danny at the age of sixteen.

• The Edge Chronicles: Beyond the Deepwoods

  Author: Paul Stewart Illustrator: Chris Riddell
  Publisher: Random House
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 9+

  The first book of The Edge Chronicles which sees Twig start his quest to find out who he really is.

• The Edge Chronicles: Doombringer

  Author: Paul Stewart Illustrator: Chris Riddell
  Publisher: Corgi
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 11+

  Cade and his friends are forced into action to defend their beloved home; they must summon the combined forces of the Deadwoods to repel the force of their enemies.

• The Edge Chronicles: Midnight Over Sanctaphrax

  Author: Paul Stewart Illustrator: Chris Riddell
  Publisher: Corgi
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  A storm is brewing far in the open sky, headed straight for the floating city of Sanctaphrax. But, when Twig has lost his memory of being warned of this catastrophe, he must find his crew and save the day.

• The Edge Chronicles: Stormchaser

  Author: Paul Stewart Illustrator: Chris Riddell
  Publisher: Corgi
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  The second part of the Twig Saga follows Twig as he joins the crew of the Stormchaser in a dangerous quest to collect stormphrax to save the floating city of Sanctaphrax.

• The Edge Chronicles: The Nameless One

  Author: Paul Stewart Illustrator: Chris Riddell
  Publisher: Corgi
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  Fleeing the scene of his father's murder in the city of Great Glade, Cade Quarter smuggles himself onto the Xanth Filatine, a floating skytavern that journeys over the vast landscape of The Deadwoods.

• The Eel Question

  Author: Nicola Davies Illustrator: Beth Holland
  Publisher: Graffeg
  Interest age: 7-10
  Reading age: 7+

  A mythic-feeling story about a girl who lives on the flat marshes, fishing for eels, and soon befriends an otter that will help her flee danger. As ever, Davies’ love of the natural world is obvious, and her writing sings with a dark exuberance.

• The Egg Incident

  Author: Ziggy Hanaor Illustrator: Daisy Wynter
  Publisher: Cicada Books
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Humphrey the egg isn’t allowed to do anything energetic – especially not climb walls. But when he and his new friend are locked in the park, he has to escape somehow! A very funny graphic novel that will have children giggling out loud. 

• The Element in the Room: Investigating the Atomic Ingredients that Make Up Your Home

  Author: Mike Barfield Illustrator: Lauren Humphrey
  Publisher: Laurence King
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Professor Ohms, a scientific detective, takes you on a journey of discovery around the periodic table. Packed with many weird and wonderful facts, it's perfect for any aspiring scientists (or detectives!). 

• The Elemental Detectives

  Author: Patrice Lawrence
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8-9

  A thrilling adventure, where two Black children battle Elemental spirits to save Georgian London from a sleeping sickness. Inventive and packed with adventure and accessible historical detail.

• The Elephant

  Author: Peter Carnavas
  Publisher: Pushkin
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 6+

  Olive's Dad is followed around by a huge grey elephant that only she can see. It makes him sad and quiet, blocking out all the light in his days. Olive knows she has to get rid of the elephant... but how?

• The Elephant and the Bad Baby

  Author: Elfrida Vipont Illustrator: Raymond Briggs
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 1-3
  

  One day, an elephant offers a baby a ride through the town, and the set off on a great adventure.

• The Elephant and the Sea

  Author: Ed Vere
  Publisher: Penguin
  Interest age: 4-5
  Reading age: 5+

  A picture book about an old elephant looking back to his childhood dreams and how he achieved them 

• The Elephant in the Room

  Author: James Thorp Illustrator: Angus Mackinnon
  Publisher: Templar
  Interest age: 4-6
  Reading age: 5+

  Someone has smashed Father Giant’s favourite china elephant. Who is the culprit? This is a magnificent magical mystery that keeps you guessing until the very end about who the culprit might be.

• The Elephant In The Room

  Author: Holly Goldberg Sloan
  Publisher: Piccadilly
  Interest age: 10-14
  Reading age: 10+

  Sila is lonely. But she’s not the only one and a chance encounter with an unwanted elephant and a wealthy old gentleman proves to be the start of something unexpected. 

• The Elephant Road

  Author: Nicola Davies Illustrator: Annabel Wright
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 6+
  Reading age: 7+

  This story provides an engaging context in which much wider, complex environmental issues are explored.

• The Elephant that Ate the Night

  Author: Bing Bai Illustrator: Yuanyuan Shen
  Publisher: Everything With Words
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  Children and families will enjoy this calming lullaby of a book, with its gentle refrain, muted colours and fairy tale-like charm. It's a great one for children who are scared of the dark, and it's perfect for bedtime and settling down for the night. 

• The Elephant Thief

  Author: Jane Kerr
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 10-12

  This is a fast-paced story, based loosely on a man's real-life journey from Edinburgh to Manchester, while riding an elephant – an event that captivated even Queen Victoria.

• The Elephant's Friend and Other Tales from Ancient India

  Author: Marcia Williams
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 8+

  A foolish greedy lion and a disloyal crocodile are two of the animals who get their just deserts in this quirky and beautifully-presented collection of traditional Indian folk tales.

• The Elites

  Author: Natasha Ngan
  Publisher: Hot Key Books
  Interest age: 13+
  Reading age: 13+

  In a distant future in which wars, riots and environmental crises have changed the world as we know it, 15-year-old Silver is an Elite, specially chosen to guard the city of Neo-Babel

• The Elsewhere Emporium

  Author: Ross MacKenzie
  Publisher: Kelpies
  Interest age: 9-12
  Reading age: 10+

  This cracking sequel to the Blue Peter Book Award-winning The Nowhere Emporium is chock full of magic and invention. Detailed and original, yet never sacrificing the human story for fantasy, this is a fabulous book that will enchant and inspire.

• The Emerald Atlas - Books of Beginning 1

  Author: John Stephens
  Publisher: Doubleday Children's Books
  

  This new fantasy adventure will appeal to lovers of Narnia and Harry Potter.Kate, Michael and their younger sister Emma  have spent their childhoods in a succession of cruel orphanages but their lives are changed when they discover they are linked to a magic book with the power to transport them into the past. Readers will enjoy immersing themselves in …

• The Emergency Zoo

  Author: Miriam Halahmy
  Publisher: Alma Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  An unusual and atmospheric story set in the run-up to World War II. As London's children prepare for evacuation to the countryside, they are horrified to discover that their beloved pets are due to be put down.

• The Emperor of Absurdia

  Author: Chris Riddell
  Publisher: Pan Macmillan
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 5+

  The Emperor of Absurdia awakes one morning and can't find his snuggly scarf, so after checking with The Wardrobe Monster, begins to search for it.

• The Emperors New Clothes

  Author: Marcus Sedgwick Illustrator: Alison Jay
  Publisher: Templar
  Interest age: 4-6
  Reading age: 6+

  This is a satirical story about a very vain Emperor who adores beautiful new clothes and has wardrobes full of them!

• The Emperor's New Clothes

  Author: Marina Le Ray
  Publisher: Ladybird Books
  Interest age: 5+
  Reading age: 5+

  The story is told simply, using short sentences and a small number of frequently repeated words

• The Emperor's Underwear

  Author: Laurence Anholt Illustrator: Arthur Robbins
  Publisher: Hachette
  Interest age: 5-10
  Reading age: 7+

  Witty and well illustrated, this is a superb twist on the story of the Emperor’s New Clothes.

• The Empty Stocking

  Author: Richard Curtis Illustrator: Rebecca Cobb
  Publisher: Puffin Books
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 7+

  Award-winning writer and director Richard Curtis turns his hand to picture books in this magical festive story, beautifully illustrated by Rebecca Cobb

• The Enchanted Horse

  Author: Magdalen Nabb Illustrator: Julek Heller
  Publisher: Harper Collins Children’s Books
  Interest age: 8+
  Reading age: 9+

  A magical tale of a little girl whose enduring love brings a very special horse to life. With a traditional feel and timeless quality, it could be a future family favourite.

• The Enchanted Wood

  Author: Enid Blyton
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 6+
  Reading age: 7+

  When Joe, Beth and Frannie move into a new home, they discover a mysterious wood on their very doorstep.

• The Enduring Ark

  Author: Gita Wolf Illustrator: Joydeb Chitrakar
  Publisher: Tara Books
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 6+

  This striking picture book is a retelling of the story of Noah and the ark.

• The Enemy

  Author: Charlie Higson
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 10+

  When the sickness came, the adults became ill. The lucky ones died but many mutated into brainless, deformed monsters with a seemingly insatiable appetite - for children.

• The Epic Book of Epicness: The world’s most epic facts in pictures

  Author: Adam Frost
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  

  In full colour throughout with great, modern design, this book is extremely well written and fun. Every page is full of genuinely fascinating and unusual facts.

• The Epic Crush of Genie Lo

  Author: F C Yee
  Publisher: Abrams & Chronicle
  Interest age: 12-16
  Reading age: 12+

  It’s a joy that this pacy, funny Buffy The Vampire Slayer meets kung-fu novel is out there: readers will identify with the difficulties of school and family, and love the realistic teen voices and hilarious dialogue.

• The Ethan I Was Before

  Author: Ali Standish
  Publisher: Orchard Books
  Interest age: 10-13
  Reading age: 10+

  An emotionally powerful story about friendship and grief, family and secrets, with a good dose of mystery and a dramatic, race-against-time conclusion. It's very readable and feels like a future classic.

• The Every Baby Book

  Author: Frann Preston-Gannon
  Publisher: Magic Cat
  Interest age: 1-3
  

  Over the course of one day, we see many different kinds of families engage in the same similar routines: breakfasts, nappy changes, dinners, bedtime. A warm and comforting book with an ultimate message of love and togetherness, which is perfect for bedtime or quieter moments. 

• The Everywhere Bear

  Author: Julia Donaldson Illustrator: Rebecca Cobb
  Publisher: Macmillan Children’s Books
  Interest age: 4-5
  

  This picture book about a missing toy bear somehow seems like a classic already - with a lovely whiff of nostalgia about it all, while also feeling very current and gently inclusive.

• The Executioner's Daughter

  Author: Jane Hardstaff
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 10+

  The crowds at the Tower of London love nothing better than the grisly spectacle of an execution. But as the executioner's daughter, Moss has seen more than her fair share of horror.

• The Exploding Life of Scarlett Fife

  Author: Maz Evans Illustrator: Chris Jevons
  Publisher: Hodder
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 8+

  A smart, perceptive and utterly hilarious story of one girl’s BIG FEELINGS and the explosive outcome when she tries to keep them inside.

• The Explorer

  Author: Katherine Rundell Illustrator: Hannah Horn
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  Fred, Con, Lila and little Max’s plane is on the way to Manaus when it falls out of the sky. Now, lost in the Amazon rainforest, they must figure out the basics of survival. Rundell’s writing is exquisite and this story is completely, utterly wonderful.

• The Extinction Trials

  Author: S M Wilson
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 11-14
  Reading age: 10+

  In Storm and Lincoln’s world, there are two continents... And one is inhabited by vicious, predatory dinosaurs. A tense, brutal fantasy adventure: The Hunger Games meets Jurassic Park.

• The Extincts

  Author: Veronica Cossanteli
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 8+

  George loves helping out at Wormestall Farm, a secret sanctuary for exinct and mythical beasts, where unlikely things are always happening.

• The Extraordinary Adventures of Alice Tonks

  Author: Emily Kenny
  Publisher: Rock the Boat
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  11-year-old Alice is quite nervous when she starts at Pebblewood, the formidable coastal boarding school that her late mum and her beloved gran both went to as girls.

• The Extraordinary Life of Katherine Johnson

  Author: Devika Jina Illustrator: Maggie Cole
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 7+

  This biography of brilliant mathematician Katherine Johnson charts her life from early childhood to the present day. Beautifully designed, the book also includes a wealth of information about space exploration and aspects of American history.

• The Extremely Embarrassing Life of Lottie Brooks

  Author: Katie Kirby
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 12-14
  Reading age: 11+

  Lottie Brooks is just starting secondary school and she's just about ready to die of embarrassment - she hasn't got a bra, her hair is totally wrong, and the whole class has started calling her Cucumber Girl. Just how cringe can one year be? A hilarious tween diary from Katie Kirby.

• The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone

  Author: Jaclyn Moriarty
  Publisher: Guppy Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  A wild quest sends Bronte through a magical, whimsical world. Slowly, she discovers how high the stakes are. This book really has everything: skillfully-spun plot, humour and charm, unforgettable characters and poetry in its language.

• The Extremely Weird Thing that Happened in Huggabie Falls

  Author: Adam Cece Illustrator: Andrew Weldon
  Publisher: Text Publishing
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  An utterly nonsensical but engaging romp through the weirdest town in the world, featuring a warty witch, a creepy scientist, vegetarian piranhas and a dastardly plot that could change the town forever.

• The Eyebrows of Doom

  Author: Steve Smallman Illustrator: Miguel Ordonez
  Publisher: Little Tiger
  Interest age: 4-5
  Reading age: 4+

  Dave the bear is innocently sweeping up when th eyebrows of doom latch onto his face and take control. The eyebrows declare their intension to rule the world and proceed to jump from animal to animal in pursuit of their goal. 

• The Fabulous Fairies ABC

  Author: Nancy Trott
  Publisher: Koala Books
  Interest age: 4 months+
  Reading age: 2+

  This is a sparkly, magical ABC - perhaps one for the girls!

• The Fabulous Foskett Family Circus

  Author: John Yeoman Illustrator: Quentin Blake
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 2+
  Reading age: 5+

  A simple rhyme introduces each exuberant personality from the Fabulous Foskett Family Circus.

• The Fabulous Phartlehorn Affair

  Author: M L Peel Illustrator: Hannah Shaw
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 8-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Bruno Pockley is an extraordinary boy with an extraordinary musical talent.

• The Fairy Dogmother

  Author: Caroline Crowe Illustrator: Richard Merritt
  Publisher: Little Tiger
  Interest age: 4-5
  Reading age: 4-5

  Cinders the dog lives at Woofington’s Dog Shelter with a whole host of doggy friends. One day, he’s understandably surprised when Priscilla Paws, a Fairy Dogmother, appears out of thin air and offers to grant Cinders a wish. But what will he wish for?

• The Fairytale Hairdresser and Cinderella

  Author: Abie Longstaff
  Publisher: Picture Corgi
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 6+

  Fabulous hairdresser to the fairy-tale stars Kittie helps Cinderella meet her Prince in this fun and light-hearted reworking of a favourite fairy story.

• The Fairytale Hairdresser and Father Christmas

  Author: Abie Longstaff Illustrator: Lauren Beard
  Publisher: Picture Corgi
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 5+

  It's Christmas Eve, but someone has stolen all the presents - Christmas will be ruined!

• The Fairytale Hairdresser and the Sugar Plum Fairy

  Author: Abie Longstaff Illustrator: Lauren Beard
  Publisher: Picture Corgi
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 5-8

  A retelling of The Nutcracker in an ever-growing series of picturebooks for KS1 girls.

• The Falconer

  Author: Elizabeth May
  Publisher: Gollancz
  Interest age: 13+
  Reading age: 13+

  Eighteenth century Edinburgh and a dark faerie underworld collide in this fast-moving, gripping Steampunk fantasy romance.

• The Falconer's Knot

  Author: Mary Hoffman
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 11+

  Romance, art, monasticism and murder in Umbria, 1316. Hoffman has specialised in creating atmospheric historical novels, filled with intrigue...

• The Fall

  Author: Anthony McGowan
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 8+

  Mog isn’t one of the popular crowd, but at least he manages to get by without being troubled much by the bullies...

• The Fall

  Author: Bethany Griffin
  Publisher: Hachette Children's Books
  Interest age: 13+
  Reading age: 9+

  A creepy and unsettling psychological thriller based on Edgar Allan Poe's The Fall of the House of Usher.

• The Familiars: Animal Wizardry

  Author: Adam Epstein and Andrew Jacobson
  Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
  Interest age: 8+
  Reading age: 8+

  Orphaned alley cat Aldwyn is bought by Jack, a likeable young wizard, and has a home and family at last. But when Jack is kidnapped, Aldwyn and his fellow familiars must rescue him.

• The Family Book

  Author: Todd Parr
  Publisher: Little Brown & Company
  Interest age: 3-6
  Reading age: 5-8

  A joyous picture book about the importance of family and all the strength it can give you, this celebrates family in all its wonderful, diverse glory. The message is subtle, but a crucial one: every family is special and the only thing that matters is love. 

• The Family From One End Street

  Author: Eve Garnett
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Eve Garnett's brilliant depiction of a large, close-knit family and their hilarious escapades is every bit as funny and charming today as it was when it was published in the 1930s.

• The Famishing Vanishing Mahoosive Mammoth

  Author: Hollie Hughes Illustrator: Leigh Hodgkinson
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 6+

  Mammoth has a problem. He's terribly hungry. His tiny friend Bug brings him food, but one gulp later, it's gone - and Mammoth is gloomy and starving, all over again. A charming, comical, rhyming tale of two unlikely friends.

• The Faraway Truth

  Author: Janae Marks
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Zoe has never met her father, who is in prison for life. But what if he was innocent? When a letter arrives, she sets out on a quest to clear his name.

• The Fault in Our Stars

  Author: John Green
  Publisher: Penguin Children's Books
  Interest age: 14+
  Reading age: 13+

  John Green tackles the subject of teenage cancer with sensitivity in this witty, life-affirming young adult romance.

• The Fearsome Beastie

  Author: Giles Paley-Phillips
  Publisher: Maverick
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 6+

  Children quake in the darkness as they hear the terrifying roar of the fearsome beastie as it searches for food...

• The Feathered Man

  Author: Jeremy De Quidt
  Publisher: David Fickling Books
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 10+

  Long ago in a German town, Klaus, the tooth-puller’s boy, sees his master steal a diamond from the teeth of a dead man in the wicked Frau Drecht’s lodging house.

• The Fellowship of The Ring

  Author: JRR Tolkein
  Publisher: HarperCollins
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 12+

  The first part of J R R Tolkien's epic masterpiece The Lord of the Rings, this is the story of young hobbit Frodo Baggins, who finds himself faced with an immense and terrible duty.

• The Ferry Birds

  Author: Helen Dunmore Illustrator: Rebecca Cobb
  Publisher: Mabecron Books
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 6+

  Dunmore has spun a magical story to show how a small boy in a remote island setting who misses his Dad is reassured by a make-believe trip to visit him in the Far North.

• The Film of Our Life

  Author: Maite Carranza Illustrator: Iratxe López de Munáin Translator: Laura McGloughlin from Catalan
  Publisher: Editorial Cruïlla
  

  When crisis strikes, a girl convinces her brother that they are the stars of a film to protect him from the harsh realities of their new life.

  Twelve-year-old Olívia Tancredi lives in Barcelona with her actress mother Íngrid and her little brother Tim. When Íngrid can't find work, money to pay the bills runs out, their furniture is repossessed, and they are …

• The Final Year

  Author: Matt Goodfellow Illustrator: Joe Todd-Stanton
  Publisher: Otter-Barry Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  When he falls out with his best friend and then his little brother is rushed into hospital, Nate’s world is turned upside-down. This incredibly powerful novel, written entirely in free verse and accompanied by thoughtful illustrations, is an emotional read.

• The Fintastic Diary of Darcy Dolphin

  Author: Sam Watkins Illustrator: Vicky Barker
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 6+
  Reading age: 7-9

  Darcy might be a dolphin, but her daily life at school and home will be incredibly relatable to primary school children.

• The Fire Chronicle

  Author: John Stephens
  Publisher: Doubleday
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 9+

  The second in the Books of Beginning fantasy series continues the story of Kate, Michael and Emma.

• The Fire-Eaters

  Author: David Almond
  Publisher: Hachette
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 9+

  When Bobby begins a new school and endures sadistic cruelty at the hands of his new teachers, he is drawn away from his old friends and towards newcomer Daniel.

• The Firework Maker's Daughter

  Author: Philip Pullman
  Publisher: Random House
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 7+

  A fantasy adventure story of a determined girl called Lila.

• The First Case

  Author: Ulf Nilsson Illustrator: Gitte Spee
  Publisher: Gecko Press
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 9

  A warm, delightful story, charming and perceptive, with appealing whimsical illustrations.

• The First Christmas

  Author: Jan Pienkowski
  Publisher: Penguin
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 6+

  Jan Pienkowski's silhouette illustrations lend an air of mystery and drama to this text, taken from the King James Bible.

• The First Egg Hunt

  Author: Adam & Charlotte Guillain and Pippa Curnick
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 4-6
  Reading age: 5+

  This original take on how Easter egg hunts really started is a fun, rhyming tale, with plenty of humorous detail in Pippa Curnick’s bright and lovable illustrations. The message is that working as a team is the best way forward.

• The First Noel: A Christmas Pop-Up

  Author: Jan Pienkowski
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 6+

  From the moment that Mary conceives Jesus to his birth in a humble stable, the Nativity is depicted simply and with great beauty in this five double-page spread pop-up book. A delightful gift book. 

• The First Shadow Dragon

  Author: Lee Newbery Illustrator: Laura Catalan
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  In this follow-up to The Last Firefox, a naturally timid boy is forced to find his inner strength in order to defeat the fearsome Draig which is destroying the lifeforce of Fargone, a magical but dangerous land.

• The Fish Who Could Wish

  Author: John Bush Illustrator: Korky Paul
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 5+

  Deep in the ocean lives a very special fish whose wishes come true.

• The Five of Us

  Author: Quentin Blake
  Publisher: Tate Publishing
  Interest age: 5+
  Reading age: 4+

  This book is testament to Blake's belief that all children need to be able find themselves in books.

• The Flask

  Author: Nicky Singer
  Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 11+

  When her new baby brothers are born critically ill, Jess becomes convinced that the strange and beautiful flask in Aunt Edie's desk has the power to help them.

• The Flute

  Author: Ken Wilson-Max and Catell Ronca
  Publisher: Tiny Owl
  Interest age: 0-3
  

  In a bright meadow full of fruit and flowers, a boy plays a flute that sounds full of magic. This poetic book is the second in a series of books for babies and toddlers about musical instruments from around the world and how they make us feel and move. 

• The Fly

  Author: Petr Horacek
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 7+

  Energetic illustrations and some lift-the-flap sections add interest as the humble housefly buzzes through this lively book

• The Foggy Foggy Forest

  Author: Nick Sharratt
  Publisher: Walker
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 5+

  Who's lurking in the foggy forest? Look through the trees and guess the shapes to find out.

• The Foreshadowing

  Author: Marcus Sedgwick
  Publisher: Hachette
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 12+

  17-year-old Sasha travels to France as a volunteer nurse in an attempt to rescue her beloved brother Tom from a terrible death. But can she really change the future?

• The Fork, The Witch, and The Worm: Tales from Alagaësia

  Author: Christopher Paolini with Angela Paolini
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  This volume comprises three new short stories set in the fictional world of Alagaësia, the setting for the Eragon books: Eragon, Eldest, Brisingr and Inheritance. Existing fans will adore the extra world- and character-building that this book lends.

   

• The Four Branches of the Mabinogi

  Author: Siân Lewis Illustrator: Valériane Leblond
  Publisher: Rily
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Enchanting, engrossing and beautifully illustrated, this is a wonderfully accessible retelling of the most ancient of recorded legends, and a great introduction to the ancient storytelling heritage of Wales.

• The Four Seasons of Lucy McKenzie

  Author: Kirsty Murray
  Publisher: Allen and Unwin
  Interest age: 9-13
  Reading age: 9+

  An engrossing fantasy adventure that will appeal to a wide audience.

• The Fourth Horseman

  Author: Kate Thompson
  Publisher: Random House
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 8+

  What will happen when the fourth and final rider appears, will his appearance signal the end of the world?

• The Fowl Twins

  Author: Eoin Colfer
  Publisher: HarperCollins
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  The Fowl twins are completely unlike each other, but they make the perfect team when the evil ACRONYM attacks them. Readers will find a well-developed fantasy world with a plot that is full of clever, satisfying twists and turns. 

• The Fox and the Ghost King

  Author: Michael Morpurgo Illustrator: Michael Foreman
  Publisher: Harper Collins
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 8+

  This sweet story weaves Morpurgo's effortless storytelling with ancient and very recent history: Leicester City's win of the Premiership title. Beautiful illustrations make it a lovely gift: football fans, history fans and fox fans are all taken care of here.

• The Fox and the Wild

  Author: Clive McFarland
  Publisher: Templar Publishing
  Interest age: 4-5
  

  Fred the fox would like to find ‘the wild’, but he only knows the city. A book to enjoy sharing with young children.

• The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle

  Author: Victoria Williamson
  Publisher: Kelpies
  Interest age: 10-14
  Reading age: 9+

  Told in dual narrative, this story follows Reema and Caylin as they negotiate a shaky friendship: one, an asylum seeker from Syria, and the other, a girl whose mum is struggling to cope. A truly excellent and ultimately uplifting book with plenty of heart.

• The Frank Show

  Author: David Mackintosh
  Publisher: HarperCollins
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 7+

  A clever and thoughtful picture book showing how much fun the older generation can be and the valuable contribution they can make to young lives.

• The Frog Prince Continued

  Author: Jon Scieszka
  Publisher: Penguin
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 4+

  After the Princess kissed the frog, he turned into a handsome prince, and they lived happily ever after… or did they?

• The Front Room

  Author: Michelle Magorian Illustrator: Vladimir Stankovic
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 7+

  Hannah and her brother Benjy are on holiday. But instead of relaxing, Hannah is terrified: convinced there's something dreadful in her room. The suspense builds chillingly in this pared-down, atmospheric ghost story.

• The Frozen Sea

  Author: Piers Torday
  Publisher: Quercus Children's Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  This brilliant sequel to The Lost Magician is a nail-biting adventure of twists and turns from award-winning author Piers Torday. Readers will flit between hiding under the covers during battle scenes to laughing hysterically at the antics of Jewel's hamster, Fizz. 

• The Funniest Boy in the World

  Author: Helen Rutter Illustrator: Andrew Bannecker
  Publisher: Scholastic Children’s Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Billy dreams of becoming a stand-up comedian, so can’t believe his luck when celebrity comic Leo Leggett offers to be his mentor. At first, Billy loves the attention, but after a while, he begins to question Leo’s motives. A funny, heart-warming tale about the trappings of fame and the importance of standing up to bullies.

• The Funny Life of Pets

  Author: James Campbell Illustrator: Rob Jones
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 8-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Is it fiction or non-fiction? You decide! This highly interactive book mixes together real and made-up facts about pets, with hilarious results. Packed with cartoon-style illustrations, The Funny Life of Pets is a comical take on how to choose and care for a pet.

• The Funny Life of Sharks

  Author: James Campbell Illustrator: Rob Jones
  Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  This is a non-fiction book with a difference: not only is it bursting with a wealth of fascinating information about sharks, such as their appearance, habitat and diet, but it also contains an amusing array of untruths and daft anecdotes about totally unconnected topics. 

• The Funny Life of Teachers

  Author: James Campbell Illustrator: Rob Jones
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 9-12
  Reading age: 9+

  You shouldn’t believe everything you read in this imaginative and inventive ‘guide’ to anything and (almost) everything related to school and teachers!

  Packed with cartoon-style illustrations, this highly interactive book mixes together real and made-up facts about school and teachers, with hilarious results. Topics include the different types of teachers an…

• The Further Adventures of the Owl and the Pussy-Cat

  Author: Julia Donaldson Illustrator: Charlotte Voake
  Publisher: Puffin Books
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 6+

  At the end of Edward Lear's much loved poem, the happily married Owl and the Pussy-cat are dancing hand-in-hand on the edge of the sand... but what happened next?

• The Further Tale of Peter Rabbit

  Author: Emma Thompson Illustrator: Eleanor Taylor
  Publisher: Frederick Warne
  Interest age: 2+
  Reading age: 6+

  Oscar-winning actress and screenwriter Emma Thompson has turned her hand to children's books in this new continuation of Peter Rabbit's adventures.

• The Fury

  Author:
  Publisher: Faber Children's Books
  Interest age: 15+
  Reading age: 13+

  Cal, Brick and Daisy are three very different teenagers, living very different lives, but one horrific day they are thrown together in unimaginable circumstances.

• The Galloping Ghost

  Author:
  Publisher: Catnip
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 7+

  This gently humorous chapter book was shortlisted for the Roald Dahl Funny Prize 2009; black and white line drawings add to its appeal and the length is perfect for emerging readers.

• The Game of Finger Worms

  Author: Hervé Tullet
  Publisher: Phaidon
  Interest age: 0+
  Reading age: 5+

  This lovely new series of baby books includes games with art, patterns and light, all designed to get very young children to have fun with exploring and using their imagination.

• The Game of Lines

  Author: Hervé Tullet
  Publisher: Phaidon
  Interest age: 0-5
  

  Learn how to create crazy patterns and have fun with all the combinations you can create!

• The Game of Tops and Tails

  Author: Hervé Tullet
  Publisher: Phaidon
  Interest age: 0-5
  

  The Game of Tops and Tails is a book to inspire the imagination.

• The Garbage King

  Author: Elizabeth Laird
  Publisher: Macmillan Children's books
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  This pacy coming-of-age adventure concentrates on the private hopes, dreams and feelings that drive its characters along, but also keeps enough sense of the gritty realities of street life.

• The Garden of Lost Secrets

  Author: A. M. Howell
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  A beautifully written story full of mystery and family secrets, set in Edwardian England against the backdrop of the First World War.

• The Genius Aged 8¼

  Author: Jeremy Strong Illustrator: Jamie Smith
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 6+
  Reading age: 8+

  Alfie's parents are very silly, and it's no time at all until young Alfie shows common sense beyond his years. Soon, he is headteacher, town mayor and prime minister of the country - all before his ninth birthday. Giggles and guffaws aplenty.

• The Get Rich Quick Club

  Author: Rose Impey
  Publisher: Orchard Books
  Interest age: 9-12
  Reading age: 9+

  Banksy is dedicated to his ambition to become mega-rich through his various money-making schemes. His business partners - and next-door neighbours - are the Baxter Brothers. Billy has boundless confidence and enthusiasm, and Sam is six going on sixty. And then there's Dingdong, their cousin, who is reluctantly allowed to join in, especially if she can help t…

• The Getaway

  Author: Ed Vere
  Publisher: Penguin
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 6+

  Notorious cheese thief Fingers McGraw is on the run (or rather, on the moped) from chief law enforcer The Elephant.

• The Ghost Box

  Author: Catherine Fisher
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 8+

  This spooky thriller is a short and simple read ideal for reluctant and struggling readers.

• The Ghost Cat Who Saved my Life

  Author: Pamela Butchart Illustrator: Monika Filipina
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 6-8

  When Sav and Liam hear a cat meowing in the upstairs flat, they decide it must be a ghost, so go to investigate. An engaging, heart-warming mystery, ideal for reluctant and dyslexic readers. 

• The Ghost of Gosswater

  Author: Lucy Strange
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Agatha is cast out of her family home by her cruel cousin and sent to live with a man she has never met. Could a ghostly figure at the window be the key to unlocking Agatha's past and finding out who she really is?

• The Ghost of the Trenches

  Author: Helen Watts and Taffy Thomas
  Publisher: A&C Black
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9+

  This slim volume includes 14 'war stories' made up of poems, songs and re-tellings of ghostly sightings and mysterious coincidences, themed around World War One.

• The Ghosts and Jamal

  Author: Bridget Blankley
  Publisher: Hope Road Publishing
  Interest age: 12-18
  Reading age: 12+

  Jamal wakes to find that everyone in his West African village have been killed. He alone has survived because of how others perceive his epilepsy. This is a powerful, moving and mesmerising story, set in a violent world and seen through a 13-year-old's eyes. 

• The Ghosts of Creakie Hall: Ace Ghosts

  Author: Tony Ross
  Publisher: Catnip Publishing Ltd
  Interest age: 6-10
  Reading age: 8+

  Creakie Hall is falling down but there is no money in the bank so Aunt Gardenia Bogey-Mandeville needs to come up with a money-making scheme pretty quickly...

• The Ghosts of Heaven

  Author: Marcus Sedgwick
  Publisher: Indigo
  Interest age: 13+
  Reading age: 12+

  The Ghosts of Heaven is an excellent book that will open up new avenues of thought and future reading and introduces teenage readers to a more inventive understanding of storytelling.

• The Giant of Jum

  Author: Elli Woollard and Benji Davies
  Publisher: Macmillan
  Interest age: 3-6
  Reading age: 5+

  The illustrations brim with jokes and delightful details, the rhyming text is breezy fun, and the line between darkly gruesome and good-hearted is deftly maintained.

• The Giant Turnip

  Author: Henriette Barkow Illustrator: Richard Johnson
  Publisher: Mantra Lingua
  Interest age: 2+
  Reading age: 6+

  The children in Miss Honeywood's class decide to grow vegetables in their school garden. What a shock they get when they discover a huge turnip that they are unable to move.

• The Giants and the Joneses

  Author: Julia Donaldson
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 8+
  Reading age: 9+

  Jumbeelia, a young girl giant from Groil, the Land of Giants, loves the stories of the iggly plop who climbed up the bimblestonk and was chased back down again by a giant.

• The Giant's Loo Roll

  Author: Nicholas Allan
  Publisher: Red Fox
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 6+

  A giant is caught short when his loo roll drops to the floor and rolls away. As it rolls through the town the people make use of the enormous sheets to devise all sorts of useful creations.

• The Gift of Dark Hollow

  Author: Kieran Larwood Illustrator: David Wyatt
  Publisher: Faber
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  This is the masterly sequel to the The Legend of Podkin One Ear. We are taken right back to the action, with Podkin, his sister Paz and the poor rabbits they rescued sheltering in the Dark Hallow warren. A modern-day classic.

• The Girl at Midnight

  Author: Melissa Grey
  Publisher: Atom
  Interest age: 15+
  Reading age: 13+

  Everything about this book is exquisite. When seven-year-old Echo, a runaway and thief, is discovered in the library by a mysterious lady covered in feathers her life is changed for ever.

• The Girl at the Front of the Class

  Author: Onjali Q Raúf Illustrator: Pippa Curnick
  Publisher: Hodder
  Interest age: 4-5
  Reading age: 5+

  A boy wonders why his new classmate won’t join in and looks so sad, then discovers she has had to flee her home and everything she knows. A gorgeously illustrated book celebrating being welcoming and kind. 

• The Girl Guide: 50 lessons in learning to love your changing body

  Author: Marawa Ibrahim Illustrator: Sinem Erkas
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 10-14
  Reading age: 10+

  This is a book all tween girls should have. Like a chat with a friend with an excellent sense of humour, The Girl Guide is precisely the straight-talking and empowering read girls need at what can be a confusing and awkward time.

• The Girl in Wooden Armour

  Author: Conrad Mason Illustrator: George Ermos
  Publisher: David Fickling Books
  Interest age: 11-14
  Reading age: 11+

  Hattie knows her grandmother Dee is quite eccentric. But even after receiving a cryptic note from her, asking the family to visit, when Hattie arrives in the town of Brokewood, the last thing she expects to discover is a magical legacy she knew nothing about, and that Brokewood shares an otherworldly border with a nightmare world called the Un Forest.

  A dead…

• The Girl of Ink and Stars

  Author: Kiran Millwood Hargrave
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  When her closest friend disappears into the island's Forgotten Territories, Isabella Riosse volunteers to guide the search. A stunning debut, full of myth, magic and mapmaking.

• The Girl Savage

  Author: Katherine Rundell
  Publisher: Faber Children's Books
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 10+

  When Wilhelmina Silver's home is sold, she is torn from her best friend, her adopted monkey and her pet horse, and banished to an inhospitable boarding school in England.

• The Girl Who Became a Fish

  Author: Polly Ho-Yen Illustrator: Sojung Kim-McCarthy
  Publisher: Knights Of
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Despite being terrified of water, Ita feels strangely drawn to the nearby river and, when she ventures to put her hands beneath the surface, discovers something unexpected and magical that gradually changes how she sees the world. 

• The Girl Who Became A Tree

  Author: Joseph Coelho Illustrator: Kate Milner
  Publisher: Otter-Barry Books
  Interest age: 12-14
  Reading age: 12+

  In Joseph Coelho's story told in poems, the ancient Greek myth of Daphne and Apollo is seamlessly woven into the modern-day tale of a 14 year old girl who becomes lost in the tangled woods of her grief and anger .

• The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making

  Author: Catherynne M Valente
  Publisher: Corsair
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9+

  When the Green Wind turns up and carries September away to Fairyland, she soon finds herself battling to stop the evil Marquess.

• The Girl Who Couldn’t Lie

  Author: Radhika Sanghani
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Can thirteen-year-old Priya be honest about how she feels without ruining her life? Funny, fresh and full of heart.  

• The Girl Who Drank the Moon

  Author: Kelly Barnhill
  Publisher: Piccadilly
  Interest age: 10-14
  Reading age: 10+

  When babies are left in the forest as an offering, the witch Xan protects them and feeds them on starlight. But one day, Xan feeds a baby the moon by mistake – and fills her with a dangerous amount of magic. A thoughtful book about belonging and fear. 

• The Girl Who Fell To Earth

  Author: Patricia Forde
  Publisher: Little Island
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  A thought-provoking science fiction thriller that looks at Earth and humanity through alien eyes.

• The Girl Who Leapt Through Time

  Author: Yasutaka Tsutsui Translator: David Karashima
  Publisher: Alma Books
  Interest age: 13+
  Reading age: 12+

  The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is the story of 15-year-old schoolgirl Kazuko, who accidentally discovers that she can leap back and forth in time after a strange encounter with a shadowy figure at school.

• The Girl who Lost a Leopard

  Author: Nizrana Farook Illustrator: David Dean
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9-11

  This exciting adventure raises awareness of the illegal trade in wild animals and encompasses themes of friendship, loyalty and standing up for what is right. The chapter headings are illustrated with striking black-and-white artwork, which will help readers to visualise the characters and setting of this engaging tale.

• The Girl Who Lost Her Shadow

  Author: Emily Ilett
  Publisher: Kelpies
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Combining fantasy and realism, a gripping tale full of danger, loss, hope, friendship and the strength of sisterhood.

• The Girl Who Speaks Bear

  Author: Sophie Anderson
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Found in a bear cave when she was a baby and raised by her foster mother, Yanka has always wondered who she really is. Readers will be gripped by her quest to find out in this marvellous tale inspired by Russian folklore.

• The Girl Who Stole an Elephant

  Author: Nizrana Farook
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  Against the backdrop of a stunning South Asian landscape, three youngsters are on the run from the King’s guards – on an elephant! With themes of morality, friendship, teamwork and loyalty, this exciting adventure book also has lots of tension and jeopardy.

• The Girl Who Thought Her Mother Was a Mermaid

  Author: Tania Unsworth Illustrator: Helen Crawford-White
  Publisher: Head of Zeus
  Interest age: 8-11
  Reading age: 8+

  Stella sets out to discover if her mother really was a mermaid. A beautifully written story with some tense, nailbiting moments and giddy splashes of magical realism. 

• The Girl Who Walked on Air

  Author: Emma Carroll
  Publisher: Faber and Faber
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 10+

  Louie is a feisty heroine, loyal to her friends and determined to succeed in this engaging historical adventure.

• The Girl with No Nose

  Author: Georgia Byng Illustrator: Gary Blythe
  Publisher: Conkers
  Interest age: 8-12
  Reading age: 8+

  Life is tough in Victorian times, the world into which Alice Peasbody is born - and Alice is a girl with no nose. A wonderful, thoughtful book that teaches compassion, celebrates difference and tackles some weighty issues with a gentle touch.

• The Girl With Space in Her Heart

  Author: Lara Williamson
  Publisher: Usborne
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  When Mabel's dad walked out, he left a big space in Mabel's heart. She wants to talk to Mum and her sister, but she can't - so she keeps all her worries inside an imaginary suitcase, which is getting heavier and heavier. Whilst this moving story explores sensitive issues, including anxiety, depression, and family break-up, it's also warm-hearted and written …

• The Girl with the Bird's-nest Hair

  Author: Sarah Dyer
  Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 6+

  Hollie's hatred of the hair brush results in her tangled curls attracting a range of nesting birds.

• The Girl With the Parrot on her Head

  Author: Daisy Hirst
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 5+

  Daisy Hirst has created a fun and funky picture book.

• The Girl with the Shark’s Teeth

  Author: Cerrie Burnell
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  When mysterious men kidnap her mother, Minnow has to set sail alone for the magical, dangerous and beautiful Wild Deep. This book is full of lyrical, breathless prose and Burnell’s imagination is marvellous.

• The Girl With Two Dads

  Author: Meg Elliott
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  Elliott’s bright picture book featuring the friendship between two girls is a great representation of a family with two dads and how, of course, having two dads is exactly the same as having a mum and dad, especially when it comes to rules, mealtimes and all the usual parent-y things.

• The Girl, the Cat and the Navigator

  Author: Matilda Woods
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8+

  When Oona Britt is born, she is made to feel like a disappointment, but she doesn’t let this stop her achieving her dream of joining her father on one of his voyages. Readers will become utterly engrossed as they join Oona on her adventure of a lifetime.

• The Girls

  Author: Lauren Ace Illustrator: Jenny Lovlie
  Publisher: Caterpillar Books
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 6+

  Four friends find a tree that becomes their Secret Meeting Place. As they grow into four very different young women, their friendship stays as strong as the tree. This touching picture book perfectly encapsulates the value and joy of female friendship. 

• The Glass Children

  Author: Kristina Ohlsson
  Publisher: Jonathan Cape
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  After the death of her father, Billie and her mum are moving to a new town for a fresh start. But the house - or somebody in it - is trying to drive them out.

• The Glass Demon

  Author: Helen Grant
  Publisher: Penguin
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 8+

  Legend has it that Bonschariant, the demon, haunts a medieval stained glass window and emerges from it to bring death and destruction to anyone who sees him.

• The Glass Mountain

  Author: Jan Pienkowski and David Walser
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 7-12
  Reading age: 7

  A wonderfully entertaining collection of Polish fairy tales, with striking illustration by Pienkowski.

• The Glass Mountain: Favourite Tales from Poland

  Author: Retold by David Walser Illustrator: Jan Pienkowski
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 6-10
  Reading age: 7-10

  Jan Pienkowski was born in Poland, a land replete with folk tales and with a cultural tradition of paper cutting, which he has utilised in his artwork for this beautiful book of darkly wonderful Polish fairy tales.

• The Glory

  Author: Lauren St John
  Publisher: Orion
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 11

  Part gripping adventure, part love story, this powerful novel travels through an exhilarating yet terrifying landscape.

• The Goat

  Author: Anne Fleming
  Publisher: Pushkin Press
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  A mountain goat, a girl called Kid and a boy who speaks in spoonerisms are the main characters in this quirky novel about love, fears and friendship. Surprising, tender and engaging.

• The Goat and the Stoat and the Boat

  Author: Em Lynas Illustrator: Matt Hunt
  Publisher: Nosy Crow
  Interest age: 4-5
  Reading age: 7+

  A hilarious, zany picture book about a stoat, a boat and a goat (in a colourful coat!) written in clever rhyme and tongue twister text.

  ---

  Mae Stoat yn arnofio yn ei hoff gwch nes i afr, sydd awydd arnofio mewn cwch, darfu arno. Ond dydy Stoat ddim yn hapus o gwbl – cwch Stoat ydy hwn ac yn sicr nid yw'n lle addas i afr!

• The Gobbledegook Book: A Joy Cowley Anthology

  Author: Joy Cowley Illustrator: Giselle Clarkson
  Publisher: Gecko Press
  Interest age: 4-8
  Reading age: 6+

  Joy Cowley is one of New Zealand’s most popular children’s writers and this delightful volume is a perfect introduction to her poems, if you haven’t read them before. If you liked Chris Riddell and Michael Rosen’s A Great Big Cuddle, you’ll love this.

• The Goggle-Eyed Goats

  Author: Stephen Davies Illustrator: Christopher Corr
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 2+
  Reading age: 6+

  Al Haji has three wives, seven children and an assortment of animals including five goggle-eyed goats. But his goats eat everything in sight and Al Haji's family have had enough.

• The Golden Cage

  Author: Anna Castagnoli Illustrator: Carll Cneut Translator: Laura Watkinson
  Publisher: Book Island
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  A spoilt princess sends her servants far and wide to bring her the most beautiful, impossible birds - but what will happen when she decides she wants one that talks? A gothic tale with astonishing illustrations.

• The Golden Hare

  Author: Paddy Donnelly
  Publisher: O’Brien
  Interest age: 4-5
  Reading age: 6-8

  Paddy Donnelly’s lovely book – inspired by a unusual type of hare found on Rathlin Island, Northern Ireland – is a must for young nature lovers, or for anyone looking for a sweet, calming read with some lovely nature facts woven in.

• The Golden Unicorn: Secrets and Legends

  Author: Selwyn E Phipps Illustrator: Aitch Oana Befort and Rae Ritchie
  Publisher: Michael O’Mara Books
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 7+

  The first book in The Magical Unicorn Society series was immensely popular, and this attractive follow-up volume is perfect for any unicorn-hungry child desperate to delve deeper into the myths and stories associated with these most elusive creatures.

• The Goldfish Boy

  Author: Lisa Thompson
  Publisher: Scholastic
  Interest age: 9-12
  Reading age: 9+

  Matthew has Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Can he help an investigation into the abduction of a child, perhaps without even leaving his house? A captivating read, combining a compelling whodunit with an engaging protagonist.

• The Goldsmith's Daughter

  Author: Tanya Landman
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  Landman’s latest novel is much more than a mere account of the bloody encounter between the Aztecs and the invading Spanish Conquistadors.

• The Golem’s Eye

  Author: Jonathan Stroud
  Publisher: Corgi Children's
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9+

  The Golem’s Eye is the second of the Bartimaeus trilogy, and is set in an alternate Europe in which magicians and their otherworldly servants, the reluctant djinni, hold power.

• The Good Bear

  Author: Sarah Lean Illustrator: Fiona Woodcock
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  A lonely girl far from home encounters a frightened bear, hiding in the woods and desperate for food. This beautiful modern fairytale from Sarah Lean is full of heart and family, and brimming with winter magic

• The Good Germ Hotel

  Author: Kim Sung-hwa and Kwon-Su-jin Illustrator: Kim Ryung-eon
  Publisher: What on Earth Books
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 8+

  A funny, fascinating, illustrated guide to the trillions of good bugs that live inside the human body and how they help to keep us healthy.

• The Good Hawk

  Author: Joseph Elliott
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 12-16
  Reading age: 12+

  When Agatha and Jaime's clan is attacked, the two teenagers have no choice but to leave their remote Scottish island and venture into the unknown. A gripping historical fantasy full of suspense and adventure.

• The Good Morning Game

  Author: Hervé Tullet
  Publisher: Phaidon
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  The finger puppets are back for another adventure. This time the finger puppet experiences various morning rituals: waking up, having a shower, having breakfast, getting dressed, and going to school.

• The Good Night Garage

  Author: Tori Kosara Illustrator: Meg Hunt
  Publisher: Flying Eye Books
  Interest age: 4-5
  

  A perfect rhyming bedtime book for little ones – especially children that love trucks, cars and big vehicles.

• The Good Thieves

  Author: Katherine Rundell
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  If you try to steal back something that has been taken from your family by trickery, is that a crime or is it justice? A thrilling adventure, set in 1920s New York, rich in period detail and tensely dramatic moments.

• The Good Turn

  Author: Sharna Jackson
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 8-9

  Can Josephine and her friends solve a local mystery, and help someone? A pacy mystery with true heart. 

• The Goodnight Star

  Author: Amy Sparkes
  Publisher: Red Fox Picture Books
  Interest age: 3-5
  

  A glittering shooting star helps a little girl overcome her fears of the dark at bed time.

• The Goody

  Author: Lauren Child
  Publisher: Orchard
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 6+

  Chirton is an angelic child who helps out, eats his greens and looks after his little sister Myrtle. Myrtle, however, is very naughty, and nobody ever lets her forget it. But what happens when they decide to swap places?

• The Goozillas! Escape from the Monstrous Maze

  Author: Dexter Green Illustrator: Jake Dash
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  In this second adventure in the series, Max and the Goozillas must navigate through the monstrous maze, avoiding the pixelated ghosts. This fast-paced, accessible series will appeal to fans of computer games, comics and all things slimy.

• The Goozillas!: Trapped in the Bog of Beasts

  Author: Dexter Green Illustrator: Jake Dash
  Publisher: Oxford Univerity Press
  Interest age: 6-9
  Reading age: 6+

  While Max is playing on his favourite game on his tablet, he manages the impossible. With just one sneeze, Max manages to transport himself into the game itself, World of Slime.

  There, he meets a slimy and gross cast of characters called the GOOZILLAS. This gang of slimeballs need Max's help. Their world is being take over by the obnoxiously sweet and fluffy…

• The Graces

  Author: Laure Eve
  Publisher: Faber and Faber
  Interest age: 13+
  Reading age: 13+

  Like everyone else in town, River is obsessed with the Graces: attracted by their glamour and apparent ability to weave magic. But are they really what they seem? A beautifully written, deliciously dark YA fantasy with a fresh take on witches.

• The Grave Robber's Apprentice

  Author: Allan Stratton
  Publisher: Faber and Faber
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 9+

  Orphan Hans is running away from a life of grave-robbing; Countess Angela wants to avoid death at the hands of the evil Archduke and his Necromancer. Together, can they escape?

• The Graveyard Book

  Author: Neil Gaiman Illustrator: Chris Riddell
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 11+
  Reading age: 11+

  After his family are killed, Bod is brought up in a graveyard by ghosts.

• The Great and Dangerous

  Author: Chris Westwood
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln Children's Books
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  Ben and his friend Becky work for the Ministry of Pandemonium, guiding recently dead souls safely to the afterlife. But the enemy, the Lords of Sundown, are never far away and have unfinished business.

• The Great Animal Escapade

  Author: Jane Kerr
  Publisher: Chicken House
  Interest age: 9-11
  Reading age: 9+

  With an intriguing plot, shadowy characters and a collection of marvellously exotic animals, this exciting Victorian escapade – set in a zoo – is a compelling read. 

• The Great Balloon Hullaballoo

  Author: Peter Bently Illustrator: Mei Matsuoka
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 6+

  Simon the squirrel and his friends head to outer space in a hot air balloon in this lively picture book.

• The Great Barrier Reef

  Author: Helen Scales Illustrator: Lisk Feng
  Publisher: Flying Eye Books
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  This lovely non-fiction book is filled with incredible facts about the Great Barrier Reef, from the weird and wonderful creatures that live there to the sheer scale of it - the size of 70 million football fields - and is stunningly illustrated by Lisk Feng. 

• The Great Big Body Book

  Author: Mary Hoffman Illustrator: Ros Asquith
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 5+
  Reading age: 5+

  How does the human body develop and change in a lifetime? Hoffman and Asquith explore these questions and more in this honest, entertaining and fact-filled celebration of the human body, which also reflects the diversity of the world we live in.

• The Great Big Book of Families

  Author: Mary Hoffman Illustrator: Ros Asquith
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 7+

  The Great Big Book of Families is about the diversity of families. The simple message is that every family is unique and special and that there is no such thing as 'normal' or 'abnormal'. Books simply don’t get much more inclusive than this.

• The Great Big Book of Feelings

  Author: Mary Hoffman Illustrator: Ros Asquith
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 7+

  How are you feeling today? This warm-hearted and thoughtful picture book explores a whole range of emotions that children might experience.

• The Great Big Green Book

  Author: Mary Hoffman
  Publisher: Frances Lincoln
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 7+

  The Great Big Green Book is filled with facts about our planet, and asks lots of questions to help children think about green issues. The book also gives simple tips on how you can save the environment.

• The Great Cat Conspiracy

  Author: Katie Davies Illustrator: Hannah Shaw
  Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Books
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 8+

  Tom's cat likes to kill small animals. When it kills the Vicar's expensive Koi carp, Mum is so cross that the cat is locked out of the house. But then it goes missing...

• The Great Cheese Robbery

  Author: Tim Warnes
  Publisher: Little Tiger Press
  Interest age: 3-6
  Reading age: 6+

  Patrick thinks Daddy Elephant is not scared of anything until a mouse comes to call.

• The Great Cheese Robbery

  Author: Chris Mould
  Publisher: Hodder Children’s Books
  Interest age: 8-11
  Reading age: 7+

  When the skirting board mice kidnap the ship's cat for a cheese ransom, the pirates are ready for action. An easy-to-read and exciting adventure story, which is perfect for readers starting to read alone.

• The Great Dog Bottom Swap

  Author: Peter Bently Illustrator: Mei Matsuoka
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 6+
  Reading age: 6+

  A cheeky, rhyming picture book for curious dog lovers.

• The Great Dragon Bake Off

  Author: Nicola O'Byrne
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 5+

  Flamie Oliver is a terrifying dragon with a secret: he's passionate about pastry! But he must kidnap a princess and eat her in order to pass Ferocious Dragon Academy!

• The Great Dream Robbery

  Author: Greg James and Chris Smith Illustrator: Amy Nguyen
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 9-12
  Reading age: 9+

  An exciting comedy thriller that celebrates imagination and the power of dreams, as well as banana-loving llamas and a unicorn singing show tunes.

• The Great Explorer

  Author: Chris Judge
  Publisher: Anderson Press
  Interest age: 3+
  Reading age: 7+

  Tom’s explorer father is lost somewhere near the North Pole...

• The Great Food Bank Heist

  Author: Onjali Q. Raúf Illustrator: Elisa Paganelli
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 6-11
  Reading age: 7+

  This heartwarming book about a food bank shortage is marvellous on so many levels. The intriguing mystery has touches of humour and is underpinned by a wealth of information about food poverty, expressed in a straightforward manner.

• The Great Galloon

  Author: Tom Banks Illustrator: John Kelly
  Publisher: Hot Key Books
  

  The Great Galloon is an enormous airship, built by Captain Meredith Anstruther and manned by his crew, who might seem like a bit of a motley bunch but who are able to fight off invading marauders whilst drinking tea and sweeping floors!

• The Great Hamster Getaway

  Author: Lou Carter Illustrator: Magda Brol
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 6-8
  

  Raffelton Grey is bored of his life and longs to be free from his cage. After hatching a master escape plan, he finally gets to experience life at the seaside, but is being free as fun as he thought it would be?

• The Great Hamster Massacre

  Author: Katie Davies Illustrator: Hannah Shaw
  Publisher: Simon and Schuster Children's Books
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 7+

  According to Anna's mum, hamsters are BAD NEWS. But that doesn't stop Anna and her friends from hatching a plan to persuade Mum to let them get a hamster.

• The Great Henna Party

  Author: Humera Malik Illustrator: Sonali Zahra
  Publisher: Lantana
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 7+

  Noor’s cousin is getting married and Noor’s family is throwing a henna party to celebrate. Noor is especially excited to play the ‘henna name game’ – when you choose a loved one’s name to be hidden in the henna. A heart-warming tale of tradition, family and love.

• The Great Ice Cream Heist

  Author: Elen Caldecott
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9+

  Shy Eva lives a quiet life with her protective Dad - until the noisy McIntyre family move in next door.

• The Great Paper Caper

  Author: Oliver Jeffers
  Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 8+

  This is an intelligent and entertaining picture book, with unique and fascinating illustrations.

• The Great Rabbit Rescue

  Author: Katie Davies Illustrator: Hannah Shaw
  Publisher: Simon and Schuster Children's Books
  Interest age: 7+
  Reading age: 7+

  Davies attracts young readers with her familiar plot, engaging characters, and understanding of nine year-olds' minds.

• The Great Race

  Author: Nathan Kumar Scott Illustrator: Jagdish Chitara
  Publisher: Tara Books
  Interest age: 4+
  Reading age: 6+

  Kanchil, the mouse deer, boasts he is the fastest animal in the forest - but Pelan the snail believes he can beat him in a race.

• The Great Race: The Story of the Chinese Zodiac

  Author: Christopher Corr
  Publisher: Quarto
  Interest age: 2-5
  

  The Great Race gently introduces and celebrates Chinese culture in a fun and vibrant way. This read-aloud story also provides a great stepping stone for introducing other cultural ideas to young children.

• The Great Sheep Shenanigans

  Author: Peter Bently Illustrator: Mei Matsuoka
  Publisher: Anderson Press
  Interest age: 2+
  Reading age: 6+

  Lou Pine is one hungry wolf who cunjurs up a cunning plan to catch a sheep for his dinner. But the sheep are not as dumb as they first appear…
  
  This hilarious romp from the award-winning creators of The Great Dog Bottom Swap, which was shortlisted for the Roald Dahl Funny Prize will have you rolling in laughter.

• The Great Shelby Holmes: Girl Detective

  Author: Elizabeth Eulberg Illustrator: Matt Robertson
  Publisher: Bloomsbury
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 10+

  Detective genius, Shelby Holmes, may be small but she comes up trumps when the police are flummoxed by a 'dognapping' in a wealthy part of New York.

• The Great Unexpected

  Author: Sharon Creech
  Publisher: Andersen Press
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  In the little town of Blackbird Tree, friends and fellow orphans Naomi and Lizzie are startled when a strange boy, Finn, falls out of a tree.

• The Great War

  Author: Various Illustrator: Jim Kay
  Publisher: Walker Books
  Interest age: 12+
  Reading age: 12+

  Each story is inspired by a different object from World War I, from a soldier's writing case to the nose of a Zeppelin bomb.

• The Greatest in the World! (A TaterTales Book)

  Author: Ben Clanton
  Publisher: Farshore
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 6+

  Rot the mutant potato claims that he’s the Greatest in the World, but his grumpy big brother, Snot, disagrees and challenges him to an epic contest to determine which of them is the best. This comic-strip chapter book is full of witty illustrations and quirky humour.  

• The Greatest Magician in the World

  Author: Matt Edmondson and Garry Parsons
  Publisher: Macmillan
  Interest age: 7-10
  Reading age: 7-9

  A sweet story about believing in yourself with a series of fantastic magic tricks included in various ingenious slots, boxes and envelopes – all engineered to provide an exciting book full of brilliant activities, as well as a storyline.

• The Greatest Show of All

  Author: Jane Eagland
  Publisher: Barrington Stoke
  Interest age: 11-13
  Reading age: 8+

  Kitty's predestined role is to marry, have children and keep house, but her dream is to work with horses. So she disguises herself as a boy and runs away to join the circus. Kitty's story is about following your dreams and staying true to your values.

• The Greatest Show on Earth: The 4.6 Billion Year Story of Life on our Planet

  Author: Mini Grey
  Publisher: Puffin
  Interest age: 6-8
  Reading age: 6-8

  Rod the Roach and his troupe of cockroach performers (what better animals to tell the story than the insects known to be the best at surviving?) are about to perform the Greatest Show on Earth from their Shoebox Theatre in the middle of a rubbish dump – and it’s a pretty great show.

• The Green Bicycle

  Author: Haifaa Al Mansour
  Publisher: Dial Books
  Interest age: 9+
  Reading age: 9+

  Wadjda's dream is to ride through Riyadh on a green bicycle.  She develops plans, schemes and enlists the help of her friend Abdullah to help her achieve her dream.

• The Green Ship

  Author: Quentin Blake
  Publisher: Random House
  Interest age: 7-11
  Reading age: 7+

  Two bored children climb over a neighbour's wall in search of adventure...

• The Grimm Legacy

  Author: Polly Shulman
  Publisher: Oxford University Press
  Interest age: 10+
  Reading age: 10+

  Blending fairy-tale elements into a modern-day adventure,  this fantastically-written and superbly researched debut novel will enchant readers from the opening paragraph.

• The Grindle Witch

  Author: Benjamin J Myers
  Publisher: Orion
  Interest age: 11-16
  Reading age: 10

  Bravery and loyalty take on ancient evil in this shocking, breath-taking thriller.

• The Grotlyn

  Author: Benji Davies
  Publisher: HarperCollins
  Interest age: 4-7
  Reading age: 7+

  Atmospheric illustrations with a nostalgic feel help build suspense in this delightful rhyming story about how your mind can play tricks on you.

• The Gruffalo

  Author: Julia Donaldson Illustrator: Axel Scheffler
  Publisher: Macmillan
  Interest age: 1-5
  

  In this much-loved picture book, a little mouse walks through the woods and encounters a fox, an owl and a snake.