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Tom Palmer credits articles about football with getting him into reading as a child. He travels all over the UK for events, performing his immensely popular rugby and football reading games to hundreds of children every week. He is the current Writer-in-Residence for the RAF Museums. Tom is also working with the National Literacy Trust on a very high profile football and reading project during the Euro 2016 football tournament.
Longlisted for the UKLA Book Awards 2020 | Shortlisted for the Children's Book Awards 2019, Books for Older Readers Category | Interest Age 8-10 Reading Age 8 | World War One remains a subject of fascination for readers of all ages, but Tom Palmer finds an original way in to the topic in this poignant new story. Lily is a keen fell runner, though she’s fed up of coming in as runner up in races. A visit to her grandparents reveals a surprise: her great-grandfather ran on the fells too. His experiences are recounted vividly in his diary, both his runs in his beloved Cumbria and his experiences as a soldier, recruited to run between positions on the front line, carrying crucial information to the allies. Their shared experiences form a powerful connection, and help Lily to understand herself better, and also to help her grandma when she needs it most. Today and yesterday are seamlessly woven together in a story that will move readers in lots of different ways.
In a nutshell: ghosts and football in an exciting, thought-provoking story Tom Palmer’s Defenders series cleverly mixes ghost stories and football and uses past events to throw light on our world. Seth’s mum is waiting to hear if she’s clear of the cancer she’s been treated for and the two are having a weekend in Cornwall to escape the pressure. It’s a peaceful place but with his ghost sight Seth is aware of a violent incident that took place there thousands of years ago and which still resonates. That was born out of suspicion and mistrust of new arrivals, and when he meets two young Syrian refugees now living in the town, Seth realises what needs to change. The story will grip young readers from start to finish, and make them think about their own place in the world. In Barrington Stoke style, it’s accessible to all readers. ~ Andrea Reece The Defenders is a spooky new series that combines the thrills of football, history and supernatural sleuthing and marks Tom’s continuing exploration of his passions. He says: “For years I’ve written about my obsessions with football and rugby. Now I am obsessed with history. One thing I always say to children who ask me for advice on becoming an author, is to write about what they are passionate about. That’s what I’m doing now.” Barrington Stoke is the foremost publisher of dyslexia friendly books and those for reluctant readers. Here on Lovereading4kids we are constantly selecting new titles and refreshing our special dyslexia friendly category. Click here to view our current selection which is broken down by age range.
In a nutshell: exciting, contemporary story linking past and present injustices Seth isn’t like other boys: he can see ghosts. In the second of this new series he is in London staying with his friend Nadiya and her family while his mother undergoes treatment for cancer. Exploring near the hospital, Seth and Nadiya run into a huge crowd of angry ghosts, the spirits of slaves forced by the Romans to build an amphitheatre. As the children work out what’s stirred the ghosts up, disturbing similarities between past and present come to the fore. It’s a typically exciting and involving story from Tom Palmer and, in publisher Barrington Stoke’s Conkers series, is accessible to all readers, no matter their fluency. ~ Andrea Reece The Defenders is a spooky new series that combines the thrills of football, history and supernatural sleuthing and marks Tom’s continuing exploration of his passions. He says: “For years I’ve written about my obsessions with football and rugby. Now I am obsessed with history. One thing I always say to children who ask me for advice on becoming an author, is to write about what they are passionate about. That’s what I’m doing now.”
In a nutshell: exciting mix of football, ghosts and heroics Seth’s not like other boys, he can see people from the past wherever he goes. The installation of new floodlights at his football team Halifax Town’s ground seems to reanimate a violent episode from local history, something that threatens everyone. When his mum talks to Seth about his father, who could also see ghosts, Seth finds the courage to do what has to be done. It’s a thrilling story, one that shows how the past still informs everything we do, as well as demonstrating that there’s a superhero in each of us. Number three in a series, it can be read as a stand-alone and, in Barrington Stoke style, has been written so that all readers can enjoy it. ~ Andrea Reece The Defenders is a spooky new series that combines the thrills of football, history and supernatural sleuthing and marks Tom’s continuing exploration of his passions. He says: “For years I’ve written about my obsessions with football and rugby. Now I am obsessed with history. One thing I always say to children who ask me for advice on becoming an author, is to write about what they are passionate about. That’s what I’m doing now.” Barrington Stoke is the foremost publisher of dyslexia friendly books and those for reluctant readers. Here on Lovereading4kids we are constantly selecting new titles and refreshing our special dyslexia friendly category. Click here to view our current selection which is broken down by age range.
Interest Age 8-12 Reading Age 8+ Tom Palmer combines football with a dramatic story of the Second World War, plus a touch of the supernatural, to catch readers’ attention in this stirring short novel. Greg is at football camp but finding it hard to apply himself, in fact he wants to quit. Set to find out more about the old airfield near the camp as homework, he’s suddenly finds himself transported back in time and at the controls of a Spitfire. Shot down, he’s imprisoned in a POW camp and there discovers the grit and determination necessary to help himself and another prisoner escape. Back in the present at last, the effects of what he’s learned remain and he finds the focus to succeed. A rousing story that describes the heroism demonstrated by so many in the last war to inspire young readers. ~ Andrea Reece Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers aged 8+ Barrington Stoke is the foremost publisher of super-readable short fiction by some of the very best children’s authors and illustrators in the UK. Each title has a host of unique accessibility features to offer cracking reads to more children including reluctant and struggling readers and those with dyslexia or visual stress. Here at Lovereading4kids we are constantly selecting the best of their new and backlist titles to recommend to you. Click here to view our current selection which is broken down by age range.
One of our Dyslexia Friendly Books of the Year 2014 - Interest Age 10+ Reading Age 8 Football never dies – even during the darkest days of the First World War. Tom Palmer tells the true story of the Footballers’ Battalion. Accused of cowardice because they are out playing football instead of fighting, Jack and his friends sign up to fight – and to play football. They have been promised the excitement of a Cup but the boys have to survive all the horror of the fighting too. Best-selling Tom Palmer’s young heroes show their courage in the midst of the conflict. This book is also available to read via the Barrington Stoke 'Tints' App. Find out more here. There is also a great website to support this title full of background information and a Teachers’ Area with invaluable discussion guides, play scripts and Q&As.
Interest Age 10+ Reading Age 8 Football never dies – even during the darkest days of the First World War. Tom Palmer tells the true story of the Footballers’ Battalion. Accused of cowardice because they are out playing football instead of fighting, Jack and his friends sign up to fight – and to play football. They have been promised the excitement of a Cup but the boys have to survive all the horror of the fighting too. Best-selling Tom Palmer’s young heroes show their courage in the midst of the conflict. ~ Julia Eccleshare This book is also available to read via the Barrington Stoke 'Tints' App. Find out more here. There is also a great website to support this title full of background information and a Teachers’ Area with invaluable discussion guides, play scripts and Q&As. Barrington Stoke is the foremost publisher of dyslexia friendly books and those for reluctant readers. Here on Lovereading4kids we are constantly selecting new titles and refreshing our special dyslexia friendly category. Click here to view our current selection which is broken down by age range.
One of our Super Readable Books of the Year 2016 | April 2016 Book of the Month | Interest Age 8-12 Reading Age 8+ Tom Palmer’s new story starts on a football pitch and then, via a clever bit of ghost story, gives readers the experience of the skill and bravery required to pilot a Sopwith Camel. Young Jatinder is at a football camp located next to an old airfield used by pilots in World War One. He’s given a book about the fighter pilot Hardit Singh Malik and that night finds himself back in time flying on a reconnaissance mission over Germany. He’s shot down and taken prisoner, then faced with the opportunity to do something very courageous, but very dangerous. Based on the true stories of three airmen - Indian, American and German – this gives readers a sense of what bravery really entails, and puts the spotlight on the extraordinary Malik, the first ever Sikh pilot to fly a plane of war. ~ Andrea Reece Daniel and Alexander Bisland, Lovereading4kids Reviewers, were invited to the launch of this book at RAF Hendon. Click here to read more. Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers aged 8+ Barrington Stoke is the foremost publisher of dyslexia friendly books and those for reluctant readers. Here on Lovereading4kids we are constantly selecting new titles and refreshing our special dyslexia friendly category. Click here to view our current selection which is broken down by age range.
Interest Age 8-12 Reading Age 8 Tom Palmer really gets the drama of sport and competition and no-one writes about it better. The Borderlands team have reached the finals of the World Schools Rugby Trophy and are in New Zealand ready to play the final games but the squad are distracted: for some their RAF fathers are just returning home after fighting, while captain Jesse is behaving badly again. Owen knows just how to motivate the team though and indeed when Jesse walks out, it’s Owen who takes over. There’s a terrific climax to the series and Palmer shows just what winning is all about. Owen is inspired by reading Calon, the story of Welsh rugby and Dead Locked is just the sort of book to enthrall non-readers too. ~ Andrea Reece Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers aged 8+ Barrington Stoke is the foremost publisher of dyslexia friendly books and those for reluctant readers. Here on Lovereading4kids we are constantly selecting new titles and refreshing our special dyslexia friendly category. Click here to view our current selection which is broken down by age range. Stop press... Tom will be appearing at the Cheltenham Festival on Saturday 10th October. Click here to find out more. Further information from the Cheltenham Festival.
Interest Age 8-12 Reading Age 8+ Good rugby stories for young readers are thin on the ground, but Tom Palmer’s Rugby Academy books are real winners! In this second book in the series, Rory and the other members of the Borderlands team are in France to play in the European Championship Tournament. Tensions are running high though and not just on the playing field: many of the boys have dads in the RAF and they are alarmed as reports come in of skirmishes in the air, while central character Rory finds it difficult to get on with team captain, Jesse. The fourteen short chapters have all the impact of a Brian O’Driscoll attack, and it’s a great story, whether you are a rugby fan or not. ~ Andrea Reece Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers of 8+ Barrington Stoke is the foremost publisher of dyslexia friendly books and those for reluctant readers. Here on Lovereading4kids we are constantly selecting new titles and refreshing our special dyslexia friendly category. Click here to view our current selection which is broken down by age range.
Interest Age 8-12 Reading Age 8+ Tom Palmer is brilliant at capturing the passion of sport and the drama it creates. Woody is an outstanding young footballer so when his dad, a pilot who is often away on active service, sends him off to a new school where rugby is worshipped, he is sure he is going to hate it. But things turn out very different! Far from hating it, Woody’s natural sporting talent soon leads him to enjoy the new sport – and to shine at it! How Woody adapts to the new game and the new sport is deftly interwoven with a sensitive portrait of the special pressures felt by the children of those in the armed services making it a book of depth as well as excitement. Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers aged 8+ Barrington Stoke is the foremost publisher of dyslexia friendly books and those for reluctant readers. Here on Lovereading4kids we are constantly selecting new titles and refreshing our special dyslexia friendly category.Click here to view our current selection which is broken down by age range.
One of our Dyslexia Friendly Books of the Year 2014 - Interest Age 10+ Reading Age 8 Football never dies – even during the darkest days of the First World War. Tom Palmer tells the true story of the Footballers’ Battalion. Accused of cowardice because they are out playing football instead of fighting, Jack and his friends sign up to fight – and to play football. They have been promised the excitement of a Cup but the boys have to survive all the horror of the fighting too. Best-selling Tom Palmer’s young heroes show their courage in the midst of the conflict. This book is also available to read via the Barrington Stoke 'Tints' App. Find out more here. There is also a great website to support this title full of background information and a Teachers’ Area with invaluable discussion guides, play scripts and Q&As.
Interest Age 10+ Reading Age 8 Football never dies – even during the darkest days of the First World War. Tom Palmer tells the true story of the Footballers’ Battalion. Accused of cowardice because they are out playing football instead of fighting, Jack and his friends sign up to fight – and to play football. They have been promised the excitement of a Cup but the boys have to survive all the horror of the fighting too. Best-selling Tom Palmer’s young heroes show their courage in the midst of the conflict. ~ Julia Eccleshare This book is also available to read via the Barrington Stoke 'Tints' App. Find out more here. There is also a great website to support this title full of background information and a Teachers’ Area with invaluable discussion guides, play scripts and Q&As. Barrington Stoke is the foremost publisher of dyslexia friendly books and those for reluctant readers. Here on Lovereading4kids we are constantly selecting new titles and refreshing our special dyslexia friendly category. Click here to view our current selection which is broken down by age range.
Interest Age 8-12 / Reading Age 8+. A great story with a football focus. When football is banned at Lily and Zack's school, they decide to keep playing - on their very own secret pitch! Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers of 8+
Interest Age Teen, Reading Age 8+ Camping in the abandoned football stadium sounds like a great outing to mark the beginning of the holiday. Lucas, Irfan and Jack are all prepared. Together, they scale the fence and set up camp on the now overgrown pitch. But something is haunting them. Could it be the ghost of the brilliant young footballer who died in mysterious circumstances? Soon the three boys are caught up in more than they had bargained for in an exciting and spooky adventure.
Interest Age 9+ Reading Age 8+. A passion for rugby and a dilemma about it too lies at the heart of this touching story of a boy with a big decision to make. Steven shares his passion for Rugby League with his father who cheers him on from the touch line at every match. Steven’s a good player and the scouts are watching him. But when his moves two hundred miles south to live with his mother and her new partner he has to play Rugby Union and he knows how much his father will hate it! How Steven reconciles his love of the game with the split in his life captures a dilemma sensitively. To view other titles we think are suitable for reluctant readers please click here. A Dyslexia Friendly title.
Full of drama, this is a fast moving crime thriller of football, corruption and clever detective work. Danny Harte is a passionate City FC football fan. He is also a very keen detective. With rumours flying around that City FC is up for sale, Danny sets about trying to find out what is going on. His sleuthing leads him to find Kofi, a young player from Ghana who has been duped by a crooked agent. Helped by a local journalist, Danny sets about setting things right but, in doing so, he finds himself in the greatest danger!
When the new head teacher bans football, the year 6 pupils find a secret place to play. But how can they keep it a secret and, if they can’t, how can they persuade the head to change his mind? A dramatic story with good twists and turns, especially the head’s reason for banning the game in the first place! This is just one of a number of Pocket Money Puffins. To view others click here. Click here to link back to a page featuring all of our World Cup selections.
Football mad boys and girls will devour this all-action adventure novel, virtually in a sitting. Hopefully, even the most reluctant reader, just like the author himself was at school, will devour it too. It’s part of Puffin’s ‘Football Detective’ series but each novel is a stand-alone title with each of them mixing the beautiful game with a crime that needs to be solved. Shortlisted for the Blue Peter Award for the 'book I couldn't put down'.
She's the best footballer in her year - easily better than the boys. She's funny, she's full of herself, and she's a force to be reckoned with. But Rocky Race is also the most famous footballer in Melchester's little sister, and at the moment, that's all anyone seems to care about. Oh, and she's started having panic attacks out of nowhere. It's not ideal. With GCSEs round the corner, footy matches to be won, and a decisions to be made about her future, it's time for Rocky Race to find out exactly what she's made of - on and off the pitch...
Summer 1945. The Second World War is finally over and Yossi, Leo and Mordecai are among three hundred children who arrive in the English Lake District. Having survived the horrors of the Nazi concentration camps, they've finally reached a place of safety and peace, where they can hopefully begin to recover. But Yossi is haunted by thoughts of his missing father and disturbed by terrible nightmares. As he waits desperately for news from home, he fears that Mordecai and Leo - the closest thing to family he has left - will move on without him. Will life by the beautiful Lake Windermere be enough to bring hope back into all their lives?
Roy Race watched Mel Park, the home ground of his beloved Melchester Rovers, burn to the ground. The club is in serious trouble off the pitch. But when it comes to football, somehow they're holding it together. It's nothing short of a miracle, given that Roy - the greatest Rovers player in a generation - was sold by cash-strapped Melchester, to their greatest rivals: Tynecaster. Roy needs to find a way back to Rovers, and fast - or there won't be a club left to return to...
Roy Race is living the dream. After a whirlwind season that saw him become centre forward for his beloved Melchester Rovers and score a bagful of goals, helping them secure promotion into League One, he's now recognised as one of the best young footballers in the country. But something strange is afoot. As Rovers head off on a pre-season tour, Roy's treated differently, and kept apart from the team. What's going on, and why are Rovers bringing in new players? With his family life hitting a rough patch and everything in flux at Mel Park, it's time for Roy of the Rovers to fight for his team, his family - and his career in football... This fourth volume of the smash-hit phenomenon reboot sees the start of an all-new second season!
Borderlands First XV have their sights set on becoming the best school rugby team in the world. But while the boys focus on their matches, many of their parents are serving overseas in the armed forces, and everyone is worried as conflict grows in the Central Asian Republic. New pupil Woody is a footballer by nature and must decide if he's prepared to give rugby his all. Rory feels like he's losing his focus, distracted by thoughts of his parents in danger. And Owen finds himself a t the centre when conflict breaks out within the team. With so many hurdles to face along the way, how far will they get in the rigorous schools' tournament?
The greatest footballer ever to kick a ball is back! Play-offs, by award-winning author Tom Palmer (D-Day Dog, Armistice Runner), with illustrations by Lisa Henke, is the third in a new series of tekkers-tastic Roy of the Rovers novels! Read alone, or alongside the new Roy of the Rovers comics! The journey begins here! The end of the season is here, and it's make or break for Roy Race and Melchester Rovers. Against all odds, Roy and his teammates are closer to getting Rovers promoted. However, if they fail to reach League One, then Rovers' owner Barry Cleaver plans to sell up, destroying Melchester Rovers for good! Now it's crunch time: either Rovers make it through to the play-off finals, or it's over - for the club, for the fans, and for Roy... It has everything a football fan needs - Books for Topics Football-lovers will love the description of on-pitch action - That Boy Can Teach It captures the feel of playing and having a passion for football - Comic Scene Magazine
Jack can't wait for the school trip to the D-Day landing beaches. It's his chance to learn more about the war heroes he has always admired - brave men like his dad, who is a reserve soldier. But when his dad is called up to action and things at home spiral out of control, everything Jack believes about war is thrown into question. Finding comfort only in the presence of his loyal dog, Finn, Jack is drawn to the heart-wrenching true story of one particular D-Day paratrooper. On 6 June 1944, Emile Corteil parachuted into France with his dog, Glen - and Jack is determined to discover their fate ...
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