2021 Preview - Mega Books on the Horizon

Out of Nowhere

Baby and Toddler 3+ readers

Author: Chris Naylor-Ballesteros Illustrator: Chris Naylor-Ballesteros Format: Paperback Release Date: 14/01/2021

January 2021 Book of the Month | Selected for The Book Box by LoveReading4Kids | Chris Naylor-Ballesteros has followed up his acclaimed picture book, The Suitcase, with an equally mesmeric tale of friendship, and how true friendship adapts and grows throughout our lives. Through stunning but simple illustrations, and a minimal palette, we meet the beetle and the caterpillar; the friends eat, watch the moon rise and share time together until one morning beetle awakes and there is no sign of the caterpillar. After a while of waiting the beetle goes in search of his friend...he thought he saw her from a distance but as he grew closer realised it wasn’t her and now he feels lost. But, the joy!, his friend came looking for him! Whilst the beetle had been searching, the caterpillar had turned into a butterfly! A moving, gentle tale of acceptance and how friendship grows through ages and changes.

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Mr Benn Red Knight

Baby and Toddler 3+ readers

Author: David McKee Illustrator: David McKee Format: Paperback Release Date: 04/03/2021

When Mr Benn visits the little fancy dress shop, he enters a fantastical world of adventure as if by magic... In this story, a red suit of armour catches Mr Benn's eye, and when he tries it on he finds himself transported to a land full of castles, dungeons and dragons!

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Let's Look at... Numbers

Baby and Toddler 3+ readers

Author: Marion Deuchars Illustrator: Marion Deuchars Format: Board book Release Date: 04/03/2021

Part of a brand-new series of board books Let's Look At... and with beautiful artwork from bestselling author and illustrator Marion Deuchars, this book is the perfect introduction to counting.

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Supertato: Bubbly Troubly

3+ readers 5+ readers

Author: Sue Hendra, Paul Linnet Format: Paperback Release Date: 04/03/2021

It is night-time in the supermarket, and it's the veggies' weekly bath. But...what's this? SOMEONE has been meddling with the bubble bath and that can only lead to one thing: BUBBLY TROUBLY! Are Supertato and the veggies all washed up? Or can they clear the aisles and POP that pea back where he belongs? Find out in Supertato's newest, irresistible laugh-out-loud adventure!

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The Invisible

3+ readers 5+ readers

Author: Tom Percival Illustrator: Tom Percival Format: Paperback Release Date: 04/02/2021

Selected for The Book Box by LoveReading4Kids | The Invisible is the story of a young girl called Isabel and her family. They don't have much, but they have what they need to get by. Until one day, there isn't enough money to pay their rent and bills and they have to leave their home full of happy memories and move to the other side of the city. It is the story of a girl who goes on to make one of the hardest things anyone can ever make...a difference. And it is the story of those who are overlooked in our society - who are made to feel invisible - and why everyone has a place here. We all belong.

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Do You Love Dinosaurs?

3+ readers 5+ readers

Author: Matt Robertson Illustrator: Matt Robertson Format: Hardback Release Date: 01/04/2021

Some dinosaurs had a deadly bite and others could run super fast. Some had club-like tails and some could make the smelliest of farts - POO-WEE! But wait, don't run away... Because dinosaurs are actually awesome! From the ferocious hunters like Spinosaurus and T.rex to the gentle giants like Diplodocus and Titanosaurus, the speedy raptors to the armoured Ankylosaurs, discover all the weird and wonderful things that made dinosaurs so AMAZING. Did you know that some dinosaurs laid eggs the size of footballs? Or that there's a fossilised dinosaur poo as long as your arm? And have you ever heard of a certain dinosaur that could outrun a racehorse? Find out about all this and more - and then decide: do YOU love dinosaurs?

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A Shelter for Sadness

5+ readers

Author: Anne Booth Illustrator: David Litchfield Format: Hardback Release Date: 21/01/2021

A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month January 2021 | Children are experiencing sadness to a far greater degree than is usual but how can they best manage that and how can they describe it? Anne Booth’s gentle text explores how a little boy creates a shelter for his sadness giving it a place where it can take on the many different shapes and moods it may arrive in. Having a safe place where he can engage with the sadness helps the boy to deal with the wide range of moods it may release in him. It also helps him to prepare for a time when he and the sadness may no longer need a shelter but can step out together into a better world. Inspired by the words of Holocaust survivor Etty Hillesum, A Shelter for Sadness is rich in emotion all of which is beautifully realised in David Litchfield’s illustrations.

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The Tindims and the Ten Green Bottles

5+ readers 7+ readers

Author: Sally Gardner Illustrator: Lydia Corry Format: Paperback Release Date: 08/04/2021

The tiny Tindims are like the Borrowers-on-Sea, who turn our everyday rubbish into treasure. Mother-and-daughter duo, prizewinning Sally Gardner and Lydia Corry, create a fun new world of characters and adventures in their empowering new series for 5-8 year olds inspiring conservation and inventive ways to recycle. In their third adventure Ethel B Dina, who looks after the fish hospital and loves to sing, needs ten green, glass bottles to complete her musical Bottleramma. But she is surrounded by too many plastic bottles which do not make music. Join the Tindims in their glass bottle hunt and meet the Tindims explorer, Tiddledum. Printed in dyslexia-friendly font with pictures on every page and perfect for the reluctant reader, the Tindims show keen young ecologists how to help protect our planet for the future.

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What Did the Tree See?

5+ readers 7+ readers

Author: Charlotte Guillain Illustrator: Sam Usher Format: Hardback Release Date: 18/02/2021

A wonderful introduction to how a modern place somewhere in the UK will have been created over the centuries, this beautiful picture book cleverly records the history of a place as it would look from the perspective of an oak tree. Oaks are famous for the exceptional number of years that they live and their permanence makes an interesting contrast to how frequently humans change the landscape. “I first was an acorn, so tiny and round,/I fell from a branch and sank into the ground./ Then as I grew up, I turned into a tree…/ over hundreds of years! So, what did I see?” Taken together, the simple rhyming text matched by beautiful and carefully detailed illustrations offer a delightful history lesson. The book ends with a useful timeline: "What was happening in the world while the oak tree grew?". It comes right up to the present with the spreading of the Covid-19 virus!

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Two Terrible Vikings

7+ readers

Author: Francesca Simon Illustrator: Steve May Format: Paperback Release Date: 04/02/2021

This viking duo will give Horrid Henry a run for his money! What if your parents WANTED you to behave badly? Set in the snowy fjords of a Viking kingdom, the terrible twins, Hack and Whack, are proud to be the best worst vikings. Nothing stops the marauding pair as they steal boats, loot a birthday party, track a troll and sail off to raid Bad Island with their friends Twisty Pants and Dirty Ulf. Well, almost nothing . . . With whip-smart dialogue, and accompanied by Dennis the Menace style anarchic cartoon imagery, this series is as sharp, funny and compelling as you would expect from the reigning Queen of Comedy.

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News Hounds: The Puppy Problem

7+ readers

Author: Laura James Illustrator: Charlie Alder Format: Paperback Release Date: 15/04/2021

Gizmo is a city dog, so when he moves to the village of Puddle with his journalist human he doesn't know WHAT to expect. Certainly not FLOWERS. Or BEES. And he couldn't have even imagined MUD. Luckily he's got Jilly, the wolfhound next door, to show him around. But Jilly has a problem. Her puppies are going to be given to new owners far away. She'll never see them again! Gizmo might not know the difference between a cow and a tractor but he's got a nose for a story, and a great idea to help Jilly. What if the dogs of Puddle had a newspaper? STOP PRESS! A charming and hilarious new illustrated young fiction series about the things dogs get up to when their humans aren't looking, from the author of The Adventures of Pug series. Perfect for fans of Toto the Ninja Cat and The Secret Life of Pets.

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Everyday Magic The Adventures of Alfie Blackstack

7+ readers

Author: Jess Kidd Format: Paperback Release Date: 01/04/2021

Welcome to Little Snoddington, where nothing is normal and every day is magic . . . Nine-year-old Alfie Blackstack's parents have met a very unfortunate end. Now he's living in the SUPER CREEPY Switherbroom Hall with his mad-haired Aunt Gertie and warty Aunt Zita. The thing is, Alfie's aunts aren't just weird - they're WITCHES! When the circus arrives in town Alfie makes his first ever friend, the FEARLESS Calypso Fagan. But when Calypso's little sister Nova disappears, they must face the TERRIFYING Head Witch in a race to find Nova and stop the next Witch War.

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Aldrin Adams and the Cheese Nightmares

7+ readers

Author: Paul Howard Format: Hardback Release Date: 24/06/2021

Aldrin Adams discovers that he has the world's most unusual and secret SUPER-POWER: By eating very stinky cheese before bedtime, Aldrin can enter people's dreams and nightmares, and help them with their problems. The trouble is, Aldrin has problems of his own. Dad's not been himself since Mum died, their cheese shop (C'est Cheese!) is under threat of closure, and Aldrin's struggling at school. But things go from bad to worse when Aldrin realises something - or someone - is trying to steal his cheesy super power for their own evil plan for world domination! And this time, Aldrin might need more than the stinkiest of Bries to save the day!

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How to Be a Hero

7+ readers 9+ readers

Author: Cat Weldon Illustrator: Katie Kear Format: Paperback Release Date: 21/01/2021

Selected for The Book Box by LoveReading4Kids | The first in a hilarious and fast-paced trilogy about how to be brave, what it means to be a hero and just how confusing the Norse Gods really are. Fully illustrated throughout, Cat Weldon's How to Be a Hero is perfect for fans of How to Train Your Dragon and Who Let the Gods Out.

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The Accidental Diary of B.U.G.

7+ readers

Author: Jen Carney Format: Paperback Release Date: 15/04/2021

Enter the hilarious world of Billie Upton Green . . . The start of an exciting new series full of Billie's laugh-out-loud observations and doodles! There is a new girl at Billie's school, and Billie takes it upon herself to show her around, teach her the Biscuit Laws, and remind her that yes, two women can get married (after all, Billie's mums' wedding is the event of the year). But then suspicion sets in. The new girl seems very close to Billie's best friend Layla. And doesn't she know a little too much about the latest big school heist - the theft of Mrs Robinson's purse...?

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When We Went Wild

7+ readers

Author: Isabella Tree Illustrator: Allira Tee Format: Paperback Release Date: 02/03/2021

From the bestselling author and rewilding pioneer Isabella Tree, When We Went Wild is a heartwarming, sustainably printed picture book about the benefits of letting nature take the lead, inspired by real-life rewilding projects. Nancy and Jake are farmers. They raise their cows and pigs, and grow their crops. They use a lot of big machines to help them, and spray a lot of chemicals to get rid of the weeds and the pests. That's what all good farmers do, isn't it? And yet, there is no wildlife living on their farm. The animals look sad. Even the trees look sad! One day, Nancy has an idea... what if they stopped using all the machines, and all the chemicals, and instead they went wild? The author's own experience of rewilding her estate at Knepp has influenced conservation techniques around the world that are bringing nature back to the countryside and bringing threatened species back from the brink.

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Space Detectives

7+ readers 9+ readers

Author: Mark Powers Illustrator: Dapo Adeola Format: Paperback Release Date: 04/02/2021

Dog lost in space? Grown an extra head and don't know why? Pocket money stolen by a green blob? You need the Space Detectives! Connor and Ethan are spending their summer holidays aboard the world's first orbiting city, Starville (basically Beverley Hills in space!). The amazing space station is bursting with celebrities and the mega-rich. But Connor and Ethan are too busy selling ice cream to see the sights. However, neither of our heroes can resist a mystery and when they discover the space station is hurtling on a collision course with the moon (eep!) they know they need to step in. This is a case for the Space Detectives! Can Connor and Ethan find the culprit and save Starville from its impending doom?

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Skygazing Explore the Sky in the Day and Night

7+ readers 9+ readers

Author: Anna Claybourne Illustrator: Kerry Hyndman Format: Hardback Release Date: 01/04/2021

What do you see when you look up at the sky? It may seem like a big, empty space, but it's busier than you think. From clouds and stars, to birds, planes and everything in between - there's a whole sky to explore. Skygazing is a double-sided book full of incredible cross-curricular information, fun activities, and beautiful illustrated scenes to enjoy. Discover why the sky is blue, early experiments in flight, and how helicopters stay aloft, before flipping the book to read all about the night sky. Find out how to read the stars, spot the night's flying creatures and see the colours of the aurora borealis.

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The Last Bear

7+ readers 9+ readers

Author: Hannah Gold Illustrator: Levi Pinfold Format: Hardback Release Date: 18/02/2021

February 2021 Debut of the Month | A heart-warming and magical story of a very special relationship between a child and a polar bear which will inspire readers of all ages to realise that they, like April, can make a difference in the battle against climate change. When animal loving April arrives on Bear Island in the Arctic Circle where she will live for the next six months while her father runs the scientific operations she is told that, despite the island’s name, there are no bears on it. The melting ice caps mean that the polar bears can no longer arrive from the nearest mainland near Svalbard. But April soon finds out that there is one bear left. And April needs to do everything she can to keep him alive. Confident of her ability to communicate with the bear and to feed him, April nourishes the bear and even plans his return to safety. Beautifully illustrated by Levi Pinfold, The Last Bear invites readers to care about the science behind the fate of an endangered species and to believe in one girl’s magical solution to the problem. **The images and illustrations in this extract are subject to copyright © Levi Pinfold and may not be used without permission.

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Delivery to the Lost City

7+ readers 9+ readers

Author: P. G. Bell Illustrator: Flavia Sorrentino Format: Paperback Release Date: 07/01/2021

January 2021 Book of the Month | The latest instalment of P G Bell’s Train to Impossible Places delivers its dose of excitement and adventure impeccably (as you’d expect in a book starring some of the most efficient and dedicated postal operatives you could ever hope to meet). In previous episodes, as crew member of the Impossible Postal Express, Suzy has befriended ghosts, battled a giant robot and saved an entire city from destruction. Now, in spite of the best efforts of her parents, who know what’s been going on and are, understandably, more than a little worried, she’s back on board with another challenging delivery to make: a book needs to be returned to its library. This being the Impossible Places, that’s a lot less simple and a lot more magical than it sounds, and the task will see Suzy sucked into a void storm, trapped at the bottom of the ocean - and almost eaten by a giant frog. PG Bell’s books overflow with invention and thrills and I defy anyone not to want to climb onboard with Suzy and her extraordinary friends. By the end of the story, our own world has been made just a bit more magical, and readers will feel that too as they close the book. Fans of trains and magical adventures will also enjoy Lev Grossman’s The Silver Arrow. Read more about The Train to Impossible Places series!

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The Girl in Wooden Armour

9+ readers

Author: Conrad Mason Format: Paperback Release Date: 01/04/2021

Brokewood Valley is a strange and mysterious place. There are old magics under the earth, and dark forces at play. So when Hattie and her brother, Jonathan, arrive to find their Granny missing, they suspect something sinister is going on. Hattie uncovers these unusual powers in the land and is determined to find out the truth. Where is Granny? How is this connected to her mum's death, seven years go? And who exactly is the girl in wooden armour?

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When the Sky Falls

9+ readers

Author: Phil Earle Format: Paperback Release Date: 03/06/2021

Inspired by a true story. It's 1940, and Joseph has been packed off to stay with Mrs F, a gruff woman with no great fondness for children. To Joseph's amazement, she owns the rundown city zoo where Joseph meets Adonis, a huge silverback gorilla. Adonis is ferociously strong and dangerous, but Joseph finds he has an affinity with the lonely beast. But when the bombs begin to fall, it is up to Joseph to guard Adonis's cage should it be damaged by a blast. Will Joseph be ready to pull the trigger if it comes to it?

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A Case of Grave Danger

9+ readers

Author: Sophie Cleverly Illustrator: Hannah Peck Format: Paperback Release Date: 21/01/2021

A breakout new detective series, from the author of the spine-tingling Scarlet and Ivy series, beautifully illustrated by Hannah Peck. Violet Veil wants nothing more than to prove her worth and become her father's apprentice at Veil & Sons Undertakers. And one rain-soaked night she gets her chance when she meets a boy, Oliver, who is wandering around the graveyard. Only, the last time Violet saw Oliver, he was indoors and very much dead, waiting to be buried. Violet has just found her first case, and it doesn't get bigger than this: can she, with the help of her dog, Bones, help Oliver solve his own 'murder'?

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Mona Lisa in New York

7+ readers

Author: Yevgenia Nayberg Format: Hardback Release Date: 04/03/2021

In this beautiful and charming book, artist Yevgenia Nayberg, an immigrant to New York herself, shows young readers the city she has fallen in love with. Cleverly portraying da Vinci's iconic subject as a world-weary, know-it-all, Nayberg takes readers on a tour of New York. Mona Lisa and Tag eat pizza in the Bronx, listen to jazz in Harlem, dance to salsa music on the High Line, and swim at Brighton Beach. As Mona Lisa says goodbye to her new friend, she-and the readers-come away with a profound appreciation of the city and its wonders.

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A Girl Called Joy

9+ readers

Author: Jenny Valentine Format: Paperback Release Date: 04/03/2021

For readers aged 9+ comes a major new contemporary middle-grade series from award-winning author Jenny Valentine, perfect for fans of Jacqueline Wilson, Cath Howe and Lara Williamson! Meet ten-year-old Joy Applebloom, a girl with a knack for finding the silver lining in even the darkest of rainclouds. After years of travelling the world with her parents and older sister, Claude (Claude rhymes with bored, which is just about right), Joy and her family move to suburbia - back to school, back to her grumpy, rule-obsessed grandad and back to normality. Joy soon finds her usual irrepressible positivity and zest for life waning, but when the powers that be threaten to pull down a mighty oak tree, Joy decides to fight back, and realizes that not all magic requires wands and spells, and perhaps the most important sort of magic is the power, resilience and courage that was there all along . . .

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The Valley of Lost Secrets

9+ readers 11+ readers

Author: Lesley Parr Format: Paperback Release Date: 07/01/2021

January 2021 Debut of the Month | Lesley Parr’s story of evacuees is rich in atmosphere and a sense of place, and uses its wartime setting to explore themes of community, understanding and self-forgiveness. Along with other children at their school, Jimmy and his little brother Ronnie have been sent hundreds of miles away from London to the safety of a small mining town in South Wales, and it couldn’t be further from what they know. Jimmy is determined they won’t stay long, and that the place won’t change him, even as it’s transforming his classmates: Florence Campbell for example, who is free to become someone else, far away from her abusive family. The village has its secrets though, and the discovery of a set of bones in a tree leads Jimmy to solve a decades old mystery and, in the process, to help those living with loss and guilt. The place and its people are carefully and skilfully evoked, with the adults, particularly Jimmy and Ronnie’s new ‘family’ of Aunty Gwen and Uncle Alun the miner, likely to be as fascinating to readers as the younger protagonists. The mystery will certainly keep readers gripped but it’s the characters and the place that will stay with them. Evacuees are a rich source for children’s adventure stories, examples include Michelle Magorian’s classic Goodnight Mister Tom, and Jacqueline Wilson’s more recent Wave Me Goodbye.

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The Incredible Record Smashers

9+ readers

Author: Jenny Pearson Format: Paperback Release Date: 29/04/2021

A laugh-out-loud, record-smashing adventure packed with heart, humour and a whole lot of kumquats, from Jenny Pearson, the breakout talent of 2020, illustrated by Erica Salcedo. Lucy is a fixer of broken things. But there's one thing she can't fix and that's her unhappy mum. Until she comes up with an INCREDIBLE plan. Along with her best friend, Sandesh, Lucy is going to SMASH a world record. Because she's convinced that starry Paul Castellini - Record Smashers TV host and all-time crooner - is the answer to her mum's problems. But breaking a world RECORD when watermelons, kumquats, two baddies and a 30 cm shatter-resistant school ruler are involved isn't quite as easy as Lucy thought. Can she learn that sometimes happiness doesn't come with a plan?

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Skin Taker

9+ readers 11+ readers

Author: Michelle Paver Format: Hardback Release Date: 01/04/2021

Run wild with Wolf Brother in a Stone Age world we all want to be a part of with million-copy-selling author, Michelle Paver. Danger, magic and non stop adventure await Torak, Renn and Wolf in a devastating Dark Time that threatens everything they know. The Clans will be tested as never before, as they battle to find ways to survive and thrive in their beloved Forest. In the Dark Time of midwinter, disaster strikes the Forest. Chaos rules. Bears woken from their dens prowl the shadowy valleys. Desperate clans battle for survival. Only demons thrive. With their world in turmoil, Torak, Renn and Wolf are tested as never before. And as a new evil haunts the devastated land, Torak must risk his sanity, his life and even his souls to save everything he loves... Skin Taker carries you back to the Stone Age, drawing you deeper into the astonishing adventure which began with Wolf Brother and has captivated millions of readers.

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Circus Maximus: Race to the Death

9+ readers 11+ readers

Author: Annelise Gray Format: Paperback Release Date: 04/09/2021

Selected for The Book Box by LoveReading4Kids | Circus Maximus, the greatest sporting stage of the ancient Roman world, where the best horses and charioteers compete in a race to the death, and one girl dreams of glory. Ben Hur meets National Velvet in the ultimate 9-12 adventure story by debut children's author, Annelise Gray.

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When We Got Lost in Dreamland

9+ readers 11+ readers

Author: Ross Welford Format: Hardback Release Date: 21/01/2021

January 2021 Book of the Month | Kids are always being told that if they ‘dream their dreams’ one day those dreams will come true. ‘Living the dream’ is a very different experience for 11-going-on-12-year-old Malky in Ross Welford’s absorbing, vastly entertaining novel. Blackmailed into a bungled burglary, Malky becomes owner of a set of Dreaminators, mysterious machines that make dream worlds real and give the dreamer powers to control them. At first, Malky and his co-dreamer, little brother Seb, enjoy their night-time adventures, especially those in a Stone Age world closely based on Seb’s favourite storybook where they make friends, go hunting, and Seb has high hopes of riding a mammoth. If it seems too good to be true, of course it is, and as Malky’s ability to control what’s happening in his dreams weakens, everything – awake or asleep – starts to go wrong. When Seb is taken prisoner in a dream and falls into a life-threatening coma in real life, Malky has to face up to his responsibilities, not to mention the fears and anger his dreams have disguised, in one last terrifying dream. At least he has new friends there to help. The story is cleverly told and plotted, moving back and forward in time, from dream to reality, with Doctor Who ease. It’s full of humour too, e.g. a wonderful scene in the school canteen in which Malky does all the things he’s always dreamed of doing, not realising he’s actually awake. Core too are the really big things in life – friendship, love, family, learning about yourself and understanding others. It’s a book that delights in the fact that the inside of our head is bigger far than the outside. Readers who enjoy Welford’s excellent books will also race through Christopher Edge’s out-of-this world adventures.

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This Book Is Feminist

9+ readers 11+ readers

Author: Jamia Wilson Illustrator: Aurelia Durand Format: Paperback Release Date: 29/06/2021

Discover the history and meaning of the feminist movement through 15 reasons why feminism improves life for everyone. By exploring who has been left out of the movement historically, author Jamia Wilson makes sure everybody is included. “I am a feminist. I’ve been female for a long time now. It’d be stupid not to be on my own side.” —Maya Angelou What have you been taught about who has power and who makes the rules? Have you ever been lost for words at an old-school family friend’s “kind” but sexist comments? Do you agree with equality and strive for justice, but struggle to take on the name “Feminist”? Then read on. In this new feminist classic, explore the points where sexism, ableism, racism, transphobia, and sizeism meet. This book's focus is intersectional from the beginning, not just as an add-on. Using the framework of “personal is political,” Jamia Wilson—director of the Feminist Press—analyses her own experiences, before expanding outwards and drawing on stats, quotes, and feminist firebrands to gain strength from. ? Expand what feminism means to you, your community and society by examining these 15 themes: feminism, identity, justice, education, money, power, health, wellness, freedom, relationships, media, safety, activism and movements, innovation, and an interactive exploration of what feminism means to you. You will close the book with an understanding that history and culture play a role in shaping systems of power and of what we can do with our strengths, community, and values to help change course when needed. You won't have read a feminist tome like this before.

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The Elephant in the Room

9+ readers 11+ readers

Author: Holly Goldberg Sloan Format: Paperback Release Date: 02/03/2021

It's been almost a year since Sila's mum travelled halfw ay around the world to Turkey, hoping to secure the immigration paperw ork that w ould allow her to return to her family in the United States. The long separation is almost impossible for Sila to bear. But things change when Sila accompanies her father (who is a mechanic) outside their Oregon town to fix a truck. There, behind an enormous stone wall, she meets a grandfatherly man who only months before won the state lottery. Their new alliance leads to the rescue of a circus elephant named Veda, and then to a friendship with a unique boy named Mateo, proving that comfort and hope come in the most unlikely of places. A moving story of family separation and the importance of the connection between animals and humans, this novel has the enormous heart and uplifting humour that readers have come to expect from the beloved author of Counting by 7s.

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Thunderbolt A Jack Courtney Adventure

9+ readers 11+ readers

Author: Wilbur Smith Format: Paperback Release Date: 04/03/2021

Second in a brand new action adventure series starring 14-year-old Jack Courtney - a hero to rival Alex Rider - from worldwide bestselling author Wilbur Smith. Jack and his friends Amelia and Xander are in Zanzibar diving for lost treasure to support Jack's mother's coral protection project. Going further than usual on their last day, their dive boat is lured into a trap and captured by Somali pirates. Determined that his mother shouldn't pay a ransom for their release, Jack won't give up his attempts to escape. Transferred to a militia training camp for boy soldiers, the trio's only hope is the resourceful Somali boy Mo who befriends them. Can they outwit the ruthless General Sir and his merciless troops in the second gripping adventure from the authors of Cloudburst.

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A Turtle's View of the Ocean Blue

9+ readers 11+ readers

Author: Catherine Barr Illustrator: Brendan Kearney Format: Hardback Release Date: 15/04/2021

Join your sea turtle guide as you navigate every inch of our oceans, from the sunlit surface to the deepest, darkest depths. This beautiful book will help you explore the five oceans on our planet, meeting the creatures who live there and finding out just how their incredible surroundings work. From tides and currents, to migrations and conservation, see our oceans in action and learn how you can help to save them.

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The Storm Keepers' Battle Storm Keeper Trilogy 3

9+ readers 11+ readers

Author: Catherine Doyle Format: Paperback Release Date: 04/03/2021

Fionn Boyle, Storm Keeper of Arranmore, is facing the fight of his life. The terrifying all- powerful sorceress Morrigan has been raised from the dead and has sealed off the island from all help. Fionn is the only thing that stands between her and a dark future. He's got to find a way to defeat her. But there are some terrible choices in store for Fionn as the dark sorcerer begins to take his nearest and dearest for her own. With only two candles left to burn, will Fionn master his powers in time to stop her?

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Worst. Holiday. Ever

11+ readers 13+ readers

Author: Charlie Higson Format: Paperback Release Date: 01/05/2021

Not since Adrian Mole opened his diary have the thoughts and innermost feelings of an adolescent boy been examined so precisely or with such heart. Stan is twelve, shy and a worrier, so the thought of a holiday in Italy with his friend Felix and Felix’s family freaks him out. He’s going though: we meet him at the airport drawing up a ‘duck-it’ list of things he hopes he’ll never have to do. Little does he know that he’ll tick off six out of ten of them on his holiday, and enjoy it too. The first-person narrative lets us in on all Stan’s thoughts, but he’s a good observer of others so we learn loads about the others in the holiday party too, kids and grown-ups. There are laugh-out-loud scenes and moments of pure agony, and through it all Stan is learning loads about himself and life in general. Honest, revealing, compassionate and so entertaining, this is a must read for all the Stans out there – adults, give yourselves a treat and read it too.

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Feast of the Evernight

11+ readers 13+ readers

Author: Ross MacKenzie Format: Paperback Release Date: 06/05/2021

Return to the spellbinding world of Ross Mackenzie’s Evernight in this darkly brilliant sequel. The Evernight has been defeated and the sun has returned, thanks to Larabelle Fox and her friends Joe and Double Eight. But a new threat is emerging from the mists of the Veil, the dangerous forest that surrounds the Silver Kingdom’s southern lands. Lara and Joe journey to Lake End to discover what’s really happening, all the while trying to stay one step ahead of the secret police . . .

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Forever Ends on Friday

11+ readers 13+ readers

Author: Justin A Reynolds Format: Paperback Release Date: 21/01/2021

Forever Ends on Friday weaves together loss, grief, friendship, and love to form a wholly unique homage to the bonds that bring people together for life - and beyond. Justin A. Reynolds, author of Opposite of Always, returns with another charming and powerful YA contemporary novel with a twist.

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Shades of Scarlet

13+ readers

Author: Anne Fine Format: Hardback Release Date: 04/03/2021

When Mum gives her the notebook, Scarlet should be happy. It's beautiful, with its shiny scarlet cover and its blank pages full of promise. But Scarlet is absolutely not in the mood for a peace offering. Does Mum really think she can tear their family apart and expect Scarlet to be happy about it? And it's Dad's fault too. Why didn't he fight to keep them all together? Now Scarlet has to start a new life, and none of it was her choice. Scarlet decides there's only one thing she can write in the notebook. The truth, about everything...

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The Last Hawk

13+ readers

Author: Elizabeth Wein Format: Paperback Release Date: 04/03/2021

Nazi Germany is a dangerous place for a girl with a stammer - and although her father tries to keep her safe, Ingrid can't help feeling like she's let him down. But in the air, soaring high as she pilots her beloved glider planes, Ingrid is free and incredibly talented. When she gets the chance to fly in a propaganda tour alongside her hero, Germany's daring female test pilot Hanna Reitsch, Ingrid leaps at the chance. But through Hanna, she will learn some dangerous truths about Germany's secret missions and the plans that could change the course of the war to secure victory for the Nazi regime. When everything is at stake, Ingrid must decide where her loyalties lie ...

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The Girl Who...

13+ readers YA readers

Author: Andreina Cordani Format: Paperback Release Date: 14/01/2021

The girl who... survived The girl who... inspires The girl who... has something to hide People can't bring themselves to say what happened to her. They just describe her as 'the girl who... you know...'. But nobody really knows, no one sees the real Leah. Leah is the perfect survivor. She was seven years old when she saw her mother and sister killed by a troubled gang member. Her case hit the headlines and her bravery made her a national sweetheart: strong, courageous and forgiving. But Leah is hiding a secret about their deaths. And now, ten years later, all she can think of is revenge. When Leah's dad meets a new partner, stepsister Ellie moves in. Sensing Leah isn't quite the sweet girl she pretends to be, Ellie discovers that Leah has a plan, one she has been putting together ever since that fateful day. Now that the killer - and the only one who knows the truth - is being released from prison, time is running out for Ellie to discover how far Leah will go to silence her anger . . .

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The Humiliations of Welton Blake

13+ readers YA readers

Author: Alex Wheatle Format: Paperback Release Date: 07/01/2021

January 2021 Book of the Month | Interest Age Teen Reading Age 8 What a book! Alex Wheatle’s writing buzzes with energy and captures twelve-and-a-half-year-old Welton’s experience of being in love in all its heart-pounding, stomach-flipping, confusing giddiness alongside a run of seriously bad luck. With Wheatle’s outstanding Jamaica-set historic novel Cane Warriors one of my favourite books of recent years, this confirms the author’s status as a writer of huge talent, with the ability to infuse all genres with a special kind of magic. Things begin to go downhill for Welton the moment he finally plucks up courage to ask out Carmella, “one of the most delicious-looking females in school.” But, somehow, he manages to retain an infectiously upbeat stance throughout, punctuating his problems with Star Wars related exclamations (“Oh, for the life of Yoda!”) as he navigates everything life throws at him - from Hulk-like moustachioed bully Brian and the strife between his divorced parents, to his intense fear of being “lamed and shamed” by Carmella. Welton’s wit and entrepreneurial spirit is especially hilarious and sees him selling damning insults to classmates for 50p a cuss. Fresh, funny and authentic, readers will truly root for Welton - while he’s one of a kind, his voice and experiences will resonant far and wide. What’s more, being published by Barrington Stoke, this zesty page-turner is highly readable and produced with reluctant and dyslexic readers in mind, with manageable chapter lengths, a specially selected font and cream paper.

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Yolk

13+ readers YA readers

Author: Mary H. K. Choi Format: Paperback Release Date: 04/03/2021

From New York Times bestselling author Mary H.K. Choi comes a funny and emotional story about two estranged sisters and how far they'll go to save one of their lives - even if it means swapping identities. Jayne and June Baek are nothing alike. June's three years older, a classic first-born, know-it-all narc with a problematic finance job and an equally soulless apartment (according to Jayne). Jayne is an emotionally stunted, self-obsessed basket case who lives in squalor, has egregious taste in men, and needs to get to class and stop wasting Mom and Dad's money (if you ask June). Once thick as thieves, these sisters who moved from Seoul to San Antonio to New York together now don't want anything to do with each other. That is, until June gets cancer. And Jayne becomes the only one who can help her. Flung together by circumstance, housing woes, and family secrets, will the sisters learn more about each other than they're willing to confront? And what if while helping June, Jayne has to confront the fact that maybe she's sick, too?

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Influence

13+ readers YA readers

Author: Sara Shepard, Lilia Buckingham Format: Paperback Release Date: 05/01/2021

Selected for The Book Box by LoveReading4Kids | Co-written by YA author Sara Shepard and 16-year-old Instagram celebrity and actress Lilia Buckingham, Influence is at once blisteringly entertaining and grippingly gritty - think guilty pleasure gossip site meets down and dirty exposé of the unfiltered underside of social influencer life. With an ultra-twisty plot that’s sure to keep readers on their toes, the story opens with rising social star Delilah moving to LA. Thanks to the video that propelled her to fame as “Puppy Girl”, she’s set to hit the bigtime, especially when glamourous, super-famous Jasmine befriends her, though both young women want more from life. Delilah aspires to be known for animal activism, diabetes awareness and anti-bullying messages rather than cute canine content, while Jasmine longs to be free from the constraints of her tightly-controlled brand image, not least so she can live out her true sexuality. Then there’s outwardly cheery Fiona, famed for her fashion and beauty YouTube channel, but inwardly weighed down by OCD and The Voice in her head that tells her she’s worthless. At the top of the tree is Kardashian-esque famous Scarlet. She and handsome Jack, a mega YouTube prankster star, are worshipped as “Jacklet”, with countless crazily devoted fans following their every move, as Delilah experiences first-hand when she and Jack strike up a bond, and it’s not long before a tsunami of duplicity and devastation explodes. Through the lives of the four female influencers we see bitchy backstabbing, the pressures of brand ambassadorship, the hollowness of consumer culture and the ruthlessness of fervent fans. Ultimately, though, when this thrilling rollercoaster ride winds up, the book chimes a message of authenticity. In Jasmine’s words, “Embrace who you are, not who the internet wants you to be.”

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Concrete Rose

YA readers

Author: Angie Thomas Format: Paperback Release Date: 12/01/2021

This book is set 17 years before the action in Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give – showing how Star’s father in THUG became the man he is. Maverick is an average teenage boy in the Garden Heights area – selling drugs to help the budget at home as his father is in prison. His Mum works two and sometimes three jobs to try to make ends meet – and Maverick knows he needs to graduate High School to stand any chance of becoming the man he wants to be. That is, until he discovers he is a father, and the baby’s mother can’t cope and hands baby Seven (named after Maverick’s lucky number) to Maverick to care for. The difficulties of being a single parent, and the strong community who try to rally to Maverick’s aid are wonderfully depicted in this powerful exploration of what it is to be a teen parent. But, it is never so simple as the community pulling together, Maverick also has to turn away from his gang life, standalone – but then his cousin Dre, who was more like a brother, is killed in a gangland shooting and dies in Maverick’s arms. This is such a powerful book – totally honest in its appreciation of the difficulties of life, but so filled with humanity you cannot help but root for Maverick, even when you are scared what he might choose to do. This is one of those books that stay with you – that will change people’s thinking, highlighting as it does some of the social injustices of growing up young and black in today’s world. Read it, then read The Hate u Give – if you haven’t already read it!

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Ace of Spades

YA readers

Author: Faridah Abike-Iyimide Format: Paperback Release Date: 10/06/2021

A compelling, incendiary, and unputdownable thriller with a shocking twist, Faridah Abike-Iyimide delves deep into the heart of institutionalized racism with this compulsive debut.

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