Goth Girl and the Sinister Symphony
9+ readersBest-selling Goth Girl is back for an action-packed new adventure in this stunningly produced volume by former Children’s Laureate Chris Riddell which has the additional delight of a mini-book, Fable of a Faun, tucked into it. Lord Goth is turning Ghastly-Gorm Hall into the venue for Gothstock, a sensational music festival that will match his home. Naturally, Ada Goth is thrilled at the thought but will it all go to plan? In both words and pictures Chris Riddell creates an amazing cast of characters and the most original escapades in which they are all entangled.
Unbelievably Boring Bart
9+ readers 11+ readersBart self-describes as boring – in a school full of high-achieving middle-schoolers, he only stands out because he’s so dull. But if that’s so, how come his story involves bizarre creatures, last-minute escapes, daring computer hacks, double crosses, and even the threat of total global destruction? The only way to find out is to read it… No-one knows more about the creation of unputdownable fiction than James Patterson, and this is another sure-fire hit combining sharply observed school life with computer game action and surprisingly touching family dynamics. Boring it ain’t, and despite the easy-reading feel there’s lots to get kids thinking as they race through the pages.
Toto the Ninja Cat and the Incredible Cheese Heist Book 2
5+ readers 7+ readersToto is no ordinary cat, and she can't wait for you to join her on her SECOND ninja adventure! From one of the UK's best-loved broadcasters, purrfect for fans of The Aristocats, The Secret Life of Pets and Atticus Claw Breaks the Law. Toto, the amazing ninja cat, is back and cooler than ever! Toto is almost blind, but that doesn't stop her having brilliant adventures. Something CAT-ASTROPHIC has happened: ALL the cheese in the world has been stolen. Join Toto, her brother Silver and their best-friend Catface on a secret mission to save the day. Toto is going to need all her ninja skills to defeat the fur-midable cheese thief ... Ideal for reading aloud or for children to curl up with and read alone, the story features brilliant black and white illustrations throughout. With gentle themes of friendship, inclusivity and winning in the face of adversity, this is a hilarious must-read for all animal-loving kids! Dermot says: 'The idea for Toto first came to me when my wife and I rescued two stray cats from an olive grove in Italy. One of them, Toto, has been blind from birth, but we quickly realised she had ninja-like reactions. Like a lot of cat owners (or cat servants), we like to imagine our pets having secret lives when we're out or asleep. So before I knew it I was writing about Toto and her brother Silver's nocturnal adventures around London. I really hope that children who pick it up enjoy reading the adventures of our little Italian underdog (cat).' Have you read Toto's first adventure, The Great Snake Escape?
Mucking About
9+ readersManchán is the kind of boy who loves mucking about with his best friend, regularly gets into scrapes, and is horrified at the career path his mum has chosen for him - no way can he become a monk. Yes, a monk, because while Manchán shares all the characteristics of a modern boy, he lives centuries ago when there were wolves and druids in the forests, and Vikings on the seas. His world is presented as something of a dream for today's children, days can be spent picking blackberries or messing about in coracles, and a pig can be your pet. In a series of self-contained adventures, we get to know Manchán, his family, Muck his pig, and best friend Pagan-of-the-Six-Toes very well, and spending time with them is a real treat; John Chambers even wins readers round to the view that 'monking', as Manchán describes it, might not be that bad after all. Charming, quirky, and lots of fun.
Frights and Bites Fangs! Scream! Zombie!
5+ readers 7+ readersA Dirty Bertie collection to delight his legions of fans who revel in his revolting ways! Featuring nine stories from Fangs!, Scream! and Zombie! A review for Fangs! - Disgusting Dirty Bertie is back for a new set of mucky adventures. As ever he has some crazy plans up his sleeve most of which involve him being disgusting in more ways than can easily be imagined. This time Bertie dresses up as a vampire for his school’s book week. But someone else has the same idea and soon things are going far from smoothly for Bertie! ~ Julia Eccleshare
Iguana Boy vs. The 30 Second Thief
7+ readers 9+ readersSeptember 2018 Book of the Month | Think you know super-hero stories? Think again! Dylan, aka Iguana Boy, has an unusual super-power – he can talk to iguanas. Despite the derision of his superhero siblings, he’s already managed to save the world once (detailed in book one of the series) and therefore has a place at Superhero HQ. It’s not quite what he’d hoped for, then he’s put in charge of a special superhero team, the CITD no less… Even though that actually stands for Cats in Trees Department, Dylan and his band – including his five iguana sidekicks – manage to foil a criminal mastermind. Absurd situations and a range of fabulously comic characters, both human and reptile, put this at the top of the superhero comedy tree, with regular, very funny cartoon strips adding to the enjoyment.
Itchy, Scritchy, Scratchy Pants
3+ readers 5+ readersWell, here’s a book that ticks some absolute favourite first reader boxes: Vikings – tick; bare bottoms – tick; knickers – tick; a bouncy rhyming text just right for reading aloud – tick; lively, action-packed illustrations – tick, tick, tick! The plot concerns some chilly Vikings and their quest to obtain yeti hair with which to knit cosy new knickers, and while it all builds to a tremendous and satisfying climax, most readers will be totally won over on page one, with the lines: “Well, they’d got into a fight, had their undies set alight,/ Now their pants were all in pieces and their bums were turning blue!” Just great fun!
Night of the Living Ted
7+ readersAlways look a gift-horse in the mouth could be the message of this highly entertaining, very funny new book from master of the madcap adventure Barry Hutchinson. Lisa-Marie and her step-brother Vernon are out shopping for a present for Dad when they wander into the local Create-a-Ted store, tempted - Vernon in particular - by the sign in the window offering 'free' Hallowe'en bears. No sooner have they left with one teddy bear witch, one teddy bear vampire, and one teddy bear Elvis (for Dad) than the trouble starts. The bears come to life and - Bearvis excepted - they are anything but cuddly. Can Lisa-Marie and Vernon stop squabbling long enough to save their parents and their town from the marauding teddies? It manages to be both silly and exciting and, I'm glad to say, sets things up nicely for further adventures.
Hungry Babies
3+ readersAfter the success of Yoga Babies, the best-selling duo Fearne Cotton and Sheena Dempsey are back and this time the babies are hungry! Mealtime is a joyous and often messy occasion and these babies are shown thoroughly enjoying their food. From picnics to birthday parties, cooking and shopping the book carries a positive message about being relaxed and having fun with food. Written in rhyming text and accompanied by detailed and brightly coloured artwork this is a perfect book to share at bedtime, and might help soothe a worried fussy eater!
I Am Bat
Baby and Toddler 3+ readersUKLA Longlist Book Awards - 2019 | One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | This must be one of the brightest and best picture books of the year. With minimalist illustrations – simple shapes against blocks of Day-Glo colour – and short lines of text, Morag Hood tells a story that will dazzle and entertain all readers. Cherries, Bat tells us, ‘are my favourite things’, following this up with a fiercely delivered threat: ‘Do not take my cherries.’ In later pages though we see the cherries being stolen. Bat is inconsolable until one of the thieves leaves a pear in their place. Bat’s emotions – joy, anger, confusion, despair, surprise and joy again – are rendered brilliantly in the tilt of an eyebrow and the angle of the head while the intensity of those emotions will be hilarious yet recognisable to child and parent alike. Superb!
Santa Claus vs The Easter Bunny
3+ readers 5+ readersChristmas without presents or Easter without eggs? - unthinkable! Whilst Santa has his army of elves to help him, the poor eggs-hausted Easter Bunny has to do all the work himself. He makes the eggs, delivers the eggs and doesn't even get a thank you. So the fed up Easter Bunny plans a cunning chocolate vendetta to cause havoc in Santa's factory and spoil all the presents....but fortunately Father Christmas is partial to a little chocolate. What's Christmas without chocolate after all?
The Bolds in Trouble
7+ readers 9+ readersThe Bolds, for those who don’t know, are a family of hyenas living disguised as humans in a quiet street in Teddington. They wear clothes and hats to cover their hyena features, so the neighbours have no idea what they really are, though they notice they laugh a lot, as will readers of these hugely entertaining stories. In this adventure the Bolds run into trouble. A couple of foxes are disturbing the human residents of Fairfield Street putting themselves in danger of being captured. But when the Bolds try to help the foxes they get a very rude response. The story is full of incident, packed with humour (including masses of very good jokes) and the Bolds continue to demonstrate that kindness, tolerance, and a good sense of humour are the elements for a happy life. Required reading.
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