Age 9 plus:
The Highland Falcon Thief (Adventures on Trains)
M.G. Leonard, Sam Sedgman
and Elisa Paganelli
and Elisa Paganelli
IT'S NOT quite murder on the Orient Express… but this steam
dream adventure has drama aplenty, and is just the ticket for young train buffs! The Highland Falcon Thief is the first all-action journey in
Adventures on Trains, a brilliant new middle-grade series from mystery-writing
duo M.G. Leonard, prize-winning author of the Battle of the Beetles trilogy, and
Sam Sedgman, a writer and lifelong train enthusiast, with Elisa Paganelli’s brilliant
illustrations providing the extra bells and whistles.
So climb aboard a royal train and join 11-year-old Harrison
Beck as he solves the case of a jewel thief on a non-stop rail adventure full
of falsehoods, puzzles, suspects, and lots of fascinating clues to solve.
Budding young artist Harrison (Hal) Beck is very reluctantly
joining his travel-writer Uncle Nat for the last journey of the royal train, the
Highland Falcon, but his mum is pregnant, the baby is going to be born soon,
and it feels like he’s being sent out of the way. To make matters worse, a journey all the way to Scotland and
back on the slowest train in the world with his ‘weird’ uncle doesn’t sound
much fun to Hal but as the train makes its way north, he finds a new friend in Marlene
‘Lenny’ Singh, the train-mad, stowaway daughter of the train’s Sikh driver.
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| ON TRACK: M.G. Leonard and Sam Sedgman |
With Hal’s interest in steam trains now fired up by both his
uncle and Lenny, and with the celebrity and royal passengers providing added
interest, the trip to Scotland suddenly seems a lot more appealing.
Click HERE for
Lancashire Post review
Click HERE for
Lancashire Post review
And when a priceless brooch belonging to the wife of a business tycoon goes missing – just the first of a series of big value thefts – suspicions and accusations run high among the passengers. Hal decides to investigate and uncovers a few surprises along the way, but can he solve the mystery of the jewel thief and catch the culprit before they reach the end of the line? This thrilling, fun-filled new series is on the fast track to success as readers hear whispers in the dining car, find notes in the library, and follow the pictures in Hal’s sketchbook as they help the two young detectives solve a baffling mystery.
With a cast of sparkling characters, a train-load of
fascinating facts, a very special dog, and a full-steam-ahead adventure, Leonard
and Sedgman are certainly pulling out all the stops as they take youngsters on one
of the wildest and most wonderful reading journeys they will make this year.
The train is now waiting for all young adventurers!
(Macmillan, paperback, £6.99)
Age 10 plus:
She is Fierce: Brave, Bold and Beautiful
Ana Sampson
JUST a year after the centenary celebrations of women’s
suffrage, anthologist Ana Sampson brings us a breathtaking collection of poetry
which is guaranteed to inspire a new generation of budding feminists.
Cleverly collated and brimming with the resonant voices of
women poets from the past and present, and from all corners of the globe, these
150 powerful and impressively diverse poems are yet more proof that female
poets speak loudly and eloquently, and are at the heart of literary life.
At a time when women’s equality is by no means done and
dusted, Sampson highlights not just the beauty of women’s poetry but the
fierce, brave and bold flame that burns brightly in their words as they take
their rightful place in what for too long was regarded as the ‘male’ arena of
literature. Over the centuries, many women have written poems but didn’t
dare publish them, and others, like George Eliot and the Bronte sisters,
published their work under male pseudonyms.
It was also felt that women should stick to certain subjects
like family, friendship, dutiful religion, and the prettier corners of nature
but in the poems gathered here by Sampson, we find meditations on every
possible subject, including science, the universe, politics, protest, body
image, myths, mental health, war and displacement.
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Click HERE for Lancashire Post review
From classic, well-loved poets like Emily Dickinson, Dorothy
Parker and Maya Angelou to innovative and the bold modern voices of poets like
Hollie McNish, Jackie Kay and Emergency Poet Deborah Alma, this stunning gift
book is packed full of women who deserve to be heard time and time again.
Immerse yourself in poems from British-Indian writer Nikita
Gill, Wendy Cope, Ysra Daley-Ward, Emily Bronte, Carol Ann Duffy, Fleur Adcock,
Liz Berry, Imtiaz Dharker, Helen Dunmore, Mary Oliver, Christina Rossetti and
Margaret Atwood, and hear the words of suffragettes, schoolgirls, superstars,
civil rights activists, aristocratic ladies and kitchen maids. Sampson, author of many bestselling anthologies such as
Poems to Learn by Heart, Green and Pleasant Land and Best-Loved Poems: A
Treasury of Verse, includes brief biographies of all the poets making this the
perfect package for budding poets and lovers of inspirational verse.
(Macmillan, paperback, £7.99)
Age 7 plus:
Just Annoying!
Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton
DO YOUR kids ask over and over ‘Are we there yet?’ on long
car journeys? If the answer is yes, then they are going to love Just
Annoying! the second book in the hilarious Just series
of short stories from those wonderful ‘wizards of Oz.’
These stories starring the world’s most annoying practical joker are perfectly pitched to entertain young readers with their madcap japes, scrapes and comic capers, all superbly cooked up by top Australian writer and illustrator team, Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton.
Do you like to drive people
mad by copying everything they say and do?
Do you hog the shower and use up all the hot water?
Do you enjoy asking silly questions that have no real answers?
Do you swing on the washing line whenever you get the chance?
Do you hog the shower and use up all the hot water?
Do you enjoy asking silly questions that have no real answers?
Do you swing on the washing line whenever you get the chance?
If your
child answers yes to all the questions, then parents can pride themselves on
having a masterful practical joker on their hands who is guaranteed to love the
book! Full of wild and wacky, highly illustrated, laugh-out-loud fun,
this easy-to-read, visually exciting and wonderfully entertaining book is
guaranteed to get practical jokers, and even the most reluctant readers,
begging for more!
(Macmillan, paperback, £6.99)
Age 6 plus:
Unipiggle: Unicorn Muddle
Hannah Shaw
MEET a princess who loves breaking the rules and her Royal
Unicorn who just happens to be a smelly pig… sorry, a Unipiggle!
Expect fun, adventure and lots of laughs as Hannah Shaw
returns with a magical new series for young readers. Well-known for her superb illustrations
in the award-winning The Great Hamster Massacre, Hannah welcomes everyone to
Twinkleland Kingdom where everyone is 100 per cent perfect… except for the
irresistible Princess Pea.
Starring a princess who doesn’t like rules, thinks being
perfect is boring, and would rather wear wellies than a frilly frock, expect
anarchy and antics all the way!
Princess Peony Peachykins Primrose Polyanna Posh (better
known as Pea) loves getting muddy and having adventures and she’s not at all
keen on being perfect. But today is the day the princess has to pick her own perfect
unicorn at the Royal Unicorn Parade… it will be a noble steed, a stylish mascot
and, most importantly to the princess, her new sidekick who will hopefully
bring her fun and freedom.
But she hasn’t actually met a real unicorn before and they
all seem too vain, snobby and silly to be her loyal companion. And then muddy,
podgy, pongy, magic-horned Unipiggle unexpectedly appears and creates a very
big muddle. It looks like Princess Pea has met her perfect match... and so
begin the adventures of Princess Pea and Unipiggle!
Like a pig in muck, Shaw has fun, games and muddy magic with
this wonderfully madcap and imaginative new series which is filled with high-energy,
full-colour illustrations, knockabout comedy, a draw your own Unipiggle section…
and looks set to be a simply perfect reading hit!
(Usborne, paperback, £5.99)
Age 5 plus:
Lift-the-Flap Questions and Answers about Plastic
Katie Daynes and
Marie-Eve Tremblay
Marie-Eve Tremblay
WHAT is plastic made of? How does it get into the ocean? Can
we live without plastic?
The world makes twice as much plastic as it did twenty years
ago, and now planet Earth is facing a huge plastic crisis. Children are becoming more and more aware of the world’s
problem with plastic and so here is the ideal go-to book to help them
understand the environmental implications of the crisis and its impact on the
world around them.
Learn all about plastic, recycling and how plastic affects
the environment and enjoy lifting over sixty flaps to discover fascinating
facts and figures. There are also tips on how we can all make a difference to
our planet, and Usborne Quicklinks to specially selected websites for video clips
and activities.
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Click HERE for Lancashire Post review
The lift-the-flap format lets children find answers to all
kinds of questions about plastic and teaches them how they can be the power for
a better future, and with expert advice from Plastic Oceans UK – a non-profit
organisation which works with businesses, scientists, schools and policy-makers
to change attitudes and behaviours towards plastic – this is a timely, topical
and essential book. Ideal for home or school…
(Usborne, board book, £9.99)
Age 5 plus:
The Bat Book
Charlotte Milner
EVERYONE is going batty about bats! What do bats look like, why do bats hang upside down, why
are bats important, and why are bats in decline?
Take an amazing journey through the upside-down world of
bats with The Bat Book. Bright, bold, and beautiful illustrations accompany
fascinating facts about these furry flying mammals and their importance to the
world we live in. From the way they fly, to how they communicate with each
other, how they hunt, and why they sleep upside-down, each of the world’s 1,300
types of bat is unique and utterly fascinating. Bats are also incredibly
important to the environment. As well as
gobbling up pests and spreading seeds through the forests, they also pollinate
over 500 different species of plants throughout the world, including some of
our favourite fruits such as mangoes and bananas.
Following in the footsteps of The Bee Book and The Sea Book,
award-winning author and illustrator Charlotte Milner continues her mission to
highlight important ecological issues faced by our planet to children, this
time focusing on the world’s only flying mammals.
Did you know that there are two main groups of bats, or that
the bat is the only mammal that can fly?Discover why they are declining, and
what we can do to help. Children will be fascinated by the beautiful illustrations
and learn plenty of bat facts on every page, including types of bat, where bats
hang out, how they find food in the dark, and lots more.
This charming celebration of bats – which includes tips on how
to support bats with activities such as growing a bat-friendly garden – shows youngsters
just how extraordinary, and clever, these animals are and is an important
reminder that it is up to us to care for our planet and its precious creatures.
(DK Children’s Books, hardback, £12.99)
Age 4 plus:
Talking is Not My Thing!
Rose Robbins
MOST children have experienced the highs and lows of growing up with brothers and sisters… but what if one of your siblings is autistic?
Author and illustrator Rose Robbins, who has an autistic
brother and teaches autistic young people, delivers some sweet and subtle
messages about family life with a ‘differently abled’ child in Talking is Not
My Thing!, a moving and beautifully created picture book in which an autistic
girl tells her story through a mixture of thought and speech bubbles.
It is published by London-based Scallywag Press, a
children’s book company which was founded in 2018 and aims to bring
entertaining and memorable books to a worldwide audience. Full of bold, bright and lively artwork, this beautiful,
sensitively created book is the follow-up to Me and My Sister in which we
viewed the autistic girl through the eyes of her brother and their (sometimes
difficult) day together eating meals, going to school and playing.
Here we discover that the little girl finds plenty of ways
to communicate and have fun with her brother. Although she can’t talk, the girl
understands everything and has plenty to say, and lots of ideas. Through body
language, drawing pictures, making gestures or using flash cards, she is able
to contribute to their life together. Her brother and granny are able to
understand her, whether she needs help or is helping them.
This poignant and moving story – enhanced by Robbins’ light
touch and use of humour – explores what it is like to be autistic, and how
family members understand the challenges around autism.
A revealing and gentle story with an upbeat and uplifting
message for both children and parents…
(Scallywag Press, hardback, £12.99)
Age 3 plus:
Lion Lessons
Jon Agee
UNLEASH the lion in your own little cubs with this
gloriously witty picture book from American author and illustrator Jon Agee, a
master of visual storytelling and deadpan humour.
Brimming with leonine comedy and read-aloud-and-share
appeal, this fiercely funny and roaringly entertaining picture book teaches youngsters
that learning to be a great lion can have the most unexpected outcomes.
‘It’s not easy getting your Lion Diploma.’ In fact, there
are seven steps to becoming a proper lion, including Looking Fierce, Roaring,
Prowling Around, and Pouncing. Our little hero does his best to learn the required
skills during his training with a master instructor (who just happens to be a
real lion!) and at first he doesn’t score highly. But when it comes to rescuing
an endangered neighbourhood cat, he finally gets the hang of being a scary
lion.
Agee, whose books have won starred reviews and medals galore,
uses bold, eye-catching illustrations with a wealth of rich detail and
expressive genius as youngsters turn the pages and enjoy watching the little
boy go from zero to hero. With its short, punchy sentences, cross-generational wit and
an addictive sense of fun that imbues every page and every picture, this is
Agee at his quirkiest and playful best!
(Scallywag Press, hardback, £12.99)
Age 2 plus:
Pug Hug
Zehra Hicks
HUGS all round for this enchanting tale about a cute little
pug who needs a big, loving cuddle!
Award-winning author and illustrator Zehra Hicks tugs at
everyone’s heartstrings with a beautiful picture book which puts affection,
belonging, and the human need for friendship in full focus.
Pug is desperate for a hug. But however hard he tries to hug
the other animals, he can’t get a hug from anyone. Cat doesn’t like hugs,
Rabbit is too busy munching carrots and hamster is just too fast to catch!
Maybe Croc will give Pug a hug… or does he have other ideas?! Hicks, whose book All Mine! was nominated for the Kate
Greenaway Medal, delivers fun, endearing messages and a big helping of the
sweetest pug love in this gorgeous extravaganza of beguiling words and
multi-coloured,
heart-melting illustrations.
heart-melting illustrations.
(Hodder Children’s Books, hardback, £12.99)
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