CHILDREN'S BOOKS: A comedy classic, daring dragons and breaking records

Enjoy a special anniversary illustrated edition of Douglas Adams’ dazzling masterpiece, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, follow warrior dragons on an epic adventure, celebrate the ups and down of family life, and join in a song of gladness in a springtime selection of children’s books

Age 9 plus
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Illustrated Edition
Written by Douglas Adams and illustrated by Chris Riddell

TAKE a classic science fiction book written by a master of comedy, a gallery of illustrations by a renowned former Children’s Laureate… and what do you have? The answer is, of course, a magnificent 42nd anniversary edition of Douglas Adams’ dazzling pop-culture masterpiece, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, published in perfect time for the commemorative fan-created Towel Day on May 25, and to mark 42 being the answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything.

Described by comedian, actor, writer, and television personality David Walliams as ‘one of the greatest achievements in comedy. A work of staggering genius,’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy makes a spectacular return in a beautifully produced gift edition brimming with the breathtaking black-and-white illustrations of multi-award-winning artist Chris Riddell.

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Created by Douglas Adams, who tragically died suddenly in 2001 aged only 49, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy was originally a 1978 radio comedy broadcast on BBC Radio 4, but it was later adapted to other formats, including stage shows, novels, comic books, a 1981 TV series, a 1984 video game, and 2005 feature film. It went on to become an international multi-media phenomenon but the novels are the most widely distributed, having been translated into more than thirty languages by 2005.

Star of the tales of intergalactic misadventures is Arthur Dent who is having an ordinary Thursday lunchtime until his house gets demolished. The demolition of the Earth by a Vogon constructor fleet to make way for a new hyperspace express route follows shortly afterwards, and Arthur’s best friend announces that he’s an alien. At this moment, they are hurtling through space with nothing but their towels and a book inscribed in large, friendly letters: DON’T PANIC. The book is The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and the weekend has only just begun…

There could be no better way to introduce a new generation of young readers to Adams’ mega-selling classic… a sensationally illustrated edition, perfectly illuminating an imagined world which sends logic into orbit, plays havoc with physics, twists time, and, most importantly, is very, very funny! Simply out of this world…
(Macmillan, paperback, £12.99)

Age 9 plus
Dragon Legend
Katie Tsang and Kevin Tsang 

WHEN you count fire-breathing dragons among your friends, adventures are always going to be epic! Husband and wife team Katie and Kevin Tsang, authors of the Sam Wu is Not Afraid young fiction series, are back with another red-hot escapade in the second book of their thrilling Dragon Realm fantasy series featuring dragons, danger and daring deeds.

And children will certainly be fired up when they share more missions seemingly impossible alongside Billy Chan and his friends who have stumbled upon warrior dragons trapped inside a secret mountain and joined forces to fight a deadly enemy.

Twelve-year-old Billy met Dylan, Charlotte and Ling-Fei at a summer camp in middle-of-nowhere China and together they discovered an age-old secret… four powerful, clever and fearsome warrior dragons are hidden deep within a huge mountain behind the camp. The dragons are trapped in an epic battle with the evil Dragon of Death and they need the children’s help to set them free before terrible evil is unleashed on the earth.

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Now Dylan has been kidnapped by the Dragon of Death and it’s up to them to travel through time and back to the dangerous Dragon Realm to save him. Luckily they have their own dragons to help, but they will need to collect eight magical pearls if they are to amass enough power to destroy the Dragon of Death and her followers for good. So begins an epic quest that will take them to the depths of the Frozen Wasteland and the imperial palaces of Ancient China. But can good triumph over evil?

Dragon Legend is a fabulous, fun-filled escapist adventure for young readers who love fantasy, fiery action, friendships and humour, and all set against the fabulous backdrop of Chinese mythology and legends. With the tension ratcheting up at every turn of the page, a brilliantly imagined cast of characters, and a thrilling brand of storytelling wrapped up in mystery and magic, this is a dazzling, daring series from a truly delightful duo!
(Simon & Schuster, paperback, £7.99)

Age 9 plus
The Incredible Record Smashers
Jenny Pearson and Erica Salcedo

WHAT better time to enjoy a story that is packed with huge helpings of heart, humour and kindness? Get ready for a record-smashing, feel-good adventure from the Costa Award-shortlisted Jenny Pearson in the second book of her fizzing, fabulous debut series which is based on a wonderful mix of all the children she has ever taught.

The Incredible Record Smashers – a warm and funny celebration of family beautifully brought to life by Kid Normal illustrator Erica Salcedo – is the brilliant follow-up to last year’s The Super Miraculous Journey of Freddie Yates and another tender and yet laughter-filled story that is guaranteed to pluck at your heartstrings.

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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 singing legend – is the answer to her mum’s mental health problems. But breaking a world record when watermelons, kumquats, two baddies and a 30cm 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?

Using her trademark sensitivity, humour and wisdom, Pearson explores single parent families, the love between a mother and daughter, and the challenges facing a child who has a parent or guardian with mental health issues. There are some tender, tear-jerking moments in this beautiful story but also adventures and laughs galore as we join Lucy on her journey through despair and joy.
(Usborne, paperback, £6.99)

Age 9 plus
How to Be Me
Cath Howe

LOSING a parent can be one of the cruellest and most bewildering life events for a child… It’s a tough subject to tackle in a middle-grade novel but Cath Howe works her trademark empathy, insight and gentle charm on this touching tale of a boy who is struggling to cope with the death of his mother.

Author of the high-acclaimed novels Ella on the Outside and Not My Fault, Howe uses an incredible lightness of touch to deliver a beautiful, heartwarming, and uplifting story about grief, anxiety and loneliness without losing sight of her young audience.

Super rich, super shy and super lonely, Lucas is all alone. He’s stuck at home with the new au pair and just his cats for company. Since his mum died, Lucas and his dad don’t seem to understand each other at all… it’s almost as if they are speaking different languages. 

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With a long, hot summer facing him, Lucas is dreading the drama club that his dad has signed him up for. Instead of sitting at the piano and letting the music flow out of him, he’s got to mix with other children. He doesn’t know how to be around new people and he can’t stand performing in public. But the people Lucas meets at the club force him to open up and start talking, and when disaster strikes, Lucas has to step in and help. Can his new-found friends teach Lucas how to be himself?

Written with sensitivity and authenticity, How to Be Me is perfectly pitched for youngsters suffering grief and loneliness after a close family bereavement, providing an important starting point for discussions about death and acceptance.
(Nosy Crow, paperback, £6.99)

Age 8 plus
Bigfoot Mountain
Roderick O’Grady

IF the pandemic has limited your horizons, step into the pages of this exciting book and discover a hope-filled adventure set in the wide open, wild spaces of North America.

Roderick O’Grady, an actor and playwright who has worked in London and New York, brings us the moving story of one girl’s encounter with the legendary Bigfoot in an enchanting debut novel set against a background of family and environmental change. Bigfoot Mountain, which evokes a remote and endangered mountain landscape, is a thrilling and thought-provoking story of courage, protecting nature, and finding your way in the world.

Minnie is alone, high up in her favourite tree, looking out over a distant forest fire. She and her stepfather Dan are stuck with each other, living in their small cabin at the foot of the mountain after Minnie’s mother died. When Minnie and her friend Billy discover four giant footprints on a mountain trail, Dan puts it down to hoaxers. But Minnie knows better.

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Kaayii, a young Sasquatch, is sitting at the top of a tree watching the smoke from a raging forest fire that has forced him and his clan to move to this side of the mountain. He’s not sure about the humans living down by the sea below. Soon, their parallel worlds will unexpectedly entwine … can they help each other and heal their families?

Minnie is a hero of our times… a bold, courageous girl who dares to make her voice heard and ask important questions as the world around her takes a perilous course. Written with a large helping of humanity and heart, alive with beauty, discovery and adventure, and with intriguing internal maps, forest trails and nature guide illustrations, Bigfoot Mountain is a timely and resonant reminder that we all have a duty of care towards our precious, endangered planet.
(Firefly Press, paperback, £6.99)

Age 8 plus
The Chessmen Thief
Barbara Henderson

A BOY held prisoner, an ivory chess set and a mystery that dates back centuries… Make your ‘move’ to the wild beauty of the Outer Hebrides and immerse yourself in a tale of danger, bravery, Norse mythology and a historic chess set as Inverness-based author Barbara Henderson sweeps us away on an enthralling adventure.

The Chessmen Thief is a thrilling flight of storytelling imagination inspired by the legendary and immensely precious Lewis Chessmen, a group of distinctive 12th-century chess pieces, carved from walrus ivory and discovered buried on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides in 1831.

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Kylan was the boy with a plan and now he is the boy with nothing. From the moment 12-year-old Kylan hatches a plot to escape from his Norse captors and return to Scotland to find his mother, his life becomes a dangerous game. The precious Lewis Chessmen – which he helped to carve – hold the key to his freedom, but he will need all his courage and wit to triumph against Sven Asleifsson, the cruellest Viking in the realm. One false move could cost him his life…

Henderson delivers an epic adventure… an across-the-board winner filled with gripping action, vivid characters and the enduring mystery surrounding the Lewis Chessmen, their creation in Norway, and how they ended up buried in the Hebrides before being discovered on Lewis in 1831. Authentically imagined, atmospheric, and accompanied by Sandra McGowan’s intriguing illustrations, this is history, mystery and legend in one exciting package.
(Pokey Hat, paperback, £7.99)

Age 3 plus
A Song of Gladness: A story of hope for us and our planet
Michael Morpurgo and Emily Gravett

A WORLD in harmony, and nature as one… Inspired by the first Covid-19 lockdown in March last year, two of today’s most celebrated children's book creators have put together both their heads and their talents to bring young readers a truly outstanding picture book.

A Song of Gladness – written by former Children's Laureate and CILIP Carnegie Medal winner Sir Michael Morpurgo and illustrated by the twice CILIP Kate Greenaway-winning Emily Gravett – is a rich and glorious celebration of humanity’s connection to the natural world through the media of singing.

‘So I sang, we all sang, sang away our sadness. In every house and flat and cottage, we clapped and sang, in every shelter and tent, in every palace and hospital and prison.’

From a blackbird in a Devon garden to leopards in the African savanna, hibernating bears and chimpanzees high in the forest canopy, this beautiful story reminds us all of our connection with nature, and with each other, and the urgent need for us to join together in caring for the planet and every creature in it. Travel the globe in this inspiring journey through the animal kingdom as the blackbird’s song of gladness is passed from one animal to another, across oceans, rainforests and back, until we too are joining the world in joyful harmony.

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But Morpurgo and Gravett’s heartfelt and evocative story also reminds children that by joining together, and caring for each other, we can make a difference, and prompts us all to remember that our planet is under threat of being destroyed by speed and greed, and challenges us to think about the wild world we live in and to start caring for every part of it. 

With its inspirational and uplifting text, sensational illustrations that work in perfect harmony with the words, and timely celebration of the beauty and importance of the natural world, A Song of Gladness is a classic in the making, and the perfect gift for animal and nature lovers.
(Two Hoots, hardback, £12.99)

Age 3 plus
My Dad Is A Grizzly Bear
Swapna Haddow and Dapo Adeola 

FAMILIES come in all shapes and forms… but they’re lovable whichever way you look at them! Open your arms and your hearts to an endearing picture book from exciting new creative duo… Swapna Haddow, award-winning author of the Dave Pigeon series, and brilliantly talented illustrator Dapo Adeola, winner of Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2020.

My Dad Is A Grizzly Bear – a riot of vibrant storytelling and big, bold and beautiful illustration – features a boy with a wild imagination, his lively family, and lots of hilarious antics.

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Shhh. Beware. My dad is a grizzly bear. In this family, it’s just possible that Dad is a grizzly bear! He has fuzzy fur, enormous paws and loves the outdoors. He sleeps a lot (even in the cinema) and when he’s awake, he’s always hungry, and usually eating up all the honey. What else could Dad be? But sometimes, when it’s scary at night, a lovely big bear hug is just what is needed!

Playful, warm and funny, this enchanting tale about youthful imagination and the close bonds of family is ideal for sharing at bedtime… and a big book hug you wouldn’t want to miss!
(Macmillan Children’s Books, hardback, £11.99)

Age 3 plus
The Little Pirate Queen
Sally Anne Garland

HELPING others has its own special reward in a beautiful and inspirational picture from Scottish author and illustrator Sally Anne Garland.

Pirate girl Lucy likes to sail across the sea, fixing and mending her small rickety raft, hoping to find Far Away Island whose silver shores nobody has ever reached. Other children seem to race easily past her on their fast speedboats and sturdy rowing boats but when a gigantic wave sweeps them all away, except Lucy, the Little Pirate Queen is determined to rescue everyone… no matter how dangerous that might prove to be.

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The Little Pirate Queen, which comes packed with Garland’s bright, bold and immersive illustrations, speaks loudly to young readers about resilience, empowerment, compassion and the joys of shared endeavour. A voyage of discovery with a treasure trove of messages!
(New Frontier Publishing, hardback, £11.99)

Age 3 plus
Big Words for Little People: Happiness
Helen Mortimer and Cristina Trapanese

WHAT does happiness really mean? Understanding emotions and words is all part of early development for young children and this clever, conceptual book from the boffins at Oxford University Press helps young children to explore their feelings by giving them the everyday words they need to fill our world with kindness.

Big Words for Little People: Happiness is the latest picture book in an exciting series exploring big topics with young children in a way that feels warm and right. It has been created to help young children develop and understand how they can use their words to help them navigate emotions and first experiences. Using carefully chosen words and phrases, such as ‘laugh,’ ‘jump for joy,’ ‘carefree’ and ‘good mood,’ and with fun illustrations throughout, Happiness creates a special moment for grown-ups and young children to focus on what it means to be happy and to experience both happy and sad feelings.  

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Children can discover and understand the new words to help them to talk about the ups and downs of first experiences and new emotions with confidence, and adults can use the book to talk about feelings and explain them to the youngest children in an engaging and accessible way. The simple, appealing artwork and fun characters make the books accessible and perfect to share, and each includes reassuring tips on how to encourage conversation and build language confidence. There are also ten ideas at the back which help parents and teachers to get the most out of the book.

With its child-friendly focus on feelings, and its clever use of words and ideas to aid understanding, this is just the kind of educational goodness that helps children to develop and grow. Perfect for reading and sharing together…
(Oxford University Press, paperback, £5.99)

A String of Pearls: Landscape and literature of the Lake District

Compiled by Margaret Wilson and photographs by Helen Shaw

IT was described by William Wordsworth as ‘the loveliest spot that man hath found,’ and the Lake District continues to inspire a host of poets and writers.

For centuries, the magnificent fells, crashing waterfalls and dramatic still waters of the Lakes have acted as a muse to famous poets like Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and Robert Southey, and provided stunning backdrops for modern thriller authors such as Reginald Hill and Val McDermid.

In this beautifully produced and illustrated anthology, Margaret Wilson has selected the best Lake District literary extracts, each perfectly paired with specially commissioned, stunning landscape images from the camera of photographer Helen Shaw who lives near the picturesque village of Slaidburn in the Ribble Valley.

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In her editor’s preface, Wilson tells us that the Lake District has been a draw for visitors for the last six thousand years, from the Romans who built forts at Hardknott and near Ambleside, to early Saxon settlers who farmed in the Lowlands and then the Norsemen who began building the dry-stone walls.

In the late 17^th century and early 18^th century, travellers to the Lakes who recorded their experiences included Celia Fiennes, a writer who explored England on horseback, and Robinson Crusoe author Daniel Defoe who commented that the countryside was ‘the wildest, most barren and frightful of any that I have passed through in England.’

Encouraged by the first proper guide books, tourists started to visit the Lakes but the landscape was seen as wild and frightening and visitors were loath to attempt walking in the mountains,

A Taste of Home

Heidi Swain

FLISS Brown always thought her ‘adopted’ Italian family was all she needed for love and security… But a letter written by her globetrotting mother in her dying days sends Fliss on a flight from Puglia to a rundown fruit farm near Peterborough to discover the real family that she never knew existed.

If you are eager to make a welcome escape this spring, recharge your feelgood batteries with a fruit-filled reading feast from Heidi Swain, a much-loved author who has won thousands of hearts with her enchanting books set in Wynbridge, the fictional Fenland town where love blossoms whatever the season.

Swain (pictured below), who lives with her family in stunning south Norfolk, has a well-earned reputation for warm, witty and wonderful stories which showcase her talent for blending escapist romance, culinary delights, and a perfectly imagined cast of characters with some real-life challenges in the modern world.

And A Taste of Home – which dishes up an intriguing new arrival in Wynbridge alongside a tasty side-serving of familiar faces from books gone by – moves from the plateaux of Italy’s Puglia to the endless horizons of East Anglian fens with a grieving young woman who is trying to make sense of her future.

Twenty-eight-year-old Fliss Brown has grown up living with her mother Jennifer on the Rossi family’s Italian fruit farm. Jennifer arrived at the farm three decades ago. She was a pregnant teenager who couldn’t find the Italian boy who had been her holiday romance and was all alone in the world … and the Rossis welcomed her, gave her a home and took her to their hearts.

Jennifer was a free-spirited woman who often left Fliss behind with Nonna Rossi and her family while she travelled the world, but now cancer has stolen Jennifer’s life and Fliss is consumed with grief.

But before she died, Jennifer left a note telling Fliss that she has a family of her own in England and urging her to return there because she would be ‘a good fit’ with her grandfather and his farm, and urging Fliss to bury her roots in Fenland soil before it is too late. Armed only with a backpack containing her few important belongings and Nonna Rossi’s treasured family recipe for cherry and almond tart, Fliss arrives unheralded at Fenview Farm on the outskirts of a small town called Wynbridge.

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Unfortunately, her estranged, and now widower, grandfather, William Brown, is recovering from both a bad infection and a knee replacement operation and is being cared for by handsome young family friend Eliot Randall.

It’s not the best start for Fliss and she is dismayed to see that her grandfather’s fruit farm has fallen into disrepair. Using the knowledge gained from working on the Rossi farm and her desire

Geiger

Gustaf Skördeman

WHY would a one-word telephone message compel a 69-year-old grandmother to immediately seek out a long-hidden pistol, screw on the silencer… and shoot her husband through the head?

All is revealed in Swedish screenwriter, director and producer Gustaf Skördeman’s pulsating debut thriller, Geiger, which is being published in twenty-four countries, and whose film rights have been optioned by Monumental Pictures.

Translated by Ian Giles, this tense and terrifying mix of unpredictable spy drama, murder mystery and edge-of-the seat action thriller has all the ingredients of a modern classic as Skördeman  (pictured below) unleashes his filmic imagination on a tale stretching back into European politics.

A code word, an extraordinary killing that sets in motion a desperate hunt for a face from the past, and the ageing woman who must solve a mystery to stop a deadly plot fifty years in the making, lie at the heart of Skördeman’s intriguing, perfectly plotted novel.

It’s the end of a busy week for doting grandmother Agneta Broman. Her two daughters, Malin and Lotta, and their husbands have just picked up the four grandchildren who have been staying at her home near Stockholm while their parents enjoyed a much-need holiday in France.

As Agneta breathes a sigh of relief that everything is returning to normal, and her 85-year-old husband Stellan, a former celebrity TV presenter known for his high life of ‘parties and frolics,’ settles down to read in his study, the landline phone rings. Just one word comes out of the receiver… ‘Geiger.’ For decades, Agneta has known that this moment – and this call – would come, but she is still shaken because she knows what it means, and what she must do.

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Retrieving her pistol from its hiding place, she attaches the silencer and creeps up behind her husband before pressing the barrel to his temple. Then she squeezes the trigger, and goes to the

The Miseducation of Evie Epworth

Matson Taylor

SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD Evie Epworth is on the cusp of womanhood, and her much-anticipated entry into the big wide world of grown-ups... but it’s 1962 and they do things differently there. If the year of the pandemic has given you little cause to laugh out loud, then lift your spirits and recharge your batteries as you dive into Matson Taylor’s Yorkshire-flavoured, nostalgia-laden debut novel, and enjoy a hearty guffaw on every page.

Imbued with the richly flavoured dry humour of Alan Bennett and all the wicked teen angst of Adrian Mole, but with a delightfully ebullient and seductive feminist twist, the Radio 2 Book Club Pick, The Miseducation of Evie Epworth, is one of the funniest, wittiest and most joyful books you will read this year.

Taylor (pictured below), a design historian and academic writing tutor, grew up among farming stock in the flatlands of East Yorkshire and like all good novelists, he ‘knows’ his brilliantly drawn cast of charismatic characters inside out… their mores and manners, their time and place, and what really makes them tick.

And it is these quintessentially Yorkshire folk who steal the show as we set forth on a coming-of-age odyssey with the enchanting Evie who must not only negotiate her future, but battle to save her widower father from the money-grubbing, lavender-soaked clutches of her soon-to-be stepmother Christine.

In the summer of 1962, Evie Epworth has taken her O-level exams and must now decide what kind of a woman she will become, and what she is going to do with the rest of her life.

Up until now, her existence at her father Arthur’s farm has been nothing special… a patchwork of school, Girl Guides, cows, village fetes and her personal pride at being the fastest milk bottle delivery girl in East Yorkshire. Evie’s best friend Margaret is ‘destined for teaching’ but, inspired by her idols (Charlotte Brontë, Shirley MacLaine and the Queen), Evie dreams of a more independent life, far away from her rural home… a world of glamour lived under the bright lights of London (or maybe even Leeds).

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Standing in the way of these dreams is the buxom Christine, the farm’s scheming, manipulative, live-in housekeeper whose predilections are the colour pink, listening to Mantovani LPs, drinking

CHILDREN'S BOOKS: Titanic tragedy, bouncing back and a magical moonstone

Discover the real story of one of history’s most infamous maritime disasters, keep your life on track with the help of broadcaster Claire Balding, join a young white fox on a thrilling adventure, and meet a unicorn who likes to say ‘no’ in a selection of exciting new children’s books

Age 8 plus
Tragedy at Sea: The Sinking of the Titanic
David Long and Stefano Tambellini 

EMBARK on an unforgettable voyage as the doomed ship Titanic sets sail on her maiden voyage to New York. If the tragic loss of the Titanic, the so-called Ship of Dreams, in 1912 seems now to be just a little-known event from a distant past, journalist and author David Long sets the record straight in this accessible and fact-filled new book from Barrington Stoke.

Beautifully written, and published in Barrington Stoke’s trademark dyslexia-friendly format, Tragedy at Sea is a brilliant retelling of one of history’s most infamous maritime disasters, and is perfectly fitted to both regular and reluctant readers.

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On 10 April 1912, RMS Titanic set sail from Southampton on her maiden voyage to New York with over two thousand men, women and children on board. It was the largest and most luxurious ocean liner in the world, and should have been one of the safest. It was claimed she was ‘unsinkable’ but four days later, when the ship struck an iceberg, the Titanic quickly sank, taking the crew and over 1,500 passengers with her.

Long, whose engaging non-fiction reflects his unquenchable thirst for interesting stories from the past, brings to life the drama of Titanic’s first and last voyage with a host of fascinating facts about its creation, the sinking, the heroic rescue of the few fortunate survivors, and the repercussions of the disaster. And to complete this richly detailed and accessible account of Titanic for the modern age, Stefano Tambellini brings added depth to the gripping, real-life story with his detailed black and white illustrations and diagrams. The true nightmare story of the Ship of Dreams…
(Barrington Stoke, paperback, £6.99)

Age 9 plus
Fall Off, Get Back On, Keep Going: 10 ways to be at the top of your game!
Clare Balding and Jessica Holm

FALLING off, messing up, making a fool of yourself… we’ve all done some of these things at some point in our lives. The hardest part of ‘getting back in the saddle’ is understanding that it’s OK to get things wrong sometimes, and learning how to dust yourself down, get back up and start all over again!

Clare Balding, the award-winning broadcaster and writer who became the face of the BBC’s racing coverage in 1998 and now works across a wide range of sports for television and radio, has put pen to paper to deliver important messages to youngsters about refusing to give in to failure. Balding reveals that she has had some spectacular falls in her life – from being bullied at school and falling in with the wrong crowd, to last-minute hiccups and mistakes on live TV – so she knows what it takes to embrace your mistakes and move on from them.

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With personal stories from Balding herself and from the lives of the people she most admires, children can discover how to develop courage in the face of tough situations and learn how to gain confidence from their errors. Find out how Charlotte Raubenheimer of South Africa completed a triathlon while in lockdown at home during the coronavirus pandemic. Marvel at the amazing story of US surfer Bethany Hamilton, who got back in the water just one month after she lost her arm in a shark attack, going on to win her first US national surfing competition two years later.

There are many inspirational stories tucked away in the pages of this book… read about Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, US soccer superstar Megan Rapinoe, Dutch inventor Boyan Slat, and Swedish climate change activist Greta Thunberg. With fun, quirky illustrations from Jessica Holm, the ten chapters acts a brilliant toolkit to help children  bounce back by exploring ten character-traits… resilience, patience, confidence, courage, flexibility, creativity, speaking out, motivation, kindness and keeping going. The perfect way to get back on track… and keep going!
(Wren & Rook, paperback, £9.99)

Age 9 plus
White Fox in the Forest
Chen Jiatong and Viola Wang

RETURN to the magical world created by bestselling Chinese novelist Chen Jiatong in the second book of his epic series featuring a young fox and a magical moonstone. Beautifully illustrated by Viola Wang, and translated by Jennifer Feeley, these moving tales of friendship, bravery and sacrifice are part of the first middle-grade series ever to be translated from Chinese into English.  

At the heart of these delightful adventures is a young white fox called Dilah whose dying mother told him about a treasure with the power to make animals human. The clues to its location are contained in a moonstone buried beneath their den, but enemies seek the treasure too, and Dilah must race to find it first.

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Along the way, Dilah meets all sorts of other creatures who help him in his quest. In this new adventure, they discover hostile terrain, new friends, fearsome enemies and legendary magic, including a mythical enchanted forest which may be the answer to all their prayers. But can they pass the ultimate test and prove they have what it takes to be human?

Themes of conservation, nature, civilisation and what it really means to be human are explored in this mesmerising, mystical story which brims with atmosphere and emotion, and stars a cast of superbly created and imagined animal characters. Storytelling magic!
(Chicken House, paperback, £6.99)

Age 9 plus
Coming to England
Floella Benjamin and Joelle Avelino

TWENTY-FIVE years after Baroness Floella Benjamin’s inspirational account of arriving in the UK as a child was first published, her story has never been more relevant. In celebration of the Windrush Generation, this illustrated, anniversary edition of Benjamin’s classic memoir, Coming to England, speaks loudly to today’s youngsters and is a powerful reminder of how courage and determination can overcome adversity.

After leaving school at sixteen with the aim of becoming Britain’s first ever black woman bank manager, Benjamin changed direction and became an actress, presenter, writer, independent producer, working peer and an active advocate for the welfare, care and education of children throughout the world. The young Floella was just ten years old when she, her sister and two brothers arrived in England in 1960 to join their parents, whom they had not seen for fifteen months. They had left the island paradise of Trinidad to make a new home in London… part of a whole generation of West Indians who were encouraged to move to Britain and help rebuild the country after the Second World War.

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Reunited with her mother, Floella was too overwhelmed at first to care about the cold weather and the noise and dirt from the traffic. But, as her new life began, she was shocked and distressed by the rejection she experienced. She soon realised that the only way to survive was to work twice as hard and be twice as good as anyone else. 

With a foreword by the author, some additional historical information, and gloriously illustrated throughout by Joelle Avelino, the honest and moving story of Benjamin’s journey from Trinidad to London will both fascinate and inform a new generation of children.
(Macmillan Children’s Books, paperback, £6.99)

Age 8 plus
How to Save the World with a Chicken and an Egg
Emma Shevah

ATTENTION all young eco-warriors! If you’re looking to help save the world, join two youngsters on a mission to make a difference… even if they have to do it one animal at a time. Emma Shevah, a teacher who is on her own mission to entertain and educate young readers, delivers a terrific and topical tale full of fun facts about the natural world and top tips about how to help the environment in this exciting middle-grade eco-adventure.

Author of the critically acclaimed Dream on, Amber, Shevah’s trademark humour, highly original storytelling and wonderfully authentic child characters shine brightly as we are invited to head off to the seaside, uncover secrets, and discover how seagulls can trick worms into thinking it’s raining.

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High-spirited Ivy, who lives with foster parents, believes she can talk to animals, while Nathaniel – a boarding school boy with Asperger’s Syndrome who is reunited with his mother after growing up with his grandparents – is obsessed with animal facts. They come together unexpectedly on a cold English beach with the arrival of a rare and wondrous sea creature… a giant leatherback turtle who lays her eggs in front of the world’s media. Soon Ivy and Nathaniel are a top team with a shared passion for wildlife, and a determination to save both animals and the world.

Climate change, conservation and celebrating differences all come under Shevah’s observant eye in this inspirational story which features the beautiful illustrations of Kirsti Beautyman and is full of positive steps we can all take to do our bit to save the planet. Animal magic with a resonant environmental message…
(Chicken House, paperback, £6.99)

Age 5 plus
The Unicorn That Said No
Marc-Uwe Kling and Astrid Henn

IF there’s one word a toddler likes to use, it has to be… NO! German author and illustrator team, Marc-Uwe Kling and Astrid Henn, work their rainbow-maned magic on a contrary little unicorn who says ‘No’ so many times that friends and family decide to change its name to uNOcorn. And that’s when the adventures begin!

In the prettiest parts of the Forest of Hearts, a cute little unicorn was born. Its mane was puffy, its fur super-fluffy... but as adorable as it looked, it didn’t behave like the other unicorns in its herd. ‘No’ was its favourite word and it didn’t like talking in rhyme! No matter how many sweet lucky clovers or soft squishy cuddles that the other unicorns offered, the answer was always ‘No.’ And so this unicorn became known as the uNOcorn.

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And it’s no surprise that one day our contrary unicorn decides to break free of its far-too-fluffy world and make off on its own. Along the way, the uNOcorn meets a raccoon who never listens ('Huh?'), a dog who doesn’t care (‘So what?’) and a rude princess (whose favourite word is ‘Yes!’). What a wonderful team they make, because being stubborn is much more fun together!

Kling, a songwriter, political stand-up comedian and author from Berlin, delivers a unique, funny and delightfully witty story about celebrating individuality (even those with a not-so-perfect personality!) and refusing to accept a world that others might regard as ‘cotton-candy’ ideal. Add on Henn’s vibrant and characterful illustrations and you have a picture book made in (non-rhyming) heaven!
(Templar, paperback, £6.99)

Age 3 plus
Milly Cow Gives Milk
Deborah Chancellor and Julia Groves 

RAISE a glass – of milk! – to an enlightening and entertaining new picture book series which helps children to understand where their food comes from… and just how precious it is.

Milly Cow Gives Milk is the first of four titles in a Follow My Food series from the ever-inventive Scallywag Press and aims to encourage children to appreciate the different sources of food and to become environmentally aware of its origins.

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Written by experienced children’s author Deborah Chancellor and colourfully brought to life by the illustrations of Julia Groves, the book accompanies a child through a day in the life of Milly the cow as she munches grass with her friends, drinks gallons of water, makes cow pats in the field, and visits the milking parlour with her farmer. Milly’s milk is then put into cartons. A simple quiz and fun facts at the end explain more about dairy farming, and we learn that milk from different animals, like goats, sheep, camels and llamas, is used to make cream, butter, cheese and yoghurt.

Groves’ bright and stylish papercut art helps to underline the message that producing food is hard work, and that we must respect the animals and humans who produce it… and certainly not waste it! Message in a bottle for your little eco-warriors…
(Scallywag Press, hardback, £10.99)

Age 3 plus
When the Sun Goes Home
Momoko Abe

THERE will be smiles all round when the sun comes out in this warm and wise tale from talented Japanese artist Momoko Abe. We all take sunshine for granted… basking in its glow and soaking up the rays. But have you ever wondered what happens when the sun goes home?

Abe harnesses the sun as her fiery metaphor in a picture book that celebrates problem sharing, friendship, our emotional needs, and the transformational power of simple acts of kindness. Everyone knows how a day goes… the sun rises and shines above us with his glorious smile and at the end of the day, he disappears over the horizon. But what people don’t know is what the sun gets up to after he goes home.

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The sun loves to make people happy but beneath his glorious smile, he doesn’t always feel so shiny. And at the end of the day, when the sun goes home, he sometimes feels a little lonely. He thinks he has no choice but to carry on shining, no matter what… until one day, disaster strikes. He finds himself falling from the sky! Will anyone hear his call and come to help him?

Every sad story should have a rainbow at its end and Abe’s delightful bedtime tale – with its engaging plot and superbly detailed, colourful illustrations – is no exception as the sun’s soft landing in a bed of friendly clouds is the perfect wind-down to your little ones’ end-of-the-day anxieties.
(Orchard Books, hardback, £12.99)

Age 3 plus
There Is a Rainbow
Theresa Trinder and Grant Snider 

AMONGST many other woes, the pandemic has brought with it a widespread sense of separation… from the things and the people we love. So here is a beautiful, empowering picture book from author Theresa Trinder and illustrator Grant Snider that will bring comfort and hope to readers both young and old as we are gently reminded that whatever the distance between us, we are all still connected.

On the other side of a window, there is a neighbour. On the other side of sadness, there is a hug. Sometimes we are separated by distance, sometimes by the way we feel. Even though the world is full of barriers that can make us feel alone, we are all just on one end of a rainbow. Connected by all that colour and light, there is always something, or someone, waiting for us on the other side!

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Told with a poetic beauty, There Is a Rainbow offers a heartwarming message for some of life’s most difficult moments, encouraging readers to look past their immediate surroundings and find comfort, connection, and courage. Inspired by the multitude of rainbows found in the windows of homes around the world following the coronavirus lockdown, Trinder and Snider’s uplifting picture book shares a message of hope and resilience that is truly timeless and celebrates the power and importance of community support. Ideal for sharing and reading aloud.
(Chronicle Books, hardback, £11.99)

Farewell My Herring

L.C. Tyler

WHAT'S your favourite ‘tipple’ when it comes to crime fiction... murder, mystery, black comedy? If it’s all three, picking up the latest in L.C. Tyler’s joyously entertaining ‘Herring’ series – whose TV rights have been acquired by the producers of Midsomer Murders – could prove to be the perfect choice.

An outrageously clever parody of Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers and all those other masters of the whodunit, Farewell My Herring – the ninth book in a series that it would be simply murder to miss – is the equivalent of a sparkling glass of champagne. Tyler’s (pictured below) effortlessly funny, and yet seriously plotted, murder mysteries combine a hilarious brand of satirical humour and literary lampooning with the best-loved traditions of the Golden Age of crime fiction.

His ingenious star players are the very gentlemanly but very third-rate crime writer Ethelred Tressider and his plump and outrageously outspoken literary agent Elsie Thirkettle whose rib-tickling repartee and withering put-downs so often steal the show. Together, they form an inspired comedy act... Ethelred, circumspect, erudite and quick-witted, and Elsie, a tenacious, hard-nosed businesswoman whose life’s work seems to be finding publishers for manuscripts that need to be turned into ‘a book that somebody might actually want to read rather than the one the author wrote.’

In Farewell My Herring, Ethelred and Elsie have been invited to lecture on a creative writing course at Fell Hall, a remote location in the heart of ragged moorland in North Yorkshire which their taxi driver reckons is a ‘good place for a quiet murder’ and where even the sheep didn’t consider the ‘wind-smashed reeds to be food.’

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While Ethelred’s success as a writer (under several pseudonyms) is distinctly average, Elsie sees this as an opportunity to scout for new, hopefully more lucrative, talent.

In charge at Fell Hall is resident course director Wendy Idsworth, an obsessive-compulsive ‘queen regnant’ who is rumoured to be a spy for the CIA, MI6 or maybe even working for Mossad, and who has the unhappy knack of quickly making herself very unpopular. But with only a small circle of people yet in residence for the start of the course, heavy snow falls on Ethelred and Elsie’s first night, trapping the early arrivals inside, and soon causing tensions to emerge between members of the group. And when one of them goes

Cut to the Bone

Roz Watkins

THE disappearance of a beautiful young social media star, known as ‘the poster girl for carnivores,’ sets the police on the disturbing trail of two warring groups who are determined to fight for their conflicting beliefs.

Missing teenager Violet Armstrong worked at a Peak District abattoir specialising in pork products… and that leaves the Derbyshire force’s vegetarian DI Meg Dalton playing the uncomfortable role of piggy-in-the-middle.

Cut to the Bone is Roz Watkins’ (pictured below) third DI Meg Dalton thriller, and the extraordinarily atmospheric series that began with the author’s outstanding debut, The Devil’s Dice, is moving up a gear with every new outing alongside this fascinating, complex and intuitive detective and her charismatic team.

Meg, the undoubted star of the show, is an intensely human and emotionally astute detective, scarred by a family tragedy but a relentless and determined maverick when it comes to digging out the truth and finding justice for the victims. Add on cleverly plotted, authentic detective work, edgy, highly original mysteries that positively crackle with menace, and the magnificent grandeur of the Peak District rendered dark and brooding, and you have stories honed to page-turning perfection.

Eighteen-year-old Violet Armstrong has become a controversial internet celebrity after wearing only a bikini to cook burgers on a barbecue for a pro-meat website called The Great Meat Debate, set up to discuss the ethics of eating meat.

The antics of Violet, who is working as a cleaner at an abattoir near the Ladybower reservoir in Derbyshire, have angered some animal rights groups and feminists, so when her employers report that she has gone missing, it triggers a red alert and not just because it’s a scorching hot summer.

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DI Meg Dalton and her sidekick DS Jai Sanghera soon discover that the abattoir’s CCTV has been smashed and Violet’s watch has been found covered in blood by the pig pens. They also learn that Violet is reported to have seen the Pale Child ghost and, legend says, one sight of her face means you’re going to die.

The clock is ticking for Meg and the team as online threats from both pro-meat groups and animal vigilantes start to become more vicious, and blood and hair are found in an empty pig trough at the abattoir.

As Meg digs into the circumstances surrounding Violet’s disappearance, and unearths the truth of events from twenty years ago, she becomes convinced that there is more to this case than meets

The Girl from the Island

Lorna Cook

ON the day their beloved mother dies, two sisters are forced to witness the arrival of Nazi invaders on their Channel Island home of Guernsey. It is just the start of a five-year nightmare of German Occupation which will test the resilience and fortitude of the two young women, and bring a deadly danger that will change their lives forever.

Lorna Cook, whose debut novel, The Forgotten Village, was a Kindle Number One bestseller, weaves between two timelines for this gripping and heartbreaking tale of family bonds, secrets, sacrifice and love.

Using the real dark history of events on the sunshine island of Guernsey during the Second World War, Cook (pictured below) sweeps us into the lives of two pairs of sisters whose stories are separated by two generations and seventy-six years, but whose complex family dynamics and relationships throw up intriguing parallels.

In the summer of 1940, only days after the British army left Guernsey, sisters Dido and Persephone (Persey) Le Roy are grieving the death of their widowed mother when the island is invaded via sea and air by the Nazis. At their home, Deux Tourelles, near the airport, the two sisters are left reeling by the suddenness of events but are still determined to rebel in any way they can. What they didn’t expect was the return of Jack Grant, their live-in housekeeper’s son, who left to join the war effort in England and has come back as an undercover spy to report on German troop activities on the island.

But the household is thrown into fear and confusion when German soldiers arrive at Deux Tourelles to requisition one of their bedrooms as a billet for an officer.  And even more alarming is that the officer who will move in is a man called Stefan, known to Dido and Persey.

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They haven’t seen Stefan for ten years but he was a regular summer visitor on Guernsey when he stayed with an aunt who lived on the island, and the four young people – Jack included – would spend many hours together. But Stefan, who is now a part of the enemy and poses a danger to Jack, once meant a great deal to one of the sisters… can she reconcile the past with what is happening now?

In 2016, Lucy returns to Guernsey after the death of elderly relative Dido who lived at Deux Tourelles. She has been away for years and still has a fractious relationship with her married elder sister Clara. The old family house, which is now up

Legacy of War

Wilbur Smith (with David Churchill)

THE Second World War might be over but conflict is still never far away… and the Courtney family will soon find themselves at the heart of a new and deadly danger. From the dawn of the 17^th century right through to the 20^th century, we have witnessed the fortunes and misfortunes of the sprawling and ambitious Courtney family as they negotiate war, social upheaval and the dark side of history.

Their creator is the phenomenally successful South African author Wilbur Smith (pictured below) whose thrilling novels have sold over 130 million worldwide, and whose full-time writing career began in 1964 with the publication of When the Lion Feeds.

Fifty-seven years later, the 88-year-old shows no sign of flagging in this thrilling post-war sequel to Courtney’s War, written once again with The Leopards of Normandy trilogy author David Churchill, and starring the feisty, fearless Saffron Courtney and her husband Gerhard von Meerbach, whose enduring love has survived the horrors of wartime against incredible odds.

Saffron grew up on the vast Lusima Estate in Kenya under the watchful eye of her father Leon Courtney, a prominent businessman and distinguished war veteran, but her thirst for knowledge and adventure led her to England and into the arms of the idealistic and principled German Gerhard.

He is the younger brother of Konrad von Meerbach, heir to an industrial fortune and an avid Nazi-supporter who has survived the war and is determined to continue Hitler’s evil legacy and regain the nationalist party’s lost power.

Moving from the austerity and rationing of 1950s London to Germany, struggling to get back on its feet after the devastation of the war years, and on to Africa where dangerous cracks in the British Empire’s foothold in Kenya are spilling over into bloodshed, this is a torrid tale of rebellion, intrigue, revenge and terror.

In the summer of 1951, the war is over and Hitler is dead, but there are those who will not accept that this is the end of the road for the Nazis. Saffron Courtney Meerbach and her beloved husband Gerhard only just survived the brutal conflict. Saffron was recruited by the Special Operations Executive in London and diced with death and danger in occupied Belgium.

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Gerhard was a Luftwaffe pilot fighting for the Fatherland and was thrown into the hellish attrition of the Battle of Stalingrad before he was packed off to a concentration camp when his secret objections to the Nazi regime were exposed. Their plans now are to travel to Germany for some