 Jon Klassen is a master storyteller, his ‘hat series’ are some of my favourite picture books ever. Deliciously dark and wickedly macabre, The Skull - a reworking of a Tyrolean folktale - will capture a new and slightly older audience.
Otilla knew the forest well, it was, of course, where she had grown up. After running further into the forest than she has ever gone before she stumbles upon an old, abandoned house. But the house isn’t empty, it is home to a skull. The kind and quirky occupant is the perfect host, inviting Otilla in, showing her around and offering her a bed for the night. In return she helps the skull rediscover the taste of pears, the flavours of tea and the joys of dancing. All is good. But the skull has a secret. It is tormented by a headless skeleton who wants to claim it for themselves. And later that night, when the skeleton comes calling to claim their prize, it is up to Otilla to save both herself and her new friend…
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 Creative genius Nathan Jurevicius revives ScaryGirl’s first adventure in a stunning two-hundred-and-eight page read. Told over three parts, and with bonus content including original pages from Nathan’s sketchbook and character profiles, this new release will appeal to ScaryGirl’s legion of fans as well as capturing an entirely new audience.
After being abandoned on a remote island, ScaryGirl finds a friend in a kind, caring and super-intelligent giant octopus. Blister wants to keep her safe but ScaryGirl has questions about her life that need answering. Adventuring with Bunniguru may help ScaryGirl put a name to the strange face that appears in her dreams and could unlock the secrets of her past. Dangers, scary creatures and a journey to the edge and beyond await. Who can ScaryGirl trust? Is she brave enough to continue? What will she discover…  Writer and historian David long is an expert at bringing history to life for children and his latest foray into the past is another meticulously researched and brilliantly written read that will entertain and educate the masses.
Are you ready to journey back in time and see what life was like for your average Roman as well as their famous rulers? Between 625BC and AD476 the Romans would change the world. Beginning as a small community of huts on top of a hill in Rome, an empire would grow of the like the world had never seen before. Brilliant builders and brave in battle, fashionistas and fine diners, expert inventors and relentless invaders, the Romans were an unstoppable force. They and their Empire, astonishing. So why did it all come crumbling down? And what, if anything, do we have to thank the Romans for…  Years ago, NASA put a man on the Moon. Now, in a cracking twenty-first century sci-fi adventure, Chris Bradford has a girl stranded, alone and fighting for survival thousands of kilometres above Earth after disaster strikes.
Lunar’s life on the Moon is awesome. Helping her dad carry out his mining surveys, collecting rock samples and racing around in the Rover are all in a day’s work. When a catastrophic meteorite strike destroys the base, Luna is inexplicably left behind as the rest of the crew escape in the emergency evacuation pod. With limited supplies, darkness closing in and no one even aware that she’s still alive, there’s no time to wait and be rescued. Luna has only one option. Save herself…  History FACTopia! is the latest book in this astonishing, innovative and imaginative series that has become one of my favourite non-fiction reads. Presenting non-fiction like never before, the land of FACTopia is a land like no other. Not only is it all kinds of awesomeness and fun but each fact is connected to the next, and often in the most surprising of ways. And this time, those whizzes at Britannica Books (yes, all facts are verified by Encyclopaedia Britannica and an extensive team of fact-checkers) have delved into history and cast the spotlight on the world’s glorious and sometimes gruesome past.
Welcome to History FACTopia! Are you ready to blast into the past? Hop aboard the historical express and blaze a trail through ancient civilisations, meet leaders and revolutionaries, quite literally dig up the past, have the stomach churned by some rather unusual practices, discover myths and legends and better understand how the world of today has been shaped and influenced by events and people throughout time…  Lucy Strange has a gift for taking moments and significant events from the past and crafting them into captivating novellas for modern day readers making reading engaging and educational. Her first collaboration with Barrington Stoke, The Mermaid in the Millpond, was a brilliant exploration of life and times in the cotton mills of Victorian Britain. This time, she delivers a haunting and eerie story within a Welsh mining community that has an all too real tragedy at its heart.
Money is tight for George and his family and his dreams of learning more have to be put on hold when he is forced to take a job down the local coal mine with his dad. The days are long, dark and dangerous and when a storm floods the mine, George is faced with life or death decisions. Trapped with little chance of escape, a shadowy figure, one that seems strangely familiar to George, is beckoning him. Should George trust the minotaur? Will it guide him to safety or is George destined to meet the same tragic fate as his long-lost uncle…  When I was a child, the Arnold Lobel adventures of Frog and Toad were some of my absolute favourites. Spending time with the two friends brought me so much happiness and I learnt a few things about life and the big wide world along the way. In Cub and Brown, Edwina Wyatt reawakened those fond childhood memories and has introduced a new pairing who everyone will adore.
It is summer camp for Cub’s boy scout troop and he is excited to be spending time in the woods and learning everything there is to know about the great outdoors. Cub has lots of tips and skills for surviving in the wild from map reading and fire lighting to raft building and fishing. Like the boy scout motto, he tries to ‘Be Prepared.’ But you cannot be prepared for everything and when Cub meets a bear called Brown he discovers that life, both outdoors and indoors, is full of surprises…  I loved my first encounter with Friendly Bee and Angry Wasp so was thrilled when the latest title dropped through my letterbox.
Friendly Bee is buzzing more than usual. Enormous Hairy Spider is having a dress-up party and it is going to be the most epic, buggy bash ever. There’ll be snacks, games, fancy dresses and good times galore. Bee cannot wait for it. Angry Wasp is less excited and is definitely not going in a dress. And Pessimistic Earthworm is just completely miserable about everything. Getting everyone in the party spirt isn’t going to be easy but Friendly Bee is determined to make sure no-one is a party pooper…  Clara Vulliamy writes brilliant, accessible and highly illustrated chapter books for children. She has given us detective Dotty, cat superstar Marshmallow Pie, and now we are introduced to a trio of mystery-loving, investigative children collectively known as The Newshounds.
Eva and her friends, Ash and Simone, love reporting on all the latest goings-on. They broke the news when Orla saw a ghost in the playground and when Vijay won a dance competition. The latest story is set to be their biggest yet. Eva has discovered a stray dog and they need to find the owner. As the leads dry up it looks like Wafer might be one mystery the gang don’t solve. But perhaps that’s not such a bad thing after all because then Wafer might be around fur-ever…  Remy Lai delivers again with another excellent graphic novel as supernatural meets reality.
Despite her dad telling her that ghosts aren’t real, July Chen knows differently. She sees them, and right now she is seeing lots of them. It’s Hungry Ghost Month; the gates of the underworld are open and spirits are roaming freely among the living. When July saves William, a lost soul trapped between life and death, he becomes her first real friend. Fate has a funny way of bringing people together and, connected by a tragedy twelve years earlier, a grim truth awaits the pair. William needs July’s help. But to do what William wants, July will have to pay the ultimate price… |