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Age Group: KS2

Graphic Novel

Frygea Forest. An ancient and mysterious place where trolls lurk in the mossy spaces between tree trunks and changelings scamper about, causing mischief. A place that Kyra and her sisters Margot and Janna return to every year to spend the summer at their grandma’s farm: toasting marshmallows, catching frogs and befriending tiny, grumpy root goblins.

But this summer is different, and as teenage Margot drifts apart from her sisters, slamming doors and keeping secrets, Kyra starts to worry. When Margot is enticed into the woods by the mysterious figures in the mist, Kyra resolves to do everything in her power to save her sister from danger, even if that means facing the spooky forces within Frygea Forest with just her kid sister for help.

Join Kyra and her sisters in this beautiful coming-of-age graphic novel about embracing the changes that come from growing up, but never letting go of the imagination that keeps you young. If you’re careful, and ever so quiet, you might spot a root goblin marching along the ground, or a glittering alf darting amongst the leaves.

Chapter bookGraphic Novel

Best friends Bumble and Snug are Bugbops – little monsters filled with BIG feelings! Join them and a VERY excited unicorn, in this new, full-colour graphic novel, as they go on a thrilling, funny adventure and learn about the world outside and inside.

Bumble and Snug are in the magical unicorn forest when they get into a spot of trouble. Luckily, they are rescued by a unicorn and together they have the great idea to become superheroes.

Introducing the super buddies! From a runaway ice-cream van to a lost teddy bear, Bumble, Snug and Sparklehoof the unicorn save the day. But not everybody is happy when Sparklehoof gets too excited with his magic.

Bumble and Snug have to come up with a super action plan to stop Sparklehoof. And with a giant kitten on the loose and a jelly city, they will have to work FAST!

Bumble and Snug and the Excited Unicorn is a story about being too excited and how to listen, friendship and magic, and three new SUPERHEROES!

Perfect for readers just starting to enjoy stories independently, for visual readers and for wise kids to share with their grown-ups. For fans of Narwhal and Jelly and Dogman.

Chapter book

It’s an exciting day for Marvin and his classmates because they are visiting the Natural History Museum. Marvin and Joe can’t wait to see all those dinosaur skeletons up close, but they get more than they bargained for when supervillain Leo turns up and brings the Dino skeletons to life! With the help of his loyal sidekick, a super-intelligent robot called Pixel, it’s time for Marvin to become superhero Marv. Marv must use all of his newfound superhero skills if he wants to stop Leo and save his classmates from the gang of marauding dino skeletons running riot!

Chapter book

Some legends are born, some are drawn . . .

Famous works of art are disappearing from all over the world. One moment they are there, the next, they have crumbled to dust. Peanut Jones, artist and adventurer, and her friends suspect it might have something to do with the magical world of Chroma and the wicked Mr White’s plot to wipe out colour, art and creativity. It’s time to head back to the Illustrated City and help the resistance fight back. . .

Superstar, author and illustrator Rob Biddulph dazzles in Peanut Jones and the Twelve Portals. This second title in the hilarious adventure series for boys and girls aged 8 to 12 fizzes with magic, danger, friendship and art. It is fully illustrated throughout by Rob, the creative genius behind #DrawWithRob.

Picturebook

From the authors behind The Stick Book and many other outdoor adventure favourites, this interactive one-of-a-kind creative scrapbook offers children an outlet for creativity inspired by the wild world.

This truly unique book contains prompts for all kinds of creative activity based around the natural world around us, from drawing to writing to mixed-media collage.

Readers will be encouraged to draw on their creativity, to express themselves without fear of being judged, and to make their book really WILD!

They will need scissors, pens, paints, tape, glue and a magnifying glass, plus lots of wild materials and their wildest creativity, as this book becomes filled with keepsakes from their own outdoor adventures.

From finding the faces hidden in pictures of trees, to collecting ingredients for a spell to keep nature safe, to sticking the feathers back onto a mythical bird, these prompts and activities will provide hours and hours of entertainment as they take children on flights of fantasy through the natural world.

Readers can colour outside the lines, do the activities in any order and go at their own pace.

The mixture of art, creative writing, collecting, games, wildlife-watching and imaginative prompts will appeal to kids with all kinds of interests, and there are no rules!

Chapter book

Beware of the shadows, the Reaper King is coming . . .

Mia always dreamed of being an umbra tamer until she met the wild creature on the Nightmare Plains. Since that day, she prefers to stay safe within the walls of Nubis. Safe, that is, until a surprise attack. With her parents captured, Mia’s only hope is to travel to the City of Light to find help. But with only her little brother, two friends and one solitary tamed umbra, the journey feels impossible. Mia not only has to overcome her fears, she also has to learn to harness her umbra taming abilities if they are to complete the quest in time.

For fans of Amari and the Night Brothers, The Legend of Podkin One-Ear and Nevermoor, this is the first in the sensational Umbra Tales series, illustrated by Ana Latese.

Chapter book

Longlisted for The Juniper Book Award 2023. Beware the Twig Man, the Twig Man’s hex. Beware the Twig Man, or you’ll be NEXT! It’s been a year since nearly-twelve-year-old Ari’s older sister, Lana, ran away. Except Ari knows what really happened. She was taken by the Twig Man, the creepy monster that’s haunted the woods for one hundred years. No one else will listen, so it’s down to Ari to save his sister. But he had better hurry, as Ari finds himself next on The Twig Man’s list…

Chapter book

Seed is a funny, big-hearted story by award-winner Caryl Lewis about the power of hope and imagination when you believe in the impossible. Perfect for readers of 8-12. Illustrated in black and white throughout by George Ermos.

Shortlisted for Breakthrough Children’s Book of the Year, The Week Junior Book Awards
Shortlisted for the Brandford Boase Award 2023

Marty doesn’t have much. Unlike his mum, who has billions of things: newspapers, holey shoes, rusty lawnmowers, broken picture frames – she keeps EVERYTHING! It’s hard to leave the house. Marty wonders if anything will ever change.

But on Marty’s birthday, Grandad, with a glint in his eye, gifts Marty a very special seed. Grandad hasn’t been this excited since he invented the bum scratcher 2000 or thought he’d brewed wonder fuel from rhubarb leaves! The seed grows bigger and bigger, and launches Grandad, Marty and his best friend Gracie on an impossible, wondrous plan fuelled by love, hopes and dreams.

Chapter book

A stunning literary adventure from an incredible debut talent, perfect for fans of Kiran Millwood Hargrave, Cerrie Burnell and Katherine Rundell.

I was Haven Point’s first Wreckling, but I certainly wasn’t the last. There are forty-two of us now, not including the mermaids. When you’re a Wreckling, you mainly spend your days squabbling, eating and planning adventures. Oh, and Wrecklings also carry out wreckings, which is how we got our name . . .

Washed up as a baby beside a remote lighthouse and raised by a mermaid, Alpha Lux was the first foundling at Haven Point. Now the lighthouse is a ramshackle home for any disabled person who needs somewhere to belong. Looting from passing ships to make a living, they call themselves the Wrecklings, and for the children of Haven Point life is spent adventuring on the wild shore (and getting into trouble with the grown-ups).

But when Alpha spots a strange light up on the headland, she realizes that her beloved family are in danger of being discovered by Outsiders.

With their home under threat, the Wrecklings must decide what kind of future they want . . . and what they’re willing to do to get it.

Chapter book

Step into the magical world of Hedgewitch, where the land of Faerie lies just beyond our own, in this enchanting new series for children age 9+ and readers of Nevermoor, The Worst Witch and The Dark Is Rising.

Cassie Morgan has run away. After seven years spent waiting for her mother to return, she flees her dreary boarding school and sets out to find her. But the world outside her school is full of hidden magic and children have been going missing.

With the help of a talking cat and a flying broom, Cassie escapes to the enchanted village of Hedgely. There she will begin her training in the practical skills of witchcraft with the Hedgewitch, who watches over the Hedge, the vast forest that marks the border between England and Faerie.

Will Cassie discover the truth about her mother? Can she find the lost faery treasures before the wicked Erl King gets his hands on them? And what will it take to save her new home – and Britain itself – from the shadowing magic of Faerie?

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