Hi-Lo Books

This book is an action-packed sci-fi survival story where a young reader can step into the shoes of the central character, aptly named Luna.

When events take a turn for the worse, she is the only person left stranded on the moon’s surface. Tension builds as she faces challenges in harsh conditions, and with dwindling supplies, it is a race against time to somehow escape before night draws in. Despite her age, Lunar has many responsibilities while living on the moon with her father (a Moon Miner). She has undertaken intensive training, which comes in handy later in the book! A meteorite warning threatens the safety of the team, and in a rush to evacuate, Luna is separated from everyone. In a mission to reach the far side of the moon, she must use her scientific knowledge to solve a range of problems in the hope that she will be reunited with her father.

The gripping moments and dilemmas, including the risk of running out of oxygen, keep the reader on the edge of their seat as they take the journey with her. The quick-witted comments from Luna are a fun aspect, and many children, including reluctant Upper KS2 readers, will enjoy this humorous aspect of the book, particularly the mention of nappies and exploding eyeballs! Sci-fi enthusiasts and those interested in Earth and Space will enjoy the scientific details mentioned throughout.

World War 2 is the setting for this short, dyslexia-friendly chapter book and is a common history topic in schools. Many of the great books for primary-aged children set in this era may be too challenging for some readers and so this book enables children to catch a glimpse of life during the war and also learn about some of the important features of life: rationing; schools; the changing roles of adults; evacuation and the black market (through the unique storyline of a girl trying to get hold of a banana in times when all food was in short supply).

The focus of the story is a young girl’s concern and care for her mum at a time of great stress and strain on family life, where dad is away fighting in the war and mum has taken on a new job, working long hours in the factory. There are many parallels that the modern reader could draw with their own experiences. The print is clear without too many words on the page.

Author Tony Bradman also visited our blog recently to talk about why there should always be a gap on the shelf for books that help readers see the bigger picture of the war from a new lens.

Malorie Blackman’s excellent story entertains with humour, perfectly matched with Matt Robinson’s illustrations which superbly bring Ellie and her animal chums to life. There are themes of friendship, resilience, self-belief, problem solving. The inter-generational relationship between Ellie and her Grandma develops into something quite heart-warming too. Published by Barrington Stoke, on cream paper in a dyslexia friendly font, this is pitched to appeal to KS2 children with a younger reading age. The short engaging chapters and overall compact length (75 pages) make this a brilliant accessible read…

Super-readable historical fiction from the creator of Horrible Histories. Terry Dreary explores the infamous highwayman Dick Turpin through the eyes of different people in the crowd at his execution scene. An easy-to-read introduction to Dick Turpin with short chapters and dyslexia-friendly formatting.

The Invasion of Crooked Oak is a fast-paced adventure that will appeal to older KS2 children. It is the first instalment of the stories set in the town of Crooked Oak. Children who love horror stories like Crater Lake or Goosebumps will be thrilled to discover this quick and accessible read.

Strange things are happening in the town of Crooked Oak. People have started to behave oddly and the zombie-like symptoms seem to be spreading through the town. As Nancy and her friends Pete and Krish get stuck into the mystery, something scary is spreading its tendrils across the town. Can the friends get to the root of the mystery before time runs out?

As ever with Barrington Stoke books, this is an accessible book, printed with clear text on a coloured background that is specially formatted to cater for dyslexic readers. The illustrations by Chris King really add to the atmospheric mood of the book and also draw upon the details contained in the descriptive writing.

The children we read this to absolutely loved the story and moaned at the end of each session when it was time to finish. Each chapter finished on a cliffhanger, so it left them eagerly anticipating the next instalment. This short and spooky read was a definite hit with Year 6!

Sonal has chosen ‘family’ as the topic for her school photography project. She thought it would be easy but she’s already regretting it. She can’t get everyone to focus so that she can take a group photo and even the individual snaps feature different members of her family looking at screens of various kinds. Sitting with her grandfather and sadly comparing her photos and family albums from the past shows just how much the digital world has taken over their lives. Egged on by her wise and long-suffering grandpa (who we suspect has thought for a while that a digital detox was in order), Sonal devises a plan for a family camping weekend without any devices at all.

From there, the warmly engaging story follows the innocently well-meaning but accident-prone heroine, whose exploits provide amusement while inviting empathy. Serena Patel captures the rhythms and cadences of modern family life brilliantly, wryly presenting an antidote to the perfect families often seen on social media. I thoroughly enjoyed the realistic perspective on parental and sibling relationships where squabbles and disagreements are normal.

Like the rest of the Barrington Stoke series, it is accessible but well-written and unpatronising, with black and white illustrations that work well with the lighthearted tone of the writing. It would make a great start to discussions of the mismatch between reality and social media profiles within the context of families. The more we expose this in schools the better, and this book does so in a gently unthreatening way.

Recommended as a read for pleasure for children in Year 4 and upwards who are developing reading stamina.