Format: Chapter book

Beti and the Little Round House

Chapter book

Longlisted for the Alligator’s Mouth Award. Selected as a Best Children’s Book of the Year 2024 by: The Wall Street Journal; Publishers Weekly; Kirkus Reviews; Books for Keeps; ALSC Notable Children’s Books; Centre for the Study of Multicultural Children’s Literature.

From two award-winning children’s book makers comes a charming collection of four stories for newly independent readers that celebrate a spirited little girl living in the heart of the wild countryside with family and friends.

Beti lives in a little round house in the green woods under the mountains. She lives with Mam, Tad, Baby Jac and her very own tiny goat called Naughty. With each changing season, there is always the promise of adventure! In playful, humourous and exciting stories with richly detailed and bucolic illustrations by Emily Hughes, world-renowned storyteller Atinuke draws on her own experience of building and living in a round house to create a truly magical sense of place. An unforgettable children’s book perfect for newly independent readers to immerse themselves in and embrace the natural world.

Rabbit and Bear: This Lake is Fake!

Jim Field & Julian Gough

Chapter book

Gorgeously illustrated and with a classic feel, this is a brilliantly funny story of a rabbit and a bear … and how friends can manage in a not-quite-perfect world. Ideal for readers moving on from picture books.

Rabbit is fed up. Spring has come, but it’s not as perfect as he thought it would be.

Bear thinks that if they work hard, they can make it better. But Rabbit has a Plan. He sets off across the lake in search of a perfect world.

Crossing the water together, Rabbit and Bear learn many things, and discover that their perfect world may be closer at hand than Rabbit had thought.

A story of hope, friendship, and an entire island made of bird droppings.

Circus Maximus: Return of the Champion

Annelise Gray

Chapter book

The conclusion of the Circus Maximus series set in Ancient Rome full of fabulous horses, thrilling adventures and an unforgettable heroine called Dido.

When her beloved horse Porcellus sires a new foal, Dido hopes he will be the missing piece in her quest to train the greatest team ever seen at the Circus Maximus. But grief and a desire for revenge are clouding her judgement.

Then her old friend Parmenion asks her to shelter the runaway son of her bitterest rival and help him fulfil his dream of becoming a charioteer. Can Dido and the boy, Damon, help each other find a way out of darkness?

And who will claim the right to be known as the sport’s ultimate champion in one last battle for racing glory?

Felix and the Future Agency

Paddy Donnelly & Rachel Morrisroe

Chapter book

Felix Green has never fitted in, mainly because people are disconcerted by his ability to foretell the future. However his skills are needed by a secret government agency and he is whisked away to to protect the world from danger.

Deep under the streets of London, in hidden tunnels of the Tube network, the Future Agency has its headquarters and training school. There, they interpret premonitions and channel dreams to learn about and prevent major disasters When a dark spectre infiltrates the Future Agency, can Felix unmask the culprit and save his new friends from destruction?

Whilst this imaginative novel employs familiar tropes well known from other fantasy series – the chosen child who is unaware of their talents, deceased parents, a school of magic, extraordinary creatures – it is an entertaining and exciting read. The world building is convincing, with stations of the Magic Mile of the Buckingham Palace Line including Astral Alley, Constellation Station and Enchantment Embankment, which are home to magical shops and offices of the Agency.

Those skilled as Astrologists can summon their own spirit creature, made from stardust, which acts as guardian and companion. Familiar London locations above ground are also used including St Paul’s Cathedral and the British Library, albeit each with their own secret magical department! Writing in the afterword, Rachel Morrisroe explains that the inspiration for the story come from the real life Premonitions Bureau which existed during the 1960s. She has also used the idea of “ghost” stations of the London Underground, as well as examples of well known hauntings and other historical references, which give the story a strong grounding.

Themes of friendship, courage and resilience are embedded in a heartwarming fantasy adventure, where Felix also learns to see his neurodiversity as a superpower.

A Flash of Neon

Sophie Cameron

Chapter book

Laurie loves stories. She loves reading them in her mums’ bookshop in their small Scottish town. She loves sharing them with new readers. She also loves telling stories about people she’s not yet met and places she’s not yet been. But when one of these people comes crashing into Laurie’s world, it turns her whole life upside down.

Neon is the boy Laurie’s been dreaming of for the last six months, and he’s exactly as she had created him – down to his ability to play any instrument he picks up. And when he steps off the train and into Laurie’s world, he teaches her what it means to be real.

A fantastical story about imagination and friendship from the award-winning author of AWAY WITH WORDS.

Fear Files: Hide and Seek

Christopher Edge

Chapter book

This story makes you rethink the simple game from your childhood (even adulthood) of ‘Hide and Seek’- who knew it could be so frightening?

You are greeted immediately with the suspense in this book with the sharing of the category ratings for the Fear Files. The one you are about to read is deemed as a Level 4 Rated File-which is a ‘Beyond Fear’ category. This is enough to make you realise that you are in for a thrill. The layout of the book is a mixture of written case notes and short chapters. You will find phrases circled and notes made for evidence, making it feel like you are investigating this case yourself.

Who thought the phrase ‘Ready or not, here I come.’ would instil such terror in someone? This is a book that I did not dare to read at bedtime, yet I loved being terrified by the storyline. In particular, a statue is found with its hands covering its eyes, which reminded me of an episode of Doctor Who, in which statues move when you are not looking-a shiver certainly went down my spine! I cannot wait for the next instalment…

The Museum of Lost Umbrellas

Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick

Chapter book

From the moment orphaned Dilly arrives on Ollipest Island to live with her grand-Aunt Florence, whom she has never met before, she can sense that there is something unusual about the place, yet she feels strangely connected to it – the storybook cottage is comforting and her aunt is kind, although for some reason distant, and she immediately feels like somehow she belongs.

Dilly quickly starts to notice some very strange happenings on the island, and when she and her new friend Callum decide to go to the reopening of a local museum, things become even more bizarre, and the pair find themselves on a quest to uncover the mysteries of this strange island. What follows is a fast-paced, fantastical adventure where time is critical and the stakes are high.

With mystery, fantasy and adventure rolled into one, The Museum of Lost Umbrellas is an engaging read from start to finish, and it is sure to capture the imagination of KS2 readers. The use of rich, vivid and descriptive language creates a strong sensory experience, and readers will find themselves transported into the fantasy world. I cannot wait for the next book in series!

Super-Readable Rollercoaster: Phoenix Brothers

Sita Brahmachari

Chapter book

This thought-provoking narrative tells the story of ‘Phoenix Brothers’ Amir and Mo, who have recently arrived in England after a perilous journey fleeing from their home country, Iraq.

Amir has lost his home, his family and now his voice; Mo is alone in the world and has experienced unspeakable horrors on his journey. As they rise from the ashes and build a new life in the UK, they discover their talents and find friends who will stand with them even when others stand in their way.

Told through the eyes of Amir, the book subtly and sensitively explores themes of displacement, prejudice, language barriers and the impact of trauma. Amir’s recollections as he prepares for the George Orwell speech competition reveal the challenges and horrors faced by many vulnerable refugee children in their quest for safety and liberty.

Running My Own Race

Abena Eyeson

Chapter book

Kofi’s mum wants him to be ‘somebody’ – she has come to believe that because he’s black, he needs the best education to compete in the real world, and so she makes him do the exams to win a scholarship to a prestigious private school.

Kofi is successful and wins the scholarship, and his mum is overjoyed – in fact, the whole community is proud of him and keeps telling him so. Others keep telling him how fortunate he is, but the problem is he doesn’t feel very lucky – he didn’t want this, and now he just feels pressure from all around. The one good thing about his new school is the athletics club – the coach has spotted his potential, and he has a good chance of competing in the London Schools’ Championships. But Kofi’s mum doesn’t approve of him running (she wants him to focus on his studies), and the school bully will do anything to ruin his chances because he doesn’t want Kofi to outshine him. Kofi’s best friend says that he needs to start standing up for himself, but that’s easier said than done.

Running My Own Race is a book about learning to find your path and having the courage to speak up for what you want. With themes of sports, resilience and prejudice, the book is best suited to lower KS3 or mature KS2 readers. It is an engaging yet easy read from start to finish and will inspire young readers to stand up for what they want and to follow their dreams.

Nate Yu’s Blast from the Past

Maisie Chan

Chapter book

There are many links in this complex, but simply written, story – links between: the present day and the past; Chinese and British culture; fantasy and reality. They all intermingle. Jirou the ghost’s search for peace over his betrayal of Ping An mirrors modern boy Nate’s behaviour towards former friend Leighton, being reconciled with and to Chinese family and heritage and the notion of secrets needing to be uncovered and understood rather than causing hurt.

The ant facts at the beginning of every chapter, which sometimes link very obviously to the story, are interesting. Chapter 19 is a good example: ants releasing a ‘death pheromone’ being like the job of Chinese Labour Corps service personnel in World War I, moving bodies away from the battlefield trenches. The book could link into the WWI curriculum topic, offering a different perspective – that of people from a Chinese background who signed up to help the British war effort.

KS2 readers of Danny Chung Does Not Do Maths will be pleased to see this latest addition on their bookshelves, and librarians to increase the diversity of their stock.