Tyra gets off to a tough start at her new school. She’s loud and different and nobody seems to be particularly friendly. So when her nan gives her a beautiful china snow dragon, Tyra decides to take it to school, hoping that people will think it’s interesting and talk to her. But disaster strikes and the beautiful dragon is smashed. Can Tyra find a way to repair her treasure while also making some new friends along the way?
Elisabeth loves to paint, just like her papa. She spends hours making her own pictures of everything she sees – and the more colourful, the better!
But when she goes away to school, she finds herself in a world of grey: grey buildings, grey uniforms, grey rooms. She misses Papa and all the colours of home. And one winter morning, she gets some terrible news that makes her days darker than ever before. Will Elisabeth be able to find the colour and joy in her life again?
A touching tale about friendship, family and finding joy in the darkest of times. Inspired by the childhood of French portrait artist Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun.
Lucy and her dad are still feeling sad about the loss of their lovely cat Patch, who had been part of their family for such a long time. So when a little lost kitten turns up in their garden, Lucy doesn’t want to tell her dad in case it upsets him. But she grows to love the little kitten and he doesn’t seem to have a home, so Lucy is really upset when he disappears and finally she has to tell her dad the truth. Will her dad be able to help Lucy find the little kitten and can they offer him a new home?
The frogs always beat the toads at long jump but the toads don’t mind – anything for a quiet life. But then the children and Mutt the dog come in search of some good jumpers, and the toads see an opportunity to get their own back. Soon the poor frogs have been gathered up and put in an ice-cream tub, and they’re hopping mad! Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant or dyslexic readers aged 5+
Fair is foul and foul is fair … bestseller Ross Montgomery returns with a laugh-out-loud, perfectly pitched introduction to Shakespeare’s Macbeth.
Beth has been looking forward to the Prizegiving Assembly all year. She’s won best-behaved pupil two years in a row and is confident that she’ll triumph again for a third time.
But as preparations continue for the ceremony, which includes a performance of Macbeth by the drama club, Beth finds out that she’s been pipped to the post by not one but two of her classmates, leaving her in third place.
Beth cannot bear to lose, so she channels her inner Macbeth and will stop at nothing to tarnish the reputation of her competitors. But as she puts her dastardly plans into action, she realises that villainy comes at a high cost!
Top school athletes Dom and Blake have been best friends for ever – B and D, D-Dog and B-Unit, the Cool Combo … But with Sports Day approaching, their friendship is suddenly under threat. Mr Fortune, their headmaster, has pitted the school houses against each other by naming them after characters from his favourite Shakespearean play, Romeo and Juliet. With Dom in Montague House facing Blake from Capulet House, will B and D end the day as mortal enemies or will brotherly love prevail?
Prepare for Sports Day carnage as the Montagues and Capulets battle it out for the House Medal in this laugh-out-loud Shakespeare-inspired drama from Ross Montgomery!
A shy but talented footballer navigates challenging friendships and anxiety at school in this touching tale from acclaimed author Eve Ainsworth.
Lily always feels a little bit left out. Shy and anxious, she finds school really hard, particularly as most of the other girls all seem so confident. Most of the time, Lily wishes that she could just disappear. But during a game of football in PE, Lily’s teacher spots her natural talent and invites Lily to join the local girls’ team, where she starts to make friends with some of the other players. Finally, she thinks she’s found a place where she fits in, but will a vicious argument with one of her teammates put all her progress in jeopardy?
The blackbirds’ song uplifts and restores in this captivating novella from one of the most exciting voices in children’s fiction.
After a devastating car crash, Annie is unable to play her flute and retreats from the music she’s always loved.
She exists in a world of angry silence – furious with her mum and furious she can’t seem to play her beloved flute any more.
Then she meets Noah, who shows her the blackbirds’ nest hidden in the scrubland near their flats. As their friendship grows, the blackbirds’ glorious song reignites Annie’s passion for music. But when tragedy strikes again, will her fragile progress be put at risk?
Bertie is NOT looking forward to spending the summer holidays on stinky Long Bottom Farm. But things take an interesting turn when he encounters Nugget, the alien chicken. Nugget’s mission is to find the Earth’s most important resource and transport it back to Nurgle 7, and he needs Bertie’s help. But what could the Earth’s most valuable resource be, and can they find it in time to stop the Nurgles exterminating the Earth?!
A hilarious and heartfelt tale from Lollie-award-winning author Jenny Pearson.
As the brutal Second World War stretches on with no end in sight, life for ordinary Dutch people in the Nazi-occupied Netherlands is fraught with peril and hardship. There is very little to eat and the population lives under the constant threat of arrest and enslavement.
After the murder of her beloved uncle and the capture of her brother by the Germans, Edda is determined to do anything she can to help the resistance fight back against their oppressors. But what can a teenage girl do and how much risk is she willing to take?
Award-winning author Tom Palmer shines a light on the incredible work of the WWll Dutch resistance, in a story inspired by the childhood of Hollywood legend Audrey Hepburn.
© BooksForTopics 2015-2024
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Does the book contain anything that teachers would wish to know about before recommending in class (strong language, sensitive topics etc.)?
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