Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

A Christmas Carol (Barrington Stoke Edition)

Chapter book

The classic novella of the Christmas transformation of Scrooge that has remained in the public imagination for well over a century, now available in an accessible format for all readers.

Miserly Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by the ghost of his former business partner, and he learns he will be visited by three spirits – Christmas Past, Christmas Present and Christmas Yet to Come – who reveal to him his miserable existence, the opportunities he squandered in his youth, the current cruelties he visits upon those around him, and the fate that awaits him if he does not change his ways. Scrooge is faced with a choice: death or redemption.

Dickens’ classic story of the Christmas transformation of Ebenezer Scrooge, now available in an accessible, super-readable format with dyslexia-friendly features, for all readers.

Fashion Conscious

Kim Hankinson & Sarah Klymkiw

Non-fiction

Most fashion-conscious young people will have heard of the term sustainable fashion, but with such a sea of information available it can be hard to know which aspects are relevant to individuals. For young readers hitting the age where they are starting to make their own decisions about buying clothing, this is a practical and accessible guide to becoming a conscious consumer while developing an individual fashion sense.

The book educates readers on the life cycle of clothing, laying out the huge amount of labour involved in each stage from growing and harvesting cotton through to selling the garment in a shop. Typically a single t-shirt passes through at least 100 pairs of hands in production before even being tried on, and can often have travelled thousands of miles too.

While recognising the importance of fashion and the role it plays in individual expression, the authors explain the human and environmental ethical implications of the ‘fast fashion’ industry and then gives a toolkit of ethical ways to be fashion-conscious. Readers will learn how to make decisions when shopping, to check labels and fabrics, to wash clothes well and to ‘make do and mend’ or upcycle old clothing. There’s also a handy history of fashion to put modern consumer habits into context.

This is an informative and empowering non-fiction book for young people who are now old enough to take responsibility for their own decisions when choosing and buying clothes.

Love Monster

Rachel Bright

Picturebook

A warm and witty story featuring Love Monster, who now appears in his own animated television show on CBeebies!

It can be tough being the only funny-looking Monster in Cutesville, but this Monster is not one to hang around and feel sorry for himself, so he’s off – out into the big wide world to look for someone to love him.
He looks high, he looks low and he looks everywhere in-between, but it’s only when he’s just about to give up that he finally finds what he is looking for…

Featuring an instantly charming main character who will appeal to children and adults alike, LOVE MONSTER is a warm and witty tale about the power of taking action.

Little Miss Somersault

Roger Hargreaves

Picturebook

The bestselling children’s books series for over 50 years!

Little Miss Somersault is very acrobatic! When she wants to get somewhere she doesn’t walk she does cartwheels instead.

The Mr Men and Little Miss have been delighting children for generations with their charming and funny antics. Bold illustrations and funny stories make Mr Men and Little Miss the perfect story time experience for children aged two up. Have you met them all?

Somersaults and Dreams: Making the Grade

Cate Shearwater

Chapter book

Love Cathy Cassidy or Jacqueline Wilson? Don’t miss this gorgeous new series set in the heady world of gymnastics.

Ellie has a dream … to become a world-class gymnast. When she’s offered a place at the prestigious London Gymnastics Academy, it looks like she has a chance to make that dream come true. But there are many obstacles to overcome, new friends to make, and rivalries to face! Will she make it, against all the odds?

Making the Grade is the first book in the Somersaults and Dreams series, a rollercoaster ride full of friendship, rivalries, setbacks and triumphs, with echoes of classic stories like Ballet Shoes. Perfect for children aged 9 years and up.

Also look out for:

Rising Star

Going for Gold

Cate Shearwater lives in Wiltshire with her husband and two children. She was gloriously bad at gymnastics when she was younger but luckily the cartwheels skipped a generation and Somersaults and Dreams was written for Cate’s gymnastic fantastic daughter, Elsie, and all her fabulous squad mates at Baskerville’s Gym Club.

The Clockwork Queen

Lia Visirin & Peter Bunzl

Chapter book, Dyslexia-friendly

Set in Russia, The Clockwork Queen might be a short story but it’s a powerful one.

Sophie Peshka is a chess prodigy having learned all that she knows from her beloved father, a chess grandmaster. When her father is imprisoned by Empress Catherine the Great, Sophie is left to fend for herself. She plays chess in the park and perfects her game, until one day she is invited to play against the mysterious automaton, The Clockwork Queen.

Sophie’s strategic skill is not just confined to chess; her quick, forward-thinking nature enables her to gain access to the Winter Palace, the location of her father’s prison.

Her adventure is both imaginative, captivating and heart-warming.
With off-white paper and a dyslexia-friendly font, publisher Barrington Stoke makes a compelling tale accessible to all. The illustrations help to secure the story in the reader’s imagination. The vocabulary used throughout the book is appropriately challenging, and despite its brevity, the story is in no way compromised.

Sophie is a character that readers will take into their hearts. Her love for her father and their mutual passion for chess is a real strength. Somewhat based on historical facts, the Clockwork Queen might inspire young readers to find out more about the Mechanical Turk, the inspiration for the story. The book will also appeal to chess lovers.

Back of the Net

Eve Ainsworth & Luna Valentine

Chapter book

Facing up to fears of bullying, Eva finds the courage to take to the field in this heartwarming tale from acclaimed author Eve Ainsworth.

Eva’s football skills make her stand out while playing at break-time at school, so her friends can’t understand why she’s reluctant to join them in playing for their local team, the Lightmoor Lionesses.

Horribly bullied at her last school due to a painful skin condition, Eva is terrified that the same thing will happen again if her new friends find out. Her instinct is to hide away, but can she find the courage to take to the field and play the game she loves?

Particularly suitable for readers aged 9+ with a reading age of 8.

AniMalcolm

David Baddiel & Jim Field

Chapter book

From David Baddiel, the brightest new star of children’s books and winner of the LOLLIES award, comes a laugh-out-loud adventure for every child who ever wondered what it might be like to be a bit of an animal…

Malcolm doesn’t like animals.

Which is a problem because his family love them. Their house is full of pets. What the house is NOT full of is stuff Malcolm likes. Such as the laptop he wanted for his birthday.

The only bright spot on the horizon is the Year Six school trip, which Malcolm never thought his parents would pay for. And yet there he is, on the bus, heading to… oh no. A farm.

Over the next days, Malcolm changes. He learns a lot about animals. More, in many ways, than he would like. He learns what it’s really like to be an animal. A whole series of animals, in fact…

It does make him think differently. And speak differently. And eat differently. And, um, smell differently. But will he end up the same as before?

Because sometimes the hardest thing to become is… yourself.

Birthday Boy

David Baddiel & Jim Field

Chapter book

A hilarious rollercoaster ride of pure entertainment for 9+ readers everywhere, Birthday Boy is the new Baddiel Blockbuster: featuring David’s inimitable and award-winning combination of wish-fulfilment, heart and hilarity, all brought to life by regular collaborator Jim Field’s witty, stylish illustrations.

What if it was every day?

This is the story of Sam Green, who really, really, really loves birthdays. He loves the special breakfasts in bed. The presents. The themed parties. Blowing out the candles on his cake. Everything.

He is so excited about his 11th birthday, in fact, that he wishes it was his birthday every day.

So, at first, it’s quite exciting when his birthday happens again the next morning. And again. And again. And again…

But it’s not long before things start to go wrong. Soon, disaster strikes, threatening something Sam loves even more than birthdays.

Sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for…

The Boy Who Got Accidentally Famous

David Baddiel & Steven Lenton

Chapter book

From million-copy bestselling author David Baddiel comes a laugh-out-loud story for readers of 8 and up that takes you on a roller-coaster ride of fame and friendship…

Nothing extraordinary has ever happened to Billy Smith. In fact, every single thing about him is ordinary, including his name. But when a documentary crew turns up at Billy’s school to film the new TV series School Daze, everything changes.

Billy shouldn’t stand out: all the other kids are much more interesting than him. But when remixes of his boring class presentation go viral, Billy finds himself accidentally an overnight star. With his friends Bo and Rinor by his side, his life turns into a whirlwind of red carpets, TV shows, albums and even the possibility of meeting Sunshine De Marto – the coolest girl on the planet. But as everyone knows, fame comes with a price…

The Boy Who Got Accidentally Famous is an epically entertaining tale, brought to life with illustrations by the brilliant Steven Lenton, which asks the question – what if everyone suddenly knew your name…?

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Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

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