Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books

The Heart on Your Hand

Picturebook

Drawing a heart on the hand of someone you love, The Heart on Your Hand is a joyful, reassuring and inclusive story – perfect for starting school.

Told from the perspective of parents and carers across a variety of families, this book reassures young children that no matter what challenges they face, the love is constant.

From starting school to moving house, The Heart on Your Hand explores the big moments and the small, the expected and perhaps unexpected separations in childhood, offering a timeless message that will comfort anyone adjusting to change.

A beautiful and inclusive book written in lively verse from award-winning Lucy Rowland, with cosy illustrations from Åsa Gilland, perfectly capturing the sense of safety that comes from knowing that – no matter what – you are loved.

Game of Pets: The Boy Who Knew Too Much

Aaron Blabey

Graphic novel

The intergalactic game show is live. And your cat is definitely in on it.

From mega-bestselling author Aaron Blabey, creator of The Bad Guys, buckle up for an insane, laugh-out-loud new series!

What if life on earth was an intergalactic game show, and our pets were the evil animal overlords?
Meet Griff, an eleven-year-old kid with innumerable allergies who’s just been told he’s the only one who can save the world.
The trouble is, this prophecy comes with a warning: ‘Watch your back, man . . . your PETS are not what they seem . . .’
Featuring a talking axolotl, a diabolical game show, and trademark Blabey humor, Game of Pets is a hilarious illustrated adventure that will have you looking at your pets with heavy suspicion!

I Am Ready for School

Camilla Reid & Kate Hindley

Picturebook

Along with a selection of parent and carer tips for school readiness, this picturebook is a recommended choice for Early Years children in the run-up to starting Reception class.

Colourful and detailed illustrations of a diverse, modern classroom will ease nerves about starting school, painting a warm and welcoming environment. This provides a refreshing contrast to many of the nostalgic classroom scenes depicted in Starting School stories!

We join Roo and classmates through the course of the school day, navigating everything from morning separations to the happy exhaustion of hometime. Roo and the other children need to find their pegs (always an important part of classroom initiation!), know when and where to go to the loo and navigate the corridors. Reassuringly, there’s plenty of fun and friendship along the way.

This funny and comforting book will help children understand what to expect, from making independent decisions like choosing school dinners to navigating playtime, making friends and getting used to the repetition of daily routines. There’s also a useful step-by-step school readiness resource at the end of the book.

Highly recommended for parents, carers, (and grandparents!) to read together with little ones, this book expertly prepares both children and adults for the first days and weeks at school.

Big Tiger

Marta Altés

Picturebook

Big Tiger by Marta Altés is a reassuring picture book that captures the excitement and uncertainty of growing up.

Big Tiger is no longer small and is determined to be brave, bold and grown-up. As Tiger ventures through a jungle filled with creatures much bigger than them, readers see the challenges that come with taking those first steps towards independence. However, the story gently reassures us that it is perfectly okay to need comfort, support and a helping hand along the way.

The relationship between Big Tiger and Mum is at the heart of the story. The book beautifully conveys the unbreakable bond between parent and child, showing that no matter how big we grow, we are never too old for a hug, a reassuring word or the knowledge that someone is always there for us.

The illustrations are vibrant, expressive and full of personality, bringing humour and warmth. Young readers will relate to Tiger’s desire to do things alone, while recognising the comfort of knowing a trusted adult is never far behind.

With themes of independence, courage, love and belonging, Big Tiger is a heartfelt and uplifting read. It is a perfect book for children navigating new experiences, older siblings adjusting to change or anyone who needs reminding that growing up doesn’t mean growing apart. A delightful story full of warmth, wisdom and love.

How to Steal the Future

Christopher Edge & Pete Lloyd

Chapter book

Christopher Edge is one of my go-to authors for science fiction and this one doesn’t disappoint! With short chapters, it was an easy read and got straight to the action – perfect for children who need a bit of support with stamina when reading novels. It was cleverly written and I loved the puzzles that Drew had to face throughout his adventure. It kept me guessing throughout and I definitely didn’t expect the ending! A unique story with inspiration from Theseus and the Minotaur.

The 13-Storey Treehouse: Colour Edition

Andy Griffiths & Terry Denton

Chapter book

The 13-Storey Treehouse – in colour! The first bestselling book in Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton’s wacky treehouse adventures, packed full of comic book style illustrations! Perfect for fans of Dog Man and Bunny vs. Monkey, this book will make you laugh-out-loud on every page.

Andy and Terry live in the WORLD’S BEST treehouse! It’s got a giant catapult, a secret underground laboratory, a tank of man-eating sharks and a marshmallow machine that follows you around and shoots marshmallows into your mouth whenever you’re hungry! Just watch out for the sea monkeys, and the monkeys pretending to be sea monkeys, and the giant mutant mermaid sea monster . . . Oh, and, whatever you do, don’t get trapped in a burp-gas-filled bubble . . . !

Well, what are you waiting for? Come on up!

Climb more fun-filled levels by collecting all thirteen books in the seven million-copy-selling series – the perfect chapter books for reluctant readers. And dive into even more fun adventures in the brilliant You and Me series.

The Common Criminals Club: Death Before Detention

Alison Weatherby

Chapter book

Death before detention is Alison Weatherby’s second murder mystery novel and the first aimed at a younger tween market. Set in a rural Irish Catholic boarding school, Mae, founding member of The Common Criminals Club, documents the incidents of the murders they uncover while trying to solve the case and save their school alongside her fellow club members Shonda, Beck and Aoife.

With the first murder reported to the Garda, Mae cannot believe that Sister Mary-Margaret is acting like it never happened but very soon, things take an even more bizarre and terrifying turn…

Written in the first person, Death before Detention is a gentle introduction into the murder mystery genre. Are there murders? Yes. Does the reader (and the main character) struggle to know who to trust. Yes – but then isn’t that the thrill of every good mystery novel?

Light hearted and entertaining, playing on the juxtaposition of tweens stuck in that first age of wanting to be treated as a grown up, but conversely wanting a hug from their mum (too young to realise that this battle continues throughout your life!) readers will see themselves in each of the characters. The storyline lends itself to talking about what makes us different or the same and moral dilemmas, with themes of gender identity also covered.

Readers will find themselves fully invested in solving the mystery and saving the school and a good job too as the next one in the series is due to follow in early 2027.

Wiggling Words

Kate Rolfe

Picturebook

From the creator of the Waterstones Prize-shortlisted Wolf and Bear, an inspiring story about a child lost in a forest of letters. The perfect book to share with children with dyslexia and other neurodivergence to encourage problem-solving and build confidence.

Verbs, also known as action words, can be pesky things to master and nobody understands the struggle better than the young child in Wiggling Words. Skip, trip, fumble and fall with them as they discover that even though words can be tricky, they can be fun too!

Written and illustrated by Kate Rolfe, winner of the prestigious V&A Student Illustrator of the Year and Macmillan Prize for Illustration runner-up.

The Great Green Island

Becky Colvin

Picturebook

Meet adventurous Ali, a nature-loving girl with a mystery to solve on an island that is much more than it seems. Because this small island holds a big secret. A magical secret in the shape of a Great Green Crocodile . . .

Ali lives with her Dad on a beautiful island with a busy fishing village. So busy in fact that, no matter how hard she tries, Ali can never persuade anyone to stop what they are doing and come exploring with her. That is until the morning everyone wakes to find ALL the fish have disappeared. Every. Last. One.

Who – or what – could have taken them?

The Great Green Island weaves mystery and adventure with the wonders of nature, reminding us all to stop and experience the world around us – and to do it together! Inspiring and imaginative, this is a tale that will make you see magic.

Shortlisted for two children’s book awards, this is a stunning first picture book from Becky Colvin, winner of the Macmillan Prize for Illustration 2023.

The Impossible Gladiator

M.G. Leonard & Manuel Sumberac

Chapter book

The action adventure of Gladiator meets the time travel of Doctor Who in the third title of this epic series by bestselling award-winner M. G. Leonard. Perfect for 8 to 12-year-old fans of Adventures on Trains. Supports the curriculum. Illustrated throughout in black and white by Manuel Šumberac.

Sim, Jeopardy and Nelson are enjoying an amazing holiday in Rome, until they they are swept up in the mysterious disappearance of world-famous illusionist Kinetic. He vanished during a live broadcast from the Colosseum, but he never reappeared. When Kinetic’s sister finds a strange description in a history book of a gladiator who sounds uncannily like her brother, the friends are determined to help.

They travel through secret time doors to the spectacular — and deadly — Colosseum in Ancient Rome, but can the brave trio survive long enough to find Kinetic and bring him home?

The Impossible Gladiator can be read as a stand-alone novel, or enjoyed as part of the thrilling Time Keys series written by M. G. Leonard. Follow Sim, Jeopardy and Nelson’s adventures in Ancient Egypt, Hunt for the Golden Scarab, and Viking Norway in The Legend of Viking Thunder.

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