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Publisher: Pan Macmillan

Cosmic

Chapter book

It’s one giant leap for all boy-kind in Frank Cottrell Boyce’s out-of-this-world story: Cosmic .

Liam is too big for his boots. And his football strip. And his school blazer. But being super-sized height-wise has its advantages: he’s the only eleven-year-old to ever ride the G-force-defying Cosmic rollercoaster – or to be offered the chance to drive a Porsche. Long-legged Liam makes a giant leap for boy-kind by competing with a group of adults for the chance to go into space. Is Liam the best boy for the job? Sometimes being big isn’t all about being a grown-up.

The Astounding Broccoli Boy

Chapter book

The Astounding Broccoli Boy is the hilarious tale of an unlikely (and very green) hero believing in himself and finding adventure.

Rory Rooney likes to be prepared for all eventualities. His favourite book is Don’t Be Scared, Be Prepared , and he has memorized every page of it. He could even survive a hippo attack. He knows that just because something is unlikely doesn’t mean it won’t ever happen . . .

But Rory isn’t prepared when he suddenly and inexplicably turns green. Stuck in an isolation ward in a hospital far from home with two other remarkably green children, Rory’s as confused by his new condition as the medics seem to be.

What if turning green actually means you’ve turned into a superhero? Rory can’t wait to make it past hospital security and discover exactly what his superpower might be . . .

This edition of Frank Cottrell Boyce’s funny adventure features fantastic cover artwork and black and white inside illustrations from the incredible Steven Lenton.

The Hunting of the Snark

Poetry

They sought it with thimbles, they sought it with care;
They pursued it with forks and hope;
They threatened its life with a railway-share;
They charmed it with smiles and soap.

Lewis Carroll’s magnificent nonsense poem The Hunting of the Snark features an unlikely cast of characters drawn from the Jabberwocky in Through the Looking Glass. This irresistible version is illustrated, and has an introduction by, Chris Riddell.

This is a luxury edition with both black and white and colour artwork, ribbon marker and metallic blue sprayed edges.

It was first published by Macmillan in 1876.

A Girl Called Owl

Chapter book

A glittering story of frost and friendship, with writing full of magic and heart, A Girl Called Owl is Amy Wilson’s critically-acclaimed debut about family and the beauty of the natural world.

It’s bad enough having a mum dippy enough to name you Owl, but when you’ve got a dad you’ve never met, a best friend who needs you more than ever, and a new boy at school giving you weird looks, there’s not a lot of room for much else.

So when Owl starts seeing strange frost patterns on her skin, she’s tempted to just burrow down under the duvet and forget all about it. Could her strange new powers be linked to her mysterious father? And what will happen when she enters the magical world of winter for the first time?

Continue Owl’s story with the companion volume, Owl and the Lost Boy.

The Hitch-hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

Chapter book

Go on a galactic adventure with the last human on Earth, his alien best friend, and a depressed android. Introducing younger readers to The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy , this YA edition of the funny sci-fi classic includes an introduction from Artemis Fowl author Eoin Colfer.

One Thursday lunchtime the Earth gets unexpectedly demolished to make way for a new hyperspace bypass. It’s the final straw for Arthur Dent, who has already had his house bulldozed that morning. But for Arthur, that is only the beginning . . .

In the seconds before global obliteration, Arthur is plucked from the planet by his friend Ford Prefect – and together the pair venture out across the galaxy on the craziest, strangest road trip of all time!

Totally hilarious, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy has been a radio show, TV show, stage play, comic book and film, and is and a work of utter comic genius from Douglas Adams.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Chapter book

Crackpot’ is what everybody calls the Pott family. So when they go to buy a new car and come back with a WRECK, nobody is surprised. Except for the Potts themselves.

First, the car has a name. And she tells them what it is. Then they find that she can

fly . . . and swim . . .

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a car on a mission to stop a criminal gang in its tracks – and she is taking the Potts with her!

Jump into the world’s most loved magical car, for her first adventure ever!

Beauty and the Bin

Chapter book

Laurie’s home-made beauty recipes are no secret. The secret is that her eco-warrior family get their ingredients from the bin .

Laurie loves her family and she wants to join them in making the world a better place, one home-made bath bomb at a time. But right now, she doesn’t want to be fishing her food out the bin. She just wants to go for a hot chocolate with her friends after school and be a normal kid.

So when a competition comes to Silverdale High looking for the next best ‘Business with a difference’, and the most popular girl in school, wants to team up to sell Laurie’s lotions and potions, she can hardly believe her luck. But can she find success and popularity without losing sight of her true self?

Joanne O’Connell’s Beauty and the Bin is a fresh and funny debut about friends, family, school and being a young eco-warrior.

How Winston Came Home for Christmas

Picturebook

Join Winston the mouse as he sets out on another irresistible Christmas adventure!

From Alex T. Smith, bestselling author of the Claude series, comes How Winston Came Home for Christmas – the festive sequel to the much-loved How Winston Delivered Christmas . Full of gorgeous colour artwork and Christmassy activities for all the family to enjoy, this second Winston adventure is sure to become a Christmas classic to be enjoyed year after year.

It is five days until Christmas and Winston has a Very Curious Mystery to solve. He has hazy rememberings of another mouse, and he just knows that someone very important to him is lost. After promising Oliver that he will be back in time for Christmas, no matter what, Winston sets out on an exciting round-the-world adventure to find the missing mouse, helped along the way by wonderful old friends and delightful new ones, too.

A Christmas mystery written in 24-and-a-half-chapters, one to read every day of December in the lead up to Christmas, each chapter includes it’s very own festive activity for all the family to enjoy together – including crafting decorations, making Christmas food, discovering Christmas traditions from around the world and so much more!

This gorgeous hardback has a festively foiled cover, a ribbon and artwork on beautiful paper, making it the perfect Christmas gift.

Counting Creatures

Picturebook

A stunning counting book full gorgeous baby animals, with amazing flaps to lift and holes to peep through. From Julia Donaldson, bestselling author of The Gruffalo , and Sharon King-Chai, who together created the award-winnning Animalphabet.

From a leopard with her cubs, to a frog and its tadpoles, young readers will delight in counting each creature’s babies and seeing where they live. With rhyming text and a surprise search-and-find game, this is a read-aloud delight and an absolute must for the family bookshelf. A truly beautiful gift.

The Monsters of Rookhaven

Chapter book

Sometimes the monsters take us. Sometimes we become the monsters.

Mirabelle has always known she is a monster. When the glamour protecting her unusual family from the human world is torn and an orphaned brother and sister stumble upon Rookhaven, Mirabelle soon discovers that friendship can be found in the outside world.

But as something far more sinister comes to threaten them all, it quickly becomes clear that the true monsters aren’t necessarily the ones you can see.

A thought-provoking, chilling and beautifully written novel, Padraig Kenny’s The Monsters of Rookhhaven, stunningly illustrated by Edward Bettison, explores difference and empathy through the eyes of characters you won’t want to let go.

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