Recommended children's booklists sorted by age or topic

Publisher: Penguin Random House Children's UK

A timeless classic by renowned historical fiction writer Geoffrey Trease, A Cue for Treason is a thrilling adventure set in Elizabethan England.

The novel follows fourteen-year-old Peter Brownrigg, who joins a travelling theatre group and apprentices with William Shakespeare after fleeing a tyrannical lord. Peter uncovers a dangerous plot in a gripping tale of spies, betrayal and treason against Queen Elizabeth herself. 

Originally published in 1940, this is a story that remains exciting for today’s readers in KS3 who enjoy historical fiction and is an excellent companion to any study of the Elizabethan era.

Graphic novel

From the bestselling author of Wonder comes the graphic novel White Bird: soon to be a major film starring Ariella Glaser, Orlando Schwerdt, Bryce Gheisar, Helen Mirren and Gillian Anderson.

To the millions of readers who fell in love with R J Palacio’s Wonder, Julian is best-known as Auggie Pullman’s classroom bully. White Bird reveals a new side to Julian’s story, as Julian discovers the moving and powerful tale of his grandmother, who was hidden from the Nazis as a young Jewish girl in occupied France during the Second World War.

An unforgettable, unputdownable story about strength, courage and the power of kindness to change hearts, build bridges, and even save lives, from the globally bestselling author of Wonder.

A full-colour graphic novel, brilliantly illustrated throughout by R. J. Palacio

Graphic novel

A hilarious new full-colour graphic novel series from breakout talent Huw Aaron! Perfect for fans of Bunny Vs Monkey, Dogman and Evil Emperor Penguin.

Prepare to enter the world of the Unfairies! Where battles are epic, mighty and mega . . . though on a slightly miniature scale (just don’t tell them that . . .)

Some stories will tell you fairies are sweet, kind, magical creatures.

Well, those stories are WRONG. It’s time everyone knew the TRUTH! Fairies are sneaky, cunning and about as magical as slugs.

Join our impulsive, hilarious and somewhat surprising hero Pip on a breakneck adventure among the warring unfairy tribes of The Garden.

Expect sinister plots, epic acorn-based warfare, a dubious ancient prophecy, thrilling centipede chases . . . and a hero who doesn’t give two hoots about anything.

Theo finds himself lost and alone in London after accidentally knocking the head off a Velociraptor with an old piece of dinosaur poop and running away from the chaos that ensues. He soon finds himself in the company of the fabulous and well-mannered Alistair Goodfellow, who offers him a get out of jail clause with a stay at the Casablanca Lily. He finds Alastair mysterious with his tricks and strange objects that seem to be magic.

As he finds himself needing to stay at Casablanca Lily, he soon realises that he has entered a magical world where even the house becomes alive and enchanted at night. He meets Alistair’s other lodgers and soon finds himself hunting for magical relics and enjoying having a taste of what fun the magic can bring. It all seems too good to be true, and soon the Moonlighters find themselves in danger and also doubting whether Alistair is as kind as he seems.

This book screams Oliver Twist meets Harry Potter with its characters and storyline. Alistair Goodfellow plays a Fagin-like character (but more stylish and devoted) with his group of run-away children, known as his Moonlighters, who are fighting a magical villain for the good of the magical community. It was easy to read, and I was gripped and emotionally invested in the Moonlighters as they faced their challenges. I would really recommend this book for Key Stage 2 children to read and lose themselves within the magical storyline.

The underpinning idea is that an imaginary time capsule has been buried by a Roman child and dug up in the reader’s garden. By taking objects as a starting point, Hughes can roughly mirror the processes followed by archaeologists. The book encourages children to think about sources in a critical way, rather than accepting facts on trust.

The objects themselves are carefully chosen to enable explanations of different aspects of the Roman world and explore connections and differences between then and now. A typical chapter on an incense burner explains how the tree resin was harvested, traded and used by the Romans (they thought it helped them to communicate with the gods). There’s a little bit of etymology, and then links are made to other (much less fragrant) Roman smells and the use of incense today.

Bettany Hughes has deep knowledge of the ancient world, and there is a richness of information here that is often missing from other books about the Romans aimed at this age group.

The book is designed to be accessible, with black and white illustrations and typographical effects breaking up the text. The tone is generally chatty, with liberal use of the first and second person, questions and exclamations. It would be an excellent Romans-themed addition to the class library.

“I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly, then all at once.”

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is award-winning author John Green’s most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.

In Boys Don’t Cry, bestselling author Malorie Blackman explores the unchartered territory of teenage fatherhood.

You’re waiting for the postman – he’s bringing your A level results. University, a career as a journalist – a glittering future lies ahead. But when the doorbell rings it’s your old girlfriend; and she’s carrying a baby. Your baby.

You’re happy to look after it, just for an hour or two. But then she doesn’t come back – and your future suddenly looks very different.

Malorie’s dramatic new novel will take you on a journey from tears to laughter and back again.

MANNY WANTS TO BE A FOOTBALLER. OR A POP STAR. OR WRITE A BESTSELLER. HE DOESN’T WANT TO GET MARRIED…

‘Harry and Ranjit were waiting for me – waiting to take me to Derby, to a wedding. My wedding. A wedding that I hadn’t asked for, that I didn’t want. To a girl who I didn’t know… If they had bothered to open their eyes, they would have seen me: seventeen, angry, upset but determined – determined to do my own thing, to choose my own path in life…’

Set partly in the UK and partly in the Punjab region of India, this is a fresh, bitingly perceptive and totally up-to-the-minute look at one young man’s fight to free himself from family expectations and to be himself, free to dance to his own tune.

Chapter book

Digging for peat in the mountain with his Uncle Tally, Fergus finds the body of a child, and it looks like she’s been murdered. As Fergus tries to make sense of the mad world around him – his brother on hunger-strike in prison, his growing feelings for Cora, his parents arguing over the Troubles, and him in it up to the neck, blackmailed into acting as courier to God knows what, a little voice comes to him in his dreams, and the mystery of the bog child unfurls.

Bog Child is an astonishing novel exploring the sacrifices made in the name of peace, and the unflinching strength of the human spirit.

“I write this sitting in the kitchen sink” is the memorable first line of this enchanting coming-of-age story, told in the form of Cassandra Mortmain’s journal. Cassandra wittily describes life growing up in a crumbling castle, with her father who suffers from crippling writer’s block, her glamorous but ineffectual step-mother and her vain but beloved sister Rose. When two visiting Americans arrive, all of their lives are turned upside down, and Cassandra experiences her first love.

This is a classic coming-of-age story, beloved of generations of teenage and adult readers, by Dodie Smith, who also wrote The Hundred and One Dalmatians.

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