Recommended children's booklists sorted by age or topic

Publisher: Pushkin Children's Books

1720. Blue Mountains, windward Jamaica. In the sweltering heat Captain Shettlewood leads a troop of British soldiers through the thick trees towards the river. They are hunting slaves who have escaped from the brutal plantations. Their mission: to find them, and kill them.

But up ahead, hidden among the rocks above the water, a group of men with cutlasses and muskets wait patiently for the instructions of their leader. Queen Nanny is a ‘wise woman’ with a reputation for ancient obeah magic, and a guerilla fighter with a genius for organisation. So the battle for Jamaica begins, the First Maroon War, in which the maroons – escaped slaves – will make a final, do-or-die stand against the slavers and soldiers of Empire.

On her twelfth birthday Cecilia goes out with her parents and sister to celebrate with a visit to a museum. On their way Cecilia drops the marble that her sister gave her as a present, and running to pick it up she is taken away on an empty underground train into a dark and deep tunnel. The fun family outing becomes a much more serious mission when Cecilia finds that she and her marble have a very important role to play in freeing the inhabitants of the tunnels from the tyrannical rule of the Corvus.

A truly inventive, clever and magical story about the power of friendship and the importance of self-belief by debut novelist Nadine Wild-Palmer.

An absolutely gorgeous, old-fashioned book that has inspired many of our greatest actors! I loved reading this as a child and I love reading it now and it gives children such agency, and takes their dreams seriously. I love the creativity of the Blue Door Theatre Company, and all the different roles they play on and off stage.

Amazingly, Pamela Brown started writing this book when she was only fourteen years old, and it was published by the time she was sixteen! She used her earnings to train at drama school, and eventually became an actress.

In the story, a group of children decide to turn a dilapidated old building into a theatre and put on a show. They write all their own scripts, compose their own songs, arrange the choreography and design the costumes. Dame Maggie Smith said ‘I wanted to act before I read this book, and afterwards there was no stopping me.’

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A short but harrowing account of how one boy makes the journey to freedom and ultimately safety. Eye opening to anyone who is new to the subject and a must share in classrooms, this is the kind of book that you will find quick to read but slow to forget.

Boy 87 delivers a stark portrayal of a young refugee’s perilous journey through unembellished, first-person narrative. The narrative demands mature engagement, making it a good choice for exploring complex themes like migration and empathy with Key Stage 3 students.

The story is thought-provoking and offers a raw glimpse into displacement. Mature readers able to engage with the book’s themes will also pick up on the sense of empowerment offered through the book. Boy 87 encourages critical thinking about human rights and global citizenship.

Ideal for Year 8, this book’s concise format, relevant themes and relatable protagonist make a quick and powerful impact.

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Stone Girl Bone Girl

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