Michael Morpurgo has a loyal fanbase among readers who enjoy his stories of wartime, animals and adventure. With hundreds of books to date, Michael Morpurgo’s award-winning stories have become modern classics in primary school classrooms.
We’ve put together a list of ten similar books for fans of Michael Morpurgo. Fans of Morpurgo’s animal stories might like to try The Last Bear or When the Mountains Roared. Readers looking for gripping historical fiction could try The Week at World’s End or Tom Palmer’s D-Day Dog. Many of Morpurgo’s stories offer individual perspectives on wartime events, and readers who enjoy this style could try Girl 38 or Bali Rai’s Now or Never to diversify their collection.
Browse the full list below of books for children looking for what to read next after Michael Morpurgo…
From Onjali Q. Rauf, the award-winning and best-selling author of The Boy at the Back of the Class , comes an incredible story about missing histories and the concept of a universal family, told with humour and heart.
Leo and his best friend Sangeeta are the odd ones out in their school. But as Leo’s dad is always telling him, it’s because they’re special. Only thing is, if they’re so special, how come they never see anyone who looks like them in their school history books?
Then, on a class trip to a nearby cathedral, Leo’s attention is drawn to a large marble slab high above the doors of the hall. Right there, bang in the middle of a list of war heroes, Leo finds himself staring at something incredible: his own name.
Desperate to know who this other Leo was, the two friends embark on a search. And together, they begin to uncover missing stories from the past, ones which they are determined to put back into their rightful place in the pages of history.
Touching on themes of historical racism, The Lion Above the Door shines a light on the stories our history books have yet to contain and the power of friendships that can last through generations.
The first edition of this book also contains a special collection of historical photos and stories of real life forgotten heroes from World War Two.
Past and present are woven into this novel set in contemporary times and WWII Poland. Based on a real life story about friendship and endurance in the darkest situation. Ewa’s debut novel The Mystery of the Colour Thief was shortlisted for the Waterstone’s Childrens Prize 2019 and longlisted for the Branford Boase Award.
Kat is a 12-year-old girl who loves working on her super-heroine comic, Girl 38 – the girl she longs to be like. But she’s not brave, or fearless. At school, Gem is no longer her ‘best friend’. And at home Kat is lonely while her parents are busy working long hours. She’s even a bit afraid of her elderly neighbour, Ania. But when Ania has an accident Kat surprises herself by rushing to the rescue – just like Girl 38. Their unlikely friendship blossoms, and with it Kat’s determination, as Ania reveals the haunting story behind the portrait of a girl she’s left unfinished.
Inspired by Ania – her daring leap to freedom and her search for her lost friend, Mila, who was taken away by soldiers to a ‘walled village’ at the outbreak of WWII – Kat unravels the mystery of the girl in the painting and finds a happy ending for Girl 38.
A gripping adventure in an exciting new series reflecting the authentic, unsung stories of our past!
Now or Never brings a young soldier, Private Fazal Khan, from his home in India to the battlefields of the Second World War.
Fazal’s world is now focused on Company 32 and the animals he cares for in the midst of one of the most frightening times in history. And as he and his friends make their way to the beaches of Dunkirk, Fazal must deal with even more than the terrors of a dangerous trek to reach the evacuation zone.
The Company’s captain defends his troops in the face of a terrible betrayal at the point of rescue: not everyone has welcomed the help brought by the Royal Indian Army Service Corps. Now Fazal is forced to question why he is even there and why he is expected to be loyal to a king whose people don’t all see him as their equal.
Jack can’t wait for the school trip to the D-Day landing beaches. It’s his chance to learn more about the war heroes he has always admired – brave men like his dad, who is a reserve soldier. But when his dad is called up to action and things at home spiral out of control, everything Jack believes about war is thrown into question. Finding comfort only in the presence of his loyal dog, Finn, Jack is drawn to the heart-wrenching true story of one particular D-Day paratrooper. On 6 June 1944, Emile Corteil parachuted into France with his dog, Glen – and Jack is determined to discover their fate…
What would you do if there was a real possibility that the world might end?
Ray, aware of his parents’ building worry, decides to take matters into his own hands. He builds a shelter in the woods behind his house in the hope that he never has to use it. Only to discover that someone else needs it more than he does. An American girl, reported missing, has turned up there…
Why is she hiding? And with neighbour turning against neighbour, will Ray be willing to help her?
Set over the six days when the Cuban Missile Crisis became public knowledge, this tense, clever thriller might just be Emma Carroll’s best book yet!
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