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Topic: Reading for Pleasure

Chapter book

When Kate is given a colossal steam train, the Silver Arrow , for her birthday, she can’t believe her luck. After eleven years of waiting, adventure has finally found her!

Soon the Silver Arrow is whisking Kate and her brother Tom to a magical station where their passengers stand ready to board. From the porcupine to the pangolin, each one is rare and wonderful.

But these animals have been waiting a very long time too. Can Kate deliver them home … before it’s too late?

Lev Grossman’s first children’s book is a journey you’ll never forget: a rip-roaring adventure from desert plains to snow-covered mountains and everything in between. Packed with exciting creatures from the indignant porcupine to the lost polar bear and the adorable baby pangolin, The Silver Arrow is a classic story about saving our endangered animals and the places they live.

Chapter book

Take to the skies in this thrilling new series from author Alex English. (BEWARE: THERE WILL BE PIRATES!)

11 year-old Echo Quickthorn has grown up believing that nothing exists outside the Kingdom of Lockfort, but everything changes when an eccentric professor parks his airship outside her window armed with a map that shows all the magical places that exist beyond the city walls.

Together with her pet lizard, Gilbert, Echo sets off on an incredible adventure to find her missing mother; an adventure that will take her to unimaginable places filled with giant butterflies, mechanical dragons and . . . sky pirates!

Chapter book

There’s a storm raging in Eerie-on-Sea. Has the mighty Gargantis come back from the deep…?

When an ancient bottle is found washed up on the beach after a ferocious electrical storm, all the residents of Eerie-on-Sea seem to want it … but should they in fact fear it? Legend has it that the bottle contains an extraordinary secret that spells doom for the whole of Eerie-on-Sea. Could it be true that the vast sea creature Gargantis has awoken from her slumbers, and is causing the large cracks that are appearing all across the town? Finding themselves entrusted with the bottle, Herbie and Violet discover they will need to ride the terrible storm and pacify the creature if they want to save Eerie-on-Sea from sliding into the ocean and being lost for ever.

Chapter book

Sequel to the bestselling Frostheart – the crew are back for another thrilling adventure!

Ash and the rest of the Frostheart ‘s brave crew have finally arrived at the majestic stronghold of Aurora – and Ash’s mind is blown .

It’s an extraordinary place – unlike anything he’s ever seen – and he can’t wait to solve the next clue that will lead him to his parents.

But it’s quickly clear that even Aurora isn’t safe for Song Weavers. A fanatical Pathfinder captain has turned the city against Ash and his kind – and it’s not long before the Frostheart has to make another break for freedom.

But when a vicious Wraith attack leaves Ash, Lunah, Rook and Tobu stranded on the ice, they will have to use all their strength and cunning to reach safety. But what they find is even more incredible…

Chapter book

A gorgeously gothic debut series. Packed with wonderful characters, witty writing and thrilling adventure. STARFELL meets THE ADDAMS FAMILY.

Meet Malice Morbid Malign.

She’s from Underland, land of sorcery, spooks and skulduggery.

But, she and her family live in Topside and mischief is their business . . .

And the business of mischief is a very serious matter!

The Malign family hate books, they hate bathing, and they especially HATE helping.

But when grandad ghosts mysteriously start disappearing, including her own beloved grandad, Malice has no choice but to help.

She partners up with her Uncle Vexatious, to solve the case of the missing grandad-ghosts.

The perfect next read for Amelia Fang fans.

This funny, warm-hearted, spooky series – stunningly illustrated by Hannah Peck, and beautifully packaged – will delight and enchant middle-grade readers aged 9-12.

Chapter book

When George stumbles across Marley’s Curiosity Shop, he finds a mysterious and magical snow globe.

George and his Scrooge of a dad are soon swept on an incredible adventure to Christmases past, present and future. With help from an enthusiastic elf, a rather grumpy purple reindeer and a very mischievous Nan, can George find a way to bring the joy of Christmas home once again?

A fabulously festive story about Christmas, family, and magic!

An enchanting tale of Christmas magic from multi-award-winning and bestselling writer Catherine Doyle. A treat for the whole family, perfect for fans of The Christmasaurus and A Boy Called Christmas.

Chapter book

Full of warmth, eccentricity, humour and plenty of action, DEMELZA & THE SPECTRE DETECTORS is the debut novel from the multi-talented Holly Rivers, who played Drusilla Paddock in ITV’s original Worst Witch series!

Demelza loves science – she loves it so much that she stays up late to work on her inventions.

But she soon discovers she’s also inherited a distinctly unscientific skill: Spectre Detecting. Like her grandmother, she can summon the ghosts of the dead.

But when Grandma Maeve is kidnapped, Demelza and her pasty-faced best friend, Percy, must leap into action to solve the deadly mystery …

A warm and eccentric middle-grade mystery story by debut author Holly Rivers.

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.

Chapter book

The highly anticipated second novel from the author of acclaimed The Secret Starling – a spectacular adventure set through and under the streets of Paris.

When Penelope Magnificent’s awful parents tell her they’re taking a trip to Paris, she surprises them by begging to go along.

Nell is usually content to avoid her money-obsessed father and her fashion-focussed mother, but Paris holds something very dear to her . . . her old au pair Perrine – Pear – lives there. Pear used to write to Nell every week promising to come to her rescue but recently the letters have stopped . . .

Arriving at her parent’s posh hotel, Nell is determined to find Pear . . . but no one has seen her at her last known address, and no one seems to want to tell her anything about Pear’s whereabouts.

Luckily she befriends the hotel bellboy who introduces her to the world of tunnels underneath the city, and together they set out to find Pear, whilst uncovering an extraordinary mystery of their own . . .

Gorgeous black and white illustrations by Kim Geyer bring this story to life.

Chapter book

From Onjali Q. Rauf, the award-winning and best-selling author of The Boy at the Back of the Class , comes another incredible story, told with humour and heart.

‘The boy’s an absolute menace.’
‘He’s a bully. A lost cause!’
‘Why can’t he be more like his sister?’

I’ve been getting into trouble for as long I can remember. Usually I don’t mind ‘cos some of my best, most brilliant ideas have come from sitting in detention.

But recently it feels like no one believes me about anything – even when I’m telling the truth! And it’s only gotten worse since I played a prank on the old man who lives in the park.

Everyone thinks I’m just a bully. They don’t believe I could be a hero.

But I’m going to prove them all wrong…

Told from the perspective of a bully, this book explores themes of bullying and homelessness, while celebrating kindness, friendship and the potential everyone has to change for the good.

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