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Topic: Reading for Pleasure

Poetry

SHORTLISTED for the Scholastic Lollies Awards – My Mum Is A Grown Down is a larger than life collection of poems for a middle grade audience about one wild, hysterical and hilarious Mum.

She says ‘I’ve worked so hard for years and I deserve a rest!’ As she scribbles with crayons and pours custard down her dress, She’s dangling from the banister with her head upside-down! Does your Mum do this? Help! My Mum’s growing DOWN!

Mum is a gamer, a party animal and a free spirit making life hard work for her nine year old son. These poems are a glimpse into their parent child relationship; their antics and adventures. The poems are bold, brave, funny and some – very moving. This collection shows just how funny, rude and naughty mums can be! It’s Dahl meets Dr Seuss meets Colin McNaughton with a sprinkling of Absolutely Fabulous.

Poetry

worm dreaming
dreaming root and branch
and whale and ant
and dinosaur and
dreaming
you and me

Black smokers, glacier worms and tardigrades… arctic terns, snow leopards and the Aleppo cat… living in the Abyss, conquering Everest, marvelling at the Northern Lights.

An exciting and thought-provoking celebration of all that is extraordinary in the natural world. Includes fascinating information about the creatures depicted.

Poetry

Silly, fantastical, romantic, thought-provoking… This new collection includes 101 classic poems that every child should read! Find Tennyson, Keats, Shelley, Wordsworth, Edward Lear, Emily Dickinson, Shakespeare and many more. The poems are organized by theme, and lively introductions provide information on the poets and their craft. Includes an index and glossary of poetic form.

Poetry

From Allie Esiri, editor of the bestselling A Poem for Every Day of the Year and A Poem for Every Night of the Year , comes this beautiful gift anthology of Shakespeare’s works.

William Shakespeare wrote at least 37 plays, 154 sonnets and a handful of longer poems and you can discover them all here. Each page of this unique collection contains an extract, which might be a famous poem, quote or scene, matched to the date. Allie Esiri’s introductions give her readers a new window into the work, time and life of the greatest writer in the English language.

Shakespeare for Every Day of the Year is perfect for reading or sharing and brings you Shakespeare’s best-known and best-loved classics alongside lesser known extracts. Esiri’s entertaining and insightful thoughts on each entry will fill your year with wonder, laughter, wisdom and wit.

Poetry

Edward Lear was the greatest nonsensicalist of all time. He was the inventor of the limerick and created the Jumblies and The Owl and the Pussycat. This complete edition of Lear’s nonsense verse – including the limericks, longer verses, alphabets and his own illustrations – is lovingly restored and beautifully presented, for adults and children to enjoy together.

Chapter book

A comedy of errors starring the instantly-loveable Rex – the first book in a fantastically funny series for 7+ readers, from Lollies Prize winning author-illustrator Elys Dolan.

Rex is king of the dinosaurs: carnivores want to be him and herbivores want to be eaten by him… That is, until a pesky Ice Age comes along and he winds up frozen solid in a glacier. When he wakes up, 65 million years later, human beings rule the roost – and if they get their hands on Rex, he’ll wind up in a zoo. (Or, worse: a MUSEUM.)

Lucky for him, Rex isn’t the only undercover creature in town. He’s whisked out of danger by the one and only Bigfoot, who has been surviving among the humans undetected for years. Bigfoot and his friends show Rex how to get by in the humans’ world, and soon there’s only one thing left for him to do: GET A JOB.

But that’s easier said than done … and with a meddling nine-year-old neighbour to deal with, and the constant risk of discovery, life couldn’t be harder for a dinosaur in disguise.

Poetry

The perfect gift for children aged 8+, this stunning classic collection of poetry will delight a new generation of readers of the Faber Children’s Classics list.

Peacock Pie contains the finest of Walter de la Mare’s poems for children, accompanied by exquisite original illustrations from Edward Ardizzone. This beautiful new edition of a classic anthology is an essential part of any child’s bookshelf.

Non-fiction

Head to the depths of the ocean to study humpback whales in this beautiful non-fiction field guide for kids. You may know that humpback whales use whale song to communicate with each other, but there’s so much more to discover about these giants of the sea! In this book, acclaimed marine biologist Dr Asha de Vos explains how humpback use special bubble nets to catch fish, and the important role their poo plays in the ocean ecosystem.

Filled with simple science and plenty of animal facts, this book also explains how hunting made humpback whales an endangered species – and how conservation efforts have seen their numbers increase again.

Poetry

This wondrous new poetry collection captures eye-popping moments, tender observations and a thousand whimsical reflections on the sheer joy of the natural world. Thought-provoking, sensitive and delightfully original, Cherry Moon, poses big questions about life with poems and other small gatherings of words; encouraging children of every age to explore the power, enchantment and sheer wonderfulness of nature.

Picturebook

The long-awaited second book in the best-selling Octopants series from the hilarious and hugely talented Suzy Senior and Claire Powell!

Pufferfish has lost his pants!
Where COULD those undies be?
Ahoy there, Pirate! Step aboard –
Let’s join the search and see!

Join Octopants, Pufferfish and their underwater pals on a pant-tastic adventure filled with pirates, parties and plenty of PANTS!

With its eye-catching, shiny purple cover this joyous story makes a perfect gift for fans of Pirates Love Underpants, Pants and Barry the Fish with Fingers.

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