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Topic: Y2 50 Recommended Reads

Chapter book

The first magical story in the Faraway Tree series by one of the world’s most popular children’s authors, Enid Blyton.

Joe, Beth and Frannie find the Enchanted Wood on the doorstep of their new home, and when they discover the Faraway Tree they fall into all sorts of adventures!

Join them and their friends Moonface, Saucepan Man and Silky the fairy as they discover which new land is at the top of the Faraway Tree. Will it be the Land of Spells, the Land of Treats, or the Land of Do-As-You-Please? Discover the magic!

First published in 1939, this edition contains the original text. Inside illustrations are by Jan McCafferty, and the cover by Mark Beech (2014).

Picturebook

A brilliantly funny first guide to genetics that is perfect for children aged 5 years and over.

This stunningly illustrated book will boggle your brain with astonishing facts, as it shows how we’re all related to every living thing on the planet. Did you know that a grain of rice has more genes than you? Or that you’re related to dogs, dung beetles and even daffodils? Luckily, even though you’re 99.9% like a chimpanzee, you’re still 100% YOU!

The extraordinary world of genetics has never been explained so simply. You’ll be amazed at what makes you YOU.

Chapter book

Laugh-out-loud school-based fun in two-colour stories, perfect for encouraging independent reading!

Life at Wigglesbottom Primary is often lived on the edge. Is the Classroom Cat trying to tell them something! YES! Can eating a puddle crisp make you ill? YES! Can Class 2R cure PUDDLE-POX? Is Imaginary Margaret a bit of a prankster? YES! So what are Class 2R going to do about it all? HAVE A LOT OF FUN!

Three short stories in each book keep just confident readers engaged while lively two-colour illustrations bring these hilarious early readers to life and perfectly bridge the gap between picture books and chapter books.

Written by the bestselling, Blue Peter award-winning author Pamela Butchart and illustrated by Becka Moor.

Poetry

Poems are made to read OUT LOUD!

A wittily illustrated anthology of poems, designed to be read aloud. Twenty poems by the award-winning Joseph Coelho arm children with techniques for lifting poetry off the page and performing with confidence.

Perfect for confident children and shy readers alike, this book teaches all sorts of clever ways to performing poetry. Children will learn 20 techniques for reading aloud by trying out 20 funny and thoughtful original poems by the much-loved and award-winning performance poet, Joseph Coelho .

There are tongue twisters, poems to project, poems to whisper, poems to make you laugh. There are poems to perform to a whole class and others to whisper in somebody’s ear. Richly textured, warm and stylish illustration by Daniel Gray-Barnett bring each page to life.

Chapter book

Meet the princess who loves breaking the rules and her Royal Unicorn, who happens to be a pig!

A madcap new adventure series for 6-8 year olds, perfectly bridging the gap from picture books to chapter books, from award-winning author-illustrator Hannah Shaw, filled with pictures in all the colours of the rainbow and interactive extra material.

Welcome to Twinkleland Kingdom, where everything is 100% perfect. Except Princess Pea… Today’s the day the princess has to choose her own perfect unicorn at the Royal Unicorn Parade. All is well until the muddy Unipiggle appears and creates a very big muddle. It looks like Princess Pea has met her perfect match…

Chapter book

Unlike most kittens, Martin doesn’t like eating mice – let alone catching them. When he catches one by mistake he decides to keep it as a pet and soon Drusilla the mouse is established in an old bath tub in the attic. Martin is kept busy getting food, water, bedding – and then Drusilla’s babies start to arrive. How can Martin cope with all his mice?

From the number one author of animal magic comes this wonderful new edition of Martin’s Mice .

Picturebook

An uplifting story about the power of art, finding your voice, and telling your story even when you’re out of step with your peers from the #1 bestselling creators of Sofia Valdez, Future Prez and Ada Twist, Scientist !

Aaron Slater loves listening to stories and dreams of one day writing them himself. But when it comes to reading, the letters just look like squiggles to him, and it soon becomes clear he struggles more than his peers. When his teacher asks each child in the class to write a story, Aaron can’t get a single word down. He is sure his dream of being a storyteller is out of reach . . . until inspiration strikes, and Aaron finds a way to spin a tale in a way that is uniquely his.

Follow Iggy Peck, Rosie Revere, Ada Twist, Sofia Valdez, and Aaron Slater on all of their adventures! Add the picture books, chapter books, and activity books starring The Questioneers by Andrea Beaty and David Roberts to your family library today.

Non-fictionPicturebook

From bestselling author and illustrator Kate Pankhurst, descendent of suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst, comes another ‘smart, informative, inclusive and accessible’ book about trail-blazing women.

Discover the untold stories of women who have helped protect our natural world, all the way through history.

Bursting full of colourful illustrations and fascinating facts, Fantastically Great Women Who Saved the Planet is an inspiring introduction to just a few of the incredible women who show that all actions, big and small, can be powerful in the fight against climate breakdown.

Picturebook

From standout author, Alex Latimer, and bestselling illustrator, David Litchfield, comes a beautiful picture book about finding – and holding on to – friendship. One bright afternoon, Pip met Egg.

Pip is a seed from a glorious tree, and Egg is a bird’s egg from a nearby nest. When Pip and Egg first meet, they are almost the same size and shape – like two peas in a pod.

But as their friendship grows, so do they – for Pip this means growing roots, but for Egg?

Well, Egg grows wings, and she can’t wait to use them. Though Pip wishes he can follow Egg on her adventures, his roots are strong.

So he watches his friend fly away.

But true friends always find their way back to one another, and there are no truer friends than Pip and Egg.

And if there’s one thing they learn, it’s that the circle of life will always lead them back to each other.

This lyrical, reassuring story that children will love features lush illustrations filled with warmth and emotion, and teaches children about the value of friendship.

Picturebook

Flinn is at school looking in the art cupboard for some coloured pens to finish off his dinosaur drawing when he stumbles upon Captain Stubble, a real live Pirate Captain! He tells Flinn that his ship, the Acorn, has been stolen and that he needs Flinn to help him rescue it back. Stubble makes Flinn the captain and they sail away on an old pirate ship…they finally find the Acorn but, to their horror, realise it’s been stolen by PIRATE DINOSAURS! Captain Flinn and his crew attack the dinosaurs and, after much fighting, seize control of the ship once more. Flinn and his friends then sail back to the harbour clambering through the boatshed door and back into the art cupboard without the teacher even noticing they’ve been gone!

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