Goblin Quest by Philip Reeve
That's the trouble with heroes. They get it into their heads (and let's face it, there's usually plenty of space in there for the occasional idea) that they absolutely must do something big and valiant to win a place in the Hall of Heroes. I shall go down in history, they announce, and future generations will sing of my bravery and my exploits. Trouble is, of course, once they've fixed on a quest, nothing on earth can stop them – not even the fact that it's the most brain-freezingly, pants-wettingly STUPID thing they could possibly have decided on. Full review...
The Cat Who Came in off the Roof by Annie M G Schmidt and David Colmer (translator)
Meet Tibble. Despite the feline-sounding name, he's a human man, and a journalist at that. But his boss at the town newspaper isn't too pleased with what product Tibble delivers – for all he seems to write about is cats. The night of his impending dismissal a cat walks in through the window of Tibble's attic flat – or it would have been a cat, a ginger called Minou, but something has turned her into a human. Enough cattish behaviour and intelligence remains however, and she soon helps Tibble out by telling him all the real news that the town's cats are privy to and have never been able to convey before. But can the very feline Minou survive in human form, and what happens when the grapevine of gossip from the cats leads to something so vital to report, but so impossible to prove? Full review...
Dork Diaries: TV Star by Rachel Renee Russell
Oh dear – Nikki Maxwell is on TV. It could be worse – her younger sister or her embarrassing parents could be on TV with her, but for now it's just her. And that's a problem. Several books after surprisingly winning the school pop talent contest, Nikki and her friends get a contact with a top entertainment supremo called in, and Nikki is thrust into the limelight of reality TV, and pop boot camp. But how can she possibly juggle that, and learning martial arts at school, and keeping all her friends and boyfriend happy, and avoiding the evil Mackenzie? Full review...
Bright Star by Jenny Oldfield
Morgan was just thirteen when she was sent to her aunt's ranch in the Rockies for the summer. It was all a bit alien to her - I mean she was a city girl from Chicago and she was going to have to get on with horses. It's not long though before she realises that she has a real affinity with horses and ponies and develops a special bond with a terrified wild mustang. It's Morgan who rescues the animal when it's trapped in barbed wire and calms it sufficiently to bring it into shelter. Full review...
Really and Truly: A Story About Dementia by Emilie Rivard and Anne-Claire Deslisle
Every child who is lucky enough to have grandparents loves spending time with them. After all, no one can tell a story better than a grandparent. Charlie and Grandpa have a relationship like that, and no matter whether it’s a pirate who lives in the attic, or a gnome who lives in the cellar, Grandpa can keep him entertained for days with his stories. Full review...
Greek Myths: Stories of Sun, Stone and Sea by Sally Pomme Clayton
University Challenge questions frequently have me stumped, but it’s ones on Greek mythology that highlight a gap in my knowledge and make me yearn for the classical education that I never had. Who or what is Erato? Should I be concerned if I meet Kerberos? And why did a delivery company decide to call itself Hermes? Consequently, I had high hopes for Greek Myths: Stories of Sun, Stone and Sea, a collection of ten myths retold for children. Full review...
Chicken Mission: Danger in the Deep Dark Woods by Jennifer Gray
Dudley Manor, Dudley Estate, Dudley is having a problem. The country pile is losing all its chickens to the evil members of the Most Wanted Club, and something has to be done. So they hire a sensei emu that can do headstands, in the remotest corner of Tibet, to train three unlikely but plucky – pun intended – birds to be secret agents. Amy, Boo and Ruth are not what you or I would choose as secret agents, but in training they can even defeat the dread Yeti – however clumsily. But how can they fare against real, murderous villains, in the grown-up world of high crime? Full review...
The Princess and the Foal by Stacy Gregg
The Princess and the Foal is a modern-day Arabian fairytale based on the true story of Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein of Jordan. The story focuses on her relationship with an orphaned foal that she receives as a birthday gift shortly after losing her mother in a tragic accident. She successfully hand-rears the foal and as a result, the two form a close bond. Haya grows up to become an accomplished young equestrienne with the goal of becoming the first ever female contestant in the prestigious King's Cup. Full review...
Rilla of Ingleside by L M Montgomery
Rilla of Ingleside is an interesting novel for many reasons. Being the only fictional book written by a Canadian woman just after the war, about the war, it is an incredibly important work. It tells of what happened to the women who stayed at home, the limited aspects of war work that they were able to do, the endless fear and dread they felt for their loved ones far away, and all of the emotional highs and lows they experienced during such a heightened time. The novel begins as Europe is on the brink of war, and Rilla is only 15 years old and, still, a rather silly young girl. I have to say, I never much cared for Rilla. In Rainbow Valley' the book that precedes this one, she's just a spoilt baby and at the start of this story it seems that nothing much has changed. However, just as the world goes through a dramatic change during this period of time, Rilla herself grows from a child to a woman. Full review...
Murder Most Unladylike (Wells & Wong Mystery 1) by Robin Stevens
How do you solve a murder with no body when nobody even realises that a murder has taken place?
Such is the task facing the Wells & Wong Detective Society - Deepdean School's most secret society. Society Secretary Hazel Wong found mistress Miss Bell's dead body in the gym. But by the time she returned with President Daisy Wells, Miss Bell's body had disappeared. It's the first decent case the Society has had - who really cared about Lavinia's Missing Tie? - and Daisy has at it with gusto. Hazel follows along at a slower pace but with, it must be said, a great deal more attention to detail. Of course, school life continues unhindered and Daisy and Hazel must conduct their investigation while avoiding Latin prep and lacrosse practice, and enjoying midnight feasts and buntime biscuits. Full review...
Jim's Lion by Russell Hoban and Alexis Deacon
You must find your finder for yourself. So says a nurse to Jim, who is lying in hospital, plagued by some unnamed disease and bad dreams. The finder in question will be an animal totem, a frequenter of a nice, safe and loved place in Jim's mind, that will be able to keep him optimistic, hopeful and perhaps even alive throughout the procedures to come. The title gives the name away as to what the lad sees approach him in his fantasies, but there is no clue there as to what we see approach us in the fantastic that follows. Full review...
The Sword of Kuromori by Jason Rohan
Greek legends seems to have been done to death in YA and MG recently, there’s been a fair amount influenced by Norse mythology over the years, and Rick Riordan’s Kane Chronicles are probably the most popular of several books and series which have brought us stories based on that of Egypt. Japanese culture doesn’t seem to have played as big a part (although we’re huge fans of Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff and Kinslayer at The Bookbag) so it’s refreshing to see an adventure here featuring kappas, nure-onnas, and oni, amongst other fearsome creatures. Full review...
Horrid Henry's Krazy Ketchup by Francesca Simon and Tony Ross
Horrid Henry’s Krazy Ketchup is the 23rd book in the ever popular series and has been released to coincide with the Horrid Henry 20 year anniversary celebrations. The book contains four stories: Horrid Henry’s Ketchup, Horrid Henry’s Chicken, the Revenge of the Bogey Babysitter and Horrid Henry Tells it Like it is. Full review...
Horrid Henry by Francesca Simon and Tony Ross
I was talking to my son’s teacher recently and she was telling me about a class trip to the library. Apparently, as soon as the children got through the door, they all rushed, en-masse, to the Horrid Henry and Captain Underpants books. Squabbles ensued when there were not enough Horrid Henry books to meet demand. Full review...
Shadow Girl by Sally Nicholls
One of the disadvantages of the foster care system is that some children get moved around rather a lot and usually it's not down to them. But because of this it's easy to see making friends as being a wasted effort and this was certainly Clare's opinion. By the age of fourteen she was at her third secondary school - and after being there for two months she hated it. Everyone else had been there for years and they all had friends: Clare had no one. A very bad day saw her being evicted from the school bus and then getting lost as she tried to find her way home. The good thing was that she met Maddy. Full review...
Diary Of Dorkius Maximus In Pompeii by Tim Collins
Dorkius has moved to Pompeii for the summer. Yes, the heady highlights of Rome are far behind as he and his family have gone south, to what looks and smells like a guffy little backwater, while dad is involved in some tax negotiations. Oh, and the sacred chickens are now sleeping with Dorkius in his room, making his time in the town full of idiots even less welcome. But still – surely foolish people left, right and centre are not a problem, when you consider the angry mountain demon up yonder on Vesuvius… Full review...
My Heart is Laughing by Rose Lagercrantz and Eva Eriksson
Meet Dani. On the whole she's happy, and when she's not she tries to be. She would be happier if her best friend hadn't moved to another town, leaving her empty seat on their joint desk at primary school, but you can’t have everything. But Dani also has smaller-scale, shorter-lasting times of unhappiness, such as the story in these pages, when a boy decides to ignore two girls and ask Dani out instead. Their jealousy causes unhappiness – can Dani, or her dad, or just plain chance, turn the tables and make her happy again? Full review...
Shoutykid (1) - How Harry Riddles Made a Mega-Amazing Zombie Movie by Simon Mayle
Meet Harry Riddles – 10.3 years old, constant gamer, and more or less one of life's major losers. He's stuck in Cornwall with a sister he hates, a sister's boyfriend who shares his room with his smelly teenager feet, and a dad who's nothing more than a failed writer of movie screenplays. Perhaps Harry, the Shoutykid of the title, can call the shots himself, with his ideas of TV shows featuring a kid adopting a vegetarian baby zombie. Er – perhaps not. But he might get somewhere when he learns a lesson from his transatlantic cousin – to ask for help when it's needed. And so he does ask – he asks Sam Mendes, Harry Styles, the Queen… What could possibly go wrong? Full review...
Haunt by Curtis Jobling
Kissing the girl he’d loved from afar for ages is the best moment of Will’s life – unfortunately, it’s not far off being the last one. Racing to break the good news to his friend Dougie, he’s involved by an accident and finds himself a ghost. Somehow, Dougie is able to see him, and after an initial panic that he may be going mad or need an exorcist, Will’s best friend is persuaded to try and help him move on. Neither of them is quite sure what that will involve, until they meet another ghost – a murdered schoolgirl who’s spent half a century or so haunting a seriously scary house. Can the boys solve her mystery? Full review...
Klaus Vogel and the Bad Lads by David Almond and Vladimir Stankovic
The Bad Lads had been together for years. They were scamps, mischief makers - lads having a bit of fun - and they were led by Joe Gillespie who was a year or two older. The lads thought that Joe was great but there was a niggling feeling amongst one or two of the boys that he was getting a bit more extreme and that some of his pranks were actually - deliberately - going to hurt people. The fire at Mr Eustace's (he was a conchie, you see) happened the same week that Klaus Vogel arrived in the town of Felling. The scrawny refugee from East Germany who knew hardly any English would change things for the Bad Lads. Full review...
Jane of Lantern Hill by L M Montgomery
Lucy Maud Montgomery, the Canadian author, is best known for her classic story, Anne of Green Gables, but in her lifetime she wrote a large number of books that are not so well known. This story is one of them, and is, in fact, one of my favourite stories. Jane Stuart is a wonderful heroine. She is straight-talking, down-to-earth, and funny too. This book follows her journey from a life of misery, closeted in a home lacking in love, through to a joyous happy ending. Full review...
The Case of the Exploding Loo by Rachel Hamilton
Noelle (or Know-All to many) is daughter to a famous TV presenter and science boffin, intent on making the human race a much smarter one. Well, he was, for he visited a Portaloo one Christmas Market time and it blew up, leaving just his shoes. Only Noelle and her sister, the vicious Holly, are left thinking the case is something much greater – the police have given up, as has the girls' mother, who has turned into a slob on the couch. But impetus is given to Noelle by unusual things her unusual maths teacher has been getting her to solve… Full review...
Terror Town: Elf Girl and Raven Boy 5 by Marcus Sedgwick
Nobody wants to go to Terror Town. It might have a fabulous castle, a Horror Hotel to stay in, and more, but nobody wants to go there. Oh, except for Elf Girl and Raven Boy, who need to collect something from the Hotel in order to defeat the Goblin King. And lo and behold, the Singing Sword held at the Hotel is just given away as a complete annoyance – but getting what they came for so easily could only come at a price… Full review...
The Secrets of Stonehenge by Mick Manning and Brita Granstrom
I hope you agree with me about the sheer optimism of this book's title. It carries a certain chutzpah to pretend to show all the secrets about a mystical site which remains, even with a lot of evidence, sheer conjecture. Yes we know when the stones were erected, and from where they came under the orders of what kind of prehistoric man, but nothing is guaranteed in the occult world of pagan ritual, prehistoric pantheons and primitive perpetual calendars. This book won't admit to doubt beyond saying some people have different ideas about Stonehenge, but it will succeed in giving a fleeting glimpse to some of the mysteries and oo-er factors that make the site so intriguing for all ages to this day. Full review...
Ogres Don't Dance (Ogden the Ogre) by Kirsty McKay
Meet Ogden the Ogre. Getting lost in the forest one night after a raid on the village for a bit of human-shaped supper he finds a barn full of colourfully-dressed people having a riotous time, dancing away happily. Obviously Oscar wants to join in, but it's only when he chances on meeting Willow, an incredibly independent nine year old girl, that he gets the opportunity to learn how to dance. But will he stick to the promise he has to give her in return, that of never eating another human, or will he leave her a weeping Willow? Full review...
Sentinel by Joshua Winning
In many ways this book is not as typical of fantasy and mild horror as the summary might suggest. Unlike a lot of stories where we join the main character in the aftermath of a major event, this one begins before Nicholas is orphaned. The ever-increasing tension as his parents leave for a train journey, coming so soon after a menacing and mysterious prologue, makes it pretty clear to us that they won't be returning, and that Nicholas will soon be in deadly danger himself. Full review...