Wildsmith: City of Secrets Written by Liz Flanagan Illustrations by Joe Todd-Stanton The first book in the series was amazing and I couldn’t wait to catch up with Rowan in this latest instalment. Rowan starts to embrace her gifts as a magical wildsmith who heals and speaks to animals. But saving a young pegasus brings … Continue reading Middle Grade Must Reads – July 2024 (Part One)
Author: helenbyles
Middle Grade Must Reads – June 2024 (Part Two)
The November Witches Written by Jennifer Claessen The November Witches is the follow up to the excellent October Witches . The October Witches follows Clem, a young witch experiencing her first time with magic. Coming from a family of witches, Clem has watched every woman in her family grow and play with her magic. But … Continue reading Middle Grade Must Reads – June 2024 (Part Two)
Lost In Time
Post written by Dawn Treacher More and more in my job I’m using books to aid me in explaining situations to children and this is going to be another that I will be using.For Connie’s Gran time is shrinking due to dementia, and it’s as if Gramps has a secret he will never tell; but … Continue reading Lost In Time
Chasing the Shy Town
I spend a lot of time at my job looking for new short chapter books that are suitable for newly independent readers. These books have larger fonts, shorter chapters and illustrations throughout the book. These books are suitable for children aged 5 / 6 upwards and they are the next step up from picture books. … Continue reading Chasing the Shy Town
YA Must Reads – June 2024
The Union Of Shadows Written by Emma Bradley I sometimes speak to Emma on social media and when she was looking for reviewers I jumped at the chance to read this book. Unfortunately I am yet to read her debut fantasy series: 'Arcanium' where we get to meet the characters in this book. But this … Continue reading YA Must Reads – June 2024
Middle Grade Must Reads – June 2024 (Part One)
Things That Go Bump Written by Kathryn Foxfield Kathryn Foxfield is one of my favourite YA horror writers, so when I discovered she had written a MG horror book I knew I needed to read it, then get a copy for my library. Her YA books are very dark so I was interested to see … Continue reading Middle Grade Must Reads – June 2024 (Part One)
Middle Grade Must Reads – May 2024
City of Spies Written by Iszi Lawrence illustrations by Elisa Paganelli Published by Bloomsbury It's 1780 and the struggle for American independence is raging. In New York, twelve-year-old Aiden Blaise is sure that the British will win soon. How can a few rebel colonies hold out against the might of the British crown? And anyway he's … Continue reading Middle Grade Must Reads – May 2024
Ghosts of Mars: The Adventures of Eva Knight
Written by Stuart White Illustrations by Jennifer Jamieson Stuart White came to my attention with his marvellous book The Nameless, it was such an amazing YA book so when I saw this MG book I couldn’t wait to read it. How would you feel if you were born on Mars, were the most famous person … Continue reading Ghosts of Mars: The Adventures of Eva Knight
Fyn Carter and the Agents of Eromlos
Written by Ian Hunter It seemed every time I went on Twitter someone was talking about Fyn Carter, so I made a mental note to read this . So I was delighted when Ian Hunter emailed me saying he was setting up a blog tour and did I want to be part of it. So … Continue reading Fyn Carter and the Agents of Eromlos
The Beasts of Knobbly Bottom Books
Attack of the Vampire Sheep Written by Emily-Jane Clark like many librarians, I have reluctant readers, these are the children who really don’t want to read unless you can find a book that piques their interest. THis is one such book. And if I had to describe this book in one word that word would … Continue reading The Beasts of Knobbly Bottom Books
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