Cicada by Shaun Tan
UKS2Cicada tells the story of a little bug who spends 17 years working thanklessly and largely ignored in a high-rise office. The world he inhabits flits between shades of grey and his green skill and...
View ArticleWindows by Julia Denos and E. B. Goodale
FS/KS1/KS2Dusk is slowly drawing in so it's time for a young boy to walk the streets of his neighbourhood with his dog. As he passes by shops and flats and parks we are invited to see and peer into a...
View ArticleThe King Who Banned the Dark by Emily Haworth-Booth
Y2/KS2When the king who develop his fear of the dark as a child, he vows to have it banned upon ascendency. Yet when the law is passed and the people subject to having no darkness at all, a rebellion...
View ArticleLights on Cotton Rock by David Litchfield
KS1/KS2Heather is fascinated with outer space. She dreams of exploring them one day so imagine her surprise when she is greeted by a special visitor from the stars. A special friendship is made and...
View ArticleHere Comes Mr. Postmouse by Marianne Dubuc
FS/KS1Follow Mr. Postmouse on his journey through his neighbourhood. As he does the rounds he invites us to see all the different creatures who lives in his locality. From crocodiles to tortoises and...
View ArticleThe Immortal Jellyfish by Sang Miao
KS2'A boy and his grandpa sat drawing together one afternoon.' begins Miao's first picturebook as both writer and illustrator in which the central theme is one of death and rebirth. When the young boy...
View ArticleWisp: A Story of Hope by Zana Fraillon and Grahame Baker-Smith
KS2'Idris is a child refugee, born into a world of tents and fences. He has known no other life than this. He has no memories of the world outside. Then the Wisp arrives, floating in on the evening...
View ArticleMrs. Noah's Pockets by Jackie Morris and James Mayhew
KS1/KS2"At last all were gathered inside the ark. It heaved with animals, large and small. Mrs Noah wore a brand-new coat, with a hood and a cape - and very deep pockets. Lots of pockets."When Mr Noah...
View ArticleMy Two Blankets by Irena Kobald and Freya Blackwood
KS2Cartwheel is forced to leave her country because of war and moves to a ‘strange’ country. An old blanket of words and sounds gives Cartwheel comfort when she is sad. With help, she begins learning...
View ArticleCherry Blossom and Paper Planes by Jef Aerts & Sanne te Loo (trans. Polly...
KS1/KS2The story follows the two friends as Adin moves out of their cherry tree covered village and into the neighbouring city. Aerts perfectly depicts the challenges of moving away from the peaceful...
View ArticleBrave Molly by Brooke Boynton-Hughes
KS2Molly wishes she had the courage to make friends and defeat her shyness but this personified monster follows her everywhere. As she tries to break free from this dark shadow so it grows and chases...
View ArticleA House that Once Was by Julie Fogliano and Lane Smith
KS1/2Is a narrative poem that tells the story of two children exploring a mysterious abandoned house that has been untouched for years. When they enter the house, the boy and girl discover forgotten...
View ArticleThe Girl and the Dinosaur by Hollie Hughes and Sarah Massini
KS1/LKS2Marianne lives by the sea in a quirky-shaped lighthouse. Her town seems quiet and peaceable and upon the coastline she dreams and searches for dinosaurs. Through her imaginings she digs up the...
View ArticleThe Robot and the Bluebird by David Lucas
KS1/LKS2In a crowded, uncaring world lives a Robot with a broken heart. As the world carries on around him, he sits in a scrapheap lonely and forgotten. Rusting away he wonders if anything can ever...
View ArticleSong of the River by Joy Cowley and Kimberly Andrews
FS/KS1/LKS2'Cam, the mountain boy, lives with this Grandfather up in the mountains and Cam’s greatest desire is to see the sea. His grandfather always tells Cam that one day they will see the sea but...
View ArticleThe Moonlight Zoo by Maudie Powell-Tuck and Karl Newson
FS/KS1/LKS2Eva has been searching for her cat Luna, who has been missing for a couple of days. One evening she comes across the Moonlight Zoo which is a magical place which takes care of lost animals...
View ArticleThe Little Island by Smriti Prasadam-Halls & Robert Starling
FS/KS1/KS2All the creatures down on the farm live together but the geese begin to have ideas about how it should be run ‘their’ way. Bridges are literally broken and suddenly life becomes difficult for...
View ArticleLast Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña and Christian Robinson
FS/KS1/LKS2Just like every Sunday, CJ and his nana head to the bus stop after church. Whilst waiting in the rain, CJ sees his friend Colby climbing into his car, and wonders why they do not own a car...
View ArticleOcean Meet Sky by The Fan Brothers
KS1/KS2Tells the story of a young boy, Finn, who has vivid memories of his Grandpa and the exciting stories he told. On the day that Finn’s Grandpa would have turned 90, Finn builds a boat to ‘honour’...
View ArticleMarcy and the Riddle of the Sphinx by Joe Todd-Stanton
Y2/KS2Following on from Arthur and the Golden Rope, Professor Brownstone retells the story of Arthur’s daughter Marcy Brownstone who had a fear of the dark. When Marcy's father disappears to Egypt to...
View ArticleAn Ordinary Day by Elana K. Arnold & Elizabet Vuković
KS2An Ordinary Day in an ordinary neighbourhood soon turns into an extraordinary one. The story explores the lives of two families on one day, one family is welcoming a new baby, whilst the other is...
View ArticleLift by Minh Lê and Dan Santat
FS/KS1/KS2A young girl called Iris lives in an apartment block with her Mum, Dad and younger brother. Iris is always responsible for, and loves, pushing the elevator buttons. Until one day, when her...
View ArticleStarcrossed by Julia Denos
KS2Starcrossed is a tale of a celestial friendship that spans Earth and the stars. Eridani and Acamar long to know more about how the other’s life feels but know that there are insurmountable obstacles...
View ArticleSmall in the City by Sydney Smith
Y2/KS2‘Small in the City’ follows a child as they step off a tram and embark on a journey across the city. Along the way, the character faces many challenges as the potential dangers of the city...
View ArticleThe Proudest Blue by Ibtihaj Muhammad, S. K. Ali & Hatem Aly
KS1/KS2Faizah is a young girl with a ‘princess’ of a sister whom she idolises and has a great deal of respect for. When Faizah has her first day of school, Asiya has her first day of wearing a hijab...
View ArticleRide the Wind by Nicola Davies and Salvatore Rubbino
KS1/KS2The book tells the story of a young boy, Javier, who has a secret. Upon one of his father’s fishing trips, still hurting from the loss of his mother, Javier finds an albatross barely alive...
View ArticleThe Extraordinary Gardener by Sam Boughton
FS/KS1/LKS2Joe lives in an ordinary city; he enjoys using his vivid imagination to create 3D models of animals and insects. One day he heads out and uses his imagination to picture the city life with...
View ArticleFinding Winnie by Lindsay Mattick and Sophie Blackall
KS1/2A heart warming and true story of howthe famous bear, Winnie the Pooh, cameto be. Winnie, a black bear from Winnipeg,Canada, is adopted by a youngveterinary solider named HarryColebourn. The story...
View ArticleThe Last Garden by Rachel Ip and Anneli Bray
KS2Told from the perspective of another child, this is the story of how a young girl tends to her garden throughout a war, bringing joy to herself and the other children of the city. When Zara and her...
View ArticleLook Up at the Stars by Katie Cotton and Miren Asiain Lora
FS/KS1The book tells the story of a mother bear and her child living in a small house on a quiet island. The child is passionate about the natural world, spending their days creating art to represent...
View ArticleBoundless Sky by Amanda Addison and Manuela Adreani
FS/KS1/LKS2Nobody knew, nobody dreamed, nobody even considered the possibility that a bird that fits in your hand might fly halfway around the world looking for a place to nest . . . or that a young...
View ArticleA Boy and a Jaguar by Alan Robinowitz and Cátia Chien
FS/KS1/KS2Alan loves animals, but the great cat house at the Bronx Zoo makes him sad. Why are they all alone in bare cages? More than anything, he wants to be their champion – their voice – but he...
View ArticleKites by Simon Mole and Oamul Lu
FS/KS1/KS2Kites is based on David’s story as he moves to his new home in a new location and settles in.To begin with, David does not seem happy with the fact he has moved house. He feelsleft out as all...
View ArticleI Talk Like a River
Y2, KS2Based on the author’s own experiences, a young boy with a stutter describes how it affects his everyday life. Although there are always sounds all around him, the sounds and words get stuck in...
View ArticleEyes that Kiss the Corners by Joanna Ho and Dung Ho
FS, KS1 & LKS2A young Taiwanese-American girl realises that her eyes are different from everyone else’s in her class, their eyes are all big, round, and have long lashes. Disheartened by this she...
View ArticleThe Night Gardener by the Fan Brothers
KS1/KS2The book The Night Gardener tells the story of a little boy and his town being transformed by the power of creativity and art. William and the people of Grimlock Lane are changed forever by the...
View ArticleTibble and Grandpa by Wendy Meddour & Daniel Egnéus
Tibble wants to talk and play with his Grandpa, but Grandpa is always gardening and doesn’t answer Tibble when he asks questions. Tibble has a plan to make Grandpa talk using his favourite game of ‘Top...
View ArticleWe are the Water Protectors by Carole Lindstorm and Michaela Goade
KS1/KS2We are Water Protectors begins with a girl who remembers what her grandmother told her about water, its sacred properties and its importance to life and the character’s people as Native...
View ArticleA Map into the World by Kao Kalia Yang & Seo Kim
KS2This story is about a young Hmong girl who moves into a new home with her growing family. As she lives and explores the world through the seasons, she experiences both birth and death. She wants to...
View ArticleThe House by the Lake by Thomas Harding and Britta Teckentrup
UKS2The House by the Lake is a wooden holiday cabin in Groβ Glienicke, a small town on the outskirts of Germany. The Alexanders, a Jewish family, are forced to abandon Germany and the holiday home...
View ArticleLittle Goose's Autumn by Elli Woollard & Briony May Smith
' This book is about a young adolescent goose who is unsure of her place in the world and what she must do as the season changes. The goose tries to adapt her life the same way the other animals are...
View ArticleThe House of Madame M by Clotilde Perrin
‘The House of Madame M’ is a gothic pop-up picture book which invites its’ readers on a tour of an intriguing, yet gruesome, house belonging to the mysterious ‘Madame M’. Invited in and ushered around...
View ArticleCarmela Full of Wishes by Matt De La Peña & Christian Robinson
Carmela Full of Wishes tells the story of a Latina girl living in America. It is her birthday and she is old enough to help her brother on his daily tasks around their town. Carmela has an...
View ArticleSaving Sorya by Trang Nguyen & Jeet Zdung
When Chang discovers a bear bile farm near her home in Vietnam, she makes it her life mission to protect and conserve the lives of wild animals within the rainforest who are being pushed towards...
View ArticleHello Lighthouse by Sophie Blackall
KS1/KS2‘Hello Lighthouse’ follows the story of a lighthouse and its last lighthouse keeper. Inside the lighthouse the keeper completes his daily jobs of tending to the light by: writing in his logbook,...
View ArticleThe Barnabus Project by Devin Fan, Eric Fan, and The Fan Brothers
KS1 & KS2Deep underground beneath an ordinary street there is a lab where ‘perfect pets’ are made. In a part of the lab called ‘Failed Projects’ lives the creatures that do not fit the description...
View ArticleGrandad's Camper by Harry Woodgate
Grandad's Camper is a colourful, inviting and deceivingly-simple picturebook, telling the story of a young girl who goes to visit her Grandad. Whilst there she explores the house, picks fruit in the...
View ArticleAuthor / Illustrator School Visits
Are you planning on having an author or illustrator come and visit your school. Based upon an excellent chapter in Aidan Chambers' 'The Reading Environment', I created this guide on how to make the...
View ArticlePlanet in a Pickle Jar by Martin Stanev
When two children go to visit their Grandma, they can’t help but think she is no fun and predictable - they soon find out this is not the case! Grandma teaches the children about how the planet is...
View ArticleThe Bear and her Book by Frances Tosdevin & Sophia O'Connor
This book is about a bear who sets off to explore the world. She decides to take one item with her; her Big Book of Being Wise. Along her journey, she comes across and meets lots of different creatures...
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