Sherlock Holmes meets Dickens in this heart-stopping Victorian mystery. It is the perfect book for anyone who loves to explore the dark, haunted side of a historic city. There are new twists at every turn as Zinnie strives to uncover the truth. This is a wonderful story of challenging female stereotypes and finding strength in… Continue reading The House of Hidden Wonders by Sharon Gosling
Even when things seem at their darkest, there is always a flicker of light. The Midnight Guardians by Ross Montgomery is so much more than a story about the Second World War. It explores darkness, light, hope and love within layers and layers of meaning. Both the internal and external battles portrayed in this story… Continue reading The Midnight Guardians by Ross Montgomery
Dark, mysterious, captivating… The Vanishing Trick pulled me in from the very first moment Leander spotted the strange, black carriage and met the eerie Madame Pinchbeck. “It wasn’t a sin to steal if you only took forgotten things” and this lost, forgotten, empty boy needs nothing more than to belong – to someone, to something.… Continue reading The Vanishing Trick by Jenni Spangler & illustrated by Chris Mould
Reading this, I felt like I had travelled back in time to when I first read and loved Austen in high school. The writing is so similar in style - Lucy Worsley has really captured the essence of Austen and what her stories were all about. The charm of the characters jumps off the page… Continue reading The Austen Girls by Lucy Worsley
The Wild Way Home is a captivating story of self-discovery and realising what is truly important in life. In the stillness of the forest, twelve-year-old Charlie and her friends explore the ancient paths and walk where many people have come before. When Charlie discovers a special deer tooth, she has no idea to whom it… Continue reading The Wild Way Home by Sophie Kirtley
Take yourself back in time to Edwardian Cambridge: a city of learning and invention as well as hardship and loss. It’s 1905 and Helena finds herself moving to a strange house full of all kinds of clocks. The owner, Mr Westcott, is obsessed with keeping these clocks ticking. They must never stop. Helena’s father is… Continue reading The House of One Hundred Clocks by A.M. Howell
The Little People Big Dreams series is the most beautiful set of non-fiction children’s books I have ever come across. Each gorgeous hard cover book is a child-friendly biography of a significant person from history. I’ve been fortunate enough to receive Amelia Earhart, Martin Luther King Jr, Stephen Hawking, David Attenborough, Muhammad Ali and Rosa… Continue reading Little People Big Dreams series by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara
Like Shakespeare, the language of Charles Dickens is an enormous part of our lexicon and everyday life. A familiarity with his stories is a key part of a well-rounded general knowledge about British literature, history and culture. Dickens’ links to the Industrial Revolution and Victorian Britain also make him an important part of the Key… Continue reading A World Full of Dickens Stories by Angela McAllister
In April 2020, I asked this question to teachers, authors and book reviewers on Twitter. Over the next two days, I received the most wonderful array of recommendations that will keep us reading for months! Most recommended (Click on the titles to read my reviews): Crater Lake by Jennifer Killick (Sequel - Crater Lake: Evolution)… Continue reading What is the best new children’s book you’ve read recently?
Time School author, Nikki Young, has created a fantastic comprehension guide to accompany Time School: We Will Remember Them. With chapter by chapter questions and extension tasks, it pulls out the key elements of this brilliant story for children and teachers. Click here to download it free from her website. Where do you come from?… Continue reading Time School: We Will Remember Them by Nikki Young
