Appropriately, the endpapers of this fine collection of feminist fairy-tales are black, anticipating the darkness of its preoccupations, the horrors of human depravity and the historical treatment of women, often intimately bound up. The notion is first muted on the cover where blood-infused creepers not merely entrap the crowns, hearts and slippers of sanitised stories for children, but reveal snakes, axes and padlocks.
The President has some extremely important documents to sign at Dublin Castle but he simply can’t do it without his glasses! Cue a rescue mission undertaken by one Presidential Pigeon who knows exactly what to do – follow the President’s car and deliver his glasses on time.
Gringer the Whinger is a naughty and very irritating dragon who visits the family when people are tired and cranky and prone to giving out about things. Gringer swoops in and annoys Mammy with his whingy voice and constant badgering, stretching her patience to the limit, much to the cheeky delight of the children. Dad, however, is not amused …
In this, the follow-up to the acclaimed Oasis, Eilis Barrett continues to push boundaries and break new ground in dystopian YA fiction.
Captured, incarcerated and now classified as a major security risk, heroine Quincy Emerson longs for freedom from Oasis and its entire value system – and craves revenge against those who have destroyed what she perceives to be her only hope of regaining control of her life. Escape from the maximum-security prison known as the Colosseum is rumoured to be impossible, but Quincy has nothing to lose.
Fans of the work of Judi Curtin will be delighted to hear that following on from Time after Time comes the second instalment in the time-travelling adventures of Beth and Molly. Stand by Me is a story of friendship, love and reconciliation with the past. It brings together all the emotions and curiosities that are life and living.
Less of a book and more of a time machine, Sarah Webb’s latest collection will transport you back to primary school, while Steve McCarthy’s singular illustrations keep you firmly located in the twenty-first century. Webb has collected and arranged an anthology of rhymes, sayings, songs and poetry that spans from the ‘Lake Isle of Innisfree’ to ‘Óró Sé Do Bheatha ’Bhaile’ (the lone entry as Gaeilge) by way of ‘The Owl and the Pussycat’ and some well-judged tongue twisters. There is much to rediscover here, as well as a few more recent additions.
Sam Hannigan and her friend Ajay love animals. When Sam’s next-door neighbour is cruel to his dog Barker, she uses her grandad’s invention, the Brain Swap 3000, to inhabit Barker’s body and give the dastardly neighbour a fright he’ll never forget. All goes according to plan – until the Brain Swap 3000 runs out of power and Sam is trapped in Barker’s body for four whole days.
Seo leabhar nua ón tsraith An Seachtar Stuama atá á seoladh ag Cló Iar-Chonnacht i mbliana. Sé leabhar ón tsraith cháiliúil seo le hEnid Blyton atá aistrithe go Gaeilge ag CIC anois. I Déanaigí Deifir, a Sheachtair! tá an Seachtar (deartháir agus deirfiúr Peadar agus Sinéad, agus a gcairde Jeaic, Cóil, Gearóid, Neansaí agus Bairbre) ag teacht ó phicnic nuair a fheiceann siad fear ag titim óna rothar. Agus é ag fanacht ar otharcharr éiríonn leis teachtaireacht rúndiamhrach a thabhairt dóibh.
Two books in one, the Declaration of the Rights of Boys and Girls is a quirky, fun read. When read from one end, it is a list of the rights of boys. Boys have the right to play with dolls, to be cute or stylish, to be rubbish at DIY and prefer English to Maths. Read it from the other end and you get a list of the rights of girls, like the right to learn boxing, to become a lorry driver or an astronaut, and the right to be scruffy.
Children’s Books Ireland produces an annual reading guide detailing the best books of the year for readers aged 0–18. Our reading guides and lists are designed to connect young readers with the right books for them and with stories they will love.
