Told from two different points of view, this coming-of-age story about ‘that summer … the one when everything changes’ begins at sixteen-year-old Emerald’s private school in England. Emerald thinks life can’t get any worse than being bullied on social media by so-called friends. But with a shocking discovery at home her world falls apart, and she finds herself spending the summer in Dublin with her grandmother.
Charlotte is a student at a prestigious boarding school who has recently lost her two best friends in tragic circumstances. Pushed hard by her driven mother to succeed and excel, Charlotte feels ordinary and very much the outsider in comparison to the academic and sporting elite she is forced to compete against each day. When she drinks a mysterious vial, everything changes and suddenly Charlotte finds that she has become as flawless as those around her. However, this is to come at a great cost.
Did you know that ravens like to sledge down snowy rooftops on their bellies? Or that partridges are able to outfox a fox? Or for how long a father penguin usually sits on an egg? You don’t have to be an ornithologist to enjoy What it’s Like to Be a Bird, and even if you are, there is still much more to discover about our feathered friends.
Mothgirl and Dara have each set out on their own journey; Mothgirl to find her brother and Dara to get to Lathrin Island by himself, fed up with waiting for his Big Operation to help his serious heart condition. This is a timeslip novel – Dara and Mothgirl are from the same place, but eons apart. Despite Mothgirl coming from the Stone Age, the premise feels very believable, which is a testament to Kirtley’s strong characters.
This modern retelling of a Grimms’ fairytale will ignite a spark in young feminists. We find twelve girls strong and capable, and although they are underestimated by a father whose main concerns are that of his kingdom, they are inspired and allowed to flourish under his audacious wife, the queen.
Danny is not looking forward to yet another boring summer. As much as he loves his gran, nothing ever happens in the small Scottish village of Kisoussie where she lives. He dreams of having adventures like his comic book hero Zac Hanaway, but instead he will be stuck in the middle of nowhere with only one other person his age, the very smart and bookish Susie.
Book number two in Sibéal Pounder’s Bad Mermaids series plunges reader right back to where the opening volume ended. Mermaids Beattie, Mimi and Zelda together with Steve the talking seahorse are stuck onboard a ship heading at breathtaking speed for the legendary Crocodile Kingdom.
Karen Gregory’s Skylarks is a new take on an old story. The well-worn formula of an unexpected romance between two teenagers from very different worlds is reinterpreted when Joni meets Annabell. Skylark is romantic without veering to the sentimental, a love story between two girls that resists over-emphasising the significance of the same-sex coupling. The drama unfolds through light humour, witty dialogue and well described scenes.
Don’t miss this book of shape or ‘concrete’ animal poems by this accomplished triumvirate of children’s poets.
Once upon a time there was a princess whose parents wanted her to settle down with her prince. But Princess Swashbuckle has other ideas. When presented with a line of potential husbands she declares ‘there’s more to me than this’ and sets off on the high seas to fulfil her life’s ambition to become a pirate queen. With the crew of the Stinky Fish abandoned by their captain, she sets about spreading love and good deeds over the seven seas.
