Cactus Kid: The Battle for Star Rock Mountain by Emmanuel Guerrero

Flying Eye Books are a cracking publisher and one of the many strings to their bow is the graphic novel output. The Hilda series, Monster Support Group, Nightlights and Juniper Mae are just some of the brilliant graphic novels that they have put out over the years. It is safe to say that the madness of Cactus Kid by Emmanuel Guerrero can stand proud in that company.

The world has been crying out for the story of a Cactus training to be a wizard so he can return home as the most powerful wizard ever and prove his family wrong. With a back story like that driving you on, you’re willing to do anything.

Like all good adventures, very little goes to plan and Cactus finds himself drawn into competing in the 12th annual MotoBrawl and caught in the middle of two gangs desperate to stop each other no matter the cost. Add to that a giant lizard hunting down Cactus and you know the ride is going to get bumpy. It is clear that every mad idea that Emmanuel Guerrero has had appears on the pages and the book is great for it. If I were a Primary school child, my head would have fell off (in a good way) at the bonkers brilliance of Cactus Kid.

Now for the teacher bit. Below is the link to the findings of the Literacy Trust’s research around reading engagement and how comics or graphic novels can have a real positive impact on children as readers.

https://literacytrust.org.uk/research-services/research-reports/children-and-young-peoples-engagement-with-comics-in-2023/

Cactus Kid – class comic!

Miss Mary-Kate Martin’s Guide to Monsters by Karen Foxlee & Freda Chiu

Karen Foxlee is an author whose work you will recognise, yet her name is yet to be on every reader’s lips (social media posts if I’m honest) but it should be. Dragon Skin was an amazing tale and to then set her next tale in a completely different country makes for an interesting read.

Mary-Kate has to accompany her mother on a work assignment. Little does she know that it could lead to an encounter with a giant wyrm or unravel a age old hoax that a village has played out for centuries. Woolington is a small village that has clung to the idea of a giant worm-like creature that unleashes its wrath if displeased and Lord Woolington has had enough. Time to concrete other the lot and build a shopping centre – will the wyrm stop prosperity for the village or is it an old wife’s tale designed to keep people away?

Karen Foxlee does a great job in balancing out if the wyrm is real or not throughout the book. This means that you are willing Mary-Kate to solve the mystery and can enjoy second guessing what happens. The double act of Mary-Kate, the unsure, accidental adventurer, and Arabella, the free-spirited local toff, are brilliant together. One a huge overthinker, the other so care free that you wonder if she will survive the encounter with the wyrm.

Now for the teacher bit. A shout for the next class novel that every Y5 and Y6 class go for. Why you may ask? Well it ticks a lot of boxes with predictions to be made throughout due to the mystery that drips off the page. Strong female leads are always a winner and the fact that she isn’t a confident know-it-all makes it even better. Not too gruesome, not too action heavy – a bit of a Goldilocks book. At 250 pages, it is a brief enough read with the right level of challenge. All in all, a great book to use in a classroom setting.

Miss Mary-Kate Martin’s Guide to Monsters – hopefully a long running series to come.

City of Spies by Iszi Lawrence

Historical fiction is always a winner, in both children’s and adult’s books, so this makes Iszi an author to watch. Her knowledge of history along with her ability to find those untold tales can be applauded. I previously read The Time Machine Next Door and Billy Swift Takes Flight so when City of Spies hit my TBR pile, it quickly found itself at the top.

Set during 1780 as America attempts to pull itself from the hold the British crown has over it, a young boy is caught in the middle. Aiden has been close enough to nobility to yearn to a part of the establishment, yet close enough to the tragic reality that noble proximity doesn’t make a true gentleman. Sent to America away from his family, he is trying to forge a life to return to England a man of real status. However, in the middle of a war in the place he now calls home might make that a true struggle.

The Culper spy ring was a real force that attempted to bring down the crown and due to Iszi Lawrence’s research you can have an insight into how they did it. The novel is fast paced enough to grip the reader through the chapters while having enough intrigue and detective elements to make you pause and think. The strong characters that litter the tale help to drive it all on, with Elizbeth, the head strong daughter of Aiden’s master, and Major Andre standouts for me.

Now for the teacher bit. Not ever book fits neatly into a British history curriculum but that doesn’t mean that children shouldn’t get to read about that era or the events that happened. So if you do teach the America Revolution then jackpot…if not, just point the children in the direction of a cool story. As an aside, author visits often get asked about – who is good, great and ones to avoid. I can safely say after enjoying a virtual author visit with Iszi Lawrence that she is a belter to have in. Her wit and knowledge of those fascinating facts from the past have been honed during her many appearances on radio.

Daring, deceitful, dangerous – what more do you want from a spy tale?

The Best Eid Ever by Sufiya Ahmed & Hazem Asif

Aisha is buzzing with excitement for Eid as it is her favourite time of the year. With a family treasure hunt planned as part of the festivities, it looks like it is going to be the best day ever.

What I love about this story is how it is about a family…a family like anyone’s. An impatient child wanting to get to the important stuff (presents!), an older sibling making their first steps into becoming more mature and bossy, yet kind and caring parents who have a plan for the day. When stories present how we are different while showing how we are often all similar, and then add to that the fact that Hazem Asif provides strong illustrations that can be enjoyed by all, you are onto a winner.

Sufiya Ahmed is well on her way to creating a great selection of books that has representation at its core with the likes of the Rosie Raja series. The Best Eid Ever is a welcome addition! With this story, Sufiya Ahemd manages to educate and enterain in equal measure. No mean feat.

Now for the teacher bit. As the book is set in the build up to and on Eid, it is quite simple as to why it should be used by teachers. Teaching RE is hugely important in Primary schools as children, at first, have no idea people have different faiths. Introducing this through picture books is a great way to do that and it has a handy glossary in the back for all the religious terms linked to Eid.

The best book on Eid to read.

The Code of Life by Carla Hafner & Mieke Scheier

Flying Eye Books are an absolute belter of a publisher in many ways AND still their non-fiction texts stand out as some of the very best out there. The Code of Life is one of my favourite types of non-fiction book as it takes a very niche subject and drills right into it. You can’t help but feel super clever after reading it.

I found the presenting of the history of how we came to know about DNA a fascinating story in which many people worked on an idea over time. It is truly an example of standing on the shoulders of giants from Monks in Austria to Scientists studying flies in America to the present day. Starting with the history before moving onto modern day developments and examples of how DNA impacts on us as humans made perfect sense.

The way the illustrations and scientific diagrams are used to tell the story of DNA, as well as educate the reader, is brilliant. I have to admit that I felt the content was so comprehensive; the fact it didn’t shy away from being jam packed with technical terms means you could use this as part of KS3 & KS4 revision. To be honest, I gave it to my GCSE taking daughter to help her with her mocks.

Now for the teacher bit. Of course, as a non-fiction book, there is so much information that you could use it enhance your science units on evolution and inheritance, however if I had to pick out a single page it would be the one about cancer. Although addressing such an issue can be tricky – there are great books like A Story About Cancer – it is something that children may be helped to understand from a factual standpoint. A double page spread on ‘mistakes’ that can happen presents the information in a clear manner without any emotive language. Explaining the science behind something would go a long way to help some children process a situation they may be experiencing.

A book filled with learning – crack the code of life.

Super Questers: The Case of the Angry Sea by Lisa Moss and Dr Thomas Bernard

I always remember growing up watching my mum pour over puzzles books and never understood why. Now I’m a little bit older, and I should be wiser, I now know that everyone loves to solve puzzles – just the form they take differs.

For kids today, coding is a brilliant way to present puzzles for those curious, busy minds that love to crack a code or two.

The way the creative team wrap a story around the puzzles meaning that a child can decide to enjoy the quest or flick to the bits they want to solve. Either way, it is a one filled with fun.

It is always an honour to be asked to raise the profile of books that have education at their heart. Super Questers is a great series for anyone wanting to get better at understanding coding. The work that Lisa Moss and Dr Thomas Bernard have put in along with Amy Wilcox makes this a must read for any Primary school teacher looking to develop their computing curriculum. This is a brilliant series for kids who want to code.

Now for the teacher bit. Super Questers is a brilliant series for anyone hoping to inspire children to be more STEM minded. The problems throughout the books are a fantastic enhancement for any computing curriculum. Each activity is well illustrated and ideal for activating the hard thinking that embeds real learning for those willing to take up the challenge.

Stitch by Padraig Kenny

I’ve always had a soft spot for Irish Children’s authors since finding the work of Eion Colfer. Padraig Kenny has produced two crackers so far with Tin being an absolute belter of a book. Does Stitch hit the same heights? Short answer is yes!

The inspiration for the story is clear. The tale of a curious scientist trying to find a method of prolonging life and creating a monster sounds very familiar, yet Padraig explores what it means to truly be a monster.

When Stitch encounters the professor’s nephew for the first time, he is polite as always. He does request that the nephew doesn’t wake the professor as he requested many weeks ago to be left in peace…it turns out it will be eternal peace for the good professor. This leads Stitch to question if there is a life for him beyond the walls and a life for his friend Henry – talkative yet prone to the odd blunder that can end in damage or death. Will the professor’s nephew carry on his uncle’s fine work or will the friends find acceptance in the outside world? Either way, Padraig Kenny does a wonderful job taking us on that journey.

Stitch is filled with great characters – Alice, the kind but world weary champion of Stitch, and Henry, the word creating original (or so he thinks) are both favourites. However, Stitch rightly takes centre stage as the innocent soul with a frame made from body parts and a love of counting each day he wakes as he knows life is special. Padraig Kenny seems to write his best stuff when he is exploring what it means to be human by those who some would consider not to be.

Now for the teacher bit. I’ll not drone on…its a bloody good book. Perfect for Y5 and 6. Get it in your school library!

See the world through new eyes – Stitch is a delight of a read.

Bird is Dead by Tiny Fisscher & Herma Starreveld

One day Bird dies. That is it. The story in a nutshell. Bird is dead and the other birds chat about what this may or may not mean. Tiny Fisscher and Herma Starreveld do a cracking job in taking the straightforward and squeezing out every last drop.

Each bird ponders what this means. Is he really dead? How can they be sure? Doubt creeps in the minds of some, while certainty fills the heads of others. Once agreed that Bird is actually dead, his friends (and a few who question if they did like him) need to decide what to do next.

I adore the artwork in Bird is Dead. The quality reminds of animated TV shows from years gone by before animation become more glossy. The colourful patchwork appearance of the birds on the muted background makes for a captivating experience.

Now for the teacher bit. Picture books are brilliant for exploring the big ideas and emotions. There is no bigger emotion than grief, yet there are many great examples of picture books that deal with it well such as The Laugh. Bird is Dead can happily sit alongside those books that address a tricky situation for children to come to terms with.

Bird is Dead – Book is Great!

Things in the Basement by Ben Hatke

Ben Hatke has a fantastic back catalogue of cracking graphic novels and Things in the Basement is one of his best.

Milo is a boy who has to help out with his mum – two demanding twin siblings can put that type of strain on a youngster. So one day when a favourite sock is lost, Milo starts his quest that takes him into the depths of the basement and beyond.

His journey starts down the steps and into the darkness of the basement that houses the washer/dryer. There he catches sight of something darting off, sock in mouth. As he pursues, he finds his basement has further sections that are hidden and goes deeper and deeper. What lives in those depths has to be seen to be believed. Like many a quest, if Milo fails to find the sock he fears might be trapped forever.

As a constant sock loss expert, I am pleased to find out why I have so many missing a partner. The inventiveness of the creator means that simple ideas combined with the surreal draws the reader into a world of weird. The muted colours play with the idea that Milo lives in the mundane and avoid dangers, yet now finds himself thrust into an adventure he can only hope to survive.

Now for the teacher bit. The power of the graphic novel is not to be underestimated. It can turn the most reluctant reader into a life long reader. Once you hook someone into traditional story telling by the turning of the page, then you have them forever. Graphic novels can be the gateway to reading so please make sure you have them stocked in your class library.

A brilliant adventure to be enjoyed by all ages.

Wild Book Day by Karl Newson & James Brown

Wild Book Day is the story of when the books burst with excitement and have as much fun as they can. As they get up to mischief, the reader is along for the ride. The link to World Book Day is clear and, as many educators say, books have to be the star of the show. Karl Newson and James Brown have found a way to make that true with this picture book.

The colourful, jampacked illustrations will be something that have children’s eyes scanning to see if they can spot a story or two that they know. As the books begin to run riot, the pages draw out memories of past tales once enjoyed. I’m sure you will spot an old favourite.

Now for the teacher bit. World book day is a celebration of books and a highlight of the academic calendar for many children (and adults). This book is ideal to use year in and year out about the beauty of books…how they can take us on many wonderous journeys.

A World Book Day winner!