The Pinchers and the Diamond Heist by Anders Sparring & Per Gustavsson

As a reader, I really enjoy when a book catches your eye in the book shop and it is one that no one has mentioned. This is why visiting book shops is important in a day and age when pesky algorithms push a lot our way. I’m pretty sure mine would not have shown me a Swedish translation and I’d not have found The Pinchers.

Theo has a real dilemma. It isn’t that he isn’t good at things as he is. He just happens to not be able to tell a lie. And in a family of crooks who thrive as thieves, not being able to tell a fib is a bit of an issue if you’re expected to go into the family business.

As the family plan a major diamond heist, Theo finds himself in a spot of bother. How can he keep this secret from Paul, his police officer neighbour? Each character has their moments, yet my favourite was Grandma. Already doing ‘hardtime’, but still up for the thrill of the heist and showing that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

The illustrations are top drawer – Per Gustavsson is one to seek out in the future. The style of the off-kilter characters is great and adds to the story. There are also some cool activities to enjoy to train yourself to be a crook. When books have an element of fun interactivity it is always welcomed.

Now for the teacher bit. Finding books that are perfect for Y3 (and those Y2 children you want to push) is quite tricky. So many children’s ‘novels’ weigh in at 300ish pages and for those making the leap from engaging picture books to longer texts that is often a step too far. At 73 pages, The Pinchers is perfect with great illustrations breaking up the text an added bonus.

Steal, pilfer, thieve this book if you get the chance (or ask nicely to read it!)

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.

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.