Good morning everyone!

I hope you’re all doing well and staying safe!

Today, I’m sharing some books that are perfect for the younger readers in life – from books for 5 year olds to maybe 8 year olds? For being a teacher, I’m terrible at this kind of thing… I’m more of a ‘let them try it and see how they go’ kinda gal. I will say that there is NOTHING to say that these books can’t be read by slightly younger, or older children – some of my Y6s have loved these books. I won’t get into a debate right now about age limits on books and all of that jazz, ha!

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The Wizard in the Wood – Louie Stowell

Kit, Josh and Alita are heading back to school – and they’re excited to discover that they’re getting a brand new library, which also means getting their own wizard librarian… and a dragon! But when something VERY BAD happens at the new library, it’s up to Kit and her friends to save the world one more time.

I am a big big big fan of this series, as are my god daughters. I read this one a few weeks back now and I’m so sad that it’s done! Let me tell you though, this is going down really well with my kids and I can’t wait to send it down to the younger year groups because we are big Louie Stowell fans in my life! This series is just jam-packed with fun! Here, you’ve got young wizards, brilliant friendships, the perils of fighting evil and learning that being different is a power! This installment tells the story of what happens when a new dragon egg is stolen by an evil that might be closer to home than Kit and co can even think? The illustrations by David’s Ortu just make me so happy – they add such dimentsion to the story. Anyone who has been here a while will know that I am a BIG BIG fan of Duncan (swoon) and having a quick cameo from him made me really happy! I really enjoyed this… it left me wanting more and left me thinking ‘is there to be more in this series?!’ because I would fully endorse that!

Harley Hitch and the Iron Forest – Vashti Hardy

Join Harley, her robot dog Sprocket and best friend Cosmo for problem-solving adventures and mysteries in Inventia, a world where science rules and technology grows in the forest; and where exploding science projects, giant slugs and runaway robots are all part of a normal school day. The Iron Forest near Harley’s home is unlike any other – plants and trees grow cogs and hinges and other mechanical parts – and all of Inventia depends on it. So when a strange fungus is discovered, there’s a race to find a solution. Without essential parts for inventions, the town is quickly falling apart… But just who or what is behind the mysterious infestation? Harley decides it’s up to her to save the day – with chaotic results!

I am a massive fan of Vashti Hardy’s books for older readers (Brightstorm, Darkwhispers and Wildspark) so I was THRILLED when I heard that she was writing books for slightly younger children! The brilliant people of Scholastic sent me a review copy of Harley Hitch and I absolutely devoured it! This story is a complete and utter delight. A story about a young girl who is ultimately just trying to help the world around her, but ends up in some very big muddles! This is absolutely full to the brim with brilliant problem solving, some incredible STEM and a messages about friendship, family and kindness! Vashti continues to write fun and interesting books! I can’t wait for more – this would make a great Y3 read! If I’m ever going to be doing robots in KS2, this will be one of those recommended read books because it is PERFECT. Not only is the story amazing, but the illustrations by George Ermos are just incredible too!

Real Pigeons Fight Crime – Andrew MacDonald

What do REAL PIGEONS do? They fight crime, of course! Wait, what? You didn’t know your town is protected by a secret squad of crime-fighting feathered friends? Well, you are about to get schooled. REAL PIGEONS solve mysteries! REAL PIGEONS fight bad guys! And REAL PIGEONS won’t stop until your neighborhood is safe and the questions are all answered: Like, why have all the breadcrumbs disappeared? And which food truck smells the best?

I was sent this by the publishers and I THOROUGHLY enjoyed it. It was just full of fun and silliness. This is a collection of 3 stories about a group of pigeons who are doing good: they’re fighting crime! What do they get up to? They save bats, rescue humans from stink bombs and figure out the reason for the disappearance of all of the humans in the parks! I really enjoyed this. It’s one of those real fun, a bit manic books that always go down really well in school. I’d love to read more of this series, purely because it put such a smile on my face! Who knew that pigeons were such brilliant masters of disguise? Certainly not me! This, like the rest of the books I’ve reviewed so far, is brilliantly illustrated by Ben Wood (I mean just look at those pigeons on the front cover man, what’s not to love about them?).

Space Detectives – Mark Powers

Dog lost in space? Grown an extra head and don’t know why? Pocket money stolen by a green blob? You need the Space Detectives! Connor and Ethan are spending their summer holidays aboard the world’s first orbiting city, Starville (basically Beverley Hills in space!). The amazing space station is bursting with celebrities and the mega-rich. But Connor and Ethan are too busy selling ice cream to see the sights. However, neither of our heroes can resist a mystery and when they discover the space station is hurtling on a collision course with the moon (eep!) they know they need to step in. This is a case for the SPACE DETECTIVES! Can Connor and Ethan find the culprit and save Starville from its impending doom

This is one of those books that has TOTAL shelf appeal, and once you get inside, you see that Dapo Adeola’s incredibly illustrations carry on… and let me tell you the goodness doesn’t stop there! This book is total great fun. A story of space detectves, alien creatures and being outwitted? What more does one need from a book? Sign me up for more in this series right now please!! I read through this really quickly and it’s gone down a treat with a few of my kids. I definitely think that I need to take this down to Year 3 or 4 because I think they’ll absolutely devour it. I loved the twist on the characters and who truly was the evil genius in the end! I would be a rubbish Space Detective, but I will HAPPILY read about them!

Comic Classics: Treasure Island – Jack Noel

OLD books get NEW doodles – it’s the classics as you’ve never seen them before! A hilarious new series that brings the classics to life with illustrations by Jack Noel.

While the story of Treasure Island might not be the most imaginative, this version brilliantly done by Jack Noel has added so much to the story with his doodles, drawings, definitions and delights! This made me chuckle and this is such a smart way to make classics accessible to kids especially. To be honest, I know the story of Treasure Island, but I had NEVER read it before (I’m just not a big classics girl). This has turned away from a tedious, inaccessible story that many would find quite hard to get through into a fun, accessible and honestly much more entertaining version! I can’t wait to see if we get any more classics made into these because I would buy all of them! Jack is such a talent: his illustrations and his wit add so much to this!

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And there you go! I had such a blast reading these! A massive thank you to the publishers who sent me these books, and to my bank account ha! Thanks so much for stopping by!

What have you read recently?
What’s on your TBR?
Recommend me a book that you’ve love recently for younger readers!

S x