I have given each of my recommendations for children an age suggestion. These are of course approximate. Please also have a look at younger or older categories.
Two girls are united in grief as a plane crashes. An extraordinary book with a dual narrative in blank verse. For young adult readers.
Review date: 02.08.20
Age recommendation: Teen
A wonderfully sultry coming-of-age mystery set in summers in Cornwall.
Review date: 24.08.23
Age recommendation: teen
A funny, uplifting, quirky and inspiring story of three girls who take a road trip to Paris to prove themselves after bullying at school.
Review date: 07.11.19
Age recommendation: Teen
Surprising subject matter but beautifully pitched. Gripping and thought-provoking - how do we handle grief?
Review date: 20.01.14
Age recommendation: Teen
Dante is listening out for the postman bringing his A level results. He's quietly confident and looking forward to university but when the doorbell rings, he's surprised to see an ex-girlfriend with a baby and life suddenly takes a completely different path.
Review date: 23.05.11
Age recommendation: Teenage
A moving and sensitive account of conjoined twins, told in verse. Amazing!
Review date: 11.10.17
Age recommendation: Young Adult
Coming-of-age road trip novel about identity, loss, friendship, fractured relationships - also described as a feminist take on 'Moby Dick'!
Review date: 29.04.20
Age recommendation: Teen
Mizuki's grandfather is sad and full of regret and guilt for a terrible episode in his past.
Review date: 27.08.20
Age recommendation: 13+
Scarlet is caught in the middle when her mum and dad decide to separate, but can she find a way to get them back together?
Review date: 20.03.22
Age recommendation: YA
From a sleepy Suffolk village, we're transported to the Dark Ages, the time of King Edmund and the threat of invasion. This is a time slip novel aimed at teenage readers, and I was gripped!
Review date: 15.06.21
Age recommendation: teen
A young woman copes with her troubled family life by taking up martial arts. The self-confidence it brings helps her to deal with the truth.
Review date: 09.09.21
Age recommendation: 14-18
A powerful and heart-breaking story of Europe in the second world war, told through the perspective of three friends.
Review date: 12.12.20
Age recommendation: teen
A beautiful, sensual account of family summers off Cape Cod, where a tragedy exposes this life of luxury and privilege.
Review date: 23.06.14
Age recommendation: YA
A beautifully written, intelligent and deeply personal journal by a young man about wildlife, and a world which he sometimes struggles to understand.
Review date: 05.10.21
Age recommendation: teen
A bomb explodes in a city market and the lives of two teenagers are changed forever. An action-packed thriller.
Review date: 28.07.13
Age recommendation: Teen
An account of a young girl in a wheelchair who makes the journey from Syria to Germany, hoping for a better life.
Review date: 30.10.24
Age recommendation: YA
Terrible things are happening in town, but Mikey and his friends just want a normal life. Published in August.
Review date: 07.04.15
Age recommendation: Teenager
A gripping thriller about a boy who thinks himself dead!
Review date: 16.12.13
Age recommendation: Teen
