SEASON HIGHLIGHTS February
challenges of climate change and explaining why young people have the power to make a difference.
all washed up? A brand-new adventure in the blockbuster series, perfect for even the most reluctant of bathers.
Lucy and Sandesh’s journey to happiness. Pearson is a rising star; her début The Super Miraculous Journey of Freddie Yates is shortlisted for the Costa Children’s Book of the Year.
Katie Kirby The Extremely Embarrassing Life of Lottie Brooks Puffin, 18 March, pb, £6.99, 9780241460887
Fiction 9–12 The children’s début from the
Gareth P Jones, Loretta Schauer (illus) Rabunzel Egmont Books, 18 February, pb, £6.99, 9781405298582
Picture books First in a series of silly and
rebellious twists on favourite fairytales, with an emphasis on resilience and being true to yourself, all wrapped up in laugh-out-loud storytelling and an eye-catching silver foiled jacket.
Helen Rutter The Boy Who Made Everyone Laugh Scholastic, 4 February, pb, £6.99, 9780702300851
Fiction 9–12 Eleven-year-old Billy dreams of
becoming a famous comedian. A big ambition for anyone, but surely impossible for a boy with a stammer. Rutter draws on the experiences of her own son in this big-hearted and poignant début.
Kate Pankhurst Fantastically Great Women Scientists and Their Stories Bloomsbury Children’s Books, 4 February, pb, £6.99, 9781526615336
Science A new strand of the non-fiction series
aimed at older children, telling women’s stories in much greater detail via dedicated chapters, black-and-white illustrations, comic strips, maps and more. Subjects include Mae Jemision, Rosalind Franklin, Elizabeth Blackwell and Tu Youyou.
March
Michelle Harrison A Tangle of Spells Simon & Schuster Children’s Books, 4 February, pb, £7.99, 9781471183881
Fiction 9–12 Harrison is on superb form
in a deliciously witchy third adventure for the Widdershins sisters. Simon & Schuster’s impressive fantasy line-up also includes releases from Abi Elphinstone, Katie and Kevin Tsang, and Jenni Spangler.
Caroline O’Donoghue All Our Hidden Gifts Walker Books, 3 February, pb, £7.99, 9781406393095
Fiction 12–16 The journalist and adult author
makes her YA début with the darkly magical, feminist story of a 16-year-old girl who discovers a dusty old pack of tarot cards in a school cupboard. Walker has already struck multiple rights deals.
George Orwell, Chris Mould (illus) Animal Farm Faber & Faber, 4 February, hb, £14.99, 9780571366705
Fiction 12–16 Mould follows his excellent
Liz Pichon Tom Gates: Ten Tremendous Tales Scholastic, 4 February, hb, £12.99, 9780702302527
Fiction 9–12 The enormously successful Tom
Gates series celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2021, kicking off with a new collection of short stories. Pichon’s standalone adventure Shoe Wars comes into paperback in May.
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reimagining of Ted Hughes’ The Iron Man with this striking edition of the allegorical classic. Heavily illustrated with double- page illustrated spreads, cartoon panels and spot illustrations, Mould’s distinctive art brilliantly captures the dark humour of Orwell’s original.
Naomi Klein & Rebecca Stefoff How to Change Everything Penguin, 25 February, hb, £12.99, 9780241492918
Reference The social activist’s first book for young
people is a “young human’s’ guide to protecting the planet and each other”, laying out the
The Bookseller Buyer’s Guide Children’s Michael Foreman
Noa and the Little Elephant HarperCollins Children’s Books, 4 March, pb, £6.99, 9780008413286
Picture books When an elephant is
killed by poachers, a boy and his village adopt her orphaned baby. Heartwarming and achingly relevant, says HarperCollins, this is produced in association with wildlife charity Tusk.
Isabella Tree, Allira Tee (illus) When We Went Wild Ivy Kids, 2 March, pb, £7.99, 9780711262850
Picture books From the author of natural
history bestseller Wilding and inspired by real-life projects, a picture book about the benefits of letting nature take the lead. This forms part of the Ivy Kids relaunch as a sustainable imprint with a focus on environmental titles.
parenting blogger and author of Hurrah For Gin. The Puffin pitch is “Louise Rennison for the Dork Diaries generation... hilarious, relatable and full of heart”.
Piers Torday The Wild Before Quercus Children’s Books, 4 March, hb, £12.99, 9781786541116
Fiction 9–12 Can one hare alone change the
world? Torday returns to the world of his award-winning (and exceptionally good) The Last Wild trilogy for a prequel which will touch on timely themes of climate change and hope.
Harriet Muncaster Isadora Moon Meets the Tooth Fairy Oxford University Press, 4 March, pb, £5.99, 9780192773548
Fiction 5–7 What should Isadora do with her
wobbly fang? The bestselling young reader series continues with a Tooth Fairy dilemma, while Isadora’s naughty cousin makes another appearance in spin-off Mirabelle Breaks the Rules (February).
Jacqueline Wilson, Nick Sharratt (illus) The Runaway Girls Doubleday Childrens, 18 March, hb, £12.99, 9780857535986
Fiction 9–12 A brand new Victorian novel for
younger readers, this will be the final book in the decades-long collaboration between Wilson and Sharratt. Love Frankie comes into paperback in April.
Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara, Manal Mirza (illus) Malala Yousafzai Frances Lincoln Children’s Books, 2 March, hb, £9.99, 9780711259027
Sue Hendra & Paul Linnet Supertato: Bubbly Troubly Simon & Schuster Children’s Books, 4 March, pb, £6.99, 9781471189210
Picture books Are Supertato and the veggies
Jenny Pearson, Erica Salcedo (illus), The Incredible Record Smashers Usborne Publishing, 4 March, pb, £6.99, 9781474974059
Fiction 9–12 A laugh-out-loud and record-
smashing adventure, following
Reference The story of the incredible activist
for girls’ education and the youngest Nobel Prize laureate is sure to be a popular addition to acclaimed Little People, Big Dreams series. Other key 2021 titles include RuPaul, Prince,
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