Resources
The Monster Writing (A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness) - a competition
Walker Books have an exciting creative writing challenge called THE MONSTER CHALLENGE. ‘Stories are important. Stories can be more important than anything. If they carry the truth.’ Patrick Ness, A Monster Calls Are you a young person with a passion for telling stories? Do you feel the itch to grab a notebook and pen to respond to the world around you? Or do you know a young person aged 10-25 who loves creative writing? To accompany the UK Tour, we are running The Monster Challenge, seeking...
The Good Hawk by Joseph Elliott - discussion guide
If everything was taken from you, what would you do to get it back? Agatha patrols the sea wall with pride, despite those in her clan who question her right to be there, because of the condition she was born with. Jaime is a reluctant Angler, full of self-doubt and afraid of the sea. When disaster strikes, the pair must embark on a terrifying journey to a land where forgotten magic and dark secrets lurk in every shadow… Thrilling and dark, yet rich with humour and compassion, this novel...
Michael Rosen introduces The Missing - author video
A personal, powerful and resonant account of the Holocaust by one of this country’s best-loved children’s authors. By turns charming, shocking and heart-breaking, this is the true story of Michael Rosen’s search for his relatives who “went missing” during the Second World War – told through prose, poetry, maps and pictures. When Michael was growing up, stories often hung in the air about his great-uncles: one was a clock-mender and the other a dentist. They were there before the war,...
BBC The Novels that Shaped our World A3 Poster
Download this empty belly poster to use in your library to promote the BBC The Novels that Shaped Our World.
BBC The Novels that Shaped our World A4 Poster
A4 poster Download this empty belly poster to use in your library to promote the BBC The Novels that Shaped Our World.
Books of the Year 2019
It’s been another fantastic year full of books and we’re delighted to present our Books of the Year list for 2019. Our staff have chosen their top recommendations of new books from the year and we hope that you’ll be inspired to borrow at least one of them from the library or buy a copy for yourself. Let us know your favourites using #BooksOfTheYear on social media.
The Reading Agency Books 2019 - Children and young people booklist
Every year, the staff at The Reading Agency enjoy picking and sharing our favourite books for children and young people. We have three booklists of the books we have loved the most from 2019: picture and illustrated books, books for children at primary school (middle grade) and for young people aged 13+. You can share your picks of the year and join in with our conversations online using #BooksoftheYear and tagging @readingagency.
In the Key of Code by Aimee Lucido - Teacher's Notes
An original, inventive and heart-warming novel about a lonely new girl and an unlikely friendship formed in a school coding club, that will appeal to fans of Sarah Crossan. When twelve-year-old Emmy’s musical family moves to California so her dad can take a job with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, Emmy has never felt more out of tune. But when she ends up in a computer science club, she finds that she can understand code through a language she is familiar with: music. Slowly, Emmy makes...
Goodnight Starry by D'Arcy Lewis – Ignite children’s love of the Solar System
Goodnight Starry is a beautiful picture book for little stargazers aged 3-6 years. Saying goodnight to each member of the Earth’s family in the Solar System, children will discover how very different and special each one is. Humorously written and beautifully illustrated, Goodnight Starry is the perfect goodnight story to ignite a little one’s love of the planets, moons, stars and space. Each page of Goodnight Starry introduces at least four key learning points about the Planets in our Solar...
Non-fiction November 2019
It’s November which means that we’re looking back at some of our favourite non-fiction titles from the past year. We think these books are fascinating, offering unique and interesting perspectives into a huge variety of topics.
November 2019 Children's and young people booklist - Anti-Bullying
This year’s Anti-Bullying Week theme is Change Starts With Us and will be happening from Monday 11 November – Friday 15 November 2019. To help children get a deeper understanding of the effects of bullying and to start conversations on the topic, we have created a booklist for children and young people. The list has six picture books, six suggestions for children in Key Stage 2 and six books for young people (13+). You can join in with the conversation online using...
The Starless Sea Book Club Kit
A reading group guide and party pack for The Starless Sea, the long-awaited new novel from the author of The Night Circus, Erin Morgenstern. This kit includes reading group questions, author Q&A, wordsearch, invitations, templates and more.
The First Christmas Jumper by Ryan Tubridy - Read Along Trailer
The First Christmas Jumper Ryan Tubridy loves Christmas jumpers. He loves them so much he wrote this book – the story of the very first Christmas jumper. It’s got sheep, jelly babies, tractors, Santa Claus, Christmas elves and a LOT of sheep puns… Ewe will love it! The story of the very first Christmas jumper and the multi-coloured sheep that started it all! There are two things you need to know about Hillary the sheep. One – Unlike her typical white or brown friends, Hillary’s wool is all...
The First Christmas Jumper by Ryan Tubridy - animated trailer
The First Christmas Jumper Ryan Tubridy loves Christmas jumpers. He loves them so much he wrote this book – the story of the very first Christmas jumper. It’s got sheep, jelly babies, tractors, Santa Claus, Christmas elves and a LOT of sheep puns… Ewe will love it! The story of the very first Christmas jumper and the multi-coloured sheep that started it all! There are two things you need to know about Hillary the sheep. One – Unlike her typical white or brown friends, Hillary’s wool is all...
NaNoWriMo - Debut Novels of 2019
November is National Novel Writing Month, when thousands of novelist around the world focus on their writing. If you’re getting involved and need some inspiration to write your first novel, check out our list of some of our favourite debuts from 2019.
Pick a Pumpkin by Patricia Toht and Jarvis - a book trailer
Pick a pumpkin from the patch – tall and lean or short and fat. Vivid orange, ghostly white, or speckled green, might be just right… Illustrated by the winner of the V&A Best Illustrated Book 2017 It’s Halloween! Which means it’s time to dangle cobwebs and bats from the windows, put on costumes, and – most important of all – visit the pumpkin patch and pick out that perfect pumpkin! Then cart it home, scoop out the insides, carve a scary face, and finally light a candle...
Football School by Alex Bellos and Ben Lyttleton - series trailer
A groundbreaking new series from two bestselling writers that teaches you about the world through football. The first book is packed with awesome true stories, real science and fascinating facts and will make you laugh loads. When do footballers poo? Can you play football on Mars? What is a magic sponge? You will find the answers to these questions and more in chapters on subjects such as history, geography, biology and maths. Illustrated throughout with hilarious cartoons and filled with...
Madame Badobedah By Sophie Dahl and Lauren O'Hara - a reading with Sophie Dahl
A timeless story celebrating friendship and imagination, from an exciting new voice in children’s literature. Mabel lives with her parents in The Mermaid Hotel, by the sea. Mabel likes to keep an eye on the comings and goings of all the guests. Then one day a particularly in-ter-est-ing old lady comes to stay. There is something very suspicious about her, with her growly voice and her heavy trunks and her beady-eyed tortoise. And why does no one know her REAL name? There can only be one...
Madame Badobedah By Sophie Dahl and Lauren O'Hara - author video
Madame Badobedah is a timeless story celebrating friendship and imagination, from an exciting new voice in children’s literature. Mabel lives with her parents in The Mermaid Hotel, by the sea. Mabel likes to keep an eye on the comings and goings of all the guests. Then one day a particularly in-ter-est-ing old lady comes to stay. There is something very suspicious about her, with her growly voice and her heavy trunks and her beady-eyed tortoise. And why does no one know her REAL name?...
The Somerset Tsunami by Emma Carroll - activity pack
A sinking boat. A girl in disguise. A disappearing sea. When Fortune Sharpe carves a boat from a tree with her beloved brother, Gem, she’s only having a bit of fun. But now is not the time for a girl to be drawing attention to herself. She is sent away to find work dressed as a boy. Luckily a rich manor house is hiring. Yet Barrow Hill’s inhabitants harbour dangerous secrets of their own, the suspicious owner is hunting for witches, and the house itself is a little too close to...
The World of Wolf Hall: A Reading Guide to Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall & Bring Up the Bodies
Ahead of the release of The Mirror & the Light, this reading guide takes you through the story so far, introduces you to the main players, explores the key themes and offers reading group questions to discuss.
How to start a LEGO club from DK
Excited about starting up a LEGO Club, but don’t know where to begin? DK have created a pack with some helpful advice and tips on how to construct your very own.
LEGO Harry Potter - activity sheets
Meet all your favourite LEGO Harry Potter minifigures and discover the secrets hidden within Hogwarts Castle. Relive memorable movie moments, including exciting Quidditch matches and spooky adventures in the Forbidden Forest. This pack from DK includes activities about: - Arriving At Hogwarts - Joining A House - Magical Creatures - Potions Class
A Child of Books by Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston - resources
A CHILD OF BOOKS – WHICH BOOK MADE YOU A CHILD OF BOOKS? Look out for A Child of Books, now out in paperback, the inspiring picture book by Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston about the rewards of reading and sharing stories – perfect for readers of all ages. To celebrate Libraries Week, Walker will be providing libraries with a fantastic digital pack filled with a guide filled with activities and ideas, postcard and poster so that you can share which books made you “A Child of Books”. You...
Somebody Give This Heart a Pen by Sophia Thakur - National Libraries Week poster (exclusive poem)
SOPHIA THAKUR ‘STORIES’ Celebrate Libraries Week with an exclusive poem reflecting on the power of stories and the joy of reading written specially for libraries by acclaimed performance poet Sophia Thakur. Described by Angie Thomas, author of The Hate U Give, as “one of the most brilliant and necessary voices from the UK”, Sophia is the author of Somebody Give This Heart a Pen, a powerful new collection of poems drawing on her experience as a young mixed-race young woman trying to make sense...
The Golden Cage by Anna Castagnoli and Carll Cneut - activity pack
Valentina the emperor’s daughter is an obsessive collector of exotic birds. Her servants track down every bird she desires – just one remains unfound: a bird that talks. Servants search far and wide to fulfill her impossible quest – and she beheads those who fail. In Valentina’s palace, heads roll every day! Will the golden cage ever be filled? A deliciously dark European fairy tale with words as rich as its bold and luxurious illustrations. To celebrate the publication of The...
October 2019 Children's and Young People booklist - Powerful Poetry
To help you celebrate National Poetry Day on 3 October, we have created a booklist of our favourite works of poetry for children and young people. There are classics as well as newly published books – all selected to help share, discover and enjoy all things poetry! You can join in with the conversation online using #NationalPoetryDay and #PowerfulPoetry and tagging us using @readingagency on Twitter and @SummerReadingChallengeUK on Facebook.
Plastic Sucks! You Can Make A Difference - Plastic Sucks Day Infographics
Plastic is everywhere and it sucks. It fills up our oceans, endangers our wildlife and never goes away. So it’s time to take action, find ways to cut down our plastic use and help protect our environment. Together we can make a difference! As a lifelong supporter of environmental causes and a key player in the campaign to ban microbeads in the UK, Dougie is always on the hunt for ways to reduce and replace plastic. This campaigning book, his first solo authored project, draws on his own...
Plastic Sucks! You Can Make A Difference - Plastic Sucks Day Poster
How can YOU help save our planet? This awesome and inspiring guide, written by McFly bassist and environmental activist Dougie Poynter, will show you how to get involved in the mission to cut out single-use plastic. To help you promote your Plastic Sucks Day download the poster. We would love to see your displays and events on social media using #PlasticSucksDay and #PlasticSucks and tagging @MacmillanKidsUK, @DougiePoynter and @readingagency.
Plastic Sucks! You Can Make A Difference - Plastic Sucks Day Guide
How can YOU help save our planet? This awesome and inspiring guide, written by McFly bassist and environmental activist Dougie Poynter, will show you how to get involved in the mission to cut out single-use plastic. Plastic is everywhere and it sucks. It fills up our oceans, endangers our wildlife and never goes away. So it’s time to take action, find ways to cut down our plastic use and help protect our environment. Together we can make a difference! As a lifelong supporter of...
