Resources
Booker Prize 2021 shortlist reading group guides
If you’re reading any of the Booker Prize 2021 shortlisted titles, these reading guides will help to spark discussion and get you thinking.
His Only Wife by Peace Adzo Medie - Book Club Kit
Oneworld have created a Book Club Kit for His Only Wife by Peace Adzo Medie. His Only Wife is a captivating debut and a Reese Witherspoon’s Book Club Pick! ‘Vivid, witty and utterly absorbing.’ Daily Mail In one of the most talked about and hilarious debuts of the year, Afi Tekple, a bright young seamstress from a small town in Ghana, is convinced by her family to marry a man she has never met. The fact that she doesn’t know Elikem seems a small price to pay for a marriage that offers her...
The Burpee Bears by Joe Wicks and Paul Howard - digital pack
Meet the Burpee Bears in this glorious picture book created by “the Nation’s Favourite PE Teacher”, Joe Wicks! For this bear family, every day is a new day: a day for adventure and discovery, and true to Joe’s ethos, each book will feature a fun and positive story with added exercises and recipes – perfect for families to share and enjoy together! The Burpee Bears is the first book in the series and is infused with Joe’s signature sense of fun. Join the bears as they explore the everyday ups...
Clementine Florentine by Tasha Harrison - activity pack
Clementine Florentine is an illustrated comedy for 8-12 year olds with a strong female protagonist who has a talent for poetry and a passion for Custard Creams. In an ingenious reverse ‘Parent Trap’, Clementine and her school nemesis Callum, have to work together to break Clem’s dad and Callum’s mum up, before they fall ‘in lurrrvee’ and the two poetry rivals end up step brother and sister! However, an unlikely friendship with ageing punk icon Lyn Ferno and her chatty pet parrot Viv, helps...
Mr. Men Little Miss and Winnie-the-Pooh - digital pack
Join in on Farshore’s unmissable anniversary celebrations for two of the best loved and most celebrated children’s brands, marking 50 years of the Mr. Men Little Miss and 95 years of Winnie-the-Pooh. Help celebrate Winnie-the-Pooh’s anniversary with Winnie-the-Pooh: Once There Was a Bear, the Official 95th Anniversary Prequel. We all have a place in our hearts for the adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh, as told by A.A.Milne in Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner. In honour of the 95th...
Anisha, Accidental Detective: Show Stoppers by Serena Patel - Diwali Gift box activity
Anisha Accidental Detective is back with her latest HILARIOUS detective case. It’s nearly Diwali, and Anisha’s whole family are causing even more chaos than usual. And to add to the stress, her class only have one week to put on a musical about Albert Einstein and everything is going wrong. Is Miss Jive being overly superstitious, or is it sabotage?! Time for Anisha, Accidental Detective to step into the spotlight. Create your own Diwali Gift box with Anisha, Accidental Detective You will...
The Chime Seekers by Ross Montgomery - digital resources (Teachers' Notes and Discussion Guide)
Step into a world of faerie tricks and hidden danger… When an evil faerie steals Yanni’s baby sister and swaps her for a Changeling, Yanni is swept into a dangerous race against time to get her back. For faeries delight in tricks and rescuing her won’t be easy. With the help of his cousin, Amy, and the reluctant Changeling, Yanni must travel to goblin palaces and battle-swept oceans, discovering ancient treasures and secrets along the way. Yanni will need every drop of courage and even a few...
The Boy With Wings by Lenny Henry and Kennon Ferrell - Digital Resources (including comic activity)!
Let Your Imagination Fly: The Boy With Wings Macmillan Children’s Books are excited to introduce The Boy With Wings, the new children’s book by comedy legend, Lenny Henry for readers of 9 to 12. Illustrated throughout by Keenon Ferrell, it includes an exclusive comic book adventure illustrated by Mark Buckingham. More about the book Twelve-year-old Tunde is just your average kid: average friends, average parents, average grades. Sure, he has his quirks, but if he can avoid the school bullies...
The Christmas Pig by J.K. Rowling and Jim Field - digital activity pack
One boy and his toy are about to change everything… Jack loves his childhood toy, Dur Pig. DP has always been there for him, through good and bad. Until one Christmas Eve, something terrible happens – DP is lost. But Christmas Eve is a night for miracles and lost causes, a night when all things can come to life… even toys. And Jack’s newest toy – the Christmas Pig (DP’s annoying replacement) – has a daring plan: Together they’ll embark on a magical journey to seek something lost, and to save...
November Booklist for Adults: Noteworthy Non-fiction
From the interviews with famous people about love in all its forms, to the experiences of a GP during the Covid pandemic, to the history of The Beatles, our list of noteworthy non-fiction has something for everyone.
November Booklist for Children & Young People - Noteworthy Non-fiction
National Non-fiction November is the month to celebrate factual children’s books, from shocking science to incredible histories. Discover a range of titles for early readers through to young adults and encourage them to open a book and their minds!
A History of the World in 25 Cities – digital activity pack and competition!
From the walled city of ancient Jericho to the modern-day metropolis of Tokyo, explore the world with this stunningly illustrated book of extraordinary city maps! Co-authored by award-winning children’s authors Tracey Turner and Andrew Donkin in consultation with specialist curators at the British Museum, readers can visit cities from every inhabited continent on Earth. Featuring vibrant, beautifully detailed artwork from Libby VanderPloeg, each carefully researched map takes readers on a...
RISE by Maliha Abidi: competition resources
This pack contains an PDF sampler of the book RISE by Maliha Abidi and a promotional poster for a competition inspired by the book. RISE celebrates the inspirational stories of 100 remarkable women of colour. From the entrepreneur with a homemade marmalade business who went on to found Women’s World Banking, to the first Black female astronaut, these trailblazers have risen above challenges to reach dizzying heights. For the competition, we ask entrants to submit a written profile or artwork...
Adult October Booklist: Perfect Poetry
Celebrate National Poetry Day on 7 October 2021 – and every day! – with this fantastic selection of poetry collections, anthologies and song lyrics.
Canelo Crime digital promotional materials
This pack contains digital materials for libraries and other organisations to promote titles in Canelo Crime’s collection, including: Bunting template Social media assets for Twitter, Facebook and Instagram Pre-written social media copy and handles
Children and Young People's October Booklist: Perfect Poetry
Celebrate National Poetry Day on 7 October 2021 – and every day! – with this fantastic selection of poetry collections, anthologies and verse novels for all ages.
Ten Minutes to Bedtime series - activity pack
No.1 bestselling Ten Minutes to Bed series has been written specifically to help little ones settle down for bedtime. This bestselling bedtime series has sold one million copies worldwide! Follow the loveable characters as they go on adventures and have lots of fun before falling fast asleep with this digital pack. Do you have all the books in the Ten Minutes to Bed series? Books in the series: Ten Minutes to Bed: Little Unicorn Ten Minutes to Bed: Little Mermaid Ten Minutes to Bed: Little...
Everyone Sang: A Poem for Every Feeling from Walker Books - downloadable postcard
It is National Poetry Day is on 7 October and Walker Books have an incredible poetry anthology publishing on exactly the 7 of October! Everyone Sang: A Poem for Every Feeling is an exquisite gift-book containing over a hundred poems, chosen by creator of the bestselling The Poetry Pharmacy, William Sieghart, and illustrated in sensational style by picture-book star Emily Sutton. To help us celebrate this beautiful ode to poetry, Walker Books have created a fantastic poem ‘postcard’ of A Slash...
The Wall by Jessie James and Catalina Echeverri - Teaching Notes
Tom is a little boy who LOVES to explore. But, one day, he hears the grown-ups talking about the monsters that live in the big, wide world and he is too scared to explore anymore. Soon, they build a giant wall to KEEP THE MONSTERS OUT – forever. But life becomes dreary when you are cut off from the wonders of the world and Tom soon realises there is a need for change…
The Wild Before by Piers Torday - digital pack
Can one hare alone change the world? The captivating animal adventure destined to be loved by readers of all ages. One stormy, snowy night, a pure silver calf is born on an ordinary muddy farm by the light of the moon. This is the legendary Mooncalf, whose arrival has been foretold since the dawn of time. According to a dream passed down from animal to animal, if the calf dies, a great Terribleness will come – rising seas, a plague, skies raining down fire, the end of all things… and Little...
Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler - digital pack
Happy Birthday, Room on the Broom! We’re celebrating 20 years since the publication of the wonderful Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. The witch and her cat fly happily over forests, rivers and mountains on their broomstick until a stormy wind blows away the witch’s hat, bow and wand. Luckily, there are plenty of friends around to help her out, and they all want a ride on the broom too. It’s a case of the more, the merrier, but the broomstick isn’t used to such a heavy...
October 2021 Children's and Young People booklist - Brilliant books by Black authors and illustrators
As October is Black History Month, we have created a booklist of 86 brilliant books created by Black authors and illustrators. There is something for everyone with fantastic poetry, graphic novels, fiction and non-fiction titles. You can join in with the conversation online using #BrilliantBooksBooklist and tagging us using @readingagency on Twitter and @SummerReadingChallengeUK on Facebook.
Rules for Vampires by Alex Foulkes and Sara Ogilvie - digital pack
Straighten your cape and sharpen your claws… being a vampire is harder than it looks! There are highs and lows to being a vampire. On one claw, you get cool powers like beastly strength and hypnotism and the ability to Grimwalk. On the other claw, however, vampires are bound by the Vampiric Laws: rules to protect the balance between the worlds of the Living and the Undead. And unfortunately, 11-year-old Leo has just forgotten rule number one… the rules for vampires don’t tell you what to do...
Shadowghast by Thomas Taylor - Discussion Guide
A creepy magician with a shadowy act. A legend that goes back to the dawn of time. Eerie-on-Sea just got stranger. And darker… On the eve of Ghastly Night, a hypnotic stage magician, Caliastra, checks in to Eerie-on-Sea’s Grand Nautilus Hotel. She’s arrived with her entourage to put on a show – and she claims to be related to Herbert Lemon. Caliastra’s act is so shadowy and strange that Herbie’s friend Violet wonders if dark forces are at work, but Herbie won’t hear a word said against his...
Celebrate Halloween with Oxford Children’s Books - digital packs
Oxford Children’s Books have a spectacularly spooky pack on offer this Halloween featuring young superhero, Kitty – a girl with feline super powers, children’s favourites Winnie the Witch and her pet cat Wilbur and Isadora Moon and her naughty half witch, half fairy cousin, Mirabelle Starspell! About Winnie and Wilbur: With over 9 million Winnie and Wilbur books sold, Winnie the Witch continues to be one of the most recognisable and well-loved characters in children’s fiction. Her riotous...
Happy Here: 10 Stories from Black British Authors & Illustrators - social media assets
Celebrate Black History Month with Knights Of! Black History Month is an annual event intended to recognise the contribution and achievements of those with African or Caribbean heritage. In recent years it’s become part of the school curriculum and is also celebrated in the community in places such as museums, care homes and workplaces. A broad range of topics is covered, from Britain’s colonial past to migration and music. Most schools still teach a history curriculum which focuses on...
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath - Reading Guide
Faber have created a reading guide to one of the BBC’s ‘100 novels that shaped our world’, and the Guardian called ‘a modern classic’. The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath’s only novel, is partially based on Plath’s own life. It has been celebrated for its darkly funny and razor sharp portrait of 1950s society, and continues to reach new readers and sell millions of copies worldwide.
Celebrate Libraries Week with Walker Books - digital resource
Join in the celebrations for Libraries Week with our special library themed double sided poster featuring illustrations from Moose’s Book Bus, an homage to storytime, libraries and community by Inga Moore, one of the most acclaimed children’s bookmakers working today, plus Emily Sutton’s stunning artwork for ‘Don’t Go Into the Library,’ a poem from Everyone Sang: A Poem For Every Feeling, the magnificent anthology of poems collected by the bestselling creator of The Poetry Pharmacy, William...
October, October by Katya Balen - digital resources
‘Quite simply one of the most beautiful books I’ve ever read’ Kiran Millwood Hargrave October and her dad live in the woods. They know the trees and the rocks and the lake and stars like best friends. They live in the woods and they are wild. And that’s the way it is. Until the year October turns eleven. That’s the year October rescues a baby owl. It’s the year Dad falls out of the biggest tree in their woods. The year the woman who calls herself October’s mother comes back. The year...
Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston – digital resources
Amari Peters knows three things. Her big brother Quinton has gone missing. No one will talk about it. His mysterious job holds a clue… So when she’s invited for a trial at the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs, Amari is certain this is her chance to save him. But first she has to get her head around the new world of the Bureau, where mermaids, aliens and magicians are real – and her roommate is a weredragon. Amari must compete for a spot against kids who’ve known this world their whole lives....
