Royal Society of Literature (RSL) Ondaatje Prize

The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) celebrates and supports writing of all kinds. The Ondaatje prize is an annual award of £10,000 for a distinguished work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry, evoking the spirit of a place. Read on for this year’s shortlist…

Falling Animals by Sheila Armstrong (book available)

On an isolated beach set against a lonely, windswept coastline, a pale figure sits serenely against a sand dune staring out to sea. Months later, after a fruitless investigation, the nameless stranger is buried in an unmarked grave. But the mystery of his life and death lingers on, drawing the nearby villagers into its wake. From strandings to shipwrecks, it is not the first time that strangeness has washed up on their shores. Told through a chorus of voices, ‘Falling Animals’ follows the crosshatching threads of lives both true and imagined, real and surreal, past and present.

Enter Ghost by Isabella Hammad  (book and ebook available)

After years away from her family’s homeland, and healing from an affair with an established director, stage actress Sonia Nasir returns to Palestine to visit her older sister Haneen. Though the siblings grew up spending summers at their family home in Haifa, Sonia hasn’t been back since the second intifada and the deaths of her grandparents. While Haneen stayed and made a life commuting to Tel Aviv to teach at the university, Sonia remained in London to focus on her burgeoning acting career and now dissolute marriage. On her return, she finds her relationship to Palestine is fragile, both bone-deep and new. Once at Haneen’s, Sonia meets the charismatic and candid Mariam, a local director, and finds herself roped into a production of Hamlet in the West Bank.

A Flat Place by Noreen Masud (book available)

Noreen Masud has always loved flatlands. Her earliest memory is of a wide, flat field glimpsed from the back seat of her father’s car in Lahore. As an adult in Britain she’s discovered many more flat landscapes to love: Orford Ness, Morecambe Bay, the Cambridgeshire Fens, Orkney. These bare, haunted expanses remind her of the flat place inside herself: the place created by trauma. Noreen suffers from complex post-traumatic stress disorder: the product of a profoundly disrupted and unstable childhood. It flattens her emotions, blanks out parts of her memory, and colours her world with anxiety. Undertaking a pilgrimage around Britain’s flatlands, seeking solace and belonging, she weaves her impressions of the natural world with poetry, folklore and history, and with recollections of her own early life.

Cuddy by Benjamin Myers (book available)

Travelling through the wilderness, a young woman has visions of a cathedral on a hill. The downtrodden wife of an archer seeks the truth in stone walls, in meadows full of garlic flowers. A group of soldiers sit out their last hours before their death under a vaulted ceiling. The professor receives unwelcome night-time visitors. A young man bids his dying mother goodbye, and sets off on his first day of work as a labourer. From these seeds of historical truth and strange mythology, Benjamin Myers spins an unforgettable story of love and loss that breaks free of realism, entering a thrilling space both hilarious and terrifying. Unfolding over centuries, deploying a panoply of voices, Cuddy is written with Myers’ inimitable humour, pathos and grace – and confirms him as one of the most important writers of his generation.

No Man’s Land by David Nash 

‘No Man’s Land’ is the debut collection of poems by Chile-based Irish poet David Nash, an exploration and a reclamation of a place at once familiar and strange – the rural landscape of the poet’s formative years. Returning for the first time in over a decade, Nash re-immerses himself in a world of memory and language, folklore and custom, revealing a strikingly intimate connection with flora and fauna, land- and seascape. Yet all the while, his presence feels questioned, undeserved, his calling as both participant and observer under assault from the passage of time and the overwhelming threat of the present ecological moment.

Fassbinder, Thousands of Mirrors by Ian Penman  (book and ebook available)

A kaleidoscopic study of the late West German film maker Rainer Werner Fassbinder (1945-1982). Written quickly under a self-imposed deadline in the spirit of Fassbinder himself, who would often get films made in a matter of weeks or months, ‘Fassbinder Thousands of Mirrors’ presents the filmmaker as a pivotal figure in the late 1970s moment between late modernism and the advent of postmodernism and the digital revolution. Compelling, beautifully written and genuinely moving, echoing the fragmentary and reflective works of writers like Barthes and Cioran, this is a story that has everything: sex, drugs, art, the city, cinema and revolution.

For information on how to reserve books and ebooks please visit our library services page online https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/libraries/library-services 

Theakston Crime Novel of the Year longlist

The Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year is the UK and Ireland’s most prestigious crime fiction award, now in its twentieth year.

The winner will be revealed on the opening night of Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, 18th July, receiving £3,000 and a handmade, engraved beer barrel provided by T&R Theakston Ltd.

For information on how to reserve books and ebooks please visit our library services page online https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/libraries/library-services 

The Last Dance by Mark Billingham (book available)

A double murder in a seaside hotel sees a grieving Miller return to work to solve what appears to be a case of mistaken identity. Just why were two completely unconnected men taken out? Despite a somewhat dubious relationship with both reality and his new partner, can the eccentric, offbeat Miller find answers where his colleagues have found only an impossible puzzle?

The Cliff House by Christopher Brookmyre (book available)

Jen’s hen party is going to be out of control. She’s rented a luxury getaway on its own private island. The helicopter won’t be back for 72 hours. They are alone – or so they think. As well as Jen, there’s the pop diva and the estranged ex-bandmate, the tennis pro and the fashion guru, the embittered ex-sister-in-law and the mouthy future sister-in-law. It’s a combustible cocktail, one that takes little time to ignite, and in the midst of the drunken chaos, one of them disappears. Then a message tells them that, unless someone confesses her terrible secret to the others, their missing friend will be killed. Problem is, everyone has a secret. And nobody wants to tell.

In The Blink Of An Eye by Jo Callaghan  (book and audio available)

In the UK, someone is reported missing every 90 seconds. Just gone. Vanished. In the blink of an eye. DCS Kat Frank knows all about loss. A widowed single mother, Kat is a cop who trusts her instincts. Picked to lead a pilot programme that has her paired with AIDE (Artificial Intelligence Detective Entity) Lock, Kat’s instincts come up against Lock’s logic. But when the two missing person’s cold cases they are reviewing suddenly become active, Lock is the only one who can help Kat when the case gets personal. AI versus human experience. Logic versus instinct. With lives on the line can the pair work together before someone else becomes another statistic? ‘In the Blink of an Eye’ is a dazzling debut from an exciting new voice and asks us what we think it means to be human.

The Close by Jane Casey  (book and ebook available)

At first glance, Jellicoe Close seems to be a perfect suburban street – well-kept houses with pristine lawns, neighbours chatting over garden fences, children playing together. But there are dark secrets behind the neat front doors, hidden dangers that include a ruthless criminal who will stop at nothing. It’s up to DS Maeve Kerrigan and DI Josh Derwent to uncover the truth. Posing as a couple, they move into the Close, blurring the lines between professional and personal as never before. And while Maeve and Josh try to gather the evidence they need, they have no idea of the danger they face – because someone in Jellicoe Close has murder on their mind.

The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves (book available)

When Jem Rosco – sailor, adventurer and local legend – blows into town in the middle of an autumn gale, the residents of Greystone, Devon, are delighted to have a celebrity in their midst. The residents think nothing of it when Rosco disappears again; that’s the sort of man he is. Until the lifeboat is launched to a hoax call-out during a raging storm and his body is found in a dinghy, anchored off Scully Cove, a place with legends of its own. This is an uncomfortable case for DI Matthew Venn. He came to the remote village as a child, its community populated by the Barum Brethren that he parted ways with, so when superstition and rumour mix and another body is found in the cove, Matthew soon finds his judgement clouded. As the stormy winds howl and the village is cut off, Venn and his team start their investigation, little realising their own lives might be in danger.

Fearless by M.W. Craven (book available)

Ben Koenig is a ghost. He doesn’t exist any more. Six years ago it was Koenig who headed up the US Marshal’s elite Special Ops group. They were the elite unit who hunted the bad guys – the really bad guys. They did this so no one else had to. Until the day Koenig disappeared. He told no one why and he left no forwarding address. For six years he became a grey man. Invisible. He drifted from town to town, state to state. He was untraceable. It was as if he had never been. But now Koenig’s face is on every television screen in the country. Someone from his past is trying to find him and they don’t care how they do it.

The Last Remains by Elly Griffiths (book available)

When builders renovating a cafe in King’s Lynn find a human skeleton behind a wall, they call for DCI Harry Nelson and Dr Ruth Galloway, Head of Archaeology at the nearby University of North Norfolk. The bones are identified as the remains of Emily Pickering, a young archaeology student who went missing in the 1990s. Emily attended a course run by her Cambridge tutor. Suspicion falls on him and also on another course member – Ruth’s friend Cathbad, who is still frail following his near death from Covid. Just when the team seem to be making progress, Cathbad disappears. The race is on – first to find Cathbad and then to exonerate him.

The Secret Hours by Mick Herron (book available)

Monochrome is a busted flush. Beginning as an investigation into the historical misdeeds of the intelligence services by a vindicative prime minister, Monochrome is now circling the drain, much like the careers of the two civil servants – Griselda Fleet and Malcolm Kyle – charged with overseeing the inquiry. And then the OTIS file falls into their hands. What secrets does this hold that see a long-redundant spy being chased through Devon’s green lanes in the dark? What happened in a newly reunified Berlin that someone is desperate to keep under wraps? And who will win the battle for the soul of the secret service – or was that decided a long time ago?

Killing Jericho by William Hussey   (ebook available)

Scott Jericho thought he’d worked his last case. Fresh out of jail, the disgraced former detective is forced to seek refuge with the fairground family he once rejected. Then a series of bizarre murders comes to light – deaths that echo a century-old fairground legend. The police can’t connect the victims. But Jericho knows how the legend goes; that more murders are certain to follow. As Jericho unpicks the deadly mystery, a terrifying question haunts him. As a direct descendant of one of the victims in the legend, is Jericho next on the killer’s list?

None Of This Is True by Lisa Jewell   (book and ebook available)

Celebrating her 45th birthday at her local pub, podcaster Alix Summers crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie is also celebrating her 45th birthday. They are, in fact birthday twins. A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alix’s children’s school. Josie has been listening to Alix’s podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for Alix’s series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life. Alix agrees to a trial interview. Josie’s life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she can’t quite resist the temptation to keep digging. Slowly Alix starts to realise that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it Josie has inveigled her way into Alix’s life – and into her home. Soon she begins to wonder who is Josie Fair? And what has she done?

Conviction by Jack Jordan   (book and ebook available)

Wade Darling stands accused of killing his wife and teenage children as they slept and burning their house to the ground. When the case lands on barrister Neve Harper’s desk, she knows it could make her career. A matter of days before the case, as Neve is travelling home for the night, she is approached by a man. He tells her she must throw the case or the secret about her husband’s disappearance will be revealed. Failing that, he will kill everyone she cares about, until she does as she is told. Neve must make a choice – go against every principle she has ever had, or the people she loves will die.

A Game Of Lies by Clare MacKintosh (book available)

Stranded in the Welsh mountains, seven reality show contestants have no idea what they’ve signed up for. Each of these strangers has a secret. If another player can guess the truth, they won’t just be eliminated – they’ll be exposed live on air. The stakes are higher than they’d ever imagined, and they’re trapped. The disappearance of a contestant wasn’t supposed to be part of the drama. Detective Ffion Morgan has to put aside what she’s watched on screen, and find out who these people really are – knowing she can’t trust any of them. And when a murderer strikes, Ffion knows every one of her suspects has an alibi – and a secret worth killing for.

The Broken Afternoon by Simon Mason (book available)

A four-year-old girl goes missing in plain sight outside her nursery in Oxford, a middle-class, affluent area, her mother only a stones-throw away. Ryan Wilkins, one of the youngest ever Detective Inspectors in the Thames Valley force, dishonourably discharged three months ago, watches his former partner DI Ray Wilkins deliver a press conference, confirming a lead. Ray begins to delve deeper, unearthing an underground network of dark forces in the local area. But will he be able to get closer to the truth of the disappearance? And will Ryan be able to stay away?

Past Lying by Val McDermid (book and audio available)

Edinburgh, haunted by the ghosts of its many writers, is also the cold case beat of DCI Karen Pirie. So she shouldn’t be surprised when an author’s manuscript appears to be a blueprint for an actual crime. Karen can’t ignore the plot’s chilling similarities to the unsolved case of an Edinburgh University student who vanished from her own doorstep. The manuscript seems to be the key to unlocking what happened to Lara Hardie, but there’s a problem: the author died before he finished it. As Karen digs deeper, she uncovers a spiralling game of betrayal and revenge, where lies are indistinguishable from the truth and with more than one unexpected twist.

Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent   (book and ebook available)

Sally Diamond cannot understand why what she did was so strange. She was only doing what her father told her to do, to put him out with the rubbish when he died. Now Sally is the centre of attention, not only from the media and police, but also a sinister voice from the past. As she begins to discover the horrors of her childhood, recluse Sally steps into the world for the first time, finding independence and learning that people don’t always mean what they say. But when messages start arriving from a stranger who knows far more about her past than she knows herself, Sally’s life is thrown into chaos once again.

The Square Of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson (book available)

A girl known only as Red, the daughter of a Cornish fortune-teller, travels with her father making a living predicting fortunes using the ancient method: the Square of Sevens. When her father suddenly dies, Red becomes the ward of a gentleman scholar. Now raised as a lady amidst the Georgian splendour of Bath, her fortune-telling is a delight to high society. But she cannot ignore the questions that gnaw at her soul: who was her mother? How did she die? And who are the mysterious enemies her father was always terrified would find him? The pursuit of these mysteries takes her from Cornwall and Bath to London and Devon, from the rough ribaldry of the Bartholemew Fair to the grand houses of two of the most powerful families in England. And while Red’s quest brings her the possibility of great reward, it also leads into her grave danger.

The Last Goodbye by Tim Weaver   (book and ebook available)

One day ago. On the night Tom Brenner and his nine-year-old son Leo visit the Seven Peaks theme park, they head straight for the ghost house. They go in. But they don’t come out. Somewhere inside the ride, impossible as it seems, the two of them simply vanish. Forty years ago. When Rebekah Murphy was three, her mother walked out of their childhood home and never returned. Nearly four decades on, Fiona Murphy is still missing. But then, out of the blue, a letter arrives in the post. It says it’s from Fiona. What is the connection? Missing persons investigator David Raker is hired by Rebekah to find out if the letter is actually from Fiona – and, if it isn’t, why someone would pretend to be her. But this is a mystery whose secrets were never meant to be found. And as Raker starts to connect the dots from Fiona to the Brenners, he begins to realise he can’t trust anyone.

You Can Run by Trevor Wood (book available)

Ruby’s surprised when her reclusive father invites a strange soldier into their house. Intrigued, she tries to eavesdrop on their conversation, but is alarmed when she hears a fight break out. She rushes to save her dad, but he’s not the one in trouble. The soldier has been stabbed and is bleeding. Refusing her pleas to call an ambulance, her dad urges her to pack a bag – they have to run. As they try to escape, her dad is shot and Ruby is chased by one of the soldier’s comrades but is hidden by Lucas, a village lad she has ignored up till now. They see a military-style ambulance whisk her dad away. She is desperate to find him but the village is quickly under siege. The roads in have been blocked and soldiers are patrolling the streets, urging everyone to stay indoors for their own safety. Ruby must work out who took her father and why. But what if learning the truth means discovering the life she once knew was a lie?

Reading Well for Dementia

A new Reading Well for dementia scheme is launching to support people living with dementia, their carers and family members, including children. The scheme offers quality-assured, evidence-based reading recommendations, and will launch on 13 May 2024 at the start of Dementia Action Week in public libraries across England and Wales.
Reading Well for dementia promotes understanding and helps to break down stigma around dementia. Some of the recommended books provide information and advice; there are also personal stories and children’s fiction. Reading Well books are free to borrow from your local library, and many of the titles are also available to access digitally as e-books and audiobooks.
Reading Well has been developed by The Reading Agency in partnership with Libraries Connected and the Society of Chief Librarians Cymru, and is delivered with public libraries. It is funded by Arts Council England and Welsh Government.
Find out more: http://www.reading-well.org.uk

Richard and Judy Summer Book Club

Richard and Judy choose 6 new titles for their Summer book club!

The List by Yomi Adegoke    (book and ebook available)

Ola Olajide, a high-profile journalist at Womxxxn magazine, is marrying the love of her life in one month’s time. Young, beautiful, successful – she and her fiance Michael are the ‘couple goals’ of their social networks and seem to have it all. That is, until one morning when they both wake up to the same message: ‘Oh my god, have you seen The List?’. It began as a crowdsourced collection of names and somehow morphed into an anonymous account posting allegations on social media. Ola would usually be the first to support such a list – she’d retweet it, call for the men to be fired, write article after article. Except this time, Michael’s name is on it.

All of us are Broken by Fiona Cummins (book available)

It’s been a long time since the Hardwicke family has been on holiday. But thirteen-year-old Galen has wanted to see the wild dolphins at Scotland’s Chanonry Point for as long as she can remember, and her mother Christine – a lone parent since her beloved husband left – is determined she gets her wish. But their serene trip is about to be interrupted. When DC Saul Anguish is called to investigate the shooting of an ex-police officer in Midtown-on-Sea, Essex, he quickly discovers that this is the first in a string of killings by Missy and Fox, a damaged young couple hell-bent on infamy, their love story etched in blood. In pursuit, Saul follows their trail north. The paths of the Hardwickes’ and the deadly couple are about to collide. When Saul and his forensic linguist partner, Blue, arrive on the scene, they witness the unthinkable: a mother forced to make an impossible choice.

A Song of me and you by Mike Gayle (book available)

Helen and Ben parted as heartbroken 18-year-olds and went their very separate ways. Twenty years later, mother-of-two-teenagers Helen is still in Manchester, a part-time primary teacher, stunned by the behaviour of her love-rat husband. In an old T-shirt and scruffy jeans, she feels at the lowest point in her life. And suddenly, impossibly, Ben is standing on her doorstep. Tired maybe, lonely even, but clearly still the world-famous, LA-based multi-millionaire rockstar he has become. Can you ever go back? For Helen and Ben, so much has happened in the years between. But just to sit in the kitchen for a while and talk – that would be nice. Before the world comes crashing in.

A Game of Lies by Clare Mackintosh (book available)

Stranded in the Welsh mountains, seven reality show contestants have no idea what they’ve signed up for. Each of these strangers has a secret. If another player can guess the truth, they won’t just be eliminated – they’ll be exposed live on air. The stakes are higher than they’d ever imagined, and they’re trapped. The disappearance of a contestant wasn’t supposed to be part of the drama. Detective Ffion Morgan has to put aside what she’s watched on screen, and find out who these people really are – knowing she can’t trust any of them. And when a murderer strikes, Ffion knows every one of her suspects has an alibi – and a secret worth killing for.

Someone Else’s Shoes by JoJo Moyes  (book and ebook available)

Meet Sam. Meet Nisha. Two women living very different lives. But when their paths cross, causing each a world of trouble – and finding some missing shoes is the only way to solve it – they’re left with a choice every woman must face: to walk alone, or stand together.

Go as a River by Shelley Read  (book and ebook available)

1940s Colorado: Teenage Victoria Nash is the sole surviving woman in a family of troubled men. She spends her days running the household on her family’s peach farm.Wilson Moon is a young drifter with a mysterious past. Displaced from his tribal land, he wants to believe one place is just like another. When Victoria and Wil meet on a street corner, their unexpected connection ignites both passion and danger, revelations and secrets. But when tragedy strikes, Victoria is propelled away from the only home she has ever known and towards a reckoning with loss, hope, and her own untapped strength. Gathering all the pieces of her small and extraordinary existence, she will arrive at a single rocky decision that will change her life for ever.

For information on how to reserve books and ebooks please visit our library services page online https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/libraries/library-services 

Crime Writers’ Association (CWA) Daggers Longlist 2024

The Crime Writers’ Association was founded in 1953 by the prolific author John Creasey, and in 1955, for the first time, a panel of judges was set up to choose the best crime book of the year. Nowadays, the awards consist of thirteen “daggers” which range from best crime and mystery publisher to best historical crime novel. This year’s longlist have just been announced, with the shortlist revealed on 10 May, and the overall winners at an award ceremony on 4 July.

Gold Dagger Award

This Dagger is given to the overall best crime novel of the year, from thrillers to mysteries, procedurals to psychological suspense.

Over My Dead Body by Maz Evans (book available)

Dead Man’s Creek by Chris Hammer (book available)

A Bitter Remedy by Alis Hawkins (book available)

Night Will Find You by Julia Heaberlin (book and audio available)

The Secret Hours by Mick Herron (book available)

The White Lie by Jim Kelly (book available)

Death Of A Lesser God by Vaseem Khan (book available)

Small Mercies by Dennis Lehane (book available)

Tell Me What I Am by Una Mannion (book and audio available)

Homecoming by Kate Morton (book available)

Black River by Nilanjana Roy (book and ebook available)

Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice For Murderers by Jesse Sutanto (book and ebook available)

Ian Fleming Steel Dagger

The Steel Dagger is for the best espionage, psychological, or adventure thriller novel.

Simply Lies by David Baldacci (book available)

The Lie Maker by Linwood Barclay (book and ebook available)

All The Sinners Bleed by S.A Cosby (book available)

Ozark Dogs by Eli Cranor (book available)

The House Hunt by Chris Ewan (book available)

Everybody Knows by Jordan Harper (book and ebook available)

The Mantis by Kotaro Isaka (book and audio available)

Gaslight by Femi Kayode (book available)

77 North by D.L. Marshall (book available)

Drowning by T.J Newman (book and audio available)

After That Night by Karin Slaughter (book available)

The Man In The Corduroy Suit by James Wolff (book available)

John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger

Awarded to the best crime novel by a first-time author of any nationality, first traditionally published in the UK in English.

In The Blink Of An Eye by Jo Callaghan (book and audio available)

The Golden Gate by Amy Chua (book and ebook available)

Scorched Grace: A Sister Holiday Mystery by Margot Douaihy (book and ebook available)

Murder By Natural Causes by Helen Erichsen (book available)

The Maiden by Kate Foster (book available)

The Golden Spoon by Jessa Maxwell (book and audio available)

West Heart Kill by Dann McDorman (book available)

Obsessed by Liza North (book available)

Go Seek by Michelle Teahan (book available)

The Other Half by Charlotte Vassell (book and audio available)

The Tumbling Girl by Bridget Walsh (book and ebook available)

A Most Unusual Demise by Kathryn Black (Unavailable)

Historical Dagger

Awarded to the best historical crime novel set in any period up to 50 years prior to the year in which the award will be made.

Clara & Olivia by Lucy Ashe (book available)

The Lock-Up by John Banville (book, ebook and audio available)

Flags On The Bayou by James Lee Burke (book available)

Murder In The Bookshop by Anita Davison (book and ebook available)

Harlem After Midnight by Louise Hare (book and audio available)

A Bitter Remedy by Alis Hawkins (book available)

Viper’s Dream by Jake Lamar (book and ebook available)

The Winter List by Shona MacLean (book available)

The Murder Wheel by Tom Mead (book available)

Scarlet Town by Leonora Nattrass (book and ebook available)

Voices Of The Dead by Ambrose Parry (book and ebook available)

Lady MacBethad by Isabelle Schuler (book available)

For information on how to reserve books and ebooks please visit our library services page online https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/libraries/library-services 

International Booker Prize 2024

The International Booker Prize is awarded annually for the finest single work of fiction from around the world which has been translated into English and published in the UK and/or Ireland. The winner will be announced on 21st May. (shortlisted titles annotated by an asterisk).

Not a River by Selva Almada, translated by Annie McDermott  (book and ebook available)*

Three men go out fishing, returning to a favourite spot on the river despite their memories of a terrible accident there years earlier. As a long, sultry day passes, they drink and cook and talk and dance, and try to overcome the ghosts of their past. But they are outsiders, and this intimate, peculiar moment also puts them at odds with the inhabitants of this watery universe, both human and otherwise. The forest presses close, and violence seems inevitable, but can another tragedy be avoided?

Simpatia by Rodrigo Blanco Calderón, translated by Noel Hernández González and Daniel Hahn (book available)

‘Simpatia’ is set in the Venezuela of Nicolas Maduro amid a mass exodus of the intellectual class who have been leaving their pets behind. Ulises Kan, the protagonist and a movie buff, receives a text message from his wife, Paulina, saying she is leaving the country (and him). Ulises is not heartbroken but liberated by Paulina’s departure. Two other events end up disrupting his life even further: the return of Nadine, an unrequited love from the past, and the death of his father-in-law, General Mart-n Ayala. Thanks to Ayala’s will, Ulises discovers that he has been entrusted with a mission – to transform Los Argonautas, the great family home, into a shelter for abandoned dogs. If he manages to do it in time, he will inherit the luxurious apartment that he had shared with Paulina.

Kairos by Jenny Erpenbeck, translated by Michael Hofmann (book available) *

Berlin. 11 July 1986. They meet by chance on a bus. She is a young student, he is older and married. Theirs is an intense and sudden attraction, fuelled by a shared passion for music and art, and heightened by the secrecy they must maintain. But when she strays for a single night he cannot forgive her and a dangerous crack forms between them, opening up a space for cruelty, punishment and the exertion of power. And the world around them is changing too: as the GDR begins to crumble, so too do all the old certainties and the old loyalties, ushering in a new era whose great gains also involve profound loss.

The Details by Ia Genberg, translated by Kira Josefsson (book available)*

A famous broadcaster writes a forgotten love letter; a friend abruptly disappears; a lover leaves something unexpected behind; a traumatised woman is consumed by her own anxiety. In the throes of a high fever, a woman lies bedridden. Suddenly, she is struck with an urge to revisit a particular novel from her past. Inside the book is an inscription: a get-well-soon message from an ex-girlfriend. Pages from her past begin to flip, full of things she cannot forget and people who cannot be forgotten. Johanna, that same ex-girlfriend who introduced her to Paul Auster’s The New York Trilogy, now a famous TV host in Sweden. Niki, the friend who disappeared all those years ago without a phone number or an address and has no online footprint. Alejandro, who gleefully campaigns for a baby despite knowing their love has no future. And Brigitte, whose elusive qualities shield a painful secret.

White Nights by Urszula Honek, translated by Kate Webster (book available)

‘White Nights’, the debut short story collection from poet Urszula Honek, is a series of thirteen interconnected stories concerning the various tragedies and misfortunes that befall a group of people who all grew up and live(d) in the same village in the Beskid Niski region, in southern Poland. Each story centres itself around a different character and how it is that they manage to cope, survive or merely exist, despite, and often in ignorance of, the poverty, disappointment, tragedy, despair, brutality and general sense of futility that surrounds them.

Mater 2-10 by Hwang Sok-yong, translated by Sora Kim-Russell and Youngjae Josephine Bae (book and ebook available)*

Centred on three generations of a family of rail workers and a laid-off factory worker staging a high-altitude sit-in, ‘Mater 2-10’ vividly depicts the lives of ordinary working Koreans, starting from the Japanese colonial era, continuing through Liberation, and right up to the twenty-first century. It is at once a powerful account that captures a nation’s longing for a rail line to reconnect North and South, a magical-realist novel that manages to reflect the lives of modern industrial workers, and a culmination of Hwang’s career – a masterpiece thirty years in the making.

A Dictator Calls by Ismail Kadare, translated by John Hodgson (book available)

‘A Dictator Calls’ is inspired by three minutes in June 1934 when Joseph Stalin allegedly telephoned Boris Pasternak. A gripping meditation on Soviet Russia, authoritarianism and literature, featuring a host of fascinating writers and historical figures.

The Silver Bone by Andrey Kurkov, translated by Boris Dralyuk (book available)

Kyiv, 1919. The Soviets control the city, but White armies menace them from the West. No man trusts his neighbour and any spark of resistance may ignite into open rebellion. When Samson Kolechko’s father is murdered, his last act is to save his son from a falling Cossack sabre. Deprived of his right ear instead of his head, Samson is left an orphan, with only his father’s collection of abacuses for company. Until, that is, his flat is requisitioned by two Red Army soldiers, whose secret plans Samson is somehow able to overhear with uncanny clarity. Eager to thwart them, he stumbles into a world of murder and intrigue that will either be the making of him – or finish what the Cossack started.

What I’d Rather Not Think About by Jente Posthuma, translated by Sarah Timmer Harvey (book and ebook available)*

What if one half of a pair of twins no longer wants to live? What if the other can’t live without them? This question lies at the heart of Jente Posthuma’s deceptively simple ‘What I’d Rather Not Think About’. The narrator is a twin whose brother has recently taken his own life. She looks back on their childhood, and tells of their adult lives: how her brother tried to find happiness, but lost himself in various men and the Bhagwan movement, though never completely. In brief, precise vignettes, full of gentle melancholy and surprising humour, Posthuma tells the story of a depressive brother, viewed from the perspective of the sister who both loves and resents her twin, struggles to understand him, and misses him terribly.

Lost on Me by Veronica Raimo, translated by Leah Janeczko (book available)

Vero has grown up in Rome with her eccentric family: an omnipresent mother who is devoted to her own anxiety, a father ruled by hygienic and architectural obsessions, and a precocious genius brother at the centre of their attention. As she becomes an adult, Vero’s need to strike out on her own leads her into bizarre and comical situations: she tries (and fails) to run away to Paris at the age of fifteen; she moves into an unwitting older boyfriend’s house after they have been together for less than a week; and she sets up a fraudulent (and wildly successful) street clothing stall to raise funds to go to Mexico. Most of all, she falls in love – repeatedly, dramatically, and often with the most unlikely and inappropriate of candidates.

The House on Via Gemito by Domenico Starnone, translated by Oonagh Stransky  (book and ebook available)

The modest apartment in Via Gemito smells of paint and white spirit. The living room furniture is pushed up against the wall to create a make-shift studio, and drying canvases must be moved off the beds each night. Federi, the father, a railway clerk, is convinced of possessing great artistic talent. If he didn’t have a family to feed, he’d be a world-famous painter. Ambitious and frustrated, genuinely talented but full of arrogance and resentment, his life is marked by bitter disappointment. His long-suffering wife and their four sons bear the brunt. It’s his first-born who, years later, will sift the lies from the truth to tell the story of a man he spent his whole life trying not to resemble. Narrated against the background of a Naples still marked by WWII and steeped in the city’s language and imagery, ‘The House on Via Gemito’ is a masterpiece of contemporary Italian literature.

Crooked Plow by Itamar Vieira Junior, translated by Johnny Lorenz (book available)*

Deep in Brazil’s neglected Bahia hinterland, two sisters find an ancient knife beneath their grandmother’s bed and, momentarily mystified by its power, decide to taste its metal. The shuddering violence that follows marks their lives and binds them together forever.

Undiscovered by Gabriela Wiener, translated by Julia Sanches (book and ebook available)       

Blending personal, historical and fictional modes, this work tells of a search for identity beyond the old stories of patriarchs and plunder. Incisive and fiercely irreverent, it builds to a powerful call for decolonisation.                                                    

For information on how to reserve books and ebooks please visit our library services page online https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/libraries/library-services 

Blue Peter Book Club

The Blue Peter Book Club introduces young readers to new writing and encourage a love of reading.  In partnership with The Reading Agency an expert panel of librarians, booksellers and children in library sessions, chose a list of Blue Peter Book Club recommended reads from awesome authors and fantastic illustrators. Its next six titles are:

Greenwild: The World Behind The Door by Pari Thomson, Illustrated by Elisa Paganelli (book available)

Daisy Thistledown has recently escaped from boarding school and has a mystery to solve. Her search for her missing mother will lead her across London and through a hidden doorway to another world, bursting with magic: the Greenwild. But all is not well in this astonishing land. Before long Daisy finds herself confronting a dangerous presence that threatens green magic on both sides of the door. Daisy must band together with a botanical genius, a boy who can talk to animals and a cat with an attitude, to channel the power that can revive the Greenwild and find her missing mother – and save her own world too.

The Last Firefox by by Lee Newbery, Illustrated by Laura Catalán (book and ebook available)

Between bullies at school and changes at home, Charlie Challinor finds life a bit scary. And when he’s made guardian of a furry fox cub called Cadno, things get a whole lot scarier. Because Cadno isn’t just any fox: he’s a firefox – the only one of his kind – and a sinister hunter from another world is on his trail. Swept up into an unexpected adventure to protect his flammable friend, Charlie’s going to need to find the bravery he never thought he had, if he’s going to save the last firefox.

The Breakfast Club Adventures: The Beast Beyond the Fence by Marcus Rashford written with Alex Falase-Koya, Illustrated by Marta Kissi (book available)

When twelve-year-old Marcus kicks his favourite football over the school fence, he knows he’s never getting it back. Nothing that goes over that wall ever comes back. But the next morning, during Breakfast Club, Marcus gets a mysterious note inviting him to join the Breakfast Club Investigators, and he is soon pulled into an exciting adventure with his new mates to solve the mystery and get his football back!

You Are History: From the Alarm Clock to the Toilet, the Amazing History of the Things You Use Every Day by Greg Jenner Illustrated by Jenny Taylor (book and ebook available)

Thought history was only in museums? Think again! Join Greg Jenner as he takes you on a trip through the amazing history hidden in the things you use every day. Did you know that the first TV was made out of biscuit tins and knitting needles? Or that the humble paperclip helped lead an anti-war movement? Or that a few hundred years ago it was fashionable to style your hair with cat poo?! Find out the delightful, daft and downright deadly history of your everyday life that your teachers won’t tell you about.

Major and Mynah by Karen Owen, Illustrated by Louise Forshaw (book and ebook available)

Callie Major does not like wearing her new hearing aids at all. But when she meets abandoned Mynah bird Bo, she realises that her ‘slugs’ mean she can communicate with him! Together the unlikely duo set off to catch the thief who has been causing trouble all over town. This work includes high-speed chases, a very peckish bird and purple poo!

Bob vs The Selfie Zombies by Andy Jones, Illustrated by Robin Boyden (book and ebook available)

For Bob and his best friend Malcolm, winning the school talent competition with their band The Tentacles of Time is really important. And that’s before they realise the future of the world depends on it. Bob doesn’t know why he can time travel. He does know that it always happens at the worst possible moments. Like when he’s in the bath. Awkward! But when Bob comes face to face with his future self in the midst of a disastrous alternative reality, he’s got no choice but to try and do something! In this future, an evil genius has created a smile-operated selfie camera that turns people into zombies, and the world as Bob knows it has completely collapsed. There’s not even anywhere to get a takeaway pizza from! Now it’s up to Bob to change the course of the present to save future him, future Malcolm AND the whole world. Yikes!

A special episode of Blue Peter Book Club Live will be shown on CBBC and iPlayer, 5pm, Friday 24^th May.

For information on how to reserve books and ebooks please visit our library services page online https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/libraries/library-services 

Quick Reads 2024

The Reading Agency has announced the six best-selling authors championing Quick Reads for 2024. They are Kia Abdullah, Malorie Blackman, Matt Cain, Kit de Waal, Jo Nesbo and Karen Swan.

These are published on 11 April, and reflect the very best in contemporary writing. All titles will be available to reserve at each Wokingham Borough Library.

Boys Don’t Cry by Malorie Blackman

You’re about to receive your A-level results and then a future of university and journalism awaits. But the day they’re due to arrive your old girlfriend turns up unexpectedly – with a baby. Your baby. You agree to look after it, just for an hour or two. Then she doesn’t come back – and your life changes forever.

Without Warning and only sometimes by Kit de Waal

Kit de Waal and her brother and sisters had a hard childhood in the West Midlands. Her Irish mother didn’t feed them, didn’t believe in Christmas or birthdays, and thought the world would end in 1975. Her father saved all his money to return to the Caribbean, where he planned to make a new life without them. At school, their faces just didn’t fit in. This is the story of how Kit and her brother and sisters helped each other escape, and what gave Kit the strength to keep living.

Those People Next Door by Kia Abdullah

Welcome to your dream home. Salma Khatun is extremely hopeful about Blenheim, the safe suburban development to which she, her husband and their son have just moved. Their family is in desperate need of a fresh start, and Blenheim feels like the place to make that happen. Meet your new neighbours. Not long after they move in, Salma spots her neighbour, Tom Hutton, ripping out the anti-racist banner her son put in their front garden. She chooses not to confront Tom because she wants to fit in. It’s a small thing, really. No need to make a fuss. So Salma takes the banner inside and puts it in her window instead. But the next morning she wakes up to find her window smeared with paint. This time she does confront Tom, and the battle lines between the two families are drawn. As things begin to escalate and the stakes become higher, it’s clear that a reckoning is coming. And someone is going to get hurt.

Game On by Matt Cain

Toddington FC defender Tom Horrocks is never happier than when he’s on the football pitch, but when it comesto love, he’s hiding a big secret. Worried about his young daughter and sick father – and with his team finally in the Premier League – he avoids all media. Journalist Cosmo Roberts wants to change the world, so is angry when he’s sent to a quiet northern town to cover a sport he sees as anti-gay. Then something about Tom catches his eye. Cosmo hates football. Tom hates journalists. Perhaps this time they’ve both met their match.

The Last Summer by Karen Swan

All her young life Effie Gillies has lived, wild and free, on the remote Scottish island of St Kilda. But when Lord Sholto visits the island, the attraction between them is instant. For one glorious week she guides the handsome young Lord around the isle, and falls in love for the first time. But a storm hits and her world falls apart. Three months later, all the islanders are moved to a better life on the mainland. And Effie is surprised to be offered a job working for Sholto’s father. But Sholto and Effie come from two different worlds – can love ever win?

The Jealousy Man by Jo Nesbo

Meet a detective on the trail of a man suspected of murdering his twin; a hired assassin facing his greatest adversary; and two passengers meeting by chance on a plane, spelling romance or something far more sinister. In his first collection of short stories, this master of crime delivers a gripping, edge-of-your seat read that you won’t be able to put down.

For information on how to reserve books and ebooks please visit our library services page online https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/libraries/library-services 

James Tait Black Biography Prize shortlist

Established in 1919, the James Tait Black prize is the UK’s longest running literary prize. It’s also the only major book  prize to be judged by scholars and students. Read on for this year’s biography shortlist. 

Lifescapes: a biographer’s search for the soul by Ann Wroe (book available)

‘What is life?’ asked the poet Shelley, and could not come up with an answer. Scientists, too, have not solved the puzzle. Yet biographers and obituarists continue to corral lives in a few columns, or a few hundred pages, aware all the time how fleeting and elusive their subject is. In ‘Lifescapes’, acclaimed biographer and obituarist Ann Wroe reflects on a career spent pursuing life: a process, as she sees it, not of chronological narration but of trying to seize souls.

Traces of Enayat by Iman Mirsal   (book and ebook available)

When Iman Mersal stumbles upon a great – yet forgotten – novel written by a young woman who killed herself shortly after her book was rejected by publishers, Mersal begins to research the writer. From archives, Enayat’s writing and Mersal’s own interviews and observations, a remarkable portrait emerges of a woman attempting to live independently.

This is not Miami by Fernanda Melchor (book and ebook available)

Set in and around the city of Veracruz in Mexico, ‘This is Not Miami’ delivers a series of devastating stories – spiraling from real events – that bleed together reportage and the author’s rich and rigorous imagination. These cronicas – a genre unique to Latin American writing that blends reportage, narrative non-fiction, and novelistic forms – probe deeply into the motivations of murderers and misfits, into their desires and circumstances, forcing us to understand them – and even empathize – despite our wish to disdain them as monsters.

Ordinary notes by Christina Elizabeth Sharpe (book available)

A singular achievement, Christina Sharpe’s ‘Ordinary Notes’ explores, with immense care, profound questions about loss, pain and beauty; private memory and public monument; art; complexity; and the shapes of Black life that emerge in the wake. In a series of 248 brief and urgent notes that cumulatively gather meaning, artifacts from the past – both public ones and the poignantly personal – are skilfully interwoven with present-day realities and possible futures, intricately constructing an immersive portrait of everyday Black existence.

Fassbinder thousand of mirrors by Ian Penman  (book and ebook available)

A kaleidoscopic study of the late West German film maker Rainer Werner Fassbinder (1945-1982). Written quickly under a self-imposed deadline in the spirit of Fassbinder himself, who would often get films made in a matter of weeks or months, ‘Fassbinder Thousands of Mirrors’ presents the filmmaker as a pivotal figure in the late 1970s moment between late modernism and the advent of postmodernism and the digital revolution. Compelling, beautifully written and genuinely moving, echoing the fragmentary and reflective works of writers like Barthes and Cioran, this is a story that has everything: sex, drugs, art, the city, cinema and revolution.

Always reaching: the selected writings of Anne Truitt by Anne Truitt (book available)

Spanning more than fifty years, this comprehensive volume collects the letters, journal entries, interviews, lectures, reviews, and remembrances of the groundbreaking twentieth-century artist Anne Truit (1921-2004). Alexandra Truitt, the artist’s daughter and a leading expert on her work, has carefully selected these writings, most of which are previously unpublished, from the artist’s papers at Bryn Mawr College as well as private holdings.

For information on how to reserve books and ebooks please visit our library services page online https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/libraries/library-services 

UKLA book awards shortlist 2024

The shortlists of the UKLA Book Awards have been unveiled. The Awards are the only British children’s prize judged entirely by teachers. There are four categories: fiction ages 3-6, 7-10, 11-14 and Information Books for 3-14 year olds. The winners are announced on 5^th July.

For information on how to reserve books and ebooks please visit our library services page online https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/libraries/library-services 

Age 3-7 shortlist

Fox & Son Tailers by Paddy Donnelly (book available)

Rory’s dad, Fox, is a tailer. The BEST in the business! Animals come from all over to have their tails made by him. Rory helps his dad in the shop and one of his jobs is measuring the customers for the tails – which isn’t always easy! But Rory is bored of making the same old tails. He has his own amazing ideas.

The Hare-Shaped Hole by John Dougherty (book available)

A poignant and touching picture book exploring death and grief, as Bertle the turtle learns to cope with the loss of his best friend Hertle the hare.

10 Dogs by Emily Gravett (book available)

Ten gorgeous dogs chase, hide and play with ten juicy sausages in this funny, original book about numbers by Emily Gravett. Bursting with energy and fun, young children will love to count the dogs and the sausages, as well as looking out for all the funny details on each page.

Martha Maps It Out by Leigh Hodgkinson (book available)

Martha’s maps will take you on an enchanting journey through her world, starting from outer space and zooming in, map by map, to our planet, Martha’s neighbourhood, and beyond.

The Wilderness by Steve McCarthy (book available)

The Vasylenko family are adventurers. They all love the wet and the wild, the thrill of exploring the outside world. All that is – except Oktober. He prefers the warm and safe comfort of the inside world, and for his adventures to take place between the pages of a book. But tomorrow, Oktober has to join his family on a trek into the slimy, grimy and climby wild, where he sees only danger and worry and fears a creature called ‘The Wilderness’! Failing to keep his wits about him could be dangerous though – it may even get him a bit lost. But perhaps getting lost is just what Oktober needs to find himself and maybe even make an unexpected friend.

Dick The Delightful Duck by Kaye Umansky (book available)

What’s the matter with Dick the Duck? He’s usually so kind and friendly! But today Dick got out on The Wrong Side of Bed. He feels humpy and grumpy, cranky and cross. How can his friends cheer him up?

Age 7-10 Shortlist

The Song Walker by Zillah Bethell (book available)

When a young girl wakes up in the middle of the desert, she has no idea who she is. She’s wearing one shoe, a silky black dress, and she’s carrying a strange, heavy case. She meets Tarni, who is on a mysterious quest of her own. Together, the two girls trek across the vast and ever-changing Australian Outback in search of answers. Except both are also hiding secrets.

Call Me Lion by Camilla Chester (book and ebook available)

Leo has spent his life dreaming of performing on the West End. His love of dancing is getting him through the heatwave, but his selective mutism means he is unlikely to be able to perform in public and puts his spot in the end-of-summer dance show on the line. When chatty Richa moves in next door, Leo finds her easy to bond with. She talks enough for the both of them – at least to begin with. When he learns her secret, it’s clear that she needs his support as much as he needs hers. With Richa’s help, will Leo be able to follow his dreams? Or will Leo’s inability to talk to Richa will cost him their friendship?

How To Be More Hedgehog by Anne-Marie Conway (book available)

Lily has a stammer. The signal between her brain and her mouth is all messed up – and it’s getting worse. When a video of her practicing her class presentation is uploaded onto YouTube – head thrust forward, eyelids fluttering, lips stretched wide – Lily’s nightmare begins. Cyberbullying, kids at school whispering, even best friend Mia laughing behind her back. Lily’s confidence takes a nose-dive and she can only see one way out: run away to Dad in Scotland and start all over again. But Lily quickly realises that running away isn’t the answer – that her stammer will follow her wherever she goes.

Into The Dark Forest by Liz Flanagan (book available)

When war threatens her beloved city, Rowan and her mother must flee to the Dark Forest, meeting Grandpa and his white wolf Arto for the first time. Though she misses her father, Rowan makes new friends – including a trio of powerful witches. When she rescues a baby dragon from poachers, she discovers the secret of her own identity. Could Rowan really be a wildsmith? Fostering a whole clutch of dragons, the summer speeds by. But when danger threatens, Rowan and Grandpa must call on all their friends for help.

Finn Jones Was Here by Simon James Green (book and ebook available)

At Finn’s funeral, grieving best friend Eric receives a message from beyond the grave – and it must be because this is Finn’s biggest prank ever, faking his own death! As Eric follows Finn’s cryptic instructions for various challenges, he goes down memory lane and through a scavenger hunt that will change him for ever.

Where The River Takes Us by Lesley Parr (book available)

It’s February 1974 and working class families have been hit hard by the three-day week. The reduced power usage means less hours for people to work, and less money to get by on. Thirteen-year-old Jason feels the struggle keenly. Ever since his parents died, it’s just been him and his older brother Richie. Richie is doing his best, but since he can’t make ends meet he’s been doing favours for the wrong people. Every day they fear they won’t have enough and will have to be separated. One thing that helps distract Jason is the urban legend about a beast in the valleys. A wild cat that roams the forest, far up the river from their bridge. When Jason’s friends learn of a reward for proof of The Beast’s existence, they convince Jason this is the answer to his and Richie’s money problems. Richie can get himself out of trouble before it’s too late and the brothers can stay together. And so a quest begins.

Age 11-14+ Shortlist

Away With Words by Sophie Cameron (book and ebook available)

When Gala moves to Scotland from Spain, she feels lost and lonely. Just as she’s making friends and settling into her new life, the actions of an anonymous classmate threaten to take it all away. Will be she be able to find out who’s behind it and show everyone who she really is?

Crossing The Line by Tia Fisher (book and ebook available)

Erik’s life has been falling apart ever since his dad died. Homework and being good at school stop feeling important when you’re the new man of the house. When Erik’s bad behaviour attracts the wrong crowd, he’s sucked into a terrifying new world of drug dealing, trap houses and violence. Making money feels good but Erik soon learns that a small favour can become a huge debt. And when his sisters’ lives are threatened, Erik will have to cross one more line to save them.

As Long As The Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh (available on audio)

Salama Kassab was a pharmacy student when the cries for freedom broke out in Syria. She still had her parents and her big brother; she still had her home. She was even supposed to be meeting a boy to talk about marriage. Now Salama volunteers at a hospital in Homs, helping the wounded who flood through the doors. She knows that she should be thinking about leaving, but who will help the people of her beloved country if she doesn’t? With her heart so conflicted, her mind has conjured a vision to spur her to action. His name is Khawf, and he haunts her nights with hallucinations of everything she has lost. But even with Khawf pressing her to leave, when she crosses paths with Kenan, the boy she was supposed to meet on that fateful day, she starts to doubt her resolve in leaving home at all. Soon, Salama must learn to see the events around her for what they truly are.

Steady For This by Nathanael Lessore (book and ebook available)

Shaun (aka MC Growls) is ready to drop his best bars and smash the competition at Raptology. That way, he’s convinced Tanisha, his crush, will finally give him a chance. But when a livestream practice goes epically wrong, Growls’s dirty laundry is literally exposed. He’s finally achieved his dreams of going viral – not in the good way. Now Tanisha won’t look at him, he’s the joke of the school and there’s no way he can show his face at the competition. Will he ever catch a break? Then a new girl on the block appears who might be just the friend Growls needs. Especially when she points out that Raptology could be the answer to his problems after all.

I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys (book available)

Cristian has lived his entire life in the grip of a repressive dictatorship. The country is governed by fear. When the secret police blackmail him, Cristian has an impossible choice. Save the life of his sick grandfather by informing on his family, or risk his life – and all of theirs – by resisting? At 17, Cristian dreams of being free but doesn’t know where to turn. In this climate of constant suspicion, can he trust his best friend, his girlfriend or even his family?

All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir (book available)

Lahore, Pakistan. Then. Misbah is a dreamer and storyteller, newly married to Toufiq in an arranged match. After their young life is shaken by tragedy, they come to the United States and open the Clouds’ Rest Inn Motel, hoping for a new start. Juniper, California. Now. Salahudin and Noor are more than best friends; they are family. Growing up as outcasts in the small desert town of Juniper, California, they understand each other the way no one else does. Until The Fight, which destroys their bond with the swift fury of a star exploding. Now, Sal scrambles to run the family motel as his mother Misbah’s health fails and his grieving father loses himself to alcoholism. Noor, meanwhile, walks a harrowing tightrope: working at her wrathful uncle’s liquor store while hiding the fact that she’s applying to college so she can escape him – and Juniper – forever.

Information Books 3-14+ Shortlist

Saving H’non: Chang And The Elephant by Trang Nguyen (book available)

An inspirational graphic novel adventure, based on a true story, about a young conservationist who overcomes the odds to rescue H’non the elephant from 50 years working in captivity. With breathtaking art and STEM facts galore, Chang’s daring story is for any young reader, animal lover, and intrepid explorer who’s ready for adventure.

Unspoken by Kwame Alexander (book available)

How do you tell a story that starts in Africa and ends in horror? About strength and pride and refusing to be broken? One that still hurts and still loves? A powerfully moving, poetic exploration of the story of slavery: from Africa to the tall ships, from back-breaking work in a strange land to resilience and eventual emancipation, Kwame Alexander tells the story that’s hard to hear. Told through the lens of a teacher speaking to their young pupils, and in multiple art styles from award-winning artist and sculptor Dare Coulter, the story of slavery becomes one that you can tell with the bravery to lift your voice.

Darwin & Hooker by Alexandra Stewart (book available)

On 24th November 1859, Charles Darwin’s ‘On the Origin of Species’ was first published, selling out almost immediately. Describing the now well known theory that humans evolved through a process called natural selection, it became an instant classic and cemented Darwin as one of the greatest biologists of all time. However, he couldn’t have done it without the support, encouragement and advice from those who believed in him. None more so than Joseph Hooker, his friend, confidant and fellow collector, who supported and helped Darwin when he didn’t dare ask anyone else. Hooker, too, had his own adventures and made his own discoveries – many of which not only aided Darwin, but went on to change what the world knew about plants. Becoming head of Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, he came to be one the world’s most influential botanists.

Whose Tracks In The Snow? by Alexandra Milton (book available)

A great natural history picture book introducing children to animal tracks.

The Boy Who Didn’t Want To Die by Peter L. Lantos (ebook available)

‘The Boy Who Didn’t Want to Die’ describes an extraordinary journey, made by Peter, a boy of five, through war-torn Europe in 1944 and 1945. Peter and his parents set out from a small Hungarian town, travelling through Austria and then Germany together.

Lands Of Belonging: A History Of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh And Britain by Donna Amey Bhatt (book available)

A unique exploration of the rich and complicated history of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Britain. There are many ways of telling the same story, and how you tell it depends on your point of view. Some stories are so complicated, or difficult to explain, that they’re not often told at all. Like the story of how a company ended up running a country, or how one man drawing a line on a map could change the lives of millions of people forever. This book aims to piece together the interesting, surprising, and sometimes very sad story of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Britain, and how these countries have shaped one another over the centuries.