Another week sees three more amazing books leave the competition. If you loved one of them, here are some recommendations of books you might enjoy too.
What’s The Story?: Constance in Peril by Ben Manley, illustrated by Emma Chichester-Clarke
Constance, an old cloth doll, having been rescued from a rubbish bin by a boy called Edward, suffers a series of potentially catastrophic incidents. More suited to elegant tea parties in a bygone age, she nevertheless remains stoic throughout. From being forgotten and left out in the rain or trapped up a tree, even being caught between the jaws of the neighbour’s dog, Constance is constantly finding herself in mortal danger. Although she’s luckily rescued each time by the watchful Grace, Edward’s loving older sister, it seems disaster is never far behind. Is Constance doomed to suffer a life of never-ending peril?
If you enjoyed this book, try Seahorses Are Sold Out by Katja Gehrmann and Constanze Spengler
Mika’s father works from home and he’s very busy! He can never find time for the promised swimming trip. So Dad allows Mika to choose a pet from the store while he finishes the project—something quiet like a mouse. And so begins a wonderfully turbulent story in which Mika brings home one animal after another… The mouse gets lost so they need a dog to find it. The dog is followed by a seal, the seal a penguin. One pet for Mika leads to another and another. How many animals can come to stay before a harassed father notices?
Telling Tales: A Tale Of Two Dragons by Geraldine McCaughrean, illustrated by Peter Malone
The kingdoms of Arbor and Pomosa are neighbours. Arbor is leafy and green with forests, while Pomosa is fertile, full of wheatfields and grazing cows. A high thorn hedge divides them but fortunately the children sneak through the hedge at night to help themselves to firewood or grain and milk. This keeps the people of both countries warm, fed, and happy. However, the kings are determined to protect their property and each one hires a dragon to patrol the hedge. Things escalate, and the kings order the dragons to fight, to the distress of their citizens, who’ve come to love these beautiful creatures much more than they ever loved their rulers.
If you enjoyed this book, try Grey Island, Red Boat by Ian Beck
Everything on the Island of Ashes is grey, from the weather to the castle, the grass and the flowers. But then the red boat arrives, and with it a young man who believes he is cursed – everything he touches turns to colour. Princess Opal and the people of the island are enchanted, but the King is suspicious and imprisons Wendell. Opal must find a way to escape to a life filled with love and colour.
Hooked On Books: The Thief Who Sang Storms by Sophie Anderson
Linnet and her father, Nightingale, are Alkonosts, bird people who live on the island of Morovia. Alkonosts and humans used to live in harmony, but everything changed when a tidal wave devastated the island and killed the two Morovian queens, along with many of the islanders. Ruthless Captain Ilya plays on the islander’s grief and anger to claim that the Alkonosts’ singing magic caused the tragedy. He banishes the bird people to the deepest swamps and bans them from using magic. Linnet and Nightingale keep moving to stay safe and are forced to steal from humans to survive. When Nightingale is captured by Captain Ilya’s guards, Linnet embarks on a dangerous quest to rescue him. With no magic of her own, she must draw on other skills, such as kindness and determination, if she is to succeed.
If you enjoyed this book, try Song Of The Far Isles by Nicholas Bowling
Oran lives on Little Drum, where music is everything. Every islander has a birth instrument and a life song – and the ancestors, called ghasts, linger to hear the music. But when the Duchess arrives from the mainland bringing orders of silence, she threatens the ghasts’ existence, the very soul of the community. When Oran hears of a mythical instrument with the power to manipulate hearts, she brings her ghast best friend, Alick, on a quest to find it, play it, and change the Duchess’s mind …
Don’t forget, if you don’t want your favourite to be evicted, keep voting!