This week, Year 2 have chosen Sport as the Friday Library Recommendations theme and it was a rea struggle deciding which books to choose as there are so many great ones out there!

Sportopedia by Adam Skinner, illustrated by Mark Long

Everything has its weird side — even sports! Add wacky stats, facts, and stories to your arsenal of spots trivia with this new slam-dunk addition to the very popular Weird but True series! With the Olympics on the way, discover tons more zany fun, focused totally on the subject of sports! So step up to the plate to get 300 ALL-NEW amazing facts plus photos.

Mrs Armitage And The Big Wave by Quentin Blake

Mrs Armitage arrives on the beach with her surfboard and her faithful dog Breakspear, and paddles out to sea to wait for the Big Wave. But, of course, Mrs Armitage can’t be satisfied with just an ordinary surfboard and she is soon adding a hilarious variety of gadgets and contraptions. And when the Big Wave finally arrives, Mrs Armitage certainly surfs with style!

Go, Mo Go, Dinosaur Dash by Mo Farah and Kes Gray

Mo and his friends are jogging in the local park when Mo suggests they run backwards for fun. But what they hadn’t bargained for was running back in time. There are DINOSAURS everywhere, and they are hungry. Luckily Mo and his friends are wearing good trainers. It’s a good job they love to run! Follow Mo on his madcap adventures as his running skills go from strength to strength. The perfect book to share and read aloud.

Diary Of An Accidental Witch: Flying High by Perdita & Honor Cargill

Monday 1st November
There’s only fifty days until the Winter Solstice, the longest and witchiest night of the year. But before that there’s the Grand Tournament – the biggest and sportiest day in the witchy calendar! And I can’t wait!

Bea Black is all settled into her new life in Little Spellshire, a town with a magical secret. She’s made tonnes of friends at witch school, learned how to levitate frogs (just about) and been working hard on polishing up her broom skills. So when the Winter Solstice Grand Tournament rolls round, she’s ready to rise to the next challenge and fly high. But then Ms Sparks decides that this year’s tournament will be a bit … er … different. That is, it won’t be an Extraordinary Grand Tournament at all, but rather a very ordinary sports day with Spellshire Academy! With magic firmly forbidden and rivalry reaching new heights, who will emerge victorious? And more importantly, will Bea’s friendship with her best non-witchy friend Ash survive the competition? A perfect potion of magic and mischief, DIARY OF AN ACCIDENTAL WITCH is THE WORST WITCH meets TOM GATES.

The Race by Roy Peachey

This is what it feels like when I’m running. When I’m running fast, I feel free.

12-year-old Lili is determined to defeat her arch rival in front of the Queen during her school’s anniversary celebrations. Adopted from China as a baby, Lili also has personal challenges to overcome, but when her training is thrown into chaos by events outside her control, she realises that she must choose between family and the race of her life. Meanwhile in 1944, Eric Liddell, hero of the 1924 Olympics, finds himself in a war zone. Separated from his family, he is getting ready to run his final race in a prison camp in China when his lifelong principles are challenged by the imprisoned children he is trying to help…

Not your typical happily ever after, Roy has written a wonderfully relatable and inclusive tale, where all are welcome, and the beauty of sport brings everyone together in the end. There are life lessons to be learned in this inspiring story with friendship at its heart.

Happy reading!

This week Year 1 have chosen Under The Sea for their Friday Library Recommendations theme. Here are five books that take you on a journey beneath the waves.

The Tale Of The Whale by Karen Swann, illustrated by Padmacandra

A fantastical, rhyming tale of friendship, which highlights the distress caused to sea creatures by plastic. Come on a magical journey of wonder and discovery, from misty seaside shorelines to cold ice-capped seas. This beautiful tale of friendship between a child and a whale invites us to consider our responsibilities towards the environment and makes a direct plea to end plastic pollution.

Nen And the Lonely Fisherman by Ian Eagleton, illustrated by James Mayhew

Far out to sea and deep below the whispering waves lives a merman called Nen. Nen spends his days exploring his underwater kingdom, but something is missing: his heart is empty. So, Nen ventures to the forbidden world above and it is here that he meets Ernest, a lonely fisherman. But can two people from different worlds be together and what will happen when a terrifying storm gathers? A lyrical, beautiful celebration of love, acceptance and faith, with a gentle message about how we treat our oceans, and each other.

Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea retold by Jacqueline Morley, illustrated by Li Sidony

In Jules Verne’s epic tale, Captain Nemo and the crew of the undersea vessel, Nautilus, journey through an at times fictional, yet at times very real, undersea world, from the lost city of Atlantis to the Red Sea. “Graffex” is a series of illustrated literary classics retold for young readers, using a graphic novel format which is particularly popular with reluctant readers. Specially commissioned full-color artwork brings excitement and atmosphere to this stirring tale. Speech bubbles work with the main text to emphasize and enhance the retelling. A running glossary at the foot of each page helps young readers with any challenging vocabulary without disrupting their reading experience. Includes information about the author, the historical background to the period in which the author lived and a time line of world events that places the work in its historical context.

Oceanology: The True Account Of The Voyage Of The Nautlius

What if a sixteen-year-old assistant traveled aboard the storied Nautilus, the narwhal-shaped submarine of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea? And what if he were the sole survivor of the ill-fated voyage and went on to relay his adventures to a certain . . . Jules Verne? Find this brave young man’s own account in the lavishly illustrated Oceanology, a tale of an 1866 voyage of discovery that investigates diving bells and shipwrecks; coral reefs and ice canyons; sharks, giant octopi, and luminous sea monsters; underwater volcanoes, and even the legendary island of Atlantis.

My Friend The Octopus by Lindsay Galvin

England, 1893, and aquarium fever is at its height. Twelve-year-old Vinnie Fyfe works in the tea-shop at Brighton aquarium, and waits for her milliner mother to return from Paris. The arrival of a giant octopus changes her life for ever. Discovering a talent for art, Vinnie begins to draw the extraordinary beast. She soon realises she can communicate with the octopus through colour and – as a gripping mystery begins to unfold – discovers what true courage really means. This is a stunning read that hooks you from beginning to end. The fast paced mystery transports you back to 1893 where you are immersed in the seaside setting and the mysteries that unfold. Themes of social justice run through the book, while the spectacular abilities of octopuses amaze and astound. Just brilliant!

Happy reading!