Age 8
The Woodcutter and the Snow Prince by Ian Eagleton & Davide Ortu
The Woodcutter and the Snow Prince is a beautifully illustrated, inclusive retelling of The Snow Queen. The story of how lonely woodcutter, Kai, falls in love with a cursed snow prince is told in a sensitive and heartwarming way and has a wonderfully ethereal, fairytale feel.
The Big Christmas Bake by Fiona Barker & Pippa Curnick
The Big Christmas Bake is a beautifully illustrated, delicious countdown to making a Twelfth Night Cake. Written in rhyme, similar to the original Twelve Days of Christmas, it cleverly manages to include all the ingredients of the cake as well as the tradition of choosing the Twelfth Night king or queen.
Cress Watercress by Gregory Maguire & David Litchfield
Cress Watercress is a highly illustrated middle grade novel which follows the fortunes of the Watercress family after their Papa’s disappearance. This gentle woodland story is full of heart and encompasses themes of growing up, moving on, dealing with grief and learning to become part of a new community.
Mister Rogers’ Gift of Music by Donna Cangelosi & Amanda Calatzis
Mister Rogers’ Gift of Music is Donna Cangelosi’s debut picture book which is beautifully illustrated by Amanda Calatzis. The book tells the inspirational story of television presenter, Fred Rogers (Mister Rogers), and the way that music helped him to deal with different emotions throughout his life.
The Coat by Séverine Vidal & Louis Thomas
Autumn is here, the weather is getting cooler and we need to start wearing warmer coats and wooly jumpers. The Coat tells the poignant, heartwarming story of Elise and the warm, snuggly red coat that she has been wishing for. It combines the themes of inequality, poverty, homelessness and empathising with others less fortunate and…