Uclan, 9781916747425
We have been very lucky over the last decade or so to have seen a wonderful growth in the number and quality of chapter books, aimed at the emerging reader. Tracy Curran’s new title is a hilarious tale of a magical place called ‘Witchy Wood’. When two young dragons accidentally set fire to the wood (breathing fire is a hazard!) it is up to the heroic firefighter Blaze, together with her fire engine Quench, to save the day.
As part of the tour to celebrate the launch of this fantastic story, Tracy has very kindly written about five of the books that have inspired her to write for this age group. I was more than delighted to discover that they are all books that I have read and reviewed in the past, and I have to agree with her assessment, they are all fabulous reads.
MY TOP FIVE CHAPTER BOOKS
Tracy Curran
Chapter books are so much fun! I love everything from their colourful covers to their loveable characters. The joy of a chapter book series is that you can meet your favourite characters over and over again for new adventures and they are short enough to read in one afternoon.
1) Unipiggle by Hannah Shaw
Usborne, 9781474972178
It’s such a treat to read a Unipiggle book. Unipiggle is an hilarious character and Hannah Shaw has put a brilliant spin on a unicorn with stories to suit everyone: a unipig who can turn things into chocolate by touching them with her horn. What’s not to like?
As with Unicorns in Uniforms, the books are illustrated in full-colour throughout which makes them literally leap off the bookshelf. Hannah Shaw has also included seasonal instalments such as Fairy Freeze and Witch Emergency. Each story is action-packed and completely entertaining – it’s my go-to rainbow mood booster!
2) Hotel Flamingo by Alex Milway
Piccadilly Press, 9781848127753
A hotel for animals is such a great concept and Alex Milway has packed this series with great characters and storylines that readers of all ages can enjoy. The main character, Anna – the girl who inherits the hotel – is full of determination and I love the charm and flamboyance of all the animal characters too, especially the flamingos. There’s some great villains in this series including the hotel inspector and the owner of a rival hotel. A special mention goes to Madame Le Pig, the chef, for being a particularly hilarious character.
3) Adventuremice by Phillip Reeve and Sarah McIntyre
David Fickling, 9781788453288
Who doesn’t love an adventure on the high seas? Or even on the moon? This chapter book series reminds me of the books and TV programmes I devoured as a child like The Moomins and Button Moon. The mice are brilliantly resourceful, each with different personalities, and each story takes us to a new setting: underwater, into space or onto a ghostly galleon ship (my favourite). The adventures are just great fun with lots of humour and peril and yet, you kind of know that things will be okay in the end because the Adventuremice will save the day.
Bloomsbury, 9781408889312
4) Fabio, The World’s Greatest Flamingo Detective by Laura James, illustrated by Emily Fox
As you can probably tell, I love flamingos but I also love detective stories too! This series is really fun. I’m not sure Fabio is quite as clever as he thinks he is but he always gets there in the end and there are lots of twists and turns in the storylines. Animal characters are great to write (and to read about) because they often have really bold personalities and you can play around with stereotypes. For example, flamingos are usually portrayed as being very outgoing and flamboyant and lions can be quite fierce and scary. So I love it when authors play around with that and come up with something different.
5) Diary of an Accidental Witch by Honor and Perdita Cargill, illustrated by Katie Saunders
Stripes, 9781788953382
I can’t choose another animal story again! Instead, I’m tuning into my love of witches. The Diary of an Accidental Witch series, told in diary format, is a modern day Worst Witch. Bea Black is a human who accidentally ends up going to a witch school. The adventures that follow are full of hilarious mishaps and lots of problems that Bea has to overcome. It’s so well-written and hugely entertaining with great illustrations – I struggled to put the books down.
It’s been so hard to choose only five. There are lots of incredible chapter books out there with stories to suit everyone. Happy hunting!
series of books by this French Canadian author and which was first published in 1994. It is a short and very witty story about what happens when Miss Charlotte arrives to teach a class of young children who do not enjoy school. Her somewhat eccentric methods eventually make her very popular, but the children find that they have to fight to keep the teacher they have come to love and admire. As a follow on, you might like to read “The Mysterious Librarian” which sees Miss Charlotte take on the challenge of encouraging children to enjoy reading.
“The Spooky School” by Tracey Corderoy and Steve Lenton is another set of short stories about the cake-baking, crime-fighting duo of Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam. They originally started their adventures in picture book format but have now branched out for the next age group. In this book they save jewels, fight ghosts and meet a fiendish new villain; a Red Panda called ‘Red Rocket’. It is great fun.
in the “Tanglewood Animal Park” series which follows the adventures of young Zoe, whose parents have bought Tanglewood Manor and turned it into an Animal Park. This story revolves around Tindu the male Tiger and the attempts to help him settle down in the park, before the arrival of his new mate. It is a charming story with a lot of information and a cast of characters that you can’t help but like. This is a super series, especially if you are an animal lover.
adventures of young Lady Miranda and her dog called Pug as they visit the local boating lake. However when things get out of control and Pug finds himself in the sea and being rescued by another young girl life becomes quite adventurous. This is the first in a series of adventures for the pampered pooch and joins the list of books written about the breed.
Pug related story only this time the hero is called Pugly and he is trying to bake a cake for his owner. Unfortunately his efforts seem to be being sabotaged by Clementine (Clem) the family cat. Most families with a mix of pets will understand the frictions between the main characters and the very funny scrapes that they get themselves in to.
“Marge and the Pirate baby” by Isla Fisher is the second book featuring Marge, a truly unique babysitter. This time she is looking after Jemima and Jake as usual, but finds herself having to look after their demon of a baby cousin called Zara. There are three short stories in this offering and I think that the author is really starting to be comfortable with her characters, which means that we become more involved with the stories. This is a funny and quirky book for both boys and girls.
where he is from. That is the situation that D.J and Gina find themselves in and they then have to try and find a way of sending him back home. This book is the first in a series of comic style books being published by Puffin. It is bright , well illustrated and full of humour; in other words it is great for boys in particular, although the strong female character makes it fun for everyone.
another one of their fantastically funny collaborations. Set in Funfair Moon it is full of zany aliens, dastardly villains and a clever heroine called Emily. As you would expect this will take you on a ‘roller coaster ride’ of excitement. The illustrations are full of the energy and humour that we have come to expect. It is a great book to read alone or to a class.
Teddington, disguised as humans. This book sees them and their friends going to Cornwall on their summer holidays. As usual there are lots of ‘groan worthy’ jokes as well as puns, both written and visual. I love the way that the author’s voice comes across so easily and the illustrator’s ability to translate all of this visually. A really great read for all ages.
on his nose as they are leaving his cave; that is when he finds that all his food is missing. He goes outside and discovers the wonder of the snow. Rabbit offers him a moldy old carrot to eat, which he is very grateful for. However he does not know that it is Rabbit who has stolen his food. When a wolf comes looking for some food the two friends have to work together and Rabbit in particular learns a few things about friendship. What a funny story with some gross elements such as Rabbit eating his own poo (yuck!)
Toad frozen solid in the ice house, little did they guess that it was the (in)famous Toad that they had heard stories of from their grandparents. Toad of course is just as excitable as in the past and when he finds that the weasels have taken over Toad Hall and want to knock it down for a housing estate, he is determined to get it back. With the help of his new young friends he finds a way to challenge the weasels. This is a great story full of charm and humour that really retains the spirit of the original and this is captured by the super illustrations by Holly Swain.