Must Read Kids Books for October 2024

A moving celebration of the power of books and reading from bestselling author and illustrator, Tom Percival, creator of Ruby’s Worry.

Mia feels alone; so alone that it’s as if she lives on a small island, far out to sea. But then one day, Mia is given a book – the first she has ever been able to call her own. As Mia reads the book, bridges appear and her island fills with colour and life. And the more Mia reads, the stronger the bridges become, opening up a world of connection and hope… Because a book can take you anywhere…

Celebrate the power of books and reading in this moving picture book by Tom Percival, author of Ruby’s Worry and The Invisible, among many more.

We’re going on a sleigh ride,
HO! HO! HO!
Can you find the hidden gifts?
Whoosh! Off we go!
Ho! Ho! Ho!

Climb aboard Santa’s sleigh and join the fun as four bunnies set off on a thrilling festive adventure. With ten presents to find hidden under the flaps, it’s an action packed treasure hunt! You’ll need to watch out for the obstacles along the way – snowy clouds, church spires, flocks of flying geese – and help the sleigh back to the North Pole in time for Christmas!

The bestselling children’s books series for over 50 years is welcoming a new Mr. Men character!

Mr. Fib is the smartest, strongest and funniest Mr. Men of all. Well, so he says, but don’t believe everything you hear! Mr. Fib fibs to impress people, but his fibs are getting bigger and bigger, and one day he goes too far and his friends are upset. Can Mr. Fib learn to tell the truth?

The Mr. Men and Little Miss have been delighting children for generations with their charming and funny antics. Bold illustrations and funny stories make Mr. Men and Little Miss the perfect story time experience for children aged two up. Have you met them all?

The second in a magical illustrated new young fiction series for children aged 6-9 from bestselling author and illustrator, Laura Ellen Anderson!

Marnie Midnight is a little moth with BIG dreams!

Marnie is having so much fun at Minibeast Academy, a school for bugs tucked into a giant tree at the bottom of the museum gardens. And this term it’s time for something really exciting – the Great Critter Contest!

The contest sees minibug students set off to explore the school in teams, searching for clues. The winners get an incredible prize and Marnie and her team – best friends Floyd the bee (who is really an A) and Star the super-strong princess ant – are determined to be first to cross the finish line. But when Veronica gets into trouble and needs rescuing, Marnie and her team have to decide whether winning really is the most important thing …

Find the samurai-droid and loads of other characters in the busy Ninjago scenes.

Join Zane as he looks back through some of his fondest LEGO® NINJAGO® memories in this action-packed search-and-find book.

Explore the Underworld, Ninjago City, the Nindroid Factory, the village of Stiix and many other locations from across the Ninjago realm.

Look for the malfunctioning Samurai-droid along the way, spot differences between pairs of scenes and challenge yourself to find the many other items and characters listed at the back of the book.

Build your minifigure and embark upon a dinosaur adventure.

Join the gang from the hit Netflix series Jurassic World: Chaos Theory in this fun-packed activity book. Kenji, Darius, Sammy, Ben, Yaz and Brooklynn are back for a new adventure after their escapades in Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous.

Build your Kenji minifigure and play along with the awesome baby raptor as you make your way through mazes, join-the-dot puzzles, spot-the-differences, colouring scenes and loads more.

Also included are cool comics featuring Kenji and his friends. Just remember to look out for raptors!

Join Anne with an ‘e’ as she moves to Green Gables in this timeless
adventure that has enchanted generations of children

When the spirited and imaginative Anne moves to live in Green Gables – a beautiful farmhouse, set among the summer flowers of Prince Edward Island – she quickly realises there has been a terrible mistake. Her new family – gentle Matthew and his stern sister Marilla – were expecting someone quite different!

But will Anne succeed in enchanting Matthew and Marilla with her cheer and imagination? The relatable mishaps and adventure of Anne are brought to life for a new generation in this enchanting abridgement by bestselling author, Katherine Woodfine, accompanied by Isabelle Follath’s engaging and witty artwork.

Lulu Whifferton-Rear loves to mind her own badgery business, but when she discovers that important humans are actually BOPs (Badger Operated Persons), she is thrust into the world of the Rumpington Academy of Badgering. There, her catastrophic training leads to the most dramatic of first missions . . . SAVE THE WORLD!

A madcap, heart-warming adventure story about badgers, cheese and tomato sandwiches, staying true to yourself and how ‘too much welly’ might just be the perfect amount.

She’s back! Nikki Maxwell returns for her 16th Dork Diaries adventure and has to deal with . . . a bratty younger sister. Join the jokes, the drama and the aDORKable BFFs in this mega-selling series with over 50 million copies in print worldwide!

A powerful, moving adventure inspired by the extraordinary true story of the French Drummer Boy of Waterloo, Cobweb is a stunning tale of courage and kindness – a book about humanity, animals, and the heartbreak of war, from a writer at the height of his powers.

“They call me Cobweb. I’ll tell you why later. I may be a dog, but I know and understand a lot more than people think I do.”

Britain. 1815. After years of loss and sacrifice, the end of the war with Napoleon is approaching.

Cobweb knows nothing of the war – he loves being a young puppy and playing with his owner, Bethan, exploring the countryside and chasing rabbits.

But when he is taken away from Bethan and sold, Cobweb must learn to become a Drover’s Dog – herding sheep and cattle for hundreds of miles on the long, treacherous journey to London.

And after the Napoleonic wars finally come to an end with the Battle of Waterloo, Cobweb meets an unexpected stranger with an incredible tale to tell on his journey home…

The first book in a brand-new fantasy series from acclaimed author Anna James, filled with seasonal magic and irresistible adventure

In Whetherwhy, everyone has magic inside them – grown from the changing seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter. But a rare few are Enchanters: people born with magic in their bones, who can wield all four seasons of magic.

When Juniper discovers she is an Enchanter, she is invited to study at Thistledown Academy. Unwilling to be left behind, her twin brother, Rafferty, follows her to the capital city of Stormgrove and takes up an apprenticeship at a bookbindery.

As Juniper learns to wield enchantment, Rafferty becomes involved with a mysterious secret society that meets after dark. Monsters are creeping out of the shadows and dangers lurk in unexpected places. Amid night markets and magic lessons, the twins realise there is more to enchantment than they ever imagined – and the adventure that follows brings their paths together again in ways they could never have expected…

On a dark and stormy night …

A pair of ghost-hunting journalists arrive at the most haunted house in Britain – the Hollow Hotel. They’re here to interview the Dark King of television magic, Romeo Gideon.

Instead, they discover the body of a murdered man hanging from the rafters – the work of a killer who wields actual magic as viciously as he does his blade. With the storm closing in, all exit routes cut off, and the killer taking them out one by one, their only hope lies with the two mysterious Irish detectives who seem quite at home with all this bloodshed …

Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain have only hours to figure out who the killer is in a hotel filled with the tortured spirits of the dead, the anguished wails of the dying, and the relentless whines of the living.

Spooky and hilarious, for budding horror fans about a talkative skull and a necromancer-in-training – perfect for 9+ readers, fans of Lemony Snicket series!

Mallory Vayle would list her interests as being normal, books about ponies and very definitely NOT talking to dead people. But when her parents’ carriage takes a leap off Gibbett Bridge – an accident for which there appears to be no explanation – she is taken in by a strange aunt the family disowned years ago and brought to her new, and very spooky, home.

The ghosts of her parents also take up residence in the house but are cruelly snatched away by the shadow of Hellysh Spatzl, the grimmest, wickedest necromancer in all of history. To get them back, Mallory will have to learn how to use the talents she hates and raise the old hag from the dead. Her teacher? A talking skull called Maggoty, who wants some favours in return for his help – not just a gorgeous blond wig and some sparkly earrings, but for Mallory to break the curse that has left his spirit locked inside his own skull for 500 years.

Mallory will have to lean into who she is and what she can do and make a pack with the evil Hellysh Spatzl to get her parents back while at the same time putting on a sensational Halloween spectacular at only five shillings a head for an amazed audience at Nightmare Castle. And learn to love her chatty sidekick and his glorious wig…

As darkly hilarious as The Addams Family, you’ll be laughing through every twist and turn! Join Mallory in her journey of coming to terms with her own gifts and accepting that nobody is ‘normal’.

Discover the thrilling children’s debut novel from Alexander Armstrong – actor, presenter and storyteller. A modern classic bursting with ancient magic, secret societies and fearsome foes!

For fans of Philip Pullman’s Dark Materials, Skandar, Percy Jackson and Harry Potter.

13-year-old Sam thinks he’s an ordinary boy. But destiny knows better.

Sam is part of an ancient, secret society: an order of quiet heroes who once protected the world. For decades, the Order of the Evening has lain dormant, all but wiped out by those threatened by its existence. But now the Order must rise again. For at the heart of the Order’s lost palace lies a powerful magic; magic that, in the wrong hands, has the power to destroy the world. And an age-old enemy is closing in …

Bequeathed with the mysterious seal of the Golden Linnet, Sam must uncover family secrets, face deadly foes and undertake perilous journeys. He will find allies in the most unlikely of places and learn to unlock his true powers. And he will – he must! – prevail.

It’s time to enter a world of magic, intrigue, danger and glory … if you dare!

Sink your teeth into the highly anticipated Black vampire romantasy title of 2024!

Hidden in our world, a society of vampires originating in Africa, can only feed from select human bloodlines. Each bloodline represents a House more cutthroat than the next. To ensure peaceful co-existence and inherit their legacy, human children of these families must study at an elite university before choosing a vampire companion.

Lost Heiress, Kidan Adane grew up far from Uxlay University. She is obsessively protective, mildly nihilistic, and willing to do anything to save her loved ones. When her sister, June, disappears, Kidan is convinced a vampire stole her – the alluring yet dangerous Susenyos Sagad, the same vampire bound to her own House.

To stay in Uxlay, Kidan must study an arcane philosophy, work with four enigmatic students, and survive living with Susenyos – even as he does everything to drive her away. It doesn’t matter that Susenyos’ violence speaks to her own and tempts Kidan to surrender to a life of darkness. She must find her sister and kill him at all costs.

When a murder mirroring June’s disappearance shakes Uxlay, Kidan sinks further into the ruthless underworld of vampires, risking her very soul. Here, she discovers a centuries old threat. And June could be at the very centre of it.

The Cruel Prince meets Ninth House in this dangerously romantic dark academia debut, where a lost heiress must infiltrate a secret society and live with the vampire she suspects kidnapped her sister.

From the number one bestselling author Catherine Doyle comes the most fiery enemies-to-lovers romantasy of the year. Perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Leigh Bardugo and Stephanie Garber.

In the dark underbelly of a beautiful city, two rival assassins are pitted against each other in a deadly game of revenge, where the most dangerous mistake of all is falling in love…

In Fantome, a kingdom of cobbled streets, flickering lamplight, beautiful buildings, and secret catacombs, Shade-magic is a scarce and deadly commodity controlled by two enemy guilds: the Cloaks and the Daggers – the thieves and the assassins.

On the night of her mother’s murder, 17-year-old Seraphine runs for her life. Seeking sanctuary with the Cloaks, Sera’s heart is set on revenge. But are her secret abilities a match for the dark-haired boy whose quicksilver eyes follow her around the city? Nothing can prepare Sera for the moment she finally comes face-to-face with Ransom, heir to the Order of Daggers. And Ransom is shocked to discover that this unassuming farmgirl wields a strange and blazing magic he has never seen before…

Among rumours of monsters stalking the streets and the rival guilds grappling for control of Fantome’s underworld, Sera and Ransom are drawn together by something more than just magic and must face a deadly choice – forgiveness or vengeance? Kiss or kill? Dagger or Flame?

The new teen thriller from Sophie McKenzie, the bestselling author of Girl Missing

Just who can you trust . . .

Hollie has spent her whole life on the quiet south coast. It’s not been without its challenges, but then whose life is? So, when Hollie and her best friend, Parker, start a research project on the sea-wall defences, they don’t expect to find mistakes.

Soon Hollie’s mum is at the very epicentre of the storm and her reputation called into question. And in no time at all, it becomes clear that much more than her good name is at stake – their very lives are in danger…

The world’s first graphic novel of Lord of the Flies – a masterpiece reimagined.

Before The Stand and The Hunger Games, before Battle Royale and Yellowjackets, there was Lord of the Flies.

A plane crashes on a desert island. The only survivors, a group of schoolboys. By day, they explore the dazzling beaches. By night, they are haunted by nightmares of a primitive beast and of what they’ve lost.

‘There aren’t any grown-ups anywhere.’

Orphaned by society, they must forge their own; but it isn’t long before the group is split, and their innocent games take a dangerous turn.

‘What are we? Humans? Or Animals?’

For the first time, from acclaimed artist Aimée de Jongh, comes the stunning graphic novel adaptation of this classic story, one of the BBCs ‘100 Novels that shaped our World’.