Holiday Reading 2001

Fiction for older readers

Alexander, Lloyd The Gawgon and The Boy
In Depression-era Philadelphia, when eleven-year-old David is too ill to attend school, he is tutored by his unique and adventurous Aunt Annie, whose teaching combines with his imagination to greatly enrich his life.
Almond, David Secret heart
Joe lives in Helmouth, a forgotten village crumbling on the edge of the suburbs. His mother has fallen under the influence of her boyfriend, whose presence overshadows Joe's every move. And then the circus arrives and, with it, the Tiger.
Avi The Christmas rat
Alone in his apartment during Christmas vacation, eleven-year-old Eric finds himself caught in a battle between a strange exterminator and the rat he wants to kill.
Avi Don't you know there's a war on?
In wartime Brooklyn in 1943, eleven-year-old Howie Crispers mounts a campaign to save his favourite teacher from being fired.
Blackwood, Gary L Shakespeare's scribe
It is 1602 in plague-ridden England when Widge, a fifteen-year-old orphan boy who has become an apprentice actor, goes on the road with Shakespeare's troupe and finds out more about his parents along the way. Sequel to The Shakespeare stealer.
Bruchac, Joseph Skeleton man
After her parents disappear and she is turned over to the care of a strange "great-uncle", Molly must rely on her dreams about an old Mohawk story for her safety and maybe even for her life.
Burgess, Melvin The ghost behind the wall
David discovers a ghost in the ventilation shafts of the building where he lives. But what is a ghost? An unusual story that combines action with an astute exploration of child psychology and the nature of memory.
Colfer, Eoin Artemis Fowl
This is an exciting story but one which perhaps failed to live up to the marketing hype that preceded it. Its strengths are its irony and inventiveness.
Colfer, Eoin The wish list
After a botched attempt to rob a pensioner's flat, Meg, along with her partner in crime, Belch, ends up in a sticky situation - dead! With the help of Laurie, the pensioner, she may win her chance for salvation.
Coman, Carolyn Many stones
After her sister Laura is murdered in South Africa, Berry and her estranged father travel there to participate in the dedication of a memorial in her name
Creech, Sharon Love that dog
Jack comes to love poetry through a personal understanding of what different famous poems mean to him, and surprises himself by writing his own inspired poem.
Crossley-Holland, Kevin At the crossing-places
Arthur de Caldicot, now squire to Lord Stephen, continues to see his life mirrored in the seeing stone given to him by Merlin. Sequel to The seeing stone.
DiCamillo, Kate The tiger rising
Rob, who passes the time in his rural Florida community by wood carving, is drawn by his spunky but angry friend Sistine into a plan to free a caged tiger.
Dickinson, Peter The Ropemaker
Ellis, Deborah The breadwinner
Eleven-year-old Parvana lives with her family in one room of a bombed-out apartment building in Kabul. As conditions grow desperate, Parvana must transform herself into a boy and become the breadwinner.
Fienberg, Anna The witch in the lake
Leo lives in a time when superstition and fear of the plague rule people's lives. The lake in his village is a forbidden and dangerous place - that's where they say the witch lives and she is always hungry for children. Leo is only a young wizard, but the witch is calling for him. Can he face her?
Fleischman, Sid Bo & Mzzz Mad
When his father dies, Bo Gamage warily moves to the Mojave Desert home of his distant and estranged relatives, the Martinkas, where he finds that "Mad" lives up to her name, PawPaw despises him and Aunt Juna hopes he'll help search for the gold mine that started a family feud.
Gantos, Jack Joey Pigza loses control
Joey goes to spend the summer with the hard-drinking father he has never known and tries to help the baseball team he coaches win the championship. Sequel to Joey Pigza swallowed the key.
Gleitzman, Morris Adults only
Griffin, Peni R The ghost sitter
When she realizes that her new house is haunted by the ghost of a ten-year-old girl who used to live there, Charlotte tries to help her find peace.
Herrick, Steven Love poems and leg spinners: a month in the life of Class 5b
Hesse, Karen Witness
A series of poems express the views of various people in a small Vermont town, including a young black girl and a young Jewish girl, during the early 1920s when the Ku Klux Klan is trying to infiltrate the town.
Hesse, Karen Young Nick's head
A fictional journal relates the experiences of Nicholas Young, who was a stowaway aboard the HMS Endeavour on its 1768 - 1771 voyage under Captain James Cook. (Published in the USA as Stowaway.)
Ibbotson, Eva Journey to the river sea
Sent with her governess to live with the dreadful Carter family in exotic Brazil in 1910, Maia endures many hardships before fulfilling her dream of exploring the Amazon River. A delightfully old-fashioned story with enough modern resonances to appeal to contemporary readers.
I'm telling you!
Prize-winning entries from the 1999 Cambridge Young Writers Award.
Langton, Jane The time bike
Eddy receives a mysterious gift from India, an old-fashioned bike that transports its rider through time.
Leeson, Robert The song of Arthur
It is the fifth century AD. A young boy is orphaned as the north of Britain is ravaged by war. Taking up his father's sword and harp, he is led across land and sea to Arthur, the renowned "Boar of Cornwall". Thus begins a retelling of the Arthurian legends, narrated by Taliesin, the orphan boy.
McAllister, Margaret Ghost at the window
A mystery about a ghost trapped in a house which slips in and out of different periods in history. The ghost appeals to the boy who lives in the house for his help to release her spirit from its confines.
McCaughrean, Geraldine The kite rider
It's not just being strapped to a kite and sent up into the sky that is dangerous for Haoyou. Beyond the horizon, an army is travelling east towards the circus, the army of Khublai Khan. If the show isn't good enough, the Khan will cut his head off.
McCaughrean, Geraldine Stop the train
Settlers in Oklahoma try to get the train to stop in their town.
McKay, Hilary Saffy's angel
Adopted Saffy sets out to discover her past.
Mark, Jan The lady with iron bones
Kasey never seems to get what she wants, until Ellen introduces her to the Lady with Iron Bones. At last she feels her prayers will be answered. Ellen meanwhile grows uneasy - she's worried the lady may fail Kasey or, worse, her dreams may start to come true.
Mead, Alice Girl of Kosovo
Although Zana, an eleven-year-old Albanian girl, experiences the turmoil and violence of the 1999 conflict in her native Kosovo, she remembers her father's admonition to not let her heart become filled with hate.
Meehan, Kierin Hannah's winter
Hannah never expected Japan to hold so many secrets.
Moore, Steve Dead Edward
Edward, aged 14, must come to terms with being a ghost.
More muck and magic
edited by Michael Morpurgo, illustrated by Quentin Blake. This collection of short stories includes Margaret Mahy's The tree rider of Izanda, set on Banks Peninsula.
Morpurgo, Michael Out of the ashes
Based on the author's personal experience of this year's foot-and-mouth epidemic in Britain.
Morpurgo, Michael Toro! Toro!
Set at the time of the Spanish Civil War.
Naidoo, Beverley Out of bounds: stories of conflict and hope
By the winner of this year's Carnegie Medal.
Nimmo, Jenny Milo's wolves
A story about human cloning.
Park, Linda Sue A single shard
Tree-ear, a thirteen-year-old orphan in medieval Korea, lives under a bridge in a potters' village and longs to learn how to throw the delicate celadon ceramics himself.
Peck, Richard Fair weather
In 1893, thirteen-year-old Rosie and members of her family travel from their Illinois farm to Chicago to visit Aunt Euterpe and attend the World's Columbian Exposition which, along with an encounter with Buffalo Bill and Lillian Russell, turns out to be a life-changing experience for everyone.
Pierce, Tamora Street magic
Former "street rat" Briar Moss must face his past when he discovers a young mage in need of a mentor. Second title in the The circle opens quartet.
Platt, Richard Pirate diary: the journal of Jake Carpenter
Starting in 1716, this describes the adventures of nine-year-old Jake. When pirates capture his ship, Jake finds himself embarking on a new life, on the wrong side of the law. He takes part in a treasure raid, encounters a sea monster, endures a terrible storm and learns about the pirate code.
Pratchett, Terry Amazing Maurice and his educated rodents
A Discworld novel for younger readers.
Ryan, Pam Munoz Esperanza rising
Esperanza and her mother are forced to leave their life of wealth and privilege in Mexico to go and work in the labour camps of Southern California, where they must adapt to the harsh circumstances facing Mexican farm workers on the eve of the Great Depression.
Salisbury, Graham Lord of the deep
Working for his stepfather on a charter fishing boat in Hawaii teaches thirteen-year-old Mikey about fishing, and about taking risks, making sacrifices, and facing some of life's difficult choices
Shearer, Alex The great blue yonder
A "humorous and deeply moving book" (Books for Keeps).
Sleator, William Marco's millions
Twelve-year-old Marco's love for travel and for his younger sister Lilly, who has psychic powers, leads him to journey to other universes, gaining the ability to go wherever he wishes without growing old. Prequel to The boxes.
Taylor, Theodore A sailor returns
Evan, whose strict father has little time for him, is delighted when his long-lost grandfather returns.
Thomas, Ruth The paper bag baby
Thompson, Kate The beguilers
Everyone knew the power of the beguilers. No one knew what they were. No one had ever caught one. But every generation threw up a beguiler-hunter: a tragic soul considered mad by the rest of the village. Rilka knows she isn't mad, but her desire to catch a beguiler will change her life - forever.
Vande Velde, Vivian The Rumpelstiltskin problem
A collection of variations on the familiar story of a boastful miller and the daughter he claims can spin straw into gold.
Wagner, Jenny Catching the Nimbin
Third in the series. The first title appeared in 1978.
Wilson, Jacqueline The cat mummy
"I have a pet. I love her lots, but she is very, very boring. Even so, Mabel, my dear tabby cat, is a good listener. Miss Smith, my new teacher, told us that in ancient Egypt, people worshipped cats. Mabel could definitely have been a cat goddess in those days." A story about coming to terms with loss.
Wilson, Jacqueline Dustbin baby
April, abandoned as a baby, tries to establish an identity for herself.

Related pages

New Zealand Fiction for older readers

New Childrens Books