Younger readers — Holiday Reading 2013

David Almond Mouse, bird, snake, wolf: The gods have created a world. They’ve built mountains, a sea and a sky and now their days are filled with long naps in the clouds (and tea and cake). That’s until Harry, Sue and little Ben begin to fill the gaps of the world: with a mousy thing, a chirpy thing and a twisty legless thing. As the children’s ideas take shape, the power of their visions proves to be greater than they, or the gods, could ever have imagined.
Mac Barnett Battle Bunny: Alex has been given a saccharine, sappy, silly-sweet picture book about Birthday Bunny that his grandma found at a garage sale. Alex isn’t interested — until he decides to make the book something he’d actually like to read. So he takes out his pencil, sharpens his creativity, and totally transforms the story!
Anna Branford Violet Mackerel’s pocket protest (New Zealand): Violet Mackerel loves Clover Park. She especially loves to collect acorns from under the big old oak tree. But the oak tree is going to be cut down. Violet does not think this is a good idea! The oak tree is important. It is worth trying to save. And Violet hopes her pocket protest will be just the thing to save it.
Gillian Cross The cupcake wedding: When Holly’s sister announces her engagement, wedding planning begins in earnest. But a tight budget means missing out on some wedding essentials - like the cake! Holly decides to put her baking skills to the test and surprise the happy couple with 1000 cupcakes! What could possibly go wrong?
Anne Fine The Only Child Club: Ryan wants to start a club. An Only Child Club. He knows that as an only child he doesn’t always have the same experiences as some of his classmates. He recruits two similarly deprived friends who join him in an experimental few days of constant bickering, fighting over who gets the free gift from the cereal box and spending a whole day making a model, only to have it destroyed.
Anne Fine The Killer Cat runs away: Tuffy doesn’t feel wanted at home any more. His owners just don’t appreciate him. So what if he broke the new TV? Got fur on all Dad’s clean clothes? Ate Tinkerbell the kitten’s special kitten-food? All accidents! But they’re making such a fuss! So Tuffy decides to make a break for it.
Vince Ford Tale of a blond puppy (New Zealand): Scrap is a pup with an incredible ability to control sheep, but he doesn’t know who he is or where he comes from. While Bill, the old sheep dog, teaches him to use his talent, Scrap searches desperately for his mother. He soon finds out what Bill is afraid to tell him. He’s not like everyone else.
Neil Gaiman Fortunately, the milk: Unfortunately, Dad forgets the milk. So, before breakfast, he has to go to the corner shop, and this is the story of why it takes him a very, very long time to get back. Featuring: Professor Steg (a time-travelling dinosaur), some green globby things, the Queen of the Pirates, the famed jewel that is the Eye of Splod, some wumpires, and a perfectly normal but very important carton of milk.
Mordicai Gerstein How to bicycle to the moon to plant sunflowers: Too busy with school, soccer, and other activities, a young boy who wants to cheer up the sad, lonely moon presents the reader with a step-by-step plan for becoming the first human to bicycle to the moon.
Andy Griffiths Ed and Ted and Ted’s dog Fred: When Ted’s dog Fred bites Ed on the head, Ed sees red! A tale of fast cars, spills and thrills, and a whale called Ned. A rhyming story of mischief and mayhem that will delight everyone, especially beginner readers, accompanied by Terry Denton’s energetically comic illustrations.
Sylvia Vanden Heede Wolf and Dog: Dog is Wolf’s cousin. Wolf is Dog’s cousin. That’s strange because: Wolf is wild, and Dog is tame. Wolf lives in a forest on top of a hill. Dog doesn’t. Dog has a basket. And a boss. These laugh-out-loud stories are about the important things in life — like food, family and fleas!
Diana Wynne Jones Freaky families: Two quirky and hilarious stories reissued as a single volume. Two groups of children learn that while you can choose your friends, dealing with your family can make you wish you could choose a different one…
Sherryl Jordan Fishtales (New Zealand): Four fabulous fishing stories, from the funny to the fairly outrageous! From a story about an eel that grows too big for the house, to a story of a mystery monster with lashing tentacles and a fondness for snitching fishing rods.
Patricia MacLachlan White fur flying: A sad and silent nine-year-old boy finds his voice when he moves next to a family that rescues dogs.
Veronique Massenot The three musicians: The kingdom of Mirador is terrified of a monstrous, fire-spewing beast that lurks just outside the village walls. One spring day a troupe of musicians and their dog enters the gates. Suddenly there is fun and romance, song and dance. The people are no longer afraid - until the loathsome beast does, in fact, appear…
Allan Say The favourite daughter: Yuriko, teased at school for her unusual name and Japanese ancestry, yearns to be more ordinary until her father reminds her of how special she is.
Lemony Snicket The dark: Laszlo is afraid of the dark. The dark lives in the same house as Laszlo but mostly it spends its time in the basement. It doesn’t visit Laszlo in his room. Until one night… it does.
Sally Sutton Diary of a frog (New Zealand): The hilarious diary of a young frog desperate to win the role of human princess in her school production of The Frog Prince. She’s sure she’s pretty enough (she has more warts than any other girls in class), but will she ever overcome her terrifying case of stage fright?
Germano Zullo Little bird: A man drives his truck up to a cliff’s edge. Unable to go any further, he opens the back door of his truck and a flock of birds flies out, but, a small timid bird remains. Surprised and delighted, the man acts kindly towards the bird and an intimacy develops. Whimsical with a capital W.