Hurrah for summer! A time to relax, rejuvenate, and read, read, read. Here we share just some of the many brilliant books we’ve enjoyed this summer so far.
Picture Books/Graphic Novels
Farah Loves Mangos – Sarthak Sinha (pub. Flying Eye Books)
This is a book that just shouts SUMMER!
Farah loves to eat the mangos from Grandpa’s tree, but this year the tree is bare! Farah tries everything she can think of to get it to fruit, from singing to it, to gifting it a scarf but it’s no good. Finally she decides the tree is useless, but when Grandpa sits Farah on a swing and gives her a push, Farah sees the tree isn’t useless at all.
With illustrations full of summer colours and brimming with life, this is a book to share and enjoy.
The Magic Callaloo – Trish Cooke and Sophie Bass (pub. Walker Books)
The wonderful Trish Cooke hits the heights with this fairy tale which is a glorious twist on Rapunzel, set in the Caribbean and accompanied by sumptuous bright illustrations by Sophie Bass.
The Callaloo is a magical plant; when a villager eats one of its leaves and makes a wish, that wish will come true. But there is always someone who’s selfish and greedy, and that is true in this tale too – but as in any good fairy tale, they get their comeuppance!
A story full of love, community, and courage.
The Memory Key – Nigel Baines (pub. Hachette Children’s)
A gentle and thought provoking graphic novel that tackles how Lily and the Grandad she loves come to terms with Alzheimer’s.
Lily knows that Grandad’s mind keeps wandering, and that he goes off and does silly things. But when she discovers Grandad’s magical toy train in a box, she’s sure she can help him get better. As they steam into Grandad’s memories, Lily starts to learn about his childhood in Hungary, but when something goes wrong, it seems this will be a memory they can’t escape from.
A book that doesn’t shy away from how unkind people can be about someone different, but deals with it in an understanding way.
Non-fiction
Tasty Tales: Facts and Fables About Our Favourite Foods – Anna Lena Feunekes (pub. UCLan Publishing)
This literally is a feast of a book, with over 30 illustrated short stories about foods from around the world – from the Chinese granny who became a tofu trailblazer, to why there is a pineapple house in Scotland. Covering dishes, ingredients and beverages, this is a wonderful cornucopia of mouth-watering tales. Head to Anna’s website here to check out some of the recipes!
Weird Sea: Zombie Starfish, Underwater Aliens and Other Strange Tales of the Ocean – Sophie Burrows (pub. Puffin Books)
Dive into this weird and wonderful book full of facts and stories about the sea.
Divided into four sections, each containing several short articles, this highly illustrated book is great for browsing. Learn about the Mary Celeste, the octopus invasion of 2017, and the sunken city of Port Royal, as well as the zombie starfish, the jellyfish that live forever, and what exactly the sea’s strange black smokers are. There’s so much to discover about the deep blue in this fascinating book!
Short Illustrated Fiction
Destiny Ink: Sleepover Surprise – Adeola Sokunbi (pub. Nosy Crow)
Summer is the ideal time to have a sleepover outside, and Destiny is invited to her first ever one in Olivia’s garden. But Destiny and Fuzzy, her hamster, are a little bit nervous. After all, outside it’s dark and there might be scary monsters…but monsters don’t have to be scary and Trog, who finds his way into her bedroom, certainly isn’t.
Any primary child will easily relate to Destiny and her family and friends, and the line drawings capture the little girl perfectly. We look forward to meeting her again soon!
Bertha & Blink: Rumble In the Jungle – Nicola Colton (pub. Little Tiger Press)
Bertha the bear, inventor extraordinaire, has left the glitz and glamour of the city after being betrayed by her fellow inventor and best friend Finnius, and has moved to a treehouse workshop far away in the jungle.
Here she happily invents all day, that is until there is a strange rumbling. Determined to find out what’s causing the disturbance, Bertha invents Blink and together they set out to find the source, only to find a funfair where not everything is as it seems…
This is a delightful new series in full colour ideal for young readers, full of gadgets and gizmos, and wonderful characters.
Jack-Jack, A Dog In Africa – Ben Garrod and Charli Vince (pub. Zephyr Books)
This is a delightful book about Jack-Jack the dog, who lives in a West African rescue centre for baby chimpanzees. Jack-Jack tells his story with warmth and humour; we get to meet his friends, fleas, and favourite things, and see how he happily looks after the chimps. That is until a camera crew arrives, and Jack-Jack meets Ben. Suddenly his life is set to change in an unexpected way!
With lively line drawings that capture the many animal characters, and a storyboard at the end of each chapter that shows what has happened, this book is just brimming with charm.
Woodland Explorer’s Club: Benji’s Emerald King – Ewa Jozefkowicz and Gillian Flint (pub. Zephyr Books)
Like all the illustrated short fiction above, this is another first in a new series.
Set in Willow Wish Woods, we meet Benji and his friends in Pine Class at Willow Wish School. Benji is steeped in the stories his Gramps tells him about the woods when Gramps was a child, and the secrets the woods hold. So when Benji and his friends hear strange music, they decide to investigate – and so begins the Woodland Explorer’s Club!
Throughout the story are Super Woodland Facts about the trees, animal habitats, and other details and tips for exploring forests and woods, together with a section at the back for you to write your own observations. A great little book for taking out and about!
Dungeon Runners Level 1: Hero Trail – Kieran Larwood and Joe Todd-Stanton (pub. Nosy Crow)
And now live…..tonight’s episode of Dungeon Runners!
So opens this new series by Kieran Larwood and what a brilliant start it is. We are introduced to the programme by hosts Dirk the Orc and Jenna the Giant, a programme watched by everyone on the island of Zerb (a map is included at the front of the book). No new teams have joined in years, but when a team in the Bottom Feeder League becomes a dragon’s dinner, a call goes out. Could Kit, a gnorf (part gnome, part dwarf) with not great stats, form a team and compete? It certainly won’t be easy!
With brilliant black and white illustrations that bring the runners and their trials to life, this is a sure-fire winner with younger readers who seek excitement and a bit of peril.
That’s it for recommendations for summer so far, with tasty non-fiction, and a range of illustrated books bursting with life. Let us know on Threads or Twitter/X which ones you like the look of!
If any of the books have grabbed your attention, then you can pick up a copy of them via our recommendations list below.
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If you’re looking for more book round-ups, check out our previous reviews here.
