Year 7 

Synopsis

The Goldfish Boy by Lisa Thompson

A story about finding friendship when you're lonely -and hope when all you feel is fear. Twelve-year-old Matthew is trapped in his bedroom by crippling OCD, spending most of his time staring out of his window as the inhabitants of Chestnut Close go about their business. Until the day he is the last person to see his next door neighbour's toddler, Teddy, before he goes missing. Matthew must turn detective and unravel the mystery of Teddy's disappearance - with the help of a brilliant cast of supporting characters. Page-turning, heart-breaking, but ultimately life-affirming, this story is perfect for fans of Can You See Me, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time and Wonder. It is a book that will make you laugh and cry.

Welcome to Nowhere by Elizabeth Laird

His old address is rubble. His new address: who knows? Omar used to be from Syria. What does that mean now? Like most kids, Omar doesn’t care about politics. YAWN. He’s got better things to think about. But when war comes to his Syrian city – the beautiful, ancient city of Bosra – there’s no escape from politics anymore. (You’re doing well if you escape the bombs.) Before long, whole streets are flattened to rubble. People are dying. Even worse, his clever big brother, Musa, is mixed up in it all. Soon Omar and his family are forced to flee. But where do you go when you don’t have a home anymore?

Auggie and Me by R.J. Palacio

(Sequel to ‘Wonder’ – book gifted to Year 6 into 7 over the summer holidays)

WONDER tells the story of Auggie Pullman: an ordinary boy with an extraordinary face, whose first year at school changed the lives and the perspectives of everyone around him.

AUGGIE & ME is a new side to the WONDER story: three new chapters from three different characters - bully Julian, oldest friend Christopher and classmate Charlotte - giving an insight into how Auggie has touched their own lives. Thought-provoking, surprising, infuriating, heartbreaking and heartwarming, AUGGIE & ME is a must-read for the thousands of readers who loved WONDER.

Year 8 

Synopsis

Pig Heart Boy by Malorie Blackman

If you found out you were dying, what might you do to stay alive? Would you swap your heart for a new one – from a pig? Cameron is thirteen, and he needs a heart transplant. But he’ll be dead before he tops the waiting list. Then a pioneering doctor makes a startling proposal. He can give Cameron a pig’s heart. It’s a weird idea. It’s risky, controversial and it’s never been done before. It could lead to public outrage. It might not even work. But Cameron has to give it a try…

‘Noughts and Crosses’ by Malorie Blackman

Two young people are forced to make a stand in this thought-provoking look at racism and prejudice in an alternate society.

Sephy is a Cross -- a member of the dark-skinned ruling class. Callum is a Nought -- a “colourless” member of the underclass who were once slaves to the Crosses. The two have been friends since early childhood, but that’s as far as it can go. In their world, Noughts and Crosses simply don’t mix. Against a background of prejudice and distrust, intensely highlighted by violent terrorist activity, a romance builds between Sephy and Callum -- a romance that is to lead both of them into terrible danger. Can they possibly find a way to be together?

Small Steps by Louis Sachar

(Sequel to ‘Holes’ – the Year 7 class reader studied in English lessons).

 Armpit and X-Ray are living in Austin, Texas. It is three years since they left the confines of Camp Green Lake Detention Centre and Armpit is taking small steps to turn his life around. He is working for a landscape gardener because he is good at digging holes, he is going to school and he is enjoying his first proper romance, but is he going to be able to stay out of trouble when there is so much building up against him? In this exciting novel, Armpit is joined by many vibrant new characters, and is learning what it takes to stay on course, and that doing the right thing is never the wrong choice.

Year 9

Synopsis

Noah Can’t Even by Simon James Green

Poor Noah Grimes! His father disappeared years ago, his mother's Beyoncé tribute act is an unacceptable embarrassment, and his beloved gran is no longer herself. He only has one friend, Harry, and school is... Well, it's pure hell. Why can't Noah be normal, like everyone else at school? Maybe if he struck up a romantic relationship with someone - maybe Sophie, who is perfect and lovely - he'd be seen in a different light? But Noah's plans are derailed when Harry kisses him at a party. That's when things go from bad to utter chaos.

Paper Butterflies by Lisa Heathfield

June's life at home with her stepmother and stepsister is a dark one--and a secret one. Not even her dad knows the truth, and she can't find the words to tell anyone else. She's trapped like a butterfly in a net. Then June meets Blister, a boy from a large, loving, chaotic family. In him, she finds a glimmer of hope that perhaps she can find a way to fly far, far away. Because she deserves her freedom. Doesn't she?

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is a murder mystery novel like no other. The detective, and narrator, is Christopher Boone. Christopher is fifteen and has Asperger's Syndrome. He knows a very great deal about maths and very little about human beings. He loves lists, patterns and the truth. He hates the colours yellow and brown and being touched. He has never gone further than the end of the road on his own, but when he finds a neighbour's dog murdered he sets out on a terrifying journey which will turn his whole world upside down.

Year 10

Synopsis

The Boy Who Steals Houses by C.G.Drews

Can two broken boys find their perfect home? By turns heart-breaking and heart-warming, this is a gorgeously told, powerful story.

Sam is only fifteen but he and his autistic older brother, Avery, have been abandoned by every relative he's ever known. Now Sam's trying to build a new life for them. He survives by breaking into empty houses when their owners are away, until one day he's caught out when a family returns home. To his amazement this large, chaotic family takes him under their wing - each teenager assuming Sam is a friend of another sibling. Sam finds himself inextricably caught up in their life, and falling for the beautiful Moxie.

But Sam has a secret, and his past is about to catch up with him.

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

From the first moment of her freshman year at Merryweather High, Melinda knows this is a big fat lie, part of the nonsense of high school. She is friendless, outcast, because she busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops, so now nobody will talk to her, let alone listen to her. As time passes, she becomes increasingly isolated and practically stops talking altogether. Only her art class offers any solace, and it is through her work on an art project that she is finally able to face what really happened at that terrible party: she was raped by an upperclassman, a guy who still attends Merryweather and is still a threat to her. Her healing process has just begun when she has another violent encounter with him. But this time Melinda fights back, refuses to be silent, and thereby achieves a measure of vindication.

In Laurie Halse Anderson's powerful novel, an utterly believable heroine with a bitterly ironic voice delivers a blow to the hypocritical world of high school. She speaks for many a disenfranchised teenager while demonstrating the importance of speaking up for oneself.

Boys Don’t Cry by Malorie Blackman

In Boys Don't Cry, bestselling author Malorie Blackman explores the unchartered territory of teenage fatherhood.

You're waiting for the postman - he's bringing your A level results. University, a career as a journalist - a glittering future lies ahead. But when the doorbell rings it's your old girlfriend; and she's carrying a baby. Your baby.

You're happy to look after it, just for an hour or two. But then she doesn't come back - and your future suddenly looks very different.

Malorie's dramatic new novel will take you on a journey from tears to laughter and back again.