School Library Board November 8th

Christmas Crackers

As the festive season is nearly upon us, here is a selection of wonderful, magical and compelling wintery tales…

The beautifully spellbinding and critically-acclaimed story of a thousand magical worlds. When daydreamer Clementine discovers a mysterious house standing in the middle of town that was never there before, she is pulled towards it by the powerful sense of a mother she never knew. The place is full of snow globes, swirling with stars and snow and each containing a trapped magician, watched over by Gan, the bitter keeper of the house.
‘One of the most purely original and imaginative children’s books I have read this year’ Piers Torday. Browns for Books (BFB)

Deep in the forest, magic is waiting . . . Sparkling with frost and magic, Shadows of Winterspell will sweep you up in a world of friendship and magic, to uncover family secrets and find out who you really are. Stella has been living behind the magic of the forest for most of her life. Lonely, she enrols at the local school, and as she begins to make friends, she discovers that she is even more different than she thought. But as autumn turns to magical winter, Stella realizes that uncovering her own family secret is the only way to release the forest from the grip of a dark and old magic. BFB

Rose is an unusual child, a North Child. For Rose was born facing north, and the old stories say she is destined to travel far from home on a dangerous journey. Making a pact with an enormous white bear, Rose travels on his back to a mysterious castle that holds a dark enchantment, a darker temptation, and the key to her true destiny… A spellbinding adventure to curl up with on long winter nights. Waterstones

Born in a Soviet prison camp, Lina has never seen the world outside until the night she escapes with her best friend, Bogdan. As the pair journey across a snowy wilderness, they are pursued by a vengeful sorceress and her pack of shadow wolves. The children will need every ounce of courage – and a whisper of magic – if they are to survive… Waterstones

The fabulously festive fifth Murder Most Unladylike mystery.
It’s Christmas, and the snow is falling in Cambridge, where the detective duo Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong are spending the festive period.
But Hazel’s hopes of relaxing amongst the beautiful spires, cosy libraries and inviting tea-rooms are dashed by the danger lurking in the dark stairwells of Maudlin College.
Two days before Christmas, there is a terrible accident.
At least, it appears to be an accident – until the Detective Society look a little closer and realise a murder has taken place. BFB

From the bestselling author of THE GIRL OF INK & STARS comes a paperback edition of this gorgeous wintry folk tale for young and old alike – an exciting adventure to the frozen north, perfect for fans of Philip Pullman. Mila and her sisters live with their brother Oskar in a small forest cabin in the snow.
One night, a fur-clad stranger arrives seeking shelter for himself and his men.
But by the next morning, they’ve gone – taking Oskar with them.
Fearful for his safety, Mila and her sisters set out to bring Oskar back – even it means going north, crossing frozen wild-lands to find a way past an eternal winter. BFB

Abi Elphinstone heads up this gorgeous collection of wintery stories, featuring snow queens, frost fairs, snow dragons and pied pipers . . . from classic children’s writers Michelle Magorian, Geraldine McCaughrean, Jamila Gavin, Berlie Doherty, Katherine Woodfine, Piers Torday, Lauren St John, Amy Alward, Michelle Harrison and Emma Carroll. ‘Captures all the excitement of the season’ The Guardian
An unmissable, enchanting treat of a collection that will be enjoyed for years to come, by readers of all ages. BFB

A fresh spin on the famous ballet The Nutcracker. Georgie gets the role of Clara in the ballet. But when the Nutcracker’s magic seeps into the real world, she must save her friend, the Nutcracker and herself. BFB

A story of friendship to treasure this Christmas . . . It’s the Christmas holidays and Thea is looking forward to spending them with her father.

She can tell him all about her plans to become a writer, and maybe he’ll buy her the typewriter she’s been dreaming of. But when Thea arrives in snowy Norway, everything feels . . . wrong. Her father is as distant as ever and now she has to share him with his new family: his girlfriend Inge and her children.

Then Thea makes a surprising discovery. Deep in the snowy woods by the house, is a bear. He’s scared and hungry and he desperately needs Thea’s help. When the town hears about a bear living in the woods, Bear’s life is in even greater danger.

Thea needs to show everyone that he’s not dangerous – he’s a good bear – if she’s to save him. A gorgeous Christmas story for readers aged 9+ that will warm your heart and take you on an adventure you will never forget. BFB

BELIEVE IN THE IMPOSSIBLE You are about to read the TRUE STORY of FATHER CHRISTMAS. If you are one of those people who believe that some things are impossible, you should put this book down right away. (Because this book is FULL of impossible things.) Are you still reading? Good. Then let us begin… BFB

It used to be the most WONDERFUL time of the year, but for years Christmas has been taken over by Winterzone. All the things that made Christmas special are gone: the human connection, the baubles passed down through generations, even the rubbish cracker jokes. Instead, Christmas is run by robots, while 3D holograms of Santa Claus called Santavatars check if you’ve been naughty or nice – and on Christmas Eve, all of the presents are delivered by ZoneDrones instead of Santa’s reindeer! But when they stumble on a curious clue, eleven-year-old Etta and her friend Monty find themselves thrown into a fight to bring back Christmas.

Racing against time and against the might of Winterzone, they must find the real Santa – before the true meaning of the festive season is lost forever… BFB
Christmas magic, delivered! The top-ten bestseller and must-have festive gift, discover the joy of gift-giving in this hilarious Christmas caper from bestselling author, Ben Miller. All Tog wants to do is work in Santa’s workshop and one wonderful day, the letter from Santa arrives: Tog has been selected as an apprentice elf!
But someone has been stealing the presents from the workshop and a case of mistaken identity finds Tog accused of being the culprit!
Can Tog use his special Christmas magic to discover the real thief and save all the presents before Christmas Eve is over? BFB

A wintery middle grade mystery collection of short stories by thirteen of the most exciting children’s authors!
Sleuthing through the snow, on a merry mysterious day, in disguise we go, investigating all the way… Waterstones

Of visions and prophesies seen in dark, dark woods. Of toys and trees come to life. Of trolls raising chaos, and of families torn apart — only to be brought back together by festive cheer. In this collection, classic tales from Hans Christian Andersen and Nobel Prize winner Selma Lagerlof blend with modern day stories from Karl Ove Knausgaard and Vigdis Hjorth. BFB

Young Adult Titles

Touching, hilarious and filled with festive cheer, the magic of the holiday season shines on these three interconnected tales of love and romance.
The perfect book for a cold winter’s night for any fan of The Fault in Their Stars, The Sun is Also a Star and Eleanor and Park. BFB
Young Adult (14+)

A short novella based on the beloved characters from Alice Oseman’s acclaimed debut novel Solitaire and graphic novel series Heartstopper – now a major Netflix series.
From the author of the 2021 YA Book Prize winning Loveless. The festive season isn’t always happy for Tori Spring and her brother Charlie. And this year’s going to be harder than most. I used to think that difficult was better than boring, but I know better now… I’m not going to think about the past few months, about Charlie and me, and all of the sad. I’m going to block it all out Just for today. “Happy Christmas, ” I say. BFB

“Hilarious, mordant, moving and rude, a yuletide delight’. When three very different siblings, Fern, Rowan and Willow, go home for a Christmas reunion at their family home in Edinburgh, it’s not long before some VERY BIG SECRETS threaten their cosy holiday … The McAllister house on Arboretum Road has seen 120 Christmases since its completion.” BFB

Atlanta is blanketed with snow just before Christmas, but the warmth of young love just might melt the ice in this novel of interwoven narratives, Black joy, and cozy, sparkling romance-by the same unbeatable team of authors who wrote the New York Times bestseller Blackout!
As the city grinds to a halt, twelve teens band together to help a friend pull off the most epic apology of her life. But will they be able to make it happen, in spite of the storm?
No one is prepared for this whiteout. But then, we can’t always prepare for the magical moments that change everything. Waterstones YA (14+)

A flurry of festive verse, We Wish You A Merry Christmas and Other Festive Poems is a collection selected and intricately, beautifully illustrated by Chris Riddell, the beloved author and illustrator behind Goth Girl, Ottoline and the Cloud Horse Chronicles. Christmas has long been a source of inspiration and a moment of reflection for poets, from traditional verse to modern works. BFB

The Classics

A Christmas Carol is one of Charles Dickens’ most loved books – a true classic and a Christmas must-read.
Ebenezer Scrooge is a mean, miserable, bitter old man with no friends.
One cold Christmas Eve, three ghosts take him on a scary journey to show him the error of his nasty ways.
By visiting his past, present and future, Scrooge learns to love Christmas and the people all around him. BFB

Every December an envelope bearing a stamp from the North Pole would arrive for J.R.R.Tolkien’s children.
Inside would be a letter in strange spidery handwriting and a beautiful coloured drawing or some sketches.
The letters were from Father Christmas. They told wonderful tales of life at the North Pole: how all the reindeer got loose and scattered presents all over the place; how the accident-prone Polar Bear climbed the North Pole and fell through the roof of Father Christmas’s house into the dining-room; how he broke the Moon into four pieces and made the Man in it fall into the back garden; how there were wars with the troublesome horde of goblins who lived in the caves beneath the house! Sometimes the Polar Bear would scrawl a note, and sometimes Ilbereth the Elf would write in his elegant flowing script, adding yet more life and humour to the stories.
No reader, young or old, can fail to be charmed by the inventiveness and ‘authenticity’ of Tolkien’s Letters from Father Christmas. BFB

“It’s a magic wardrobe. There’s a wood inside it, and it’s snowing! Come and see,” begged Lucy. Lucy has stumbled upon a marvellous land of fauns and centaurs, nymphs and talking animals.
But soon she discovers that it is ruled by the cruel White Witch, and can only be freed by Aslan, the great Lion and four children This is the second adventure in the exciting Chronicles of Narnia. BFB