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Circus Maximus: Rivals on the Track by Annelise Gray

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ACHUKA Book of the Day 26 Jan 2022

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A follow-up to this author’s well-received debut, Circus Maximus-Race To The Death, a Times Children’s Book of the Week.

In this new book, Dido, the only girl ever to have raced to victory at the Circus Maximus, Rome’s greatest sporting arena and her beloved horse, Porcellus, are in hiding, and the Emperor Caligula has put a price on their heads.

Can she outwit the emperor and his bounty hunters? And will a shocking family secret stop her in her tracks, or spur her on to make a daring return, helped by a one-eyed mare with a heart as brave as her own?

Horses, history, mystery, thrilling entertainment and sensational storytelling race neck and neck through the second pulse-pounding adventure in Annelise Gray’s 9+ series set in Ancient Rome.

Read this interview with the author and discover that there are more books in this adventure series to come.

Into the Sideways World by Ross Welford

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ACHUKA Book of the Day 21 Jan 2022

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From the author of When We Got Lost In Dreamland, The Kid Who Came From Space, The Dog Who Saved The World, and Time Travelling With A Hamster…

[Cover illustration by Tom Clohosy Cole.]

When twelve-year-olds Willa and Manny hear of a mysterious animal prowling their town, they are determined to prove it is real. Following the creature into a cave one full moon, they are swept into an alternate, ideal, world – one where pollution and conflict have been conquered decades ago and even their own families seem happier.

But when they return, no one believes them. So, with a global war looming in their own world, their quest for proof of the Sideways World becomes ever-more urgent, in a nail-biting race against time.

And Willa and Manny will have to make an impossible decision: because once you find a perfect world, can you ever leave it behind?

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The Case of the Smuggler’s Curse by Mark Dawson ill. Ben Mantle

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Lucy, Max, Charlie and Joe aren’t looking for new friends – they have too many of their own problems to worry about. But when the four of them, and Charlie’s faithful dog, Sherlock, spot a phantom figure on Southwold beach one winter’s night, they are thrown together to unravel a mystery that none of them expected.

The deeper they dig, the bigger the adventure becomes – motorboats and tracking devices, bedroom breakouts and daring sea rescues are all in a day’s work for the After-School Detective Club. But when their investigations lead them into trouble with the police, there is only one thing left to do – they must go undercover for a final showdown with a ruthless gang of smugglers who will stop at nothing to get what they want.

Mark Dawson is a best-selling author for adults. This is, ACHUKA believes, his first venture into writing for children.

The Horror of Dunwick Farm – The Crooked Oak Mysteries by Dan Smith ill Chris King

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The mystery is growing at Dunwick Farm and it all started with a plane crash … Crooked Oak’s mystery-solving team return with another spine-tingling adventure, perfect for fans of Stranger Things and Crater Lake.

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[See also The Beast of Harwood Forest]

When an unidentified plane crashes in the fields next to Dunwick Farm in Crooked Oak, it quickly becomes clear that it was carrying some unusual cargo. As people in the town fall suddenly ill and animals start behaving strangely, friends Pete, Krish and Nancy try to find out what was in the glass boxes on board the plane. But as they uncover the facts, the trio realise that they are becoming entangled in a terrifying web …

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Wishyouwas: The tiny guardian of lost letters by Alexandra Page ill. Penny Neville-Lee

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ACHUKA Book of the Day 25 Nov 2021

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“This is a wonderful story about friendship, family and also being open to new ideas and accepting others who are very different.  Alexandra Page has created a new Christmas classic.” BfK 5-star review
“A truly mesmerising, heartfelt story with a classic feel.” BookCraic

It’s 1952 in smog-shrouded London. Christmas might be fast approaching, but with her mum away and Uncle Frank busy running the post office, Penny Black is lonelier than ever. All that changes when Penny discovers a small, fluffy, funny, springy and – most importantly – talking creature in the post office one night, trying to make off with a letter. But Wishyouwas is no thief. He’s a Sorter, and he soon introduces Penny to a fascinating secret world hidden in the tunnels underneath the city’s streets. Self-appointed guardians of lost mail, the Sorters have dedicated their lives to rescuing letters that have gone astray and making sure they get delivered to their rightful owners. Penny is determined to protect the Sorters, but how long will she be able to keep them safe with Stanley Scrawl, the sinister Royal Mail Rat Catcher, on the prowl? Can Penny save the Sorters and deliver a joyful Christmas?

With beautiful black and white illustrations and embellishments from the talented Penny Neville-Lee, and an extra special surprise beneath the jacket, Wishyouwas is a gorgeous hardback to gift and treasure.

Follow Alexandra Page on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexandrapagebooks/

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Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen

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“The vibrant focus on West African religious traditions organically enriches beloved, familiar elements—like another well-known mermaid, Simi will turn to seafoam if she acts on her love for a human—in a story bursting with innovative inspiration, such as maps braided into hair that showcase West African civilizations’ mathematical prowess. A divine debut that explores the glories of West African myth, religion, and history.” KIRKUS
“Dazzling debut” Publishers Weekly
“Utterly captivating” Sheaf & Ink

This is the history-changing story of a great love – a love that will threaten worlds and anger Gods.

Simidele is one of the Mami Wata, mermaids duty-bound to collect the souls of those who die at sea and bless their journeys back home to the Supreme Creator. But when a living boy is thrown overboard a slave ship, Simi saves his life, going against an ancient decree and bringing terrible danger to the mami wata. Now Simi must journey to the Supreme Creator to make amends – a journey of vengeful gods, treacherous lands and legendary creatures. If she fails, she risks not just the fate of all Mami Wata, but also the world as she knows it.

Natasha Bowen, of Nigerian and Welsh descent, is a writer, a teacher, and a mother of three children. She studied English and creative writing at Bath Spa University before moving to East London, where she taught for nearly ten years.

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Peanut Jones and the Illustrated City by Rob Biddulph

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The first title in a new adventure series for 8+. Fizzing with magic, danger, friendship and art, this exciting, funny, middle-grade debut is from the bestselling creative genius behind #DrawWithRob.

Some legends are born, some are drawn . . . Drawing feels like magic to Peanut Jones. But art can’t fix her problems. Her dad has gone missing, and she’s stuck in a boring new school. Until the day she finds a unique pencil turbo-charged with special powers. Suddenly she’s pulled into a world packed with more colour, creativity, excitement and danger than she could ever have imagined. And maybe, just maybe, she might find out what happened to her dad.

Adam-2 by Alastair Chisholm

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ACHUKA Book of the Day 5 Aug 2021
Blackwell Children’s Book of the Month August 2021

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“In Adam-2 Chisholm has given us an allegory which hits hard in the current climate and a thought-provoking solution to the ills of the world.” BfK 5-star review

An exciting and hugely gripping science fiction thriller—set in the author’s home city, Edinburgh—with incredible twists and turns.

The robot Adam-2 has been locked in the basement of a lost building for over two hundred years – until one day he is discovered by two children, and emerges into a world ruined by a civil war between humans and advanced intelligence. Hunted by both sides, Adam discovers that he holds the key to the war, and the power to end it – to destroy one side and save the other. But which side is right? Surrounded by enemies who want to use him, and allies who mistrust him, Adam must decide who – and what – he really is.

Follow the cover designers, Dan Mumford, on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danmumforddraws/

 

The Incredible Record Smashers by Jenny Pearson ill. Erica Salcedo

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“This funny, moving novel brilliantly combines humour and empathy to give children a realistic but hopeful depiction of parental depression that they can understand and discuss with others.”
BfK 5-star review 

A record-smashing, feel-good adventure packed with heart, humour and Guinness World Records from Costa Award-shortlisted Jenny Pearson, and Kid Normal illustrator Erica Salcedo.

Lucy is a fixer of broken things. But there’s one thing she can’t fix and that’s her unhappy mum. Until she comes up with an INCREDIBLE plan. Along with her best friend, Sandesh, Lucy is going to SMASH a world record. Because she’s convinced that starry Paul Castellini – Record Smashers TV host and singing legend – is the answer to her mum’s problems. But breaking a world RECORD when watermelons, kumquats, two baddies and a 30 cm shatter-resistant school ruler are involved isn’t quite as easy as Lucy thought. Can she learn that sometimes happiness doesn’t come with a plan?

Follow the illustrator on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ericasalcedoillustration/

Dark Peak by Marcus Sedgwick

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Times Children’s Book of the Week 17 Jul 2021

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“Dark Peak is essentially a rollicking mystery, but it also has a moral philosophical core, asking: why do we treat some people differently from others and can we do anything to change that?” The Times

During a long, hot summer, two children, Stephanie and Stephen, go missing while on a school trip to Lud’s Church, a deep chasm in the heart of the Peak District. Porter and his friend, Sam, are sent to fetch help. When they return they are surprised to find that although Stephanie has been found, no one is even looking for Stephen anymore. Why can no one remember what’s happened him? What happened in the dark of Lud’s Church? And why does Porter get the feeling that supernatural forces from deep in the past are at play? Marcus Sedgwick fuses mythology and mystery to create a compelling tale that is perfect for less-confident readers.