Easons Children and YA books of the month have been released and there are some amazing books selected for young readers! Lots of our kids picked up a few books over lockdown and now that it looks like we may be starting to see the first few signs of restrictions lifting, we don’t want them to lose this good habit. And the best way to ensure they keep on reading is by supplying them with amazing books.
Easons selections have something for every age group, including some series, standalones and some seriously adorable picture books! Check out their top picks and some of their bestsellers below!
‘Skullduggery Pleasant 14; Dead or Alive’ by Derek Landy (Harper Collins) (12-15 years)
Skulduggery, Valkyrie and Omen return in the 14th and penultimate novel in the internationally bestselling Skulduggery Pleasant series - and their most epic test yet.
In a matter of days, the world will change. Billions of lives will be wiped away in a final, desperate search for the Child of the Faceless Ones - she who is destined to bring about the return of humankind's ancient overlords. To prevent this, Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain have one last - terrible - option: the assassination of Damocles Creed.
With protests stirring in the magical city of Roarhaven, with riots and revolutions on the horizon, Valkyrie must decide who she wants to be: the hero who risks everything for a noble ideal, or the killer who sacrifices her own soul for the fate of humanity. The decision must be made, and time is running out.
‘Starboard’ by Nicola Skinner (Harper Collins) (9-12 years)
The extraordinarily inventive and inspiring new middle grade novel from the rapturously acclaimed author of BLOOM, this is the story of Kirsten, an apparently happy and successful 11-year-old YouTube star who meets a ship that comes alive and is claimed by it as its new captain as it breaks free from its dry dock.
Inspired by the true history of the SS Great Britain, Starboard is about the friendship, heroism and bravery that you can find in others, whether they're made of flesh or iron. It's about taking control of your own life and going on epic adventures. But most of all, it's about finding out who you really dare to be, when you're completely out of your depth.
‘Girls Play Too’ by Jacqui Hurley (Merrion Press) (8-12 years)
Irish sportswomen have been breaking the mould for a very, very long time. In 1956, Maeve Kyle became our first female Olympian, and in 1978 rally driver Rosemary Smith broke the country's land-speed record! Through the 1990s and 2000s we had world champions in Sonia O'Sullivan, Derval O'Rourke and Olive Loughnane, and more recently, the fantastic Katie Taylor, Kellie Harrington and Annalise Murphy have been among those who have put Irish sportswomen on the map.
This book breaks the mould once more, as a first ever compendium of stories for children about our best contemporary sportswomen. With a fairy-tale touch, RTÉ's Jacqui Hurley tells the stories of women who have proved that being a girl is not a barrier to sporting success.
Each story is one of overcoming big challenges, and the role models celebrated here are sure to inspire the next generation of Irish sportswomen. Featuring twenty-five dazzling athletes, and with delightful pictures by five wonderful female Irish illustrators, Girls Play Too is a celebration of come of our brightest and best sporting stars, and of all that you can achieve if you try your best and never give up on your dreams.
‘Lily Steps Up’ by Judi Curtain (The O’Brien Press) (9+)
From the author of Lily at Lissadell and the 'Alice & Megan', 'Eva' and 'Time After Time' series.
Lissadell House, Sligo, 1913. Friends Lily and Nellie work long hard hours as housemaids for the Gore Booth family in the Big House. And yet these are days filled with friendship, fun, and even madcap bicycle rides with Maeve, daughter of the famous Republican, Countess Marcievicz.
But Lily knows there's an empty place in her friend's heart. Nellie is all alone in the world; she grew up in the workhouse, where she was separated from her sisters. Lily longs to help her, but could she end up losing all she has - even her livelihood. And what will happen to her hopes and dreams? Just how much would you give up for a friend?
A story of friendship set in the changing world of early 20th century Ireland.
‘The Beast of Buckingham Palace’ by David Walliams (Harper Collins) (9-12 years)
Walliams weaves a richly imaginative fantasy adventure that is vividly brought to life with Tony Ross’s stunning illustrations.
The year is 2120. London is in ruins, the people are hungry and darkness has fallen across the world. Prince Alfred, a sickly boy of twelve, has never known life outside Buckingham Palace. But evil forces are at work, and soon Alfred must do battle with the King of the Beasts – the Griffin…
Walliams’s legions of fans will be enthralled by this page-turning tale of myth, magic and the most Machiavellian of villains.
David Walliams said, “This book is a real departure for me. It is a science-fiction fantasy adventure set in London one hundred years in the future. I hope my readers will love coming on this magical journey with me.”
‘The 130-Storey Tree-House’ by Andy Griffiths (MacMillan Children’s Books) (12-15 years)
There are lots of laughs at every level in The 130-Storey Treehouse, the tenth book in the number one bestselling Treehouse series from Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton.
This is our Treehouse, come on up! We've added 13 news levels to our Treehouse including soap bubble blaster, a GRABINATOR (it can grab anything from anywhere at any time), a time-wasting level, a toilet paper factory (because you can never have too much toilet paper) and an extraterrestrial observation center . . . Which will come in handy when giant flying eyeballs from outer space come to grabinate US!
‘Guard Your Heart’ by Sue Divin (MacMillan Children’s Books) (12-15 years)
Derry. Summer 2016. Aidan and Iona, now eighteen, were both born on the day of the Northern Ireland peace deal. Aidan is Catholic, Irish, and Republican. With his ex-political prisoner father gone and his mother dead, Aidan's hope is pinned on exam results earning him a one-way ticket out of Derry. To anywhere.
Iona, Protestant and British, has a brother and father in the police. She's got university ambitions, a strong faith and a fervent belief that boys without one track minds are a myth. At a post-exam party, Aidan wanders alone across the Peace Bridge and becomes the victim of a brutal sectarian attack. Iona witnessed the attack; picked up Aidan's phone and filmed what happened, and gets in touch with him to return the phone. When the two meet, alone and on neutral territory, the differences between them seem insurmountable. Both their fathers held guns, but safer to keep that secret for now.
Despite their differences and the secrets they have to keep from each other, there is mutual intrigue, and their friendship grows. And so what? It's not the Troubles. But for both Iona and Aidan it seems like everything is keeping them apart , when all they want is to be together . . .
‘The Outlaws Scarlett and Browne’ by Jonathan Stroud (Walker Books) (12-15 years)
Set in a broken, future England, where gunfights and monsters collide, this is the exciting first title in a phenomenal fantasy teen series by the bestselling children's novelist.
England has been radically changed by a series of catastrophes - large cities have disappeared and London has been replaced by a lagoon. The surviving population exists in fortified towns where they cling to traditional ways, while strangely evolved beasts prowl the wilderness beyond. Conformity is rigidly enforced and those who fall foul of the rules are persecuted: some are killed, others are driven out into the wilds. Only a few fight back - and two of these outlaws, Scarlett McCain and Albert Browne, display an audacity and talent that makes them legends.
‘The Dead Zoo’ by Peter Donnelly (Gill Books) (0-4 years)
'My favourite book from anywhere in the world this year.' - Ryan Tubridy
Mr. Gray is a very serious man. And he is in charge of a very old, very serious museum filled to the brim with stuffed animals. Mr. Gray does not like people. He does not like children. In fact, he is most at home with things that are stuffed. So when a real live mouse decides to move into the Dead Zoo, Mr. Gray is determined that she must go. That is, until he needs her help. Another instant classic from the creator of the award-winning President picture book series.
‘The Giant Jumperee’ by Julia Donaldson (Puffin Books) (0-4)
Rabbit was hopping home one day when he heard a loud voice coming from inside his burrow. "I'M THE GIANT JUMPEREE AND I'M SCARY AS CAN BE!"
When Rabbit's friends Cat, Bear and Elephant come to help they are each scared away in turn by the mysterious voice. He can squash you like a flea, he will sting you like a bee and he's taller than a tree! But who is the Giant Jumperee?
Inspired by a traditional African tale, this read-aloud classic from internationally bestselling author Julia Donaldson, beautifully brought to life by award-winning illustrator Helen Oxenbury, is now available as a board book for little hands.
