Hamish And The Neverpeople
This is one of 2016’s most anticipated new kids books. After the enormous success last year of Hamish And The WorldStoppers, Hamish – an ordinary 10-year-old with a big mission – is back with the worrying knowledge that the people of Earth are in big trouble. Facing a peculiar world with shadowy figures, evil monsters and metal oddballs, only Hamish and his gang can save the day.
By Danny Wallace
Age: 8-12
Buy from 11 February 2016: amazon.co.uk
Peep Inside A Fairy Tale: Little Red Riding Hood
With its gorgeous illustrations and fun flaps for small fingers, this is a great addition to Usborne’s popular Peep Inside series. Young children can take a journey into the woods with Little Red Riding Hood, peer through the trees and watch Granny’s cottage emerge, as delicate cutaways are layered to create a magical filigree effect.
By Anna Milbourne
Age: 3+
Buy from February 2016: usborne.com
How Not to Disappear
Sixteen-year-old Hattie is not having the summer she had in mind: her two best friends have abandoned her, she is stuck babysitting her twin siblings – and she’s discovered she’s pregnant. You’ll laugh, and cry, and then laugh again with Hattie as she faces tough choices, in a moving novel that packs a real emotional punch.
By Clare Furniss
Age: Young adult
Buy from February 2016: bookdepository.com
THE MANY WORLDS OF ALBIE BRIGHT
This book offers accessible insights into such perplexing subjects as quantum physics, while telling a great story at the same time. When Albie’s mum dies, he wants to know where she’s gone and, on hearing his dad mutter something about a parallel universe, decides to send himself through time and space – with the aid of a cardboard box and radioactive banana – to find her.
By Christopher Edge
Age: 9+
Buy from 14 January 2016: nosycrow.com
BEEP BEEP BEEP, TIME FOR SLEEP!
From the author of Aliens Love Underpants, this is a charming bedtime story for little fans of big machines – a team of sleepy vehicles, to be precise, who are making their way home after a busy day constructing a new motorway. With big, bright imagery, onomatopoeic interludes and funny rhymes, this is likely to become a favourite night-time read.
By Claire Freedman and Richard Smythe
Age: 3+
Buy from 11 February 2016: waterstones.com