Monthly Archives: January 2016

Once upon a time we all knew the old fairy tales, but this is another time, and they have taken a new form...

Now available for 10-13 year olds with a reading age of 6-7, this enchanting and amusing new series of reluctant reader titles is based on old fairy tales, but with a modern twist! Our new series, Once Upon Another Time..., includes a princess who prefers frogs to princes, Goldilocks the vandal, an intergalactic Red Riding Hood, a ragtag band of characters forming a superhero league and more! Read more about individual titles in this series below!

Written by a selection of authors with alternate pages of text and illustrations, these humorous and light-hearted stories will capture the imagination of the reader and keep them wanting to read more. All six titles have the look and feel of a real book and feature dyslexia-friendly font and line spacing. To aid with comprehension there are questions at the back and also facts about the story, author and illustrator.

We are delighted to announce that Adventure Park is now ready to open its doors to the public! Brand new sets of this brilliant series should this very moment be winging their way across the country to eager classrooms and libraries alike.

We are very proud of this series. Cavan Scott has created a magical world, full of energy and humour, complimented perfectly by Abby Bulmer's warm and expressive illustrations.

We hope that primary-aged reluctant readers (or anyone who likes the look of them really) will enjoy reading these books as much as we've enjoyed putting them together.

Do let us know what you think via Twitter or Facebook. Off to get some candyfloss now before Frank the hamster eats it all...

We are very excited to announce that our hotly-anticipated second set of Dark Reads is now in print and available!

Each title in Dark Reads II takes inspiration from a different Shakespearean play, presenting an easy and engaging introduction to an otherwise rich and complicated plotline.

Shakespeare will be much talked about in 2016, as this year commemorates 400 years since his death. His brilliant work lives on to this day, and Dark Reads II is the perfect first step for teenage reluctant readers towards forming a familiarity with some of his classics.

Un-daunting, gripping and with brilliant illustrations, these books could be exactly what your library needs this year. Look out for reviews and general feedback on our social media accounts, and scroll back over this blog for individual book summaries and artwork. Enjoy!

Aside from the technical aspects of teaching children to read independently and well, teachers are developing children’s passion and enthusiasm for reading; encouraging children to read frequently and widely, to love literature in all its forms and to become lifelong readers. The government talk widely about teaching children to ‘read for pleasure’ and it is this aspect of reading that fascinates me most. I wonder – is it not ‘in you’ to love or hate reading?

To celebrate the launch of our new series Snow-Man, we are giving away a SIGNED SET!

Snow-Man, written by Tommy Donbavand, is our new series of exciting tales about a chilly superhero and his friends!

For an interest age of 9-12 years, Tommy has imaginatively named the characters to really grab the reader's attention. Cole Day is just an ordinary boy who transforms into Snow-Man when he eats a carrot and is joined by his sidekicks, Thin Ice and Frostbite! Together they fight an array of ingenious villains such as Ray Burn, Gail Force and Chuck Ingit-Down (I bet you're smiling now!). Steve Beckett has really brought these characters to life with his bright, colourful illustrations which reward the reader and entice them to turn the page.

With exciting and witty plotlines appropriate for the age of the reader, but with an accessible reading age of 7-8, all six titles in Snow-Man will captivate reluctant readers, inspire confidence and ensure a positive and fun reading