Time to think about books for the kids, as mid-term is almost here and Christmas is near

With the mid-term almost here and Christmas round the corner, it’s time to think about books for the kids. Here’s my Top 20 picks of new and recently published children’s books. Most titles are published by independent Irish publishing houses, Little Island and Gill Books, and prove that you can forget about international authors. We publish outstanding books for children right here.

Two huge tomes full of facts and fun are Irelandopedia (Gill) and Animalopedia (Gill) by Kathi and John Burke. The former first appeared 10 years ago and this is a republish with updates and enhancements. Both books are information and brilliant illustrations.

Oscar Wilde’s Stories for Children (Little Island), illustrated by Lauren O’Hara, is a big old-fashioned book with exceptional illustrations. Printed and bound in Italy, on superior paper and with every single page embellished, it’s just exquisite and contains Wilde’s six most beloved children’s stories.

Lucy Kennedy has two new books out, Jess Finds her Magic (Gill) and The Friendship Fairies Save the Circus (Gill). Kennedy has really found her niche with the telling of stories for young children and both books are charming.

Shane Bergin’s The Experimenters (Little Island) has Luke and Ruby spending their mid-term break in their grandparents’ house and discovering some old science books. Their grandparents help them reveal the world through myriad experiments and there’s plenty of (harmless) experiments for young readers to try out at home.

Dancing king Arthur Gourounlian’s Little Arty and the Happy Dance (Gill) is a charming picture book about dancing, for reading aloud to the very young.

The Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Irish Shore (Gill) is another beauty. Written by Lucy Taylor, this fully illustrated and colourful book covers just about everything you’ll find on the beach or on a stony coastline, as well as the fish that keep close to the shore.

If your child is fond of graphic novels, don’t let them miss the funny Unfairies by Huw Aaron (Puffin), informing us that ‘Fairies are greedy. Fairies love fighting. Fairies are about as magical as slugs…’ How could you resist?

Kieran Fanning, who teaches in Skryne primary school, had a big hit last year with his book Haunted Ireland. This year he has published Enchanted Ireland (Gill), another fat, generous tome full of gorgeous illustrations and telling the stories of our myths, legends and folktales from every county in the land. An outstanding book.

Ever wondered about Ireland’s first dinosaur? Olivia Hope has written an almost true story about it! The Lonely Only Dinosaur (Gill) tells the story of Marsha, all on her ownsome and feeling lonely. But not for long.

Dagogo Hart’s Lantern Smoke (Gill) is based on his autobiographical poem about a young boy who finds himself far from home and experiencing a new life abroad. Touching and beautiful.

Chris Judge’s Evil Duck and the Nest of Destiny (Gill) is another graphic novel, funny and full of adventures, as Evil Duck strives to be the world’s greatest (and most powerful) popstar, and poor Eddie and Flo doing their damnedest to stop him.

For pony fans, Esme Higgs’s The Pony Whisperer (Puffin) is a must, where Daniel discovers an abandoned horse. But with domestic worries, school and the stables, is he taking on too much?

Dino Mode Activated! (Little Island) by Jen Wallace features Oleg, who has dyslexia, Rory who has ADHD, and Daria, who has autism. Will Oleg’s mysterious new camera help him become an internet sensation? You’ll have to read it to find out.

Inspired by Irish folklore, Ellora McGee Trainee Banshee: The New School (Gill) sees young Ellora McGee enrolled in the country’s only magic school, Shee le Chéile NS. Ellora’s no stranger to magic, her whole family has magic powers, and Ellora has to learn to use her piercing wail for good and not for any other purpose. This is a funny first book in a new series of Ellora McGee stories.

Donncha O’Callaghan’s latest Disaster Dad book is Fun Day Fiasco (Eriu) and has Finn, Emma, Mam and Dad competing in a charity fun day. They’re on a strict ‘no doughnuts’ diet and they’re intent on winning all the prizes. But chaos reigns and the day soon becomes a disaster.

Published just in time for Halloween, Milly McCarthy and the Haunted House Hullabooloo (Gill) is Leona Forde’s latest Milly novel and sees Milly and her friends turning a local barn into a haunted house for a fundraiser. But when kids are laughing instead of screaming on their haunted house tour, Milly takes drastic action, and there are drastic results.

The teenagers are not left out here, and two YA novels worth reading are Moira Buffini’s Torchfire (Faber), and Triona Campbell’s Enter the Endgame (Scholastic).

In Torchfire, Elsa is on the run, desperately seeking a safe haven. Nightingale is being held against her will and forced to use her songlight against her own people. Piper is being promoted among the Airmen, where nothing but bloodshed awaits him. And Rye has stumbled on a mysterious airship. This is a speculative fantasy where Buffini’s characters are charged with saving civilisation. Edge of your seat stuff.

Enter the Endgame is another thriller, the third in a trilogy. Part murder mystery, part cat-and-mouse chase, this book sees Asha Kennedy continue to play the deadly virtual reality game ‘Shackle’. But playing it might cost Asha and her love Dark their lives. For fans of The Hunger Games and similar dystopian fiction, it’s another pulse-pounding page-turner from Triona Campbell.

Footnotes

The Bram Stoker Festival runs in Dublin from October 31 to Monday November 3 and promises lots of spooky entertainment for adults and families. See bramstokerfestival.com for more information. Going off piste, I informed my daughter, then about seven years old, that for years I lived next door to Bram Stoker’s house in Marino. ‘Who’s Bram Stoker?’ says she. ‘The writer!’ says I. ‘Oh’, says she. ‘And did he ever invite you in for coffee?’

The Púca Festival, held in Trim and Athboy, runs from October 30 to November 2 and has really expanded in a few years. There’s an impressive line-up this year, see pucafestival.com for details.