Booklist

Colin Brake
Doctor Who: Decide Your Destiny No. 3: The Time Crocodile
Penguin (128 pages) 9781405903509
This is one of a series of interactive books, from a number of different authors, in a genre where the reader is frequently given options to choose. The choices lead to different pages and direct the course of the story as a whole and what happens next from page to page. Read on - the story becomes what you make of it within the choices and resulting plot developments given the elements selected; you could even just get back in the Tardis and leave! This used to be an incredibly popular format but then seemed to reach a hiatus; yet was always sought out by ardent admirers. This 'choose your own storyline' has undergone a publishing revival in recent years and many really enjoy reading one short section at a time and then making a choice.

D J Brazier
Last of the Leatherbacks
Matador (124 pages) 9781905237692
This shortish book suitable for all and every age of reader is in fictional form but with a firm foundation in fact. It recreates the hazardous life of the leatherback turtle, an endangered species. The communication abilities of this creature and her quest for a mate come into the saga, leading up to the 3000 kilometre journey back to the beach of her own birth to lay eggs. Towards the end a young boy's intervention helps her to return to the sea. This extraordinary life story is told in such a factual manner that coverage of the effects of man's carelessness, especially over discarded nets, is heartrending and truly appalling. It is a fine read and, particularly as it is accessible to young readers, an important book.

Simon Cheshire
Saxby Smart, Private Detective: The Curse of the Ancient Mask and Other Case Files
Piccadilly (139 pages) 9781853409431
This is the opening book of a series featuring a 12-year-old clever-dick of a lad who is also, happily, able to make fun of himself. Three separate cases have to be solved in three different stories. Each throws up real clues for the reader - as a Dr Watson foil to the cheerful jokes of Saxby Smart - to follow and to have a good crack at solving things first. Here are the problems of a Japanese mask linked with industrial shenanigans; purple splodged homework; and a lost Clasp of Doom brooch. All told, this is a good concept very well realised in a different and involving format.

Andrew Cope
Spy Dog: Unleashed
Puffin (160 pages) 9780141321233
This series about an extraordinary dog is very popular and it's no surprise that this is another Chatterbooks group's choice. Spy Dog Lara has to deal yet again with the evil Mr Big who has escaped from prison and is aiming to obtain the world's most valuable jewel, the fantastic Millennium Diamond. It is a gripping adventure with a cleverly created central character and is liberally laced with good humoured excitement as Spy Dog saves the day once more.

Joshua Doder
grk and the Hot Dog Trail
Andersen (202 pages) 9781842705537
Lots of action, sharply accurate writing, rather stylised baddies, a strong plotline, suspense and the touching loyalty of a boy and dog relationship make this series a winner. The story is very involved and requires some attention to keep a firm grasp of things, including a gold statue (stolen of course), hot dogs, and a grand chase sequence from Central Park to Brooklyn, for New York is the setting. Here is a book from a series gaining in popularity and fans can claim the exclusivity of knowing how to pronounce the name of the dog with the sparkling personality: grk.

Berlie Doherty
The Humming Machine
Young Corgi (136 pages) 9780552554022
Tam is the hero here. Great-Granpa Toby has disappeared and Tam knows full well that the ominous faery folk are to blame because they'd tried to hold on to his sister in a previous book, The Starburster. Yes, these are books many boys will enjoy: and, yes, they do feature 'faery' folk - but these are quite definitely not the sweet'n'nice pink variety. Tam becomes Prince Tamlin in the otherworld and needs to find the Damson Hag, a quest involving never looking back and a rhyme ending with an alert to 'follow the stinking fox'. Elements of the folk tales told in story and song are cleverly woven into a heroic challenge for a young lad with all the panache and skill of this wonderful writer.

Pippa Goodhart
Raven Boy
Catnip (144 pages) 9781846470257
It is the year 1666 and in the eyes of a lad, Nick Truelove, the king himself, Charles II, is to blame for the death of both his parents. Planning revenge he finds inspiration in the darting, dare-devil behaviour of a raven and associates himself with the bird. He manages to infiltrate the Tower of London but then his intentions are interrupted by the Great Fire as well as by a wholly unexpected encounter with the King. This is a short, sharp historical novel chosen as a favourite by a Chatterbooks group. The extra dimension of Nick's affiliation with the raven and the pace of the book mean it has a broad age and interest appeal.

Lucy Hawking and Stephen Hawking
George's Secret Key to the Universe
Doubleday (320 pages) 9780385611817
Space in all its incomprehensible enormity is the scene. George and his friends from next door, Annie and her scientist father Eric, are the main characters. Add a computer named Cosmos, with an abundance of power and function, and a journey into the heart of the universe can be experienced. The story is a vehicle for some extremely cleverly-wrought information and there are many readers who will be totally hooked. It is certainly a good bet for those who might have begun to feel that they don't like reading fiction. There is so much here.

Neal Layton
Mammoth Academy in Trouble
Hodder (144 pages) 9780340930304
The mammoth pair, Oscar and Arabella, have become firm favourites for picture-book audiences and this is their second outing after having graduated into story books. It is a good move for readers with developing confidence to meet familiar characters in a new format and this retains the attractiveness of the slightly surreal feel of the other books. The story reads aloud well though listeners should be able to relish the amazing off-beat mix in the drawings too. Here our mammoth youngsters need to repel an attack on their wonderful school from obnoxious humans who all seem to be named 'Ugh!' It's a lot of fun.

Joan Lennon
The Wickit Chronicles: Fen Gold
Andersen (132 pages + information) 9781842706329
'An exciting adventure story, it is also a bit scary,' said one reader about the previous book of this series. Quite right too: set around a fenland monastery at the time of Norse raids this is the scene for a lively fantasy. The grand cast of characters is headed by Pip, an orphan, and Perfect, an animated stone gargoyle ensconced on Pip's shoulder much of the time. This adventure has a messenger for the king, the mysteries of the Black Bog, a beautiful Norse girl, and a hunt for what may be treasure. There is good-sized print and pleasing writing and story-making.

Alan MacDonald
Troll Trouble: Goat Pie
Bloomsbury (124 pages) 9780747586296
This author is a prolific writer of lively books. It is his text which goes with the illustrations of David Roberts for a Chatterbooks group book choice Dirty Bertie: Burp. In the fourth of this Troll series, Granpa from Norway visits the Troll family, who live in Biddlesden, for the celebration of Trollmas, and he expects all the traditions and trimmings - especially goat pie. But things are different over here where Ulrik has coco-pops for breakfast. A sequence of down-to-earth humorous situations and misinterpretations leads to the saving of the charmer of a goat. 'You've lost your bogle!' says Granpa, but all's well in the end. With lots of fierce troll and sweet goat drawings interspersed in the text, this is an attractive presentation.

Sophie Masson
Thomas Trew and the Flying Huntsman
Hodder (184 pages) 9780340894880
Thomas has essential differences from most of us, he has access out of grey London streets into The Hidden World. In this instance he gets embroiled with aerial folks who live up aloft in the clouds. But their idyllic lifestyle is threatened by the ominous Flying Huntsman with his terrifying horse and dogs. Thomas intervenes and appears to be gaining the upper hand when matters take an unexpected turn. The first of these books is Thomas Trew and the Hidden People. This is the seventh, and with books in the series appearing in rapid succession, there were just a couple of months between two titles in late 2007. But they are by a fine fantasy author and the consistent high quality of imaginative writing is attracting a good readership and a lot of fans.

Chris Mould
Something Wickedly Weird: The Icy Hand
Hodder (192 pages) 9780340945056
Books from Chris Mould seem to be appearing thick and fast. His distinctive illustrations are particularly appealing to boys who like detail and expressive faces in their fantasy. This is part of a series with more than a touch of chills and shivery thrills but with both adventure and humour as well. There's a girl companion for the hero, who meets such exotics as McGuffin the ibis concealed in a stuffed pike's throat and a headless ghost using the frost on a window for an 'I want my head' message. All the scares are good-natured in the end - though the finish of the book creates the anticipation that if you like this one then the next one, The Silver Casket, will be a necessity. What does happen next?

Jak Shadow
F.E.A.R. Adventures: The Crime Lord
Wizard Books (128 pages) 9781840466935
In this series the reader becomes a member of a crime-fighting agency and gets embroiled in making decisions to drive the story forward. This device is always popular, hence an earlier book in the series, The Space Plague, appearing as a boy readers' choice. Here Triton the evil, and alien, genius is a threat to the whole of the world. A training mission, four time zones and a hint of virtual reality keep the reader/ adventurer alert and involved.

Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell
Hugo Pepper (The Third Far-Flung Adventure)
Random House Children's Books (264 pages) 9780385607254
This team of illustrator and writer creates some wonderful books, including the ten-strong series of 'The Edge Chronicles'. This is one of those superb fantasy books which imagines the perfect people and places stories ought to generate. At the centre is Firefly Square with a varied population of traders and others who are links in the chain of revelation about the mystery surrounding young Hugo. Each turn of the page reveals more intricately drawn pictures and more intrigue around the plot. This is a great enjoyable read from outstanding talents, perfectly in tune with their audience and with the imaginations of young minds.

Jeremy Strong
Lost! The Hundred-Mile-an-Hour Dog
Puffin (144 pages) 9780141323251
Streaker is left alone, hopeless Trevor Two-Legs having wandered off again, so while waiting she decides to 'guard' the sausages and pies in a van with an open door. When the van drives off, it is Streaker who is lost! Then comes a sequence of episodes: teasing a fierce brainless guard-dog behind a security fence, piddling through the wire on to Mr Security's boots, raiding a butcher's for food, seeking something to drink - in a toilet bowl. Zoo creatures cause a diversion and a historic race with an escaped cheetah ensues. This is a sequel to previous well-loved stories about a resourceful dog who has to cope with human inadequacies. Clever devices and non-stop laughs drive this sure-fire hit along at a rollicking pace.

In an interview with Chris Stephenson for Carousel, Issue 30, Summer 2005, Jeremy Strong said: 'Humour … it's the way I see things … I regard humour as a pathway to reading. I taught at primary school for seventeen years, so have a missionary zeal to get young people reading.'

Charlie Small aka Nick Ward
The Perfumed Pirates of Perfidy (The Amazing Adventures of Charlie Small)
David Fickling Books (188 pages) 9780385611237
With even the tiny copyright credit made over to Charlie Small there can be no doubt of the authenticity of these extraordinary journals recording marvellous adventures! The text is mixed in with lots of notes, drawings and diagrams so the details that fascinate many are in plentiful supply. In this, the third venture to be published, Charlie becomes a pirate cabin-boy for a crew of malicious women. He gets embroiled in scare-brained episodes with sea-creatures and even a mechanical jet swordfish. Gripping stuff with drama after drama and no pause for breath. The books are attracting a devoted readership.

Val Wilding
Who's Toby Tucker?: Keeping Sneaky Secrets
Egmont (137 pages) 9781405218405
There is a mixture of fact in with the fiction so that the story unforcefully teaches about the mummies and farming of Ancient Egypt. Toby has only torn slips of paper in an old chest to give any clues about his origin, for he is an orphan living with foster parents. His attempts to solve the puzzles on the papers leads to time travel as he becomes one of his own ancestors. This is all well handled and makes for a good story within a story. In other books of the series other historical times will be encountered in Toby's continuing quest.

Jonny Zucker illustrated by Ned Woodman
Max Flash Mission 1: Game On
Stripes (134 pages) 9781847150189
Max is being trained as a stage magician and escapologist and these skills prove essential in his other role - as a secret agent. This first mission takes him into the internal machinations of a computer game to track down the evil Deezil. The style is that of a words-led graphic comic, with the illustrations by Ned Woodman an integral part of the storytelling. It's all non-stop action driven relentlessly on with wit and zapping dialogue.