Discover Irish Children’s Books for August—older readers
Following the choices for younger readers this August, the team at Discover Irish Children’s Books choose their favourite books for older readers.
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AUGUST BOOKS FOR OLDER READERS
Wintour’s Game, by Brían Dungan (Little Tiger Press) Age 13+
Alex has only got this far in life by living off her wits. Well, that and an ability to see glimpses of the future – a useful talent when you need to stay one step ahead of the law.
Then a robbery goes wrong, and her path is set on a collision course with the enigmatic teen millionaire Colman Reece. Like Alex, Cole is a Temporal – someone who can manipulate time – and he needs Alex’s help for a heist that only she can pull off.
But with the clock ticking, the sinister Temple on their tail and the hunt for a mysterious weapon underway, Alex soon learns that even being able to see the future doesn’t always give you the winning hand…
This is the first book in an action packed series.
Braids Take a Day, by Zainab Boladale (The O’Brien Press) Age 13+
Uncovering secrets is like undoing braids, one at a time… Abidemi can’t wait for summer, her last one at home in Ennistymon before she heads off to college.
She’s ready to say goodbye to school, spend some time learning new braids and hairstyles – and see where things go with her friend Jack. But when she meets an intriguing woman from Nigeria, secrets start to unravel. Suddenly Abi’s life and family are changing and she needs to think hard about who she wants to be…
The Riddle of the Disappearing Dickens, by Alan Nolan (The O’Brien Press ) Age 9+
Best friends Molly Malone and Bram Stoker are headed to London to collect his brother Thornley from boarding school. When they arrive, they discover that Charles Dickens has been kidnapped. Our heroes resolve to find the great author. Can Molly and Bram solve the riddle of the disappearing Dickens?
Cover illustration by Shane Cluskey.
Sisters of the Moon, by Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick (Faber ) Age 15+
A wonderfully atmospheric story about holistic mysticism, the unexplainable and the power of female friendship. From Carnegie-shortlisted author of On Midnight Beach.
Suzy Button is grieving. Grieving for her dead mother, but also for the friends she’s left behind, the father who no longer laughs and the life that she once had. In desperation she finds herself in the garden in the middle of the night, under the light of a supermoon, wishing everything would change.
And suddenly, it does.
Into school walks Rhiannon, a fearless new girl who makes Suzy her instant best friend. And Rhiannon seems to make things . . . happen. If Suzy wants something, somehow Rhiannon can make it so: friends, beach parties, midnight photoshoots under a moonlit sky . . . Suzy’s life is finally moving forward again.
But where did Rhiannon come from? She doesn’t seem to live in Sallycove. Why can’t Suzy go to her house? And why does she never have any stuff?
Suzy might be her best friend, but does she really know who Rhiannon is?
Sword of the Sun, by Sinéad O’Hart (Piccadilly Press) Age 9+
When Ben and his family have to leave Dublin and move into the remote house where his mother grew up, he’s not optimistic about what lies ahead. For him and his brother Fin, it’ll mean fitting in to life with his aunts and a cousin he doesn’t even know.
But what Ben doesn’t expect is that he will be drawn into the mysteries of the wild mystical landscape. He can sense its power, and he can see a light shining from the mountain on the horizon. Even stranger, crows are gathering, watching him and haunting his dreams. As Ben uncovers the stories of Ireland’s mythical heroes and warriors that obsessed his grandfather right up until he died, Ben begins to wonder if there is more to the tales than pure fantasy. It seems like trouble is stirring – and will he have the power to face it?
A powerful new book for children aged 9 and up, drawing on Celtic folklore.
