3 new chapter books for newly confident readers

I regularly receive children’s books to review

Sam Wu is NOT afraid of the dark by Katie and Kevin Tsang (Egmont, £5.99)
In the latest book by husband and wife author duo Katie and Kevin Tsang, the funny Sam Wu is forced to go on a camping trip where he is faced with sleepless nights and worries of big bears and aliens. The 205-page long book Sam Wu is NOT afraid of the dark features short chapters and sentences, funny black and white illustrations by Nathan Reed, plenty of dialogue and lots of giggles.

Where Dani Goes, Happy Follows by Rose Lagercranz (Gecko Press, £7.99)
The My Happy Life series about Dani, written by Swedish author Rose Lagercranz, follows the adventures of school girl Dani and is known for covering challenging topics like sorrow and illness. In Where Dani Goes, Happy Follows, Dani is sent to her grandparents for the winter break, but persuades them to let her travel to see her best friend Ella on her own. It’s a moving story about friendship and modern family life, and my eyes were filled with tears for the majority of the second half of the book. The 196-page long book features short chapters and black and white illustrations by Eva Eriksson.

Night Zookeeper: The Penguins of Igloo City by Joshua Davidson (Oxford University Press, £6.99)
Last year saw the introduction of the Night Zookeeper book series about the brave Will and his friends who enter the zoo at night and goes on mysterious adventures and meet magical creatures. The third book in the series Night Zookeeper: The Penguins of Igloo City sees the heroes arriving in an ice town where penguins follow the strict rules of their leader. The 192-page long book–aimed at over 7s–features black and white illustrations by Buzz Burman, and it comes from the creators of NightZookeeper.com, an educational website for inspiring a love of writing and reading. Night Zookeeper is now also an animated children’s TV show on Sky TV.

Tags: Books, Chapter books, Children's books, Egmont, Gecko Press, Night Zookeeper, Oxford University Press, Review