The Last Generation by Miles Bavin is a young adult science fiction novel which Book Guild Publishing sent me for review.  Suitable for confident readers aged around 12 or over, The Last Generation is a book which is as much about friendship and loss as it is about a future where the Earth is dying, and the only chance may be escape... 

Our main character is teenager Ellie, a pupil at Oakham Elementary, a boarding school somewhere in England. Ellie is deaf, and impressively that's almost irrelevant to the story. She just happens to be deaf, and she is an excellent lip-reader. She is also possibly an orphan, as are many of the pupils at the school.

Billy Stink's Incredible Circus is a recent release from Book Guild Publishing, who sent us a copy for review. Written by Rik Arron, this is a very special book as the entire text is a poem, but it's still a full length short story, with some great little illustrations by Nicola Anderson.

And it's really very good...


Billy Stink runs a circus and one day a young boy, Titch, turns up. Titch has run away and the circus people have no way to find Titch's home and family, and he won't tell them anything, so they welcome him into their extended family and let him earn his keep working for the circus.

Podric Moon And The Corsican Tyrant is the first Young Adult fantasy book release from respected screenwriter and director Barney Broom. The book's main focus is young Podric, who is a computer games champion with ambition to be a jet pilot like his father, and his relationship with eccentric local games developer Archie.


Podric Moon is suitable for older teenage and young adult readers. There are some mature themes including mild sexual references and scenes, and a trigger warning as two of the female characters are assaulted.

The book opens with the death on duty of Podric's father, an RAF Pilot. Podric decides not to return to his boarding school in Ireland and the whole family move away from their RAF housing into a small rural UK village. It is there that Podric meets Archie, a games developer who has had major success in the past, but is struggling to spark interest in his games now.

Together Podric and Archie work on a new and far more immersive version of VR, called Ultimate Alternative Reality (UAR) and they use Archie's game based on the Napoleonic Wars as their world. The realism is hard to ignore and life in Napoleon's time isn't quite as romantic and fun as it first appears, although it definitely has it's moments.

Legend Of The Lost is Ian P Buckingham's debut children's book and it's a fantasy adventure story which is suitable for confident young readers aged around 9+ to teen. Set in a crossover world which is part Cornwall, part enchanted forest and part seashore, it pulls together all kinds of mystical folk in a way makes them seem highly likely to actually exist.

The book focusses on two families. One family live in local woodland and the others are staying at their holiday cottage. The holidaymakers discover a beautiful Moonstone and once it's no longer hidden they are thrown into a world of magic and mystery, with a more than a little mild peril.


The writing style is clear and easy enough for a 9 year old, but the first 1/3 of the book introduces a lot of new characters and darts to and fro between them, so to follow the events as they unfold, you need to be a fairly confident reader. Once the two families are established, as well as the friends and cohort they team up with, the real story flows well and has an increasing pace as everything, or everyone, begins to come closer together.

The Girl In The Abbey is the story of 10 year old Violet, sent away from everything she knows to live with strangers in a strange land and help work for her keep. There are no other children where she is sent, and she is left with nothing to do but explore... Then she meets Sarah...


Violet is a refugee in the second world war, which is an unusual time period for a modern book, but it all feels very natural and nothing about the history or setting seems out of place, despite the fact that the author is very young (clearly neither of us were there ourselves). I even learned a couple of new WW2 facts (and I will never cook with paraffin).

I'll start with the important bit. We absolutely love this book. 5 Simple Steps To Saving Planet Earth is a fantastic read for any young independent reader aged around 7 or over. It may also be a children's book, but it's a brilliant story that pretty much anyone can enjoy.


Funny and cleverly inventive, the science fiction and adventure storyline has hints of ancient tales with heroes like Hercules, and more modern adventurers like Percy Jackson, yet still manages to be completely different.

Our heroes are Billy Hollingworth, a regular dinosaur-loving, rugby-playing schoolkid, and the Ysygol, a tiny little alien who has been sent to find him. Billy has been chosen for a very important mission crucial to the survival of the planet, and the pocket-sized Ysygol (I-cy-gol) is his guide.

A Hedgehog Story: Hedgehog Queen by David Hills is a new release from The Book Guild Publishing. Recommended for age 3-11, reading together or independent readers, this is a smaller book and a shorter read. A tale of friendship and being helpful to others, with maybe more than a tadge of imagination...


The story follows Hamish The Hedgehog, who wakes from hibernation and explores his world. As he walks around the garden he leaves a glittery trail behind him. A young boy names Alistair cannot sleep, he spots Hamish through his bedroom window and goes outside to meet him. They both benefit from the company, so play together and become friends.

The Nokka is an excellent read which whisks you away to the land of the fairies. It does it very cleverly too, as it's very modern and easy to read, but has a classic feel and really could be set at any time...and in any woods...


The Nokka tells the tale of Jenifer and Jory, two youngsters living in Cornwall. Their names annoyed me, partly because of the spelling I'll admit, but I soon got over it as they are both intelligent and likeable youngsters. They have just enough bravery to get through the story, while still showing their own weaknesses. Jenifer's 8 year old brother Tristan features heavily too, and even he is a nice lad who you wish no harm to.

Jory's father went missing many years ago, so he lives with his mother, while Jenifer and Tristan live with their parents and Grandmother. Jenifer's late Grandfather told wonderful tales about little people living in the woods, and claimed to have even rescued one which had become caught in a snare. The little man dropped his bag, which Jenifer's Grandmother still has, and it contains 2 special stones and a riddle.