THE Story Of Tutankhamun by Patricia Cleveland-Peck, illustrated by Isabel Greenberg, published in hardback by Bloomsbury
PATRICIA Cleveland-Peck, the author of You Can't Take An Elephant On A Bus, has turned to the mysteries of ancient Egypt for this fascinating non-fiction tome for schoolchildren.
We're introduced to a cast of characters through picture profiles, before learning about the childhood of the young Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun, how he succeeded his father Akhenaten, married his half-sister Ankhesenamun and then died mysteriously at 18.
The ins and outs of mummification are explained – a process that took 70 days – before we meet Howard Carter 3,000 years after the pharaoh's burial and learn about the race to find his tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
The magical moment Carter discovers the top of a sunken staircase will send shivers down your spine, and so will Isabel Greenberg's dark and light illustrations of the contents of Tutankhamun's tomb.
Rumours of a curse after the fifth Earl of Carnarvon's untimely death, as well as mysteries solved and found are swiftly dealt with, and there's a long section on the pharaoh's sarcophagus, which ought to have been at least introduced during the section on mummification and his funeral, among other slightly confusing lapses between words and pictures.
But overall, it's an eye-opening and engaging read that will spark children's interest in history.
7/10
Kate Whiting
The New Adventures Of Mr Toad: Toad Hall In Lockdown by Tom Moorhouse and illustrated by Holly Swain, published in paperback by Oxford Children's Books
FIVE months after we were treated to the first in a new series of Wind In The Willows-inspired adventures, Tom Moorhouse and Holly Swain are back with a second – and it's just as pacy, clever and fun.
In A Race For Toad Hall, we were introduced to a younger generation of animal companions: Girl toad Teejay and her friends Ratty and Mo, who stumbled upon the original Mr Toad, locked in his own Ice House (and preserved) by the dastardly weasels.
The trio teamed up with Mr T and Mrs Badger to win back Toad Hall from the weasels – and now Toad is renovating his home with the help of a band of dubious squirrels.
As they remove his antique furniture and replace it with innumerable gadgets, including runaway hoovers and a malfunctioning fried-egg machine, Teejay and co. start to suspect the squirrels aren't who they claim to be – and soon they're helping the irrepressible toad win back his home all over again. A sparkling standalone read filled with Holly Swain's jump-off-the-page, green-toned drawings.
We're glad Mr Toad lives on.
8/10
Kate Whiting
Freshers by Tom Ellen and Lucy Ivison, published in paperback by Chicken House
IT'S fresher's week at York Met, and first years Phoebe and Luke went to high school together.
Luke may not remember, but Phoebe, who's had a crush on him since forever, is fully, excruciatingly aware of this fact.
Written as an alternating two-hander, the pair bumble through their first week, grappling with hangovers, getting stoned, eating Nutella, just about remembering to go to lectures, and trying to be likeable enough to make friends – bumping into each other as they go. Writers Tom Ellen and Lucy Ivison draw strongly on their own time as York students (where they were a couple until the end of their first year), which makes it so convincing that, if you've already been to uni, you'll feel yourself propelled back in time, and if you're currently preparing to go, seriously, this is all the survival guide you'll need.
From wearing a duvet to go buy milk, to drinking punch from the (absolutely disgusting) bath tub and crumbling under the pressure of who you're going to live with next year, it's got the terror, joy and freedom of first year nailed. Phoebe's friendships in particular – with restrained medical student Negin; madcap, chatterbox Frankie; and huggable Josh – distil the intensity of having to make friends for life with people, just because they're on your corridor in halls.
Oh, and it's hilarious. Get it for every sixth-former/fresher-in-waiting you know.
9/10
Ella Walker
