If I Didn't Have Elbows, by Sandi Toksvig, illustrated by David Melling
(Zero to Ten, £4.99)

Age 6-10yrs

Subtitled "The Alternative Body Book", this colourful, witty and direct book looks at how all our internal organs are interdependent. Each double-page spread gives at least one result of not having a heart, lungs, blood or skin, and augments the information by looking at the way in which we and other species use those organs and functions. As a means of arousing a child's curiosity, the approach is imaginative, and there is potential for creative writing inspired by the various questions and scenarios posed by the book.

Duel, by David Grossman, translated by Betsy Rosenburg
(Bloomsbury, £4.99)

Age 11-15yrs

The Marsh Award was established to raise the profile of books written in languages other than English. We are poor at exploring such literature, although it is heartening to find Egmont and Orchard publishing strongly in this area. Duel, this year's winner, is short, touching and often comic. It has a distinctive accent, but this is a distinctive book. David, volunteering in an old people's home, finds himself in the midst of a long-standing row between two old men. This is a poignant reminder that strong feelings aren't the preserve of the young. Given years to stew, they emerge as unadulterated fury.