The Lifters by Dave Eggers review – a strong first children’s book
The plot may not be very original, but Dave Eggers can’t write a boring sentence - kids will love this tale of dark underground forces
Book clinic: what titles might help children deal with grief?
The Bookseller’s children’s and YA previews editor selects three titles offering a variety of perspectives on bereavement
The quest for bike-friendly children’s books in a world where cars rule
From cute cars to smiley emergency vehicles, kids’ culture is awash with rosy images of driving, so a new Mr Men book about cycling is a welcome read. What are your favourite cycling-friendly children’s books?
‘God, I love Oprah’ – what happened when I met my idol on the set of Wrinkle in Time
Oprah Winfrey is perhaps the biggest draw in Ava DuVernay’s film adaptation of the children’s classic – but behind the scenes it’s the noticeably diverse cast and crew that make this film stand out
Tracy Beaker, please never grow up
Jacqueline Wilson’s bolshie girl is now a single mum on a council estate. Raymond Briggs’s wordless Snowman is becoming a book for ‘a new and older audience’. Why can’t we leave kids’ books for kids?
Book clinic: what modern classics would you recommend for preteens?
Award-winning author Phil Earle selects a range of novels to enchant even the most accomplished young readers
Bookworm: A Memoir of Childhood Reading by Lucy Mangan review – nostalgic magic
This celebration of children’s literature excels in capturing the sense of wonder we find in our earliest books
The many tongues of Lost in Books, the only bookstore in Fairfield
Most of Fairfield, in Sydney’s west, speaks a language other than English – and now it has a bookstore to match
Fiction for older children reviews – snow quests, standup and skullduggery
A well-plotted comic quest from Harry Hill, a treat of a seafaring saga, and a Dickensian dystopia in which a fox leaves an orphanage in search of home
Jill Barklem obituary
Creator of the Brambly Hedge children’s books
Move over, Hermione Granger – now girls have real-life heroines to read about
Children are revelling in books that showcase female role models from Virginia Woolf to Venus Williams, says the freelance writer Lauren Chassebi
Illegal by Eoin Colfer and Andrew Donkin review – moving story of a child migrant
The team behind the graphic novel versions of Colfer’s Artemis Fowl series change direction with this very real and affecting tale
The Wizards of Once by Cressida Cowell review – action-packed fantasy fun
Worlds collide when a young wizard meets a warrior princess in this action-packed adventure
Claire Zorn’s grief-and-surfing story wins children’s book of the year award
One Would Think the Deep triumphs in category for older readers, with Go Home, Cheeky Animals! winning early childhood prize in CBCA prizes
The Explorer by Katherine Rundell review – wildly exciting adventure
The gripping tale of four youngsters plunged into the Amazon forest will delight with its warmth and wisdom