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Summer reading for 11–15 year olds

Longer books often tackling complex themes, these books are ideal to keep independent older readers interested in reading.

Gill Lewis | Age 10+
Joe has always loved the moorlands: the wildness, the freedom, the wide open space. But since his father died, everything has changed, and the moors are no longer a place of refuge. Now the whole community is divided over the fate of the hen harriers that nest there – and Joe is stuck right in the middle, with a choice to make and a huge secret to keep.
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Ben Davis | Age 12+
14-year-old Joe Cowley didn't think his luck could get any worse. But then he finds out he has to share a bedroom with his new step-brother – wedgie-giving school bully Gav James – and Joe realizes all his worst nightmares are about to come true!
So he’s decided to write a blog. To help get his life back on track, because frankly it can’t get any worse. Warning: contains embarrassing parents, freaky friends, treacherous parrots and many laugh-out-loud episodes for readers aged twelve and over.
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Gillian Cross | Age 12+
Money is worthless. Armed robbers roam the streets. No one is safe. Matt and his little brother, Taco, escape through the Channel Tunnel. Their mother said they would be safe on the other side. She was wrong. After Tomorrow is an unflinchingly poignant but ultimately hopeful story from Carnegie Medal-winning author Gillian Cross, exploring the struggle for survival within refugee camps.
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Nikki Sheehan | Age 13+
People used to call them 'friends' and said how they were good for your brain. And then a day came when all that changed… when they became an enemy. Now, anyone found harbouring a rogue imaginary person is in for the Cosh, an operation that fries your imagination and zaps whatever's in there, out of existence…
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Ali Sparkes | Age 10+
Ben and Rachel have resigned themselves to a long, boring summer. Then they find a hidden underground vault in the garden containing two frozen figures, a boy and a girl. And when Rachel accidentally presses a button, something unbelievable happens…
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Matt Dickinson | Age 12+
When a butterfly startles a young rabbit, and the rabbit makes a horse rear, it starts a chain of events, over the course of one day, that will change people's lives… and end people's lives. This heart-stopping adventure by writer, film maker and climber Matt Dickinson will leave readers breathless.
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Philip Reeve | Age 12+
Zen Starling, thief and adventurer, has found a safe and comfortable life at last. But safe and comfortable has never been what Zen wants… Take a ride in Philip Reeve’s incredible imagination as he returns with this wonderful conclusion to the Railhead series. If you're new to the series, be sure to check out the original Railhead first.
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Joanna Nadin | Age 12+
Asha Wright has it all – a barrister mum, a place at a private school, and big dreams of a life where she's a real Somebody. But when her mum gets cancer, Asha's fairytale fades and she finds herself back in Peckham, at a tough new school with new teachers, new kids… and Angel Jones, queen bee.
Angel is everything Asha wants to be – beautiful, brash and, above all, brave. But being one of the gang comes at a cost, and Asha is forced to play a dangerous game of Truth or Dare. Where will it end?
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