Bradley Chalkers IS the oldest kid in the fifth grade. He tells enormous lies. He picks fights with girls. No one likes him - except Carla, the new school counselor. She thinks Bradley is sensitive and generous, and knows that Bradley could change, if only he weren’t afraid to try. But when you feel like the most-hated kid in the whole school, believing in yourself can be the hardest thing in the world....

There are stories about people who want to live forever. This is not one of those stories.... Alfie Monk is like any other nearly teenage boy - except he's 1,000 years old and can remember the last Viking invasion of England. Obviously no-one believes him. So when everything Alfie knows and loves is destroyed in a fire, and the modern world comes crashing in, Alfie embarks on a mission to find friendship, acceptance and a different way to live...which means finding a way to make sure he will eventually die.

Boy Underwater is a heartbreaking story about family, friends and secrets. And it’s very, very funny. Cymbeline has never been swimming, so he’s a bit nervous at the prospect of his first school swimming lesson. But how hard could it be? He’s Googled front crawl, and he’s found his dad’s old pair of trunks. He’s totally ready for this. But he’s not ready for an accident at the pool to reveal a family mystery that turns his life completely upside down. Only Cym and his friends can solve it because, as usual, the grown-ups aren’t telling them anything....

'There's an empty notebook lying on the table in the moonlight. It's been there for an age. I keep on saying that I'll write a journal. So I'll start right here, right now. I open the book and write the very first words: My name is Mina and I love the night. Then what shall I write? I can't just write that this happened then this happened then this happened to boring infinitum. I'll let my journal grow just like the mind does, just like a tree or a beast does, just like life does. Why should a book tell a tale in a dull straight line?'

There used to be an empty chair at the back of my class, but now a new boy called Ahmet is sitting in it. He's eight years old (just like me), but he's very strange. He never talks and never smiles and doesn't like sweets - not even lemon sherbets, which are my favourite! But the truth is, Ahmet really isn't very strange at all. He's a refugee who's run away from a war. A real one. With bombs and fires and bullies that hurt people. And the more I find out about him, the more I want to be his friend.

When Alton's ageing, blind uncle asks him to attend bridge games with him, he agrees. After all, it's better than a crappy summer job in the local shopping mall, and Alton's mother thinks it might secure their way to a good inheritance sometime in the future. But, like all apparently casual choices in any of Sachar's books, this choice soon turns out to be a lot more complex. As his relationship with his uncle develops, and he meets the very attractive Toni, deeply buried secrets are uncovered and a romance that spans decades is finally brought to a conclusion.

If you go down to the woods today... Well, all children know not to, don't they? Tamaya is on a scholarship to the prestigious Woodridge Academy, and every day she and seventh-grader Marshall walk to school together. They never go through the woods. And when they arrive at school, they stop talking to each other - because Marshall can't be seen to be friends with a little kid like Tamaya. Especially not with Chad around. Chad-the-bully, who makes Marshall's life utterly miserable.

Welcome to the Isle of Mulch! This little island is home to a large number of horrible grown-ups. The school, the local park, the toy shop and even the island's ice-cream van, are all run by awful adults who like nothing more than making children miserable. And the island is owned by the most awful one of all: Aunt Greta Greed! Something needs to be done about them. But who could be brave enough? Meet Ned: an extraordinary boy with a special power. SLIMEPOWER!

Told in the voice of a young soldier, the story follows 24 hours in his life at the front during World War I, and captures his memories as he looks back over his life. Full of stunningly researched detail and engrossing atmosphere, the book leads to a dramatic and moving conclusion.

Jack Phillips's allergy to sunshine confines him to the shadows, leaving him lonely, and at risk of life-threatening burns every time he steps into the light. Shadow jumping on the rooftops at dusk, makes him feel alive. And free. But Jack's condition is suddenly worse than ever, and only his missing scientist dad can save him. As Jack and his new friend, Beth, begin their frantic search and delve into his dad's past for clues, they have no idea what they are about to uncover.

Raphael is a dumpsite boy. He spends his days wading through mountains of steaming trash, sifting it, sorting it, breathing it, sleeping next to it. Then one unlucky-lucky day, Raphael’s world turns upside down. A small leather bag falls into his hands. It’s a bag of clues. It’s a bag of hope. It’s a bag that will change everything. Soon Raphael and his friends Gardo and Rat are running for their lives. Wanted by the police, it takes all their quick-thinking, fast-talking to stay ahead.

A tormented apprentice clock-maker - and a deadly knight in armour. A mechanical prince - and the sinister Dr Kalmenius, who some say is the devil... Wind up these characters, fit them into a story on a cold winter's evening and suddenly life and the story begin to merge - almost like clockwork.

Felix lives in a convent orphanage high in the mountains in Poland. He is convinced his parents are still alive and that they will one day come back to get him. When Nazi soldiers come to the orphanage Felix decides to escape and make his way home. The journey to find his parents is a long and difficult one, as all of Poland is occupied by the Nazis and a dangerous place for a Jewish boy.

Meg Murry, her little brother Charles Wallace, and their mother are having a midnight snack on a dark and stormy night when an unearthly stranger appears at their door. He claims to have been blown off course and goes on to tell them that there is such a thing as a "tesseract", which, if you didn't know, is a wrinkle in time. Meg's father had been experimenting with time travel when he suddenly disappeared. Will Meg, Charles Wallace, and their friend Calvin outwit the forces of evil as they search through space for their father?

In this riveting debut, a boy struggling with OCD is uniquely qualified to solve a kidnapping.