Advent Calendar
A book suggestion for every day of advent

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Awkward series by Svetlana Chmakova
These Graphic Novels follow the Awkward tales of the students at
Berrybrook Middle School as they Bravely face their everyday lives…even
when they have a Crush!
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City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab
Ever since Cass almost drowned (okay,
she did drown, but she doesn't like to
think about it), she can pull back the Veil
that separates the living from the dead . .
. and enter the world of spirits. Her best
friend is even a ghost. So things are
already pretty strange. But they're about
to get much stranger. When Cass's
parents start hosting a TV show about the
world's most haunted places, the family
heads off to Edinburgh, Scotland. Here,
graveyards, castles, and secret
passageways teem with restless
phantoms. And when Cass meets a girl
who shares her "gift," she realizes how
much she still has to learn about the Veil -
- and herself. And she'll have to learn
fast. The city of ghosts is more dangerous
than she ever imagined.
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Super Side Kicks by Gavin Aung Than
Get ready for superheroes,
supervillains and super-hilarious
adventures in this brand new series
about four young sidekicks, from a
New York Times bestselling author!
Superheroes have it easy. They don't
have to clean their secret
headquarters, wash the alien
bloodstains out of their costumes or
be responsible for taking Super Mutt
out for a walk. No, they leave all that
for their sidekicks like me, while they
get all the credit!
I'm Junior Justice, but you can call me
JJ, and I think it's time we made our
own team.
The Super Sidekicks!
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Little Bird Flies by Karen McCombie
Bridie lives on the remote Scottish island of
Tornish, the youngest of three sisters.
Although she loves her island, with its wild
seas and big skies, she guiltily nurses a
secret dream of flight – to America and the
freedom of the New World. But her family
are struggling under the spiteful oppression
of the new Laird, and it seems that even
some of the Laird’s own household are
desperate to leave. When the Laird’s full
cruelty becomes apparent, there’s no more
time for daydreams as Bridie needs to help
the people she loves escape to safety.
The first in a gripping, dramatic new series
from much-loved author, Karen McCombie..
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On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
A powerful story about hip hop, freedom of
speech - and fighting for your dreams, even
as the odds are stacked against you.
Bri wants to be one of the greatest rappers
of all time. As the daughter of an
underground hip hop legend who died right
before he hit big, Bri's got massive shoes to
fill.
But when her first song goes viral for all the
wrong reasons, Bri finds herself at the centre
of controversy and portrayed by the media
as more menace than MC. And with an
eviction notice staring her family down, Bri
no longer just wants to make it - she has to.
Even if it means becoming the very thing the
public has made her out to be.
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The Haven by Simon Lelic
You don't know it exists, but when you
have nowhere else to turn, the Haven will
find you ...
Our city. Our secret. Our rules.
Alone. On the run. Ollie Turner has
nowhere to hide.
But he gets a second chance. Underneath
the city there's a secret organisation, far
from adult eyes.
It's called the Haven.
Soon Ollie is caught up in their battle: to
stop Maddy Sikes destroying the city. Time
is running out for Ollie and his new friends,
and millions of lives are at stake ...
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The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta
Big hearted and dizzyingly flamboyant, Atta’s verse
novel about a black gay teen reclaiming his identity
as a drag artist is an outspoken triumph from
opening couplet to last. A beautiful book about
self-discovery and embracing the real you, The
Black Flamingo is suffused with optimism, positivity
and love.
Shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2020
Shortlisted for the The Jhalak Prize 2020
Shortlisted for the CILIP Carnegie Medal 2020
This is not about being ready, it's not even about
being fierce, or fearless, IT'S ABOUT BEING FREE.
Michael waits in the stage wings, wearing a pink
wig, pink fluffy coat and black heels.
One more step will see him illuminated by
spotlight.
He has been on a journey of bravery to get here,
and he is almost ready to show himself to the world
in bold colours ...
Can he emerge as The Black Flamingo?
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Voyages in the Underworld of Orpheus Black by
Marcus & Julian Sedgwick & Alexis Deacon
A lyrical and dreamlike story of two
brothers in conflict amidst the devastation
of WWII London.
Harry Black wakes in hospital to learn that
his brother Ellis has almost certainly been
killed by a V2 rocket falling during a
German air raid on London. In a state of
wounded delirium, Harry's mind begins to
blur the distinctions between the reality of
the war-torn city, the fiction of his
unpublished sci-fi novel and the myth of
Orpheus and Eurydice. Driven by visions of
Ellis still alive and a sense of poetic
inevitability, Harry discharges himself
from hospital and begins a search for his
brother that will lead him deep into the
city's Underworld...
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One of Us is Next by Karen M McManus
The eagerly anticipated sequel to One of Us Is
Lying does not disappoint, as sinister events once
more bedevil the teens of Bayview.
It's been a year since the events of One Of Us Is
Lying.
But nothing has settled for the residents of
Bayview. Not now someone has started playing a
sinister game of Truth or Dare.
Choose truth? You must reveal your darkest secret.
Choose dare? Well, that could be even more
dangerous. Even deadly.
When the game takes an even darker turn,
suddenly no one at Bayview High knows who to
trust.
But they need to find out who is behind the game,
before it's too late.
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Toffee by Sarah Crossan
When Allison runs away from home
she doesn't expect to be taken in by
Marla, an elderly woman with
dementia, who mistakes her for an
old friend called Toffee.
Allison is used to hiding who she
really is, and trying to be what other
people want her to be. And so, Toffee
is who she becomes. But as her bond
with Marla grows, Allison begins to
ask herself -where is home? What is a
family? And most importantly, who
am I, really?
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The Book of Dust by Philip Pullman
Across the River is the Godstow Priory where the
nuns live in quiet seclusion. But Oxford’s peace is
about to be shattered.
When Malcolm learns the nuns have an unusual
guest with them, a baby by the name of Lyra
Belacqua, he finds himself drawn into a dangerous
world of secrets, intrigue and vengeance.
A world where powerful agents compete for mastery
of the elements that shape Malcolm’s world; above
all, Dust - salvation to some, the source of infinite
evil to others.
And all the while an ancient, slumbering world is
awakening. Slowly but surely, the waters are rising…
Seventeen years after Philip Pullman’s third volume
of His Dark Materials trilogy sealed the door on
Dust, daemons, witches and armoured bears, a
tantalising new beginning now lies open. A brand
new chapter, as enthralling for fledgling Pullman
readers as for ardent fans.
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Becoming Dinah by Kit de Waal
Seventeen-year-old Dinah needs to leave her home,
the weird commune where she grew up. She needs a
whole new identity, starting with how she looks,
starting with shaving off her hair, her 'crowning
glory'. She has to do it quickly, because she has to go
now.
Dinah was going to go alone and hitch a ride down
south. Except, she ends up being persuaded to
illegally drive a VW campervan for hundreds of miles,
accompanied by a grumpy man with one leg. This
wasn't the plan.
But while she's driving, Dinah will be forced to
confront everything that led her here, everything that
will finally show her which direction to turn...
Kit de Waal responds to the classic Moby Dick with
entirely new characters, a VW campervan, and by
tearing the power away from obsessive Captain Ahab
and giving it to a teenage girl who's determined to
find a new life, far away from her unconventional
upbringing.
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The Boxer by Nikesh Shukla
Told over the course of the ten rounds of his
first fight, this is the story of amateur boxer
Sunny. A seventeen year old feeling isolated
and disconnected in the city he's just moved
to, Sunny joins a boxing club to learn to
protect himself after a racist attack. He finds
the community he's been desperately
seeking at the club, and a mentor in trainer
Shobu, who helps him find his place in the
world. But racial tensions are rising in the
city, and when a Far Right march through
Bristol turns violent, Sunny is faced with
losing his new best friend Keir to
radicalisation.
a brilliant, very contemporary story of fear,
hope, racism, strength, boxing and learning
to be yourself.
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Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay
When Jay Reguero hears of his cousin
Jun's death, everything changes.
Although years have passed since they
were last in contact, the stories about
Jun just don't fit with the boy Jay
knew.
Hoping to uncover the truth, Jay
travels to Jun's home in the Philippines
- but the shocking realities of life there
lead to even more questions. Can Jay
find the answers he seeks?
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