Extended Stories and Short Novels

Ghost Dog
by Edel Wignell and Amanda Graham
(Magic Bean)
A well written ghost story set in the Australian Outback. Sarah, Nick and their parents are delayed by a puncture so they end up driving along a road they had been warned was dangerous at night. They'd assumed this was because of the road itself but the real problem is a ghost dog. Short, simple sentences, plenty of dialogue and an exciting story 6 chapters and good, black and white illustrations.
KS 2
48 pages   ISBN 0947212612
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Hannah
by Josephine Croser and Steven Woolman
(Magic Bean)
A short novel with 8 chapters set in 18th century London. When Hannah goes to Covent Garden market with her father, they are wrongly accused of theft and her father is arrested. Hannah escapes but is left to fend for herself. The story takes her to the point where she is finally beginning to cope but major problems remain as this is the first part of a trilogy. (The other two parts are only available in small book format.) However the story is enjoyable in its own right and you could use this as a jumping off place for children's own writing. Good black and white illustrations.
KS2
48 pages   ISBN 186374441X
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The Windmill
by Gary Crew and Steven Woolman
(Magic Bean)
A short novel with 5 chapters which starts slowly, builds well with plenty of mystery and then stops. This is because it's the first part of a trilogy - the other two books are only available in small book format. You may like to ask children to decide what might happen next and continue the story themselves. Both main characters are boys. Illustrated with black and white line drawings.
KS2
48 pages. ISBN 1863744290
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The Man who sold his Shadow
Retold by Michael Rosen. Illustrated by Reg Cartwright
(Longman Pelican Big Books)
This is a retelling of a story originally written in 1814 by German author, Adelbert von Chamisso. It's a deep story about adults which and deals with the problems of greed and losing your soul. As it has a moral, it could be described as a long fable.
Upper KS2
24 pages   ISBN 0582333873
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Lady Long-Legs
by Jan Mark, illustrated by Paul Howard
(Walker)
The tiles on the floor of Farm Lane School are different colours and the children have a number of traditions about them. When Nisba starts at the school, Lucy tries to stop her walking on the green tiles but Nisba is determined not to be bossed about. A good story about bullying set in a multi-cultural school with a girl as main character and a gang of four girls as the bullies.
KS2
64 pages    ISBN 0744578345
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Taking the Cat's Way Home
by Jan Mark, illustrated by Paul Howard
(Walker)
Jane is happy at school until new boy, William, comes and starts to bully her. When he threatens to get her after school, her only way of escape is to follow her cat's way home along the wall. Another good story about bullying which features two girl main characters and a bully who's a boy. The school is multi-cultural but the main characters aren't.
KS2
64 pages    ISBN 0744569281
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Care of Henry
by Anne Fine, illustrated by Paul Howard
(Walker)
When Hugo's mum is going to have a baby, he has to decide where to stay while she is hospital. The choice is between Gran, Mrs Mariposa and Uncle Jack but which of them will offer the best care for his dog, Henry? An enjoyable story that leads naturally to work on making decisions and carrying out surveys. Black and white illustrations on nearly every page.

64 pages     ISBN 0744569273
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Mark Two
by Jon Blake
(Ginn All Aboard)
Alex is sure the latest model bike would be better than his, so his parents decide to teach him a lesson by ordering a later model son. Mark Two arrives with neat hair, clean fingernails and perfect manners but the plan goes wrong when he also produces two perfect latest model parents. A very funny story likely to appeal to the whole class, including reluctant readers. Divided into chapters with at least one black and white line drawing on each page.
KS2
64 pages    ISBN 0602283477

Perseus the Gorgon-Slayer
by Jane O'Laughlin and Katherine Stafford
(Rigby Magic Bean)
A straight retelling of the legend of Perseus from before his birth to the point where he accidentally kills his father. Divided into chapters with at least one colour picture per spread.
KS2
links to history - ancient Greeks
32 pages    ISBN 094721268X

Short Story Collection
(Ginn All Aboard)
The 'short' in this title is rather misleading. Although the three stories in this collection are shorter than novels, they are longer than many big book stories and are laid out like a novel with whole pages of text and black and white line drawings. 'Stone Dead' by Rob Childs is an exciting story of kidnap and ancient magic on a school holiday. 'To the Adventure Centre' by Angela Bull tells of Thomas, a computer addict, who doesn't want to go on an adventure holiday. His sister tries to help with a touch of magic but it's left to the reader to decide if that made any difference. 'Mouse and the Witch-Child' is an intriguing tale of time travel told in two alternating viewpoints which make it useful for comparing 1st and 3rd person writing.
KS2
48 pages    ISBN 0602283485

Worry Guts
by Jan Mark Illustrated by Jeffrey Reid
(Longman Pelican Big Books)
An extended story without chapters. Ciaran worries about lots of things but especially about SATS. When he sees Sophie's trouble dolls, he starts making trouble monsters to help him stop worrying.
Links to art, work on feelings and the approach of SATS
KS2
48 pages    ISBN 0582334071
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