Calibre Audio Library

New Books for December

With the television adaptation of His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman currently showing why not go back to where Lyra’s story began in the Book of Dust series. Volume Two, The Secret Commonwealth (617601) has just been added to the library and Lyra who is now twenty years old, is travelling with Malcolm far beyond the edges of Oxford, across Europe and into Asia, in search for what is lost - a city haunted by dæmons, a secret at the heart of a desert, and the mystery of the elusive Dust. If you need to catch up on the story then check out Volume One first, La Belle Sauvage (617422).

Judith Kerr was one of the most beloved children’s authors, responsible for two of the most iconic characters in children’s literature, Mog the Cat and The Tiger Who Came to Tea. Her last book The Curse of the School Rabbit (617588) introduces us to Snowflake the school rabbit, and Tommy thinks Snowflake is trouble. When Snowflake is unexpectedly left for him to look after and everything starts to go wrong, it looks like Tommy might be right. Even if he is getting more pocket money for feeding it and might be able to afford a new bike after all…Or are Tommy and his family doomed by the curse of the school rabbit?

We have just added a classic of children’s literature to the library in the form of The Story of Dr Dolittle by Hugh Lofting (617595). It doesn’t matter how old you are you would have heard about the doctor who can speak to animals so why not pull up a chair and either discover or revisit the magic of this timeless story

If you would say you are not much of a reader then you may be able to relate to the character in The Dragon in the Library by Louie Stowell (617596). Kit can't stand reading. She'd much rather be outside, playing games and getting muddy, than stuck inside with a book. But when she's dragged along to the library one day by her two best friends, she makes an incredible discovery - and soon it's up to Kit and her friends to save the library... and the world. This book may just ignite your passion for reading.

David Walliams is back with his world’s worst series and this time he is taking on teachers! Think your teachers are bad? Wait till you meet this lot. These ten tales of the world’s most sinister teachers will have you running for the school gates. Listen to The World’s Worst Teachers (617603) if you dare!

If you are looking for something a little different then why not try Bloom by Nicola Skinner (617589). Sorrel Fallowfield is so good that teachers come to her when they need help remembering the school rules – and there are lots! But then she discovers a packet of Surprising Seeds buried under a tree, and now she’s hearing voices, seeing things, experiencing an unstoppable urge to plant the Seeds in some very unusual places… and failing to win her school’s competition to find The Most Obedient Child of the School. And all that’s before flowers start growing out of her head!

Enter the world of fantasy author Terry Pratchett with Truckers (617605), the first in the Bromeliad series. The nomes are tiny little people who, up until now, lived happily beneath the floorboards of Arnold Bros department store. Then a devastating piece of news shatters their existence: the Store - their whole world - is to be demolished. It's up to Masklin, one of the last nomes to come into the Store, to mastermind an unbelievable escape plan that will take all the nomes into the dangers of the great Outside. This story will have you stuck to your chair until you have finished it with the odd chuckle of laughter along the way.

The Land of Roar by Jenny McLachlan (617602) is the first in a new fantasy adventure series. When Arthur and Rose were little, they played in the Land of Roar, an imaginary world that they found by climbing through the folding bed in their grandad’s attic. Roar was filled with dragons, mermaids, ninja wizards and adventure, but now the twins are eleven, Roar is just a memory. Then one day they are helping to clean out the attic when Grandad is pulled into the folding bed and vanishes. Is he playing a joke? Or is Roar . . . real? If you liked The House With Chicken Legs and the How to Train Your Dragon series then this would be a good one to try.