School Reading List podcast hosted by Tom Tolkien

Season 1: Episode 35

For transcripts, resources & show notes, see https://schoolreadinglist.co.uk/podcasts/series-1-episode-35/

Part 1
Book post

• Everything Amplified by Sarah Lippett and Ziggy Hanaor
• The Incredible Pop-up Frog by Ben Hoare
• Oh Dear, Look What I Got! by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury
• The Cave Downwind of the Café by Mikey Please
• I See a Star by Saskia Gwinn
• Hank Meets Frank by Maudie Powell-Tuck and Duncan Beedie
• Brown Girl in the Snow by Yolanda T. Marshall
• This Book is Too Quiet! by Cristina Cubells
• Harriet Tubman, Force of Nature by Caroline Brewer
• More Tales from Shakespeare by Michael Morpurgo
• Tales of Ghosts and Hauntings by Susan Martineau
• Bigg School: Selfie Queen by Lisa Williamson
• The Fate of Podkin One-Ear by Kieran Larwood
• Keep Your Friends Close by Cynthia Murphy
• Sad Girl Hours by Anna Zoe Quirke
• A Match Made in Hell by Charlotte Ingham

Rundown - top 30 children's and YA books to buy in October 2025

• Wyrdwood by Curtis Jobling
• Squirrel and Bird by Laura Baker & Stacey Thomas
• The Street Where Santa Lives by Harriet Howe
• Roar by Manjeet Mann
• Avalanche by Simon Fox
• The Notted Island by Katherine Child
• The Forever Bear by Lu Fraser
• Classic Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen
• The Bear Who Wanted to Dance by Stephanie Stansbie
• The Boy Who Grew Dragons: A Christmas Delivery by Andy Shepherd & Sarah Warburton
• The Ocean at Night by Isabelle Simler
• My Friend, Billy Whiskers by David Litchfield
• The Butterfly House by Harry Woodgate
• The Story of Gold by Meel Tamphanon
• The Fantastical Safari by Kristjana S Williams
• Atlas of Mythical Journeys by Iryna Dobrovetska
• Be Right Back by Bill Wood
• You've Found Oliver by Dustin Thao
• Ice Dancer by Alex Cotter
• Soup Time Around the World by Denyse Waissbluth
• The House with the Little Red Door by Grace Easton
• The Hidden Wisdom of Animals by Kate Siber
• Forest of Hearts by M.A. Kuzniar
• Step Inside a Fairy Tale by Helen Mortimer
• Exploring the Universe by Isabel Thomas
• Coach by Jason Reynolds
• Time for a Bath, Animals by Ben Lerwill
• Vote Wolf by Davide Cali & Magali Clavelet
• Witchlore by Emma Hinds
• Moth Dark by Kika Hatzopoulou
• The Last Day of October by Phil Hickes

October 2025 books of the month

• Fiction: Letters from the Upside by Katya Balen
• Nonfiction: All About Antarctica by Marc Martin
• Picture book: To Activate Space Portal Lift Here by Antoinette Portis

Part 2
Myths for children

New book pitches: The Collaborator by TG Trouper, Sally the Spider’s new shoes by Clodagh Ryan, Anna Denton & The Water of Life by Vaughan Hawthorne-Nelson

Part 3
A library in every primary: what £10m means

Credits & licensing
3rd party sounds are licensed. Audit: https://bit.ly/3TFkwsl

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