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Children's reading lists

17 must-have historical fiction books for kids

Wanted!

A pacy, exciting adventure through the streets of Ancient Rome for younger readers, with beautiful illustrations that really bring the story to life.

This is a lovely book, with fine line drawings, the sort you'd be happy to see a boy of eight reading, and I hope it is the beginning of a series

Told in beautiful clear prose, this short novel does not try to emulate the historical fiction published in the Antelope and Gazelle series of 1960s-1980s by such authors as Rosemary Sutcliff, but gives the reader a glimpse of a past era in a different, humorous way

Kate Thompson is one of the most exciting authors writing for young people today. A born storyteller, her work is highly original and she is thought provoking in her ideas. She has travelled widely in the USA and India and studied law in London. After living in County Clare, she moved to Kinvara in County Galway and there, she discovered her passion for playing the fiddle. She is now an accomplished player and also has a great interest in restoring instruments. 
 
Kate is the only author to win the Children's Books Ireland Bisto Book of the Year award four times - in 2002 for The Beguilers, in 2003 for The Alchemist's Apprentice, in 2004 for Annan Water and in 2006 for The New Policeman. 
 
The New Policeman also won the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize 2005, the Whitbread Book Award Children's category 2005, the Children's Book of the Year in the Irish Book Awards in March 2006 and has been longlisted for the Carnegie Medal. 
 
In 2008 Kate was again shortlisted for the Children's Books Ireland Bisto Award for her book, The Last of the High Kings, a beautiful and haunting story that delves deep into the magic of Irish myth and folklore.

Marcus is a young baker in Ancient Rome, living with his family in the shadow of the murderous Emperor Littleboots. When a slave boy shoves the reins of a sleek, beautiful horse into Marcus's hands seconds before he is killed by a soldier, Marcus knows he's in danger - because the horse is Incitatus, the Emperor's most prized and powerful animal. 
 
Will Marcus find a way to keep Incitatus hidden? Are the rumours of Littleboots's death true - or is it all a trick? And how can Marcus save himself, and his family? 
 
A fast-paced adventure from the winner of both the Whitbread Children's Book Award and the 2005 Guardian Children's Fiction Prize.

Highway Robbery

A beautifully illustrated short story for young readers featuring the most famous highwaymen of them all, and his wonderful horse: Black Bess.

Stunningly illustrated and fast-paced, this story for younger readers brings to life the legend of the most famous highwayman of them all - and his amazing horse

'Hold the mare for me, lad. And when I come back I'll give you a golden guinea.' 
 
It's more money than the street urchin has ever dreamt of. But who is the rider, and why is there so much interest in his big black horse? And will the boy ever see the money he has been promised? 
 
There's highway robbery in the air, but it isn't always entirely clear just who is trying to rob who . . . 
 
Stunningly illustrated and fast-paced, this story for younger readers brings to life the legend of the most famous highwayman of them - and his amazing horse.

Creature of the Night

From this multi-award winning author comes a gritty, hard-hitting tale of disaffected youth, but not without a hint of Kate's signature fantasy.

A tale that interweaves contemporary teenage experience - strong language, bad habits and all - with Irish folklore and a murder mystery

I could hear Dennis talking to my ma. 'She was little,' he said. 'Little like me. But old. Older than you.' Those words gave me a cold shock. I could see Dennis imagining fairies, but old ones? 
 
When Bobby's mother moves the family into a rented house in the country, a neighbour tells him that a child was once murdered there. Bobby doesn't care. All he wants is to get back to Dublin and to resume his wild life there, stealing from the crowded shopping streets and racing stolen cars at night. But getting his old life back doesn't turn out to be so easy, and the longer he spends in the old cottage, the more convinced he becomes that something very strange is going on there. Was there really a murder? And if so, was it the one he has been told about?

Kate Thompson

The remarkable story of the women who ruled the East End through the Blitz. A lively authentic social history, the book centres around five formidable working-class women . . . a hair-raising, but always warmhearted tale

Kate Thompson's interviews with east London's wartime matriarchs offer an important glimpse into a vanishing world

Kate Thompson writes books that make you laugh and make you cry, sometimes at the same time. You cannot put them down. I advise you to read them all!

Kate Thompson's study of five working-class women who lived through the blitz shows how informal collectives can provide lasting support and inspiration . . . [a] fascinating account

Inspiring tales of courage in the face of hardship

Crammed full of fascinating stories

Celebrates the lives of tough wartime matriarchs

The remarkable true story of the women who ruled the East End through war and peace

While the men were away at war it was strong women like Joan, Marie, Babs, Beattie and Minksy who ruled the streets of the East End. Kate Thompson tells the real stories of the war experienced by these matriarchs, a tribe of working-class women in the stinking slums, teeming tenements and sweatshops of East London. 
 
Forget church halls and jam-making, these powerfully authentic stories will have you questioning what you thought you knew about wartime women. From standing up to the Kray twins, to taking over the London Underground and crawling out of bombsites, these women fought to survive and protect their community in some of our country's darkest hours.

Kate Thompson

Praise for The Stepney Doorstep Society

The remarkable story of the women who ruled the East End through the Blitz. A lively authentic social history, the book centres around five formidable working-class women . . . a hair-raising, but always warmhear ...

Kate Thompson's interviews with east London's wartime matriarchs offer an important glimpse into a vanishing world

Kate Thompson writes books that make you laugh and make you cry, sometimes at the same time. You cannot put them down. I advise you to read them all!

The remarkable story of the women who ruled the East End through the Blitz. A lively authentic social history, the book centres around five formidable working-class women . . . a hair-raising, but always warmhear ...

Kate Thompson's interviews with east London's wartime matriarchs offer an important glimpse into a vanishing world

Kate Thompson writes books that make you laugh and make you cry, sometimes at the same time. You cannot put them down. I advise you to read them all!

The remarkable story of the women who ruled the East End through the Blitz. A lively authentic social history, the book centres around five formidable working-class women . . . a hair-raising, but always warmhear ...

Kate Thompson's interviews with east London's wartime matriarchs offer an important glimpse into a vanishing world

Kate Thompson writes books that make you laugh and make you cry, sometimes at the same time. You cannot put them down. I advise you to read them all!

Books by Kate Thompson

Articles featuring Kate Thompson

17 must-have historical fiction books for kids

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