‘We thought we would celebrate the start of another new school year by asking for recommendations on the theme of ‘New Challenges.’

Interview with parent, Harvey Greener:

What is one of your fondest reading memories?

One memory stands out – I was reading The Lord of the Rings while travelling through Jasper National Park in Canada. For almost four days, the rain poured continuously. I was trapped in a campervan, surrounded by some of the most spectacular wilderness in the world. There was something ironic about reading The Two Towers –all the adventure and endurance while looking out at forests, mountains and dramatic landscapes that I just didn’t want to go out into whilst it was raining. The combination of the weather, the setting and the story created one of those rare moments where a book and real life seem to blend together. Even now, whenever I think of The Lord of the Rings, I associate it with a rainy campervan and the vicarious excitement of going nowhere, reading for days on end instead.

Which fictional character would you most like, or least like, to meet in real life, and why?

Without hesitation, the fictional character I would least like to meet is Dracula. He’s a fascinating creation, but he is also deeply unsettling. It would obviously be intriguing to come face to face with such an iconic figure, and he has been totally glamourised through literature and history, but I suspect the reality would be far less enjoyable. Some characters are best appreciated from the safety of a book – he’s definitely not on my dinner party guest list.

What does the concept of “new challenges” mean to you? Do you have a book recommendation connected to this theme?

I love climbing so for me, new challenges are about striving to reach the top of something, metaphorically speaking, as well as literally, and doing the very best I can along the way. Success is not always about achieving the top itself; often it is about the determination, resilience and often the clumsiness that happen during the climb. In work, sport or life more generally, I find challenges motivating because they push us beyond what we believe we are capable of.

A book that captures this idea brilliantly is Into the Void by Joe Simpson which recounts Simpson’s extraordinary struggle for survival after a mountaineering accident in the Peruvian Andes. When faced with horrendous circumstances, he demonstrates almost inhuman perseverance and mental strength. It is a haunting story about confronting adversity and refusing to give up, qualities that I believe lie at the heart of every worthwhile challenge. This book reminds me that we often discover our greatest strengths when we face the seemingly impossible.

Key Stage 1 and 2 Recommendations:

George, Year 1

The Magnificent Book of Monsters by Diana Ferguson

George has been going above and beyond simply reading The Marvellous Book of Monsters, using it as inspiration to create an extraordinary creature anthology of his very own! He has been working exceptionally hard to write and illustrate a field guide to monsters from across the world, all imagined entirely by him. Here, we can see the terrifying Headmasher Broazer, a human-devouring monster found in Iran. With an astonishing 2,000 legs, it can reach incredible speeds—and when it runs, it apparently sounds just like an electric guitar! George’s work is truly awe-inspiring, imaginative and wonderfully original, and we cannot wait to see the finished field guide, complete with even more spectacularly unique monsters. What an incredible example of where reading can take your imagination! 

Darin, 6W

The Land of Stories – The Wishing Spell, by Chris Colfer

I recommend this book because you get to read about the characters that you have read since you were a child. For example Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty and so on. Instead, these stories are jumbled up together to make a whole new fantastic experience. I like this book very much because it’s about collecting things and facing challenges throughout a magical adventure.

Key Stage 3 Recommendations:

Pravasthie, 8A

Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim

Six Crimson Cranes is about Princess Shiori, who is cursed by her stepmother and must find a way to save her six brothers, who have been turned into cranes. Along the way, she discovers her own courage and learns to take responsibility for her choices. It fits the theme “New Beginnings” because Shiori leaves behind her sheltered life as a princess and begins a new journey where she discovers who she truly is.

Josh, 8A

Wings of Fire, The Dragonet Prophecy by Tui T. Sutherland

5 Dragonets, all from different tribes, are taken from birth to dwell in a cave. They are part of a prophecy to end the great war between the three Sandwing princesses. After 15 years in the cave, the Dragonets grow determined to escape and that they do. Now they have all the land to explore, with no idea if they will be able to end the war. Will they be able to stop millions from dying?  Could they be able to choose which Sandwing becomes queen and end it all? The Dragonets can’t possibly know if they will succeed but for now, they have this whole new world to explore.

Key Stage 4 Recommendations

Sasha Azubel, 11P

Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger

Keeper of the Lost Cities is a great book that explores new challenges by highlighting Sophie’s journey in the Elvin world and the prejudices that come with her being raised in the human world along with being the elusive Black Swan’s ‘Moonlark’.

Thynith Pich, 11P

If Cats Disappeared from the World by Genki Kawamura

It doesn’t focus on new challenges in a traditional sense like chasing new goals or physical challenges but its more of a internal and psychological hurdle. It reframes the idea of challenge into accepting his reality, as the protagonist is diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. He enters a Faustian bargain with a devil doppelganger named Aloha, offering an extra day of life for every item he chooses to permanently erase from existence. As he sacrifices items, like phones, movies and clocks, one by one he reflects on how each loss alters his identity, relationships and memories. To delve into his daily life with things that define his routine becomes a blind transition, forcing him to confront regret, letting go and forgiveness, huge “challenges” for humans. Adapting to these deep emotional losses is the true heart of this book, it represents the ultimate challenge for human resilience.