Literacy and DEAR

Year 7

Holes - Louis Sachar

Kids' fare with a brain - a haunting detective story with a warm heart.

Boy In the Striped Pyjamas - John Boyne

This powerful book about the Holocaust stands out in part because of the unusual perspective.

The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games combines elements of an intense survival adventure with a story of friendship and love.

Warhorse - Michael Murpurgo

It holds special appeal for horse lovers, who will care deeply about Joey's plight as he is pushed and pulled between the humans fighting World War I.

Trash - Andy Mulligan

He makes you believe in the bravery and loyalty of his characters as they try to do the right thing, battling against a corrupt system.

Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games sequel takes us deeper into the aftermath of surviving the games and the torturous nightmares of such a disturbing place that make the terror unforgettable.

Year 8

The Woman in Black - Susan Hill

An atmospheric ghost story of the gothic persuasion, A spine-chilling, traditional horror at its best.

The finale of the Hunger Games trilogy , Mockingjay Suzanne Collins

A must-read for all Hunger Games fans. Of course, you have to know how it all ends, and more importantly, who Katniss chooses.

Boys Don’t Cry - Malorie Blackman

‘So good at emotional intelligence it should be read out loud in every secondary school in the country’

Stone Cold - Robert Swindells

A tense, exciting thriller combined with a perceptive and harrowing portrait of life on the streets as a serial killer preys on the young and vulnerable homeless.

Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte

Charlotte Bronte's classic romantic novel is simply one of the greatest works of English fiction.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time - Mark Haddon

Absolutely brilliant. What a wonderful experience to read this book. To be taken into the mind of a teenage boy with high-functioning autism is quite extraordinary.

Year 9

Heroes - Robert Cormier

Challenging read about war This story is a great read. It's fast, exciting and brutal. The characters are clear and realistic even when they are psychopathic, axe wielding generals.

Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe

On the BBC list of 100 books that changed the world, Things Fall Apart is simple, honest, unbiased, and has the most powerful ending of any book I've read. In today's world of clashing cultures, this is a historical dilemma from which all could learn.

Noughts and Crosses - Malorie Blackman

It is fast earning a reputation as a modern YA classic. This is a rare book that has it all; love, dystopia, heartbreak, racism, terrorism and it's a page-turner too. This book will move you to your core as you follow the twists and turns of Callum and Sephy's story.

Klara and the Sun - Kazuo Ishiguro

A masterpiece from the acclaimed Booker Prize Winner that raises questions about what it is to be human.

Pigeon English - Stephen Kelman

Eleven-year-old Harrison Opoku, the second best runner in Year 7, races through his new life in Englan. Newly-arrived from Ghana with his mother and older sister Lydia. Harrison absorbs the many strange elements of city life. But his life is changed forever when one of his friends is murdered. Harri decides to act, unwittingly endangering the fragile web his mother has spun around her family to keep them safe.

Ash on a Young Man’s Sleeve - Danny Abse

A tender, moving book about a young man growing up in Cardiff in the 1930’s.

Year 10

To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee

The unforgettable novel of a childhood in a sleepy Southern town and the crisis of conscience that rocked it.

Lord of the Flies - William Golding

Soon what was initially thought of as a blissful escape from the Adult World quickly develops into something more sinister and unsettling.

I know why the Caged Bird Sings - Maya Angelou

Angelou's autobiography is an important and honest look at racial prejudice in the United States during the 1930s and '40s, but it's also as compelling and lyrical as a great novel.

Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks

This intense novel is about love, loss and courage, but most importantly it is about how limitless human compassion and strength can be

The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini

A gripping and emotional story of betrayal and redemption, set in Afghanistan

Oranges are not the only fruit - Jeanette Winterson

Very funny rite of passage book about a young brought up by Pentecostal parents in the north of England.