Maggie and the Moonbird: A Bloomsbury Reader
Book Band: Dark Blue (Ideal for ages 9+)
An inspiring fantasy story from Katya Balen, author of The Space We’re In and October, October.
Maggie wants her dad to take her birdwatching like he promised but he’s too busy and she ends up at the zoo with her auntie and her annoying cousins. There, she sees a strange bird and takes one of its beautiful silver feathers home.
Little does she know, that this is the start of a magical adventure in the moonlight… This magical story features black-and-white illustrations by Pham Quang Phuc.
The Bloomsbury Readers series is packed with book-banded stories to get children reading independently in Key Stage 2 by award-winning authors like double Carnegie Medal winner Geraldine McCaughrean and Waterstones Prize winner Patrice Lawrence. With engaging illustrations and online guided reading notes written by the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE), this series is ideal for home and school. For more information visit www.bloomsburyreaders.com.
'Any list that brings together such a quality line up of authors is going to be welcomed … Bloomsbury Readers are aimed squarely at children in Key Stage 2 and designed to support them as they start reading independently and while they continue to gain confidence and understanding.' Books for Keeps
Katya Balen studied English at university and then completed an MPhil researching the impact of stories on autistic children's behaviour. She has worked in a variety of special needs schools as a teaching assistant, and more recently co-founded Mainspring Arts - a non-profit organisation that provides mentoring and creative opportunities for neurodivergent adults. Katya is the author of October, October and The Space We’re In which was shortlisted for the 2020 Branford Boase Award.
Pham Quang Phuc is an illustrator from Vietnam. Nowadays he mostly does children's books. With his childhood dream of writing for children, he now considers storytelling as a way of balancing his life and hopes young readers will gain interests and dreams from his books. Among other prizes, Quang Phuc was the Winner of The ASEAN Children’s Book Illustrator; he was awarded 'Best in Fiction' for his 'Everywhere Monsters' illustration series.