Teddies Staff Recommend...

Celia

Barbara Kingsolver

Joseph

Rees

Heller

Kathryn Stockett

Anne

Holm

TEDDIES RECOMMENDS... Books recommended

by Teddies staff In collaboration with the Library

Maggie O ’ Farrell

Terry Pratchett

Jung Chang

Susanna Clarke

Cormac McCarthy

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Teddies Staff Recommend...

Mrs Ritchie

Unthinkable: An Extraordinary Journey Through the World's Strangest Brains by Helen Thompson “ If you are interested in biology or psychology and how the brain works, this is a fascinating book. The writer Helen Thomson has spent years travelling the world and investigating rare brain disorders. She looks back at the histories of these conditions and how modern research can shape our understanding of what is going on. It is fascinating to see how people view the world differently, such as people seeing a colour when they meet a person that links to an emotion or perception of their personality. This is a really accessible book that makes neuroscience understandable to even a non-scientist.”

Miss Mango The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Mr Bateman Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

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Teddies Staff Recommend...

Miss Duffy Pirates! by Celia Rees

“A young woman is sent to Jamaica following her father's death and ends up running away from an arranged marriage with one of the slaves, Minerva. They run away together and join a band of pirates! On the high seas they experience a freedom both have never known, where both are no longer treated as property, but as individuals in their own right. They carve a new life for themselves searching for adventure, love and a life that breaks all restrictions of gender, race and social position. I loved this as the story is told through Nancy's writings and you feel like you are on a swashbuckling adventure with her and Minerva. An excellent escapist novel!”

Mr Gillingwater

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot “It's a fascinating book that expertly explains the importance of HeLa cells to research in a wide range of biological disciplines, as well as revealing the complex racism present within medical systems around the world and raising interesting ethical questions around ownership of our tissues and cells.”

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Mrs Gowen says: A great story about rowing and chemistry, and a good feminist tale.

Mr Gormley says: I loved this book - the story is full of life and humour, with a wonderfully

memorable protagonist.

Mr Wiggins says: The characters were so good! I had to ration myself when reading as I didn't want it to end - and I needed to get to sleep!

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Miss Cervera Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman Teddies Staff Recommend...

Mr Scates Goodbye to All that by Robert Graves

This is a book I usually revisit, at least in part, each winter. It is about a young man’s journey from to the trenches of WWI, to writing poetry. It has some war in it, but mostly it is about love. Love of his country, love of his fellow soldiers and love of his family. This memoir also features a vast array of big characters and captures the Stoicism of the time. An entertaining read, as if a favourite Grandfather is talking to you.

Robert Graves

Mr Smith The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

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Ms Eldred’s Favourites

I am David by Anne Holm I first read this book when I was about 13 years old, and it's stayed on my bookshelf ever since. It's a beautiful story of a boy who grows up in a forced labour camp; he's never known the outside world. One day, he is helped to escape, and you follow his journey and discover with him things we would take for granted - the sound of music, the sound of laughter, a fresh orange, his reflection in a mirror. This book was a pivotal read for me and changed the way I saw the world as a young person. Sabriel by Garth Nix A magical fantasy with sort-of-but-not-really zombies. I was fascinated by this series and the world Garth Nix created - in my mind it felt like it took place in a alternative Scotland, though I don't believe this was the authors intention and he never said as such! The main characters are able to wield magic but only 'over the wall' in a certain part of the country and that magic, for some, goes hand-in-hand with raising the dead... Back Home by Michelle Magorian I loved this book as a young person. Rusty was sent to America as a child during the Second World War; when she comes home, she barely knows her mum and has to get to know a little brother who was a baby when she left. Written by the same author as Goodnight Mr Tom , this is an absolutely absorbing story. I fell in love with reading as a young child and devoured books all the way through my childhood, teens and twenties. I’ve always loved fantasy books and historical fiction but enjoy reading all sorts. It wasn’t until I did my masters degree that I understood the pull of a good graphic novel and I now have a few which I love just as much as any text-only book! These days I tend to have 1 or 2 books on the go at any one time and obsessively listen to audio books on my drive to and from work.

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Ms Eldred’s Favourites

The Inheritance Cycle by Chrisotpher Paolini Christopher Paolini started writing this series when he was just 15 years old and his use of descriptive language is masterful! I was utterly hooked. For anyone who loves fantasy - or wants to try it out the Inheritance series, starting with Eragon is an absolute must-read! The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkein I first read the Hobbit around 17 years old when my Dad bought me a copy. I was hooked and loved the films when they came out. It's much easier to get into than The Lord of the Rings trilogy, though you might very well want to continue delving into Tolkein’s world after going 'there and back again' with The Hobbit!

Witch Child and Sorceress by Celia Rees As a teen I loved Witch Child and the follow up book, Sorceress, I remember the day I went to the book shop to buy Sorceress and how I couldn't wait to get home so I could start reading and find out what happened next! The books follow the story of a girl in the 1600's who has to flee England under suspicion of being a witch, the first story is told as a series of diary entries, the second book is quite different and is told as a first person account of what happens next.

Further choices: Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez I raged when reading this book and I learnt so much! One Hundred Nights of Hero by Isabel Greenberg

I love this graphic novel, stories within stories and all beautifully told. If you're not usually a graphic novel person but love an engaging tale this might be one to try! The Untethered Soul by Peter Singer This is a good read for anyone exploring meditation and their personal spiritual journey. I’ve read it multiple times and recommende it to quite few people over the years. The His Dark Materials series by Pullman Such a good series! I may or may not have spent time when I was younger trying to manifest my own Deamon after reading these books...!

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Teddies Staff Recommend...

Mr Duncan Consolations by David Whyte

“A cut and polished gem of a book: easy to dip into, thought provoking, and moving in equal measure.”

Mr Wiggins

The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown “For any rower- in fact, any sports enthusiast, it's a must read! It was made into a film; what’s good about the book is that it goes into the protagonist’s early life a lot more than the film does.”

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

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Teddies Staff Recommend...

Miss Kenny The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro All the Broken Places by John Boyne A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Mrs Schofield The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell

“Anyone who likes murder mysteries and historical novels would enjoy this book. If you haven’t yet discovered Maggie O’Farrell, you are in for a treat! She is widely regarded as one of the finest contemporary British novelists and this is one of her best. Based on the true story of the short lived marriage of Lucrezia de Medici

and the Duke of Ferrara, we know from the first page that our heroine expects soon to be murdered by her husband. O’Farrell’s masterly prose will immerse you in the 16th century world of these two great Renaissance courts of Florence and Ferrara and you will be reluctant to leave them.”

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Teddies Staff Recommend...

Mrs Hunter The Accursed Kings Series by Maurice Druon

“For those that like well-researched historical novels I can definitely recommend the Accursed Kings series by Maurice Druon starting with The Iron King. The series is about the last five kings of the Capetian dynasty in France during the 14th century, beginning with Philip the Fair. There are seven books, and you can tell I enjoyed them as I’ve read the series twice. The story of the Italian banker financing many of the great figures of the French court, and his nephew, are cleverly woven into this complex tale, which has a great sweep.”

Mr Clapham All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy

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Miss Fielding says: It's a really personal approach to learning about the change that happened over 100 years in China.

Mr Holdsworth says: Essential for anyone wanting to understand the terrible impact of the

Chinese civil war and reign of Mao.

Ms Eldred says:

I’ve read and re-read this book multiple times since I was a teen, it will give you a lot to think about.

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Mr Gormley’s Favourites

Reading has always been important to me. Growing up, I’d usually be found hunched over a book - or an instruction booklet, or the back of a cereal box… After school, my interests took me towards French, which I studied at university for ten years. I love discovering new authors with fresh and unusual interpretations of the world; that’s probably why I gravitate towards novels on the weirder end of the spectrum!

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke Piranesi has been my go-to novel recommendation since it was published. Beautiful, sad, mysterious, hopeful, it has something for everyone. Susanna Clarke is a genius - her first novel, Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell , is also in my top ten!

Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer Annihilation is an amazingly creepy nightmare of a novel. A team of four women are sent into a coastal zone known as Area X, which has become contaminated by an alien presence. What happens next can't really be described in a sentence, or even a paragraph - you just have to experience the novel to get the full effect!

The Hare with Amber Eyes by Edmund De Waal Probably my favourite non-fiction book. From 19th-century Paris to Vienna and beyond, Edmund De Waal traces his family heritage through a collection of Japanese netsuke figurines, uncovering the story of a Jewish family as they encounter the horrors of the 20th century. A spellbinding and fascinating exploration of memory, art, and resilience.

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Mr Gormley’s Favourites

A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh This novel was published in 1934 but the way it satirises shallow upper-class families feels so modern. The characters are all awful people in different ways, but you can’t help but pity them. One of those books that manages to be both laugh out-loud funny and deeply tragic. The Broken Earth Trilogy by N.K. Jemisin My favourite trilogy in any genre - you don't have to be a fantasy fan to enjoy this series. They take place in a dangerous world where a small minority are able to control seismic forces. Most of them are persecuted, but some of them - like the central protagonist, Essun - are trained professionally from childhood. This is an important, beautifully written trilogy about oppression and resistance with lots of real-world parallels. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson A classic of the haunted house genre! The story is told from the perspective of the fragile Eleanor, who joins up with three strangers to investigate rumours of supernatural goings-on at the mansion Hill House. The sense of dread starts at page one and continues building right up to the last page. It's absolutely chilling - not only for the ghostly bits (which are genuinely scary), but also for what Jackson says about how susceptible the human mind is to madness.

Further choices: Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan A small but perfectly formed novel about an extraordinary act of courage in a rural Irish town. A whole world that comes to life in 100 pages. The Mortal Engines Quartet by Philip Reeve I couldn't get enough of these books as a young teen - they combine fast-paced adventure with some brilliant world-building. I loved the idea of a post apocalyptic world in which cities have become mobile and rely on consuming smaller cities to survive. And best of all, Reeve invented one of the best villains in the form of Shrike, a (very angry) hybrid of resurrected human and machine. The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell An ambitious and fantastical novel that takes us from 1984 to 2043, as young Holly becomes embroiled in a deadly war between two immortal factions.

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Teddies Staff Recommend...

Miss Diaz Rogado The Never-Ending Story by Michael Ende

“I have read it at least 15 times; it is the book I go back to every time I feel low or nostalgic”

Mr Gomez The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne

Mrs Davies Silence by Shūsaku Endō

“Silence would probably appeal more to 6th form pupils. It is a startling yet empathetic story of two Catholic Jesuits during the persecution of Christians in Japan in the early 17th century. It’s tells a fantastic tale of human suffering and gives an interesting take on the role of God in this suffering. Endō has written a very fine novel, taking us on an epic spiritual journey and making us reflect on the questions surrounding faith. It is very dark at times but without doubt a fascinating book.”

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Teddies Staff Recommend...

Mr Blackham The Creative Act by Rick Rubin

“My favourite book is Rick Rubin’s The Creative Act: A Way of Being. I like it because it inspires creativity from a somewhat spiritual perspective and it can apply to more or less anything, not just music. It can be quite uplifting when you’re stuck in a creative drought...”

Mr Moore Sharpes’s Eagle by Bernard Cornwall The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

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Teddies Staff Recommend...

Mr Simmonds The 39 Steps by John Buchan

Mrs Cabello Malfetano Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver The Romantic by William Boyd The Island of the Missing Trees by Elif Shafak

Mr Bunch The Chosen by Chaim Potok

“The Chosen explores two young Jewish men developing an understanding of their faith in the modern world and learning to consider different viewpoints.”