Book trends
Reading tips for autumn 2023: Great children’s and young adult novels
© sergiubirca / Adobe Stock
No matter where the temperatures are going, a good book warms the soul. Here are our favorite children’s and young adult novels.
Madlen Ottenschläger – Gustav and Frida
It’s a thing with children and speed: sometimes they move much too fast, sometimes annoyingly slow (at least in the eyes of the parents). In this respect, there is also a problem in the friendship of a cheetah and a sloth if they both want to be happy. But why not get involved in someone else’s whizzing or dawdling? This picture book accompanies the two animals wonderfully.
I: Dorothee Blankenhagen, 32 pages, 16 eurosAnnette Betz, from 4
Helen Rutter – Nine Wishes for Archie
Archie Crumb considers himself a useless person because while all other children have at least some strength, he only sees weaknesses in themselves. Plus, his mom has been in bed for a while now, and his dad has a new family. And then a crash with the bike… But at least that turns out to be a stroke of luck that gives Archie nine free wishes. The Englishwoman Helen Rutter explains in a sensitive and funny way that it is not always easy when these come true and that hope is more important than magic.
T: Silke Jellinghaus, 256 p., 17 eurosAtrium, from 10
Nils Mohl – Henny & Ponger
It may not be unusual for love stories to begin on public transport. But Henny and Ponger’s first encounter on the S-Bahn quickly turns into an adventure for whom the world is literally not enough. And it’s told in a good 200 short chapters, sometimes just a few paragraphs, so quickly that even those young people who would otherwise shy away from long books will probably stick with it.
320 p., 18 eurosmixtvision, from 14
Raffaela Schöbitz – Make the world yours
According to statistics, complete gender equality will not be a reality for over 130 years. Girls today still have to work harder to achieve the same things as their peers. What helps? Role models. This book presents everything from Cleopatra to Ada Lovelace (mathematician) to Zheng Yisao (Chinese pirate). After each portrait, participatory exercises invite you to become (creatively) active yourself. Of course something for boys too!
192 p., 25.50 eurosLeykam, from 8
Varsha Shah – Ajay and the Ink Heroes
Newspapers are Ajay’s world: as a street boy in Mumbai he only sells them, but later he wants to become a famous journalist. But suddenly he and his friends have the chance to found their own newspaper and at the same time embark on investigative and dangerous research. Child poverty and work in textile factories are difficult topics, but are nevertheless interwoven here in an exciting and readable way.
I: Sònia Albert, t: Katharina Naumann, 240 p., 15 euroAtrium, from 10