Not sure what to read? Pick some of these great books selected by Olga at Dunedin City Library for you to read over the summer.

* Books with + are for younger readers
* Remember to check the library catalogue to find them

Adventure

Access denied. Jason Rohan
A passport to pastries! Veera Hiranandani +
Accidental apprentice. Amanda Foody
Alice-Miranda in China. Jacqueline Harvey
Book of stolen dreams. David Farr
Bush rescue. Darrell Odgers +
Diving adventure. Willard Price
Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's library. Chris Grabenstein
Lakeview cottage. Mary Crosson +
The Magician’s elephant. Kate DiCamillo
Pigsticks and Harold and the incredible journey. Alex Milway +
Scream of the baboon king. Dan Hunter +
Silver swan. Kelly Gardiner (Swashbuckler trilogy)
Treasure island. Robert Louis Stevenson
Uncle Gobb and the dread shed. Michael Rosen +
Up up up and away. Wendy Harmer +
Water babies. Charles Kingsley
Whale Pot Bay. Des Hunt

NZ fiction

Barbarians. Kyle Mewburn (Dragon Knight) +
Canoe in the mist. Elsie Locke
Conrad Cooper’s last stand. Leonie Agnew
Cry of the Taniwha. Des Hunt
Danger at Devil’s Cove. Marilyn Bakker
End of the harbour. Elsie Locke
Ghosts of Moonlight Creek. Sue Copsey
Hunter. Joy Cowley
Jonty and Choc : A Story. Vince Ford +
Kauri in my blood. Joanna Orwin
Memory thief. Leonie Agnew
A new song in the land. Fleur Beale
Last fallen star. Graci Kim (A gifted clan novel)
Pipi and Pou and the river monster. Tim Tipene +
Rainbow Warrior. Sharon Holt
Secret hunt. Kyle Mewburn (Dinosaur trouble) +
Tears of Harry Wakatipu. Jack Lasenby
The Tooth. Des Hunt
To trap a Taniwha. Jane Cooper +
Under the mountain. Maurice Gee
Whale rider. Witi Ihimaera
The wild boy in the bush. Ruth Dallas

History

1066. Jim Eldridge +
The accidental time traveller. Janis Mackay
The bakehouse. Joy Cowley +
Battle in the air. Robert Matthews +
Case of the deadly desperadoes. Caroline Lawrence
Clockwork Queen. Peter Bunzl +
Dark is rising. Susan Cooper
Egyptian curse. Chris Blake +
Forbidden library. Django Wexler
The Long-lost home. Maryrose Wood (Incorrigible children of Ashton Place)
The maze of the Minopaw. Robin Price
No safe harbour. David Hill +
Silver bowl. Diane Stanley
Song for a Dark Queen. Rosemary Sutcliff
Railway children. Nesbit E +
Romans on the rampage. Jeremy Strong
Seeing stone. Kevin Crossley-Holland (Arthur trilogy)
Beyond the bright sea. Lauren Wolk
When fishes flew. Michael Morpurgo

Fantasy

Anya and the dragon. Sofiya Pasternack
A wrinkle in time. Madeleine L'Engle. (Time quintet)
Doomfire secret. Annalieses Avery (Night Silver)
Five Fakirs of Faizabad. Philip Kerr (Children of the lamp)
Fire. Kyle Mewburn (Dragon Knight) +
The golden door. Emily Rodda (Three doors)
The High King. Alexander Lloyd (The Chronicles of Prydain)
How not to be a vampire slayer. Katy Birchall
Inkdeath. Cornelia Funk
The silver door. Holly Lisle
T-wreck-asaurus. Kyle Mewburn (Dinosaur rescue) +
Museum of thieves. Lian Tanner
Northern lights. Phillip Pullman (His dark materials)
The Queen and nobody boy. Barbara Else
Screaming staircase. Jonathon Stroud. (Lockwood and Co)
Shadows of Rookhaven. Padraig Kenny (Monsters of Rockhaven)
Spark. Mitch Johnson
The Strangeworlds Travel Agency. L. D. Lapinski
Tomas and Ironskin. Alastair Chisholm. (Dragon storm series)
Wild imaginings of Stanley Strange. Guy Bass +
Wildwood. Colin Meloy (Wildwood Chronicles)

Animals

Animal train. Anh Do. (Wolf Girl)
Armadillo and hare and the flamingo affair. Jeremy Strong
Call of the wild. Jack London
The Bolds to the rescue. Julian Clary +
Dogfight. Donovan Bixley +
Dragon rider. Caroline Cornelia Funke.
Elephant adventure. Willard Price
Hot air. Donovan Bixley (Flying furballs) +
How to cheat a dragon’s curse. Cressida Cowell (How train your dragon)
Jungle book. Rudyard Kipling
Lonely lion club. Amelia Cobb +
One boy & his dog. Eva Ibbotson
Professor MacDhui’s big Dunedin eggs. Margaret Thomson
Pugs of the frozen north. Philip Reeve +
Redwall. Brian Jacques
The storm leopards. Holly Webb +
The story of Diva and Flea. Mo Willems +
Tamburlaine’s elephants. Geraldine McCaughrean
Tiny tapir trouble. Clara Vulliamy +
Unhappy campers. Tracey West (Under dogs) +
Yours sincerely, Giraffe. Megumi Iwasa +

A great read

Alice-Miranda to the rescue. Jacqueline Harvey +
Amelia Bedelia sets sail. Herman Parrish +
Aru Shah and the nectar of immortality. Roshani Chokshi (Pandava novel)
Boss girl. Hilary Rogers (Girltopia trilogy)
Burning sea. Paul Collins +
Clover curse. Poppy Green
Dragon defenders. James Russell +
George’s cosmic treasure hunt. Lucy & Stephen Hawking
Harry Potter and the Philosophers stone. J.K. Rowling
Into the sideways world. Ross Welford
Knight-napped! Ursula Vernon +
Mask of destiny. Richard Newsome (Billionaire trilogy)
Project fairy. Jacqueline Wilson
Reckless. Caroline Cornelia Funke. (Mirrorworld)
Rockhopping. Trace Balla +
Screaming staircase. Jonathan Stroud
Secret guardians. Lian Tanner (The Rogues)
Semi-magical witch. Eva Evergreen
Seven Wherewithal Way. Samantha-Ellen Bound
Shipwreck: surviving the storm. Caryn Jenner +
Song of seven. Tonke Dragt
Treasure hunters. James Patterson
Winterhouse. Ben Guterson

Humour

Agent weasel and the abominable Dr. Snow. Nick East +
Bastille vs the evil librarians. Brandon Sanderson
Beast of the bay. Tim Healey +
Bubble in the bathtub. Jo Nesbo
Cairo Jim and the sunken sarcophagus of Sekheret. Geoffrey McSkimming
Dory fantasmagory. Abby Hanlon.
The furball strikes back. Aaron Blabey +
The giant gear-stick of grooviness. Stu Duvall
How to ride a dragon’s storm. Cressida Cowell
Laugh your head off. Andy Griffiths.
My life and other massive mistakes. Tristan Bancks.
Nathalia Buttface and the most epically embarrassing trip ever. Nigel Smith
Ninja fish. Anh Do +
Old school. Jeff Kinney 
Olga and the smelly thing from nowhere. Elise Gravel +
Slapstick. Matt Stanton (Funny kid)
Spaceboy. David Walliams +
Toad delight. Morris Gleitzman
Top of the class (nearly). Liz Pichon
The very bad book. Andy Griffiths
The world’s worst children. David Walliams

Mysteries

13 curses. Michelle Harrison
Bash Street bandit. Steven Butler
Case of the frozen hearts. Emma Kennedy (Wilma Tenderfoot series)
Curse of the werewolf boy. Chris Priestley (Maudlin towers)
Digby O’Day and the great diamond robbery. Shirley Hughes.
Fizz and the handbag dognapper. Lesley Gibbs
Ghost light. Pauline Hosking (Cinnamon Stevens)
Huge hair scare. Kate Pankhurst (Mariella mystery investigates)
The Iron Tomb. Peter Vagas (Pyramid hunters)
Ivy & Bean take the case. Annie Barrows
Judy Moody, girl detective. Megan McDonald.
Lockdown. Jack Heath (Liars)
Mystery of the cursed ruby. Helen Moss (Adventure Island)
Newspaper club. Beth Vrabel
Pizza detective. William Goldsmith
Phyllis Wong and the forgotten secrets of Mr. Okyto. Geoffrey McSkimming.
Real McCoys. Matthew Swanson & Robbi Behr.
Spy toys. Mark Powers
To catch a thief. Matt Forbeck (Dungeons & Dragons endless quest)
Tower of the winds. H. L. Dennis. (Secret breakers)
Whispers in the walls. Sophie Cleverly. (Scarlet and Ivy)