Small Island : 12 Maps That Explain The History of Britain by Philip Parker

Penguin, £25

In 878 the borders of Alfred the Great’s Wessex were confined to a small patch of marshland in Somerset. This was Britain. Four centuries later, and the country straddled the English Channel. Six hundred years later, its boundaries were to be found in the Caribbean, the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Sunda Strait. These, too, were Britain. Yet when – and where – did Britain begin? Is Britain justified in its island mentality?  And is the shape of Britain soon to change all over again?

This comprehensive, entertaining and concise new history uses twelve maps to explain Britain’s most characteristic trait – our need to be both part of the wider world, yet separate from it.

The Accidental Stowaway by Judith Eagle

Faber & Faber, £7.99

Liverpool, 1910. When Patch runs up the gangway of RMS Glorious to find a place to hide, she isn’t planning to hang around. Too late, she realises the ship is setting sail – Patch has become an accidental stowaway!

Luckily, Patch’s unconventional past has made her fearless when it comes to fending for herself, and there are friends in high and low places to be made onboard. But hiding away becomes less and less easy: her new friends urgently need her help and there’s a mystery that needs solving, all before they reach New York…

Perfect for fans of Emma Carroll and Katherine Rundell, this brilliant historical adventure is by local South London school librarian, Judith Eagle.

Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim

Hodder & Stoughton, £6.99

Princess Shiori has a secret. Forbidden magic runs in her veins. On the morning of her betrothal ceremony, she loses control, forestalling the wedding she never wanted, but also catching the attention of Raikama, her stepmother and a sorceress. Raikama banishes the princess, turning her brothers into cranes, and warning Shiori that with every word that escapes her lips, one of her brothers will die.

Voiceless and alone, Shiori searches for her brothers, and uncovers a dark conspiracy to seize the throne. Only Shiori can set the kingdom to rights, but to do so she must place her trust in a paper bird, a mercurial dragon, and the very boy she fought so hard not to marry. This is a beautiful and immersive YA fantasy retelling of the Grimm Brothers’ The Six Swans, set in an East-Asian inspired world.

Delphi by Clare Pollard

Penguin, £12.99

It’s 2020 and a woman attempts to write a book about prophecy in the ancient world. Navigating lockdown, a marriage in crisis, and a ten-year-old son who seems increasingly unreachable, she becomes fixated on our many forms of divination and prediction. But in doing so she fails to notice the future creeping into the heart of her own home. For despite our best intentions, time, certainty and, sometimes, those we love, can still slip away…

Clare Pollard is an award-winning poet and playwright based in South London. Heartbreakingly relatable and achingly funny, her debut novel Delphi is both a snapshot and a time capsule, deftly capturing our pasts, our presents, and how we keep on going in a world that is ever more uncertain and absurd.

Ella and the Waves by Britta Teckentrup

Orchard Books, £12.99

Ella sits alone in a boat, battling waves so high they touch the sky. A bodiless voice beneath the surface of the sea tells her it is hopeless… But there are kind voices at sea too – ones that offer encouragement, support and the promise of hope. With the kindness of a small white bird, a lesson from a pod of porpoises and the support of a gentle whale, Ella finds her courage and discovers she was never alone.

This is a beautiful and timely story that serves as a reminder that though we may face our fears alone, we are all in this together, from award-winning author-illustrator, Britta Teckentrup.