Year 7 Extension Reading List
(Poetry)
If you have enjoyed the poetry unit, you might like to read some more poetry.
Favourite children’s poets you might like to explore and research:
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Roald Dahl
Michael Rosen
Edward Lear
Pam Ayres
Ted Hughes
Hillaire Belloc
John Agard
Ogden Nash
Popular narrative (story) poems :
 The Highwayman by Alfred Noyes
 The Pied Piper of Hamelin by Robert Browning
 The Lady of Shalott by Alfred, Lord Tennyson
The following website contains lots of interesting and fun poems to read:
http://www.poetryarchive.org/childrensarchive/home.do
And the following poetry collections, some of which are in the school library,
are also worth exploring:
 “I Like This Poem: A Collection of Best-loved Poems Chosen by
Children for Other Children” edited by Kaye Webb and Antony
Maitland
 “The Oxford Book of Children's Poetry” edited by Michael Harrison and
Christopher Stuart-Clark
 “100 Best Poems for Children” edited by Sheila Moxley
 “Michael Rosen's A-Z: The best children's poetry from Agard to
Zephaniah” edited by Michael Rosen
 “The Nation's Favourite Children's Poems” edited by Spike Milligan
 “The New Faber Book of Children's Verse” edited by Matthew Sweeney
Year 7 Extension Reading List
(Autobiography)
You may have come across some of these autobiographies already,
either at Redland or at your previous school. Why not try to get
hold of one or two you haven’t read, or which you would like to
reread. If you want more information, then type the title into
www.amazon.com
 “Boy” by Roald Dahl
 “Going Solo” by Roald Dahl
 “The Diary of Anne Frank”
 “Cider with Rosie” by Laurie Lee
 “Caught by the Sea: My life on boats” by Gary Paulsen
 “Bill Peet: An Autobiography” by Bill Peet
 “The Abracadabra Kid: a writer’s life” by Sid Fleischman
 “Under the Royal Palms” by Alma Flor Ada
 “Mao’s Last Dancer” by Li Cunxin
 “Chinese Cinderella” by Adeline Yen Mah
 “Close to Flying” by Cadel Evans
Year 7 Extension Reading List
(Drama – Shakespeare)
Shakespeare is wonderful to watch – check out these versions which
are available from Amazon, or other dvd retailers.
 “Shakespeare Retold” (2005) – four modern interpretations of
Shakespeare plays, starring Billie Piper, Imelda Staunton, Rufus
Sewell
 “Twelfth Night” (1996), directed by Trevor Nunn, starring
Helena Bonham Carter
 “Much Ado About Nothing” (1993), directed by Kenneth
Branagh, starring Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson
 “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” (1999), directed by Michael
Hoffman, starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Kevin Kline
And try watching BBC Shakespeare Animated Tales on
www.youtube.com – for example “Macbeth”, “Romeo and Juliet”,
“The Tempest”, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, “As You Like It”
You could also read the “Shakespeare Stories” series, a box set of 16
stories of the most well-known Shakespeare plays.
You will probably be studying “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” in
Year 8 and “Romeo and Juliet” in Year 9. These are two of the
more accessible plays if you want to try reading Shakespeare’s
language.
Year 7 Extension Reading List
(Narrative Fiction “War Horse” by Michael Morpurgo)
The following are linked to “War Horse” either through
having the same author, or through war or horses.
 “Farm Boy” by Michael Morpurgo
 “Private Peaceful” by Michael Morpurgo
 “Shadow” by Michael Morpurgo
 “Remembrance” by Theresa Breslin
 “The Shell House” by Linda Newbery
 “Carrie’s War” by Nina Bawden
 “I am David” by Ann Holm
 “The Red Pony” by John Steinbeck
 “Black Beauty” by Anna Sewell
If you like horse books, then check out this website:
http://www.childrensliteraturenetwork.org/resource/readlist/f
avhorse.php
Year 7 Extension Reading List
(Creative Writing – Fantasy Narrative)
There are a lot of fantasy narratives out there, but here are
some classics, old and new. All can be found in the RHS
Library:
 “The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe” by C S Lewis
 “Northern Lights”, “The Subtle Knife”, “The Amber
Spyglass” by Phillip Pullman
 The “Harry Potter” series
 “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” by Lewis Carroll
 “Peter Pan” by J M Barrie
 “The Hobbit” by JRR Tolkien
 “Gulliver’s Travels” by J Swift
 “The Wizard of Oz” by Frank Baum
 “The Dark is Rising” by Susan Cooper
 “A Wizard of Earthsea” by Ursula le Guin
Year 8 Extension Reading List (Poetry)
Favourite children’s poets:
 Roald Dahl
 Michael Rosen
 Edward Lear
 Pam Ayres
 Ted Hughes
 Hillaire Belloc
 John Agard
 Ogden Nash
Popular poems:
 The Highwayman
 The Pied Piper of Hamelin
 The Lady of Shalott
http://www.poetryarchive.org/childrensarchive/home.do
“I Like This Poem: A Collection of Best-loved Poems Chosen by Children for
Other Children” edited by Kaye Webb and Antony Maitland
“The Oxford Book of Children's Poetry” edited by Michael Harrison and
Christopher Stuart-Clark
“100 Best Poems for Children” edited by Sheila Moxley
“Michael Rosen's A-Z: The best children's poetry from Agard to Zephaniah”
edited by Michael Rosen
“The Nation's Favourite Children's Poems” edited by Spike Milligan
“The New Faber Book of Children's Verse” edited by Matthew Sweeney
Year 8 Extension Reading List
(Drama – Shakespeare)
Shakespeare is wonderful to watch – check out these
versions which are available from Amazon, or other dvd
retailers.
“Shakespeare Retold” (2005) – four modern interpretations
of Shakespeare plays, starring Billie Piper, Imelda Staunton,
Rufus Sewell
“Twelfth Night” (1996), directed by Trevor Nunn, starring
Helena Bonham Carter
“Much Ado About Nothing” (1993), directed by Kenneth
Branagh, starring Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson
And try watching BBC Shakespeare Animated Tales on
youtube – for example “Macbeth”, “Romeo and Juliet”, “The
Tempest”, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, “As You Like It”
You could also read the Shakespeare Stories series, a box set
of 16 stories of the most well-known Shakespeare plays.
If you enjoyed studying “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” in
Year 8 you may like to have a go at reading “Twelfth Night”
or “Much Ado About Nothing”. These are two of the more
accessible plays if you want to try reading Shakespeare’s
language. You will probably be studying “Romeo and Juliet”
in Year 9, so you may like to have a go at reading this too.
Year 8 Extension Reading List
(Non-Fiction – Newspapers)
The best thing to read to extend your study of newspapers is
to read…lots of newspapers.
“First News”, a newspaper written specifically for young
people is taken by the RHS library each week.
Also in the library you will find “The Times” (national
newspaper) and “The Post” (Bristol’s local paper). Whilst
you will probably not want to read these cover to cover, you
should flick through and read articles that look interesting.
The “Essential Articles” series is a great collection of
interesting and controversial articles, grouped by theme.
These are held in the reference section of the library, to the
right of the librarian’s desk. These are great for research or
just if you want to find out more about a topic, and how it is
presented in the press.
Year 8 Extension Reading List
(Narrative Fiction “The Giver”)
 “Gathering Blue” by Lois Lowry (not exactly a sequel to
“The Giver” but there are similarities)
 “Messenger” by Lois Lowry (again, there are some
connections with “The Giver”)
 “The Declaration” and “The Resistance” by Gemma
Malley
 “Exodus” and “Zenith” by Julie Bertanga
 “The Hunger Games”, “Catching Fire” and “Mockingjay”
by Suzanne Collins
 “Floodland” by Marcus Sedgwick
If you enjoy reading dystopian novels then check out this
website which gives many more interesting choices you might
like to try:
http://www.bartsbookshelf.co.uk/2009/09/30/update-bestdystopian-ya-novels-redux/
Year 8 Extension Reading List
(Creative Writing – The Gothic)
If you enjoyed the Gothic Unit then here are some reading suggestions:
 “The Last Vampire” by Christopher Pike
 “The Keep” by Jennifer Egan
 “The Sister” by Poppy Adams
 “Sleep Pale Sister” by Joanne Harris
 “We have always lived in a Castle” by Shirley Jackson
 “The Ghost Writer” by John Harwood
These next novels are more challenging, but are important gothic novels in
English Literature:
 “Rebecca” by Daphne du Maurier
 “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte
 “Northanger Abbey” by Jane Austen
 “Dracula” by Bram Stoker
 “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley
Year 9 Extension Reading List
(War Poetry)
Here are some collections of First World War Poetry you might like to explore:
 The Penguin Book of First World War Poetry (Penguin Classics)
 Poems of the Great War: 1914-1918 (Penguin Twentieth Century
Classics)
 Voices of Silence: The Alternative Book of First World War Poetry
 Scars Upon My Heart: Women's Poetry and Verse of the First World
War
And this book of short stories might interest you too:
 The Penguin Book of First World War Stories (Penguin Classics)
These modern novels are all to do with the theme of war:
 Robert Cormier “Heroes”
 Kipling’s Choice by Geert Spillebeen
 Soldier X by Don Wulffson
 Tamar by Mal Peet
 Boy Soldier by Andy McNab
 The Shell House by Linda Newbery
 Remembrance by Theresa Breslin
 The Lost Crown by Sarah Miller
And finally, the following series of poetry collections, all published by BBC
Books, are always worth reading:
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The Nation’s Favourite Poems
The Nation’s Favourite Twentieth Century Poems
The Nation’s Favourite Poems of Childhood
The Nation’s Favourite Comic Poems
The Nation’s Favourite Love Poems
The Nation’s Favourite Poems of Celebration
The Nation’s Favourite Animal Poems
Year 9 Extension Reading List
(Drama – Shakespeare “Romeo and Juliet”)
So, you’ve now read one of the greatest love stories of all time. Here are
some more for you to enjoy:
 “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte
 “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen
 “Sense and Sensibility” by Jane Austen
 “Great Expectations” by Charles Dickens
 “Tess of the d’Urbervilles” by Thomas Hardy
Other Shakespeare plays you might enjoy either reading or watching:
 “Twelfth Night”
 “The Taming of the Shrew”
 “Much Ado About Nothing”
 “Hamlet”
 “Macbeth”
Year 9 Extension Reading List
(Narrative Fiction – “Daz 4 Zoe”)
 “1984” by George Orwell
 “Animal Farm” by George Orwell
 “Noughts and Crosses” by Malorie Blackman
 “Feed” by M T Anderson
 “Flux” by Beth Gooble
 “Genesis” by Bernard Beckett
 “The Triffids” by John Wyndham
 “The Chrysalids” by John Wyndham
 “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins
 “Fahrenheit 451” by Ray Bradbury
If you enjoy reading dystopian novels then check out this
website which gives many more interesting choices you might
like to try:
http://www.bartsbookshelf.co.uk/2009/09/30/update-bestdystopian-ya-novels-redux/
Year 9 Extension Reading List
(Creative Writing – Short Stories)
The following collections of short stories are worth
exploring. You’re bound to find some good ones here:
 “Skin and Other Stories” by Roald Dahl
 “A Twist in the Tale” by Jeffrey Archer
 “Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul: Stories of Life,
Love and Learning” by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor
Hansen
 “Sixteen: Short Stories by Outstanding Writers for
Young Adults” edited by Donald R. Gallo
 “Whodunnit? Utterly Baffling Detective Stories” by
Philip Pullman
 “Shining on: 11 Star Authors' Illuminating Stories” edited
by Lois Lowry
 “50 Great Short Stories” edited by Milton Crane
The following website will also give you some titles to
research if you would like to explore the genre of short
stories further:
http://www.onlineclasses.org/2011/01/20/the-50-best-shortstories-of-all-time/
Year 9 Extension Reading List (Drama – “An Inspector
Calls”)
Year 10 Extension Reading List (2012-2013)
Year 11 Extension Reading List (2012-2013)