Scotland


<p>As Warden of Glenalmond College, and Executive Principal of Glenalmond Schools Group, Lucy Elphinstone is passionate about getting children of all ages enthused about books. </p>



<p>&#8220;We need to keep children&#8217;s imagination and creativity alive in a time when so much of our curiosity is in danger of being crushed by AI,&#8221; she says. &#8220;I think you do that by encouraging children to become immersed in words and the joy of language.&#8221; </p>



<p>Elphinstone believes comic books and graphic novels are a great way to hook children &#8220;on the simple pleasure of holding a book&#8221; and audiobooks are particularly good for children who are dyslexic: &#8220;You get to hear how beautifully the words are written. It&#8217;s why Roald Dahl was so wonderful – all the words that he made up encouraged a joy in language. I believe that&#8217;s a gift you give your children for life.&#8221;</p>



<p>After something of a trend for dystopian novels she says the &#8220;pendulum has swung away from doom and gloom towards fantasy novels and stories with strong female role models in particular.&#8221;. </p>



<p>Here she shares her pick of books for teens, with a couple of recommendations for grown ups too.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-younger-ones-ages-11-13">The Younger Ones (ages 11–13)</h2>



<p>There are three popular themes, I think, in books for 11-to-13-year-olds at the moment. There are fantastic fantasy and magical world stories that are gripping children&#8217;s imaginations. There are detective stories, which I&#8217;ve noticed girls, in particular, like. And there the relationship stories, about friendships – the kinds of stories Jacqueline Wilson was so good at telling. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="371" height="522" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Impossible-Creatures.jpg" alt="Impossible creatures" class="wp-image-2022" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Impossible-Creatures.jpg 371w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Impossible-Creatures-213x300.jpg 213w" sizes="(max-width: 371px) 100vw, 371px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-impossible-creatures-series-by-katherine-rundell"><a href="https://shop.scholastic.co.uk/products/Impossible-Creatures-Katherine-Rundell-9781408897430" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The <em>Impossible Creatures</em> series by Katherine Rundell </a></h3>



<p>Katherine Rundell is, in my opinion, the country&#8217;s best author at the moment. She&#8217;s absolutely exceptional. These stories are about so much more than dragons, unicorns and gaganas, glorious though they are. They&#8217;re about how to live within the chaos and beauty of our miraculous world.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="332" height="522" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Crongton-Knights.jpg" alt="Crongton Knights" class="wp-image-2024" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Crongton-Knights.jpg 332w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Crongton-Knights-191x300.jpg 191w" sizes="(max-width: 332px) 100vw, 332px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crongton-knights-by-alex-wheatle"><a href="https://www.alexwheatle.com/crongton-knights" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Crongton Knights</em> by Alex Wheatle </a></h3>



<p>An award-winning story that is both funny and moving about a group of friends from a council estate who embark upon an adventure to help a friend in trouble.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="334" height="522" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/A-Monster-Calls.jpg" alt="A Monster Calls" class="wp-image-2025" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/A-Monster-Calls.jpg 334w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/A-Monster-Calls-192x300.jpg 192w" sizes="(max-width: 334px) 100vw, 334px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-monster-calls-by-patrick-ness"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Monster-Calls-Patrick-Ness/dp/1406361801" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>A Monster Calls</em> by Patrick Ness </a></h3>



<p>A powerful exploration of how bottling emotions affects our ability to process trauma.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1060" height="1500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Remembrance.jpg" alt="Remembrance novel" class="wp-image-2026" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Remembrance.jpg 1060w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Remembrance-212x300.jpg 212w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Remembrance-724x1024.jpg 724w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Remembrance-768x1087.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1060px) 100vw, 1060px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-remembrance-by-theresa-breslin"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Remembrance-Theresa-Breslin/dp/0552547387" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Remembrance</em> by Theresa Breslin </a></h3>



<p>A beautifully interwoven set of letters and intersecting narratives that bring World War I experiences vividly to life.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-middle-years-ages-14-16">The Middle Years (ages 14–16)</h2>



<p>Books often tackle real issues that children are facing and can be very moving – like being dyslexic, which you know can make you feel different, or your parents splitting up, or having somebody die in your family. All these things can make you feel either ostracised or alone, and books explores these issues very well, with sensitivity and humour, which really draw children and young people in.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="988" height="1500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Who-Runs-the-World.jpg" alt="Who runs the world" class="wp-image-2027" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Who-Runs-the-World.jpg 988w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Who-Runs-the-World-198x300.jpg 198w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Who-Runs-the-World-674x1024.jpg 674w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Who-Runs-the-World-768x1166.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 988px) 100vw, 988px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-who-runs-the-world-by-virginia-bergin"><a href="https://www.waterstones.com/book/who-runs-the-world/virginia-bergin/9781509834037" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Who Runs the World </em>by Virginia Bergin </a></h3>



<p>A thought-provoking story examining gender, power, truth and social conditioning.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="981" height="1500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/One.jpg" alt="One by Sarah Crossan" class="wp-image-2028" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/One.jpg 981w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/One-196x300.jpg 196w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/One-670x1024.jpg 670w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/One-768x1174.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 981px) 100vw, 981px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-one-by-sarah-crossan"><a href="https://www.waterstones.com/book/one/sarah-crossan/9781526614858" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>One</em> by Sarah Crossan </a></h3>



<p>A beautiful and tender story, told in verse, about conjoined twins.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-older-ones-ages-16-18">The Older Ones (ages 16–18)</h2>



<p>Our new Head of English is also all about celebrating the joys of reading with book clubs, reading clubs, and writing and poetry competitions. But we&#8217;re encouraging reading all the time by keeping young people off their phones – they don&#8217;t have them in the daytime, they don&#8217;t have them when they&#8217;re doing their homework, and they don&#8217;t have them or laptops in their bedrooms. Instead, you go to bed and you read. It&#8217;s no bad thing to read a book!</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="977" height="1500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/the-Grief-Nurse.jpg" alt="The Grief Nurse" class="wp-image-2029" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/the-Grief-Nurse.jpg 977w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/the-Grief-Nurse-195x300.jpg 195w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/the-Grief-Nurse-667x1024.jpg 667w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/the-Grief-Nurse-768x1179.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 977px) 100vw, 977px" /></figure>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="813" height="1250" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/The-Bone-Diver.jpg" alt="The Bone Diver" class="wp-image-2030" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/The-Bone-Diver.jpg 813w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/The-Bone-Diver-195x300.jpg 195w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/The-Bone-Diver-666x1024.jpg 666w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/The-Bone-Diver-768x1181.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 813px) 100vw, 813px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-grief-nurse-and-the-bone-diver-by-angie-spoto"><em><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Grief-Nurse-Angie-Spoto/dp/1914518179" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Grief Nurse</a></em> and <a href="https://blackandwhitepublishing.com/products/the-bone-diver" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>The Bone Diver</em> by Angie Spoto</a> </h3>



<p>Two stunning novels (by a dear friend of mine) exploring grief, power, identity, gender, and transformation.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="636" height="1024" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Wicked-1-636x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-2037" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Wicked-1-636x1024.jpg 636w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Wicked-1-186x300.jpg 186w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Wicked-1-768x1236.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Wicked-1.jpg 932w" sizes="(max-width: 636px) 100vw, 636px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-wicked-by-gregory-maguire"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wicked-1-Years/dp/0755331605" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Wicked </em>by Gregory Maguire</a></h3>



<p>A complex and layered narrative to revisit before the release of the final part of the film adaptation.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-for-the-grown-ups">For the grown ups:</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="981" height="1500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Audactiy-Spectrum.jpg" alt="The Audacity Spectrum" class="wp-image-2033" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Audactiy-Spectrum.jpg 981w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Audactiy-Spectrum-196x300.jpg 196w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Audactiy-Spectrum-670x1024.jpg 670w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Audactiy-Spectrum-768x1174.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 981px) 100vw, 981px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-audacity-spectrum-by-alina-addison"><a href="https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-audacity-spectrum/alina-addison/9781800815179" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>The Audacity Spectrum</em> by Alina Addison </a></h3>



<p>A brilliant read on leadership, audacity as care and courage, and the art of channelling one’s uniqueness.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="932" height="1500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Clear.jpg" alt="Clear" class="wp-image-2034" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Clear.jpg 932w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Clear-186x300.jpg 186w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Clear-636x1024.jpg 636w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2025/11/Clear-768x1236.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 932px) 100vw, 932px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-clear-by-carys-davies"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Clear-Carys-Davies/dp/1803510404" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Clear</em> by Carys Davies</a></h3>



<p>One of the best things I&#8217;ve read this year. Set on an island off the Shetlands, it&#8217;s a novella of only about 100 pages, but it is the most wonderful celebration of language.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-in-the-mood-for-more">IN THE MOOD FOR MORE?</h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://scotland.muddystilettos.co.uk/life/people/glenalmond-college-head-lucy-elphinstone-my-favourite-places/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">From Munros to martinis: Lucy Elphinstone’s favourite places</a></li>



<li><a href="https://scotland.muddystilettos.co.uk/kids/school-reviews/glenalmond-college-perth-perthshire/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Glenalmond College, Perth, Perthshire</a></li>



<li><a href="https://muddystilettos.co.uk/xmas/best-christmas-kids-for-babies-toddlers-and-kids/">Make a list, check it twice: brilliant Christmas gifts for kids</a></li>
</ul>


12 books to make your teens (and you) fall in love with reading again

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