Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko

'Gennifer Choldenko is a bright light in ... teenage fiction, and Al Capone Does My Shirts is one of her best.' The Independent

'this engaging tale develops its characters subtly and skilfully' Sunday Times

When Moose Flanagan and his family move home and become residents of the famous prison island Alcatraz, things get interesting. First of all, they share the island with a few other families and a lot of pretty heavy-duty criminals including Al Capone. And secondly, Moose's sister is starting a new school, which everyone hopes will help her become more integrated with those around her. When Moose comes up with some pretty cunning money-making schemes based on his famous co-residents, he does not count on his sister becoming inadvertently involved. This is a charming, funny and utterly enchanting book that skillfully and delicately weaves a humorous tale with some important issues.

To find out about Gennifer Choldenko's other books and her time researching Alcatraz prison, click on the link to her website

http://http//www.choldenko.com/

Mr Chartwell by Rebecca Hunt

A remarkable debut. These are some of the best evocations of depression you'll read
Observer

An exuberantly imagined novel that gives full rein to its central conceit. Larger than life in every way, Black Pat is a terrific character. Hunt writes with wit and verve. Bold, original and frequently very funny. I can’t wait to see what Hunt comes up with next
Guardian

July, 1964. In bed at home, Winston Churchill is waking up. There’s a visitor in the room, someone he hasn’t seen for a while, a dark, mute bulk, watching him with tortured concentration. It’s Mr Chartwell.
In her terraced house in Battersea, Esther Hammerhans, young, vulnerable and alone, goes to answer the door to her new lodger. Through the glass she sees a vast silhouette the size of a mattress. It's Mr Chartwell.
He is charismatic and dangerously seductive, and Esther and Winston Churchill are drawn together by his dark influence. But can they withstand Mr Chartwell’s strange, powerful charms and strong hold? Can they even explain to anyone who or what he is? Or why he has come to visit? For Mr Chartwell is a huge, black dog. In this utterly original, moving, funny and exuberant novel, Rebecca Hunt explores how two unlikely lives collide as Mr Chartwell's motives are revealed to be far darker and deeper than they seem.

To read an interview with Rebecca Hunt about why she was interested in writing about depression which Winston Churchill called 'the Black Dog', click on the link below

http://http//www.booktrust.org.uk/show/feature/Rebecca-Hunt-interview