Quick and quirky: books to tickle your imagination

Younger Fiction

Ball, Duncan: The ghost and the goggle box
When Uncle Arnold died he decided to hang around a bit and have some fun, but being trapped for eternity in a television set wasn’t quite what he had in mind.
Boote, Adrian: The lemonade genie
Colin Crumbly is a walking disaster area. Then he opens his can of lemonade and Keith The Lemonade Genie appears, with three wishes to grant. Can Colin finally get it right?
Creech, Sharon: The ghost of Uncle Arvie
Uncle Arvie wants Danny to make his three wishes come true. The only problem is that Uncle Arvie is a ghost and before he died he had a stroke that mixed up all his words, so how is Danny supposed to find out what the wishes are?
Durant, Alan: Return to Creepe Hall
Oliver is back at Creepe Hall, where the latest creation from Uncle Franklin is a four-armed mummy called Cleopatra.
Gauthier, Gail: My life among the aliens
Will and his brother are part of an ordinary family except for one thing - their mother’s cooking. It’s so extraordinary that it seems to be attracting strange life-forms from other planets. Sequel: Club Earth
Horse, Harry: The last gold diggers
Grandfather and Roo catch the world’s only steam-powered plane and head off Down Under to search for long-lost Uncle Vincent, last heard from just after a mad crocodile swallowed his pants.
Howe, James: Bunnicula strikes again!
It seems that Bunnicula, the vampire, is back to his old ways - draining vegetables of their vital juices. But Chester is determined to save the world once and for all from the vampire rabbit threat.
Mahy, Margaret: The horribly haunted school
Monty is allergic to ghosts. If there’s an invisible ghost around, he sneezes, and as soon as Monty sets foot in the Brinsly Codd School for Sensible Thought, he’s attacked by attishoos.
Pilkey, Dav: The adventures of Captain Underpants; Captain Underpants and the attack of the talking toilets; Captain Underpants and the invasion of the incredibly naughty cafeteria ladies from outer space…; Captain Underpants and the perilous plot of Professor Poopypants
Epic adventures with our favourite superhero and the ultimate weapon - wedgie power!
Scieszka, Jon: It’s all Greek to me
The Time Warp Trio travel again - this time back to Ancient Greece and feuding gods and goddesses.
Willner-Pardo, Gina: Spider Storch’s desperate deal
Spider Storch is going to be the ring-bearer at a wedding, with Mary Grace Brennerman as a flowergirl. What will it take to keep Mary Grace from letting the whole school know about it?; (other Spider Storch stories)

Older Fiction

Barnes, Rory: Horsehead boy; Horsehead man; Horsehead soup
When Spud doesn't quite make a single backward flip on his bike, and breaks his neck instead, his brain is relocated to a vat...
Bone, Ian: Spy babies
Ellie runs away to her friend Brand's place, only to discover that he's a spy! And then they're caught by the bad guys, and turned into babies! And then ... maybe you'd better read it to find out
Cheshire, Simon: Totally unsuitable for children
When the Galactic Coliseum lands in the field next door, intrepid reporter-to-be Sophie Ottershaw investigates.
Feeney, Josephine: The Dadhunters
Gary's Dad is getting married again so Gary decides, with the help of his mate Robert, to find a new husband for his Mum
Fine, Anne: Charm School
Becoming "Miss Glistening Tiara" for a day doesn't rank high on Sophie's list of things to do, but the thought of what could be done with stage lighting and sound effects is irresistible.
Ford, Vince: 2much4u
Davin didn't really mean to take the brake off in his mother's car, and he certainly didn't mean to let it roll into the incinerator and explode, but now he has to find a replacement before he can confess to his Mum.
French, Jackie: Stories to eat with a banana; Stories to eat with a watermelon
Since the refugees started arriving from Ruritania, no one knows who will turn up next. The teacher, Mrs Olsen, is a vampire (with an arrangement with the local abbatoir), and Prudence's new friend is the Phaery Ethereal (otherwise known as Phredde)
Harlen, Jonathan: The cockroach war
It's amazing what winning $40 million can do to some neighbours. But the Judge children, Toby and Emma, have soon had enough and prepare to launch their secret weapon on the Cadwalladers next door.
Honey, Elizabeth: Don't pat the wombat
A pioneer camp, assorted teachers, Class 5/6C, and a wombat or two - anything could happen
Korman, Gordon: The 6th grade nickname game
Jeff and Wiley are nicknamers extraordinaire - no one's safe from their name games. But then Cassandra arrives on the scene, and no name can quite sum her up.
Lasenby, Jack: The lies of Harry Wakatipu
Tall tales, this time right from the horse's mouth.
Mahy, Margaret: A villain's night out
There's no money left to buy books for the school library, so Miss Rogers decides that everyone will write a book. The only problem is that Formby's villain, Squidgy Moot, comes to life and decides to take control of things.
Pullman, Philip: I was a rat!, or, The scarlet slippers
Is he a boy? Is he a rat? Maybe, just maybe, he made the mistake of being around when a certain young woman needed to get to a ball.
Simons, Moya: Dead scary!
Danny's starting high school and has a whole new range of problems to cope with - school camp, a baby sister, and unrequited love.
Temperley, Alan: Harry and the wrinklies
When Harry's sent to stay with his great-aunts at Lagg Hall, he finds that they're not at all what he expected. Fast cars? Climbing trees? Late-night plans? - not the usual retirement home at all.
Waddell, Martin: The life and loves of Zoe T. Curley
A month in the life of Zoe, aspiring teenager, sister of Ob-Noxious and Creep, and inhabitant of Zog - a life-system created by Zoe's Dad to impose order on the household.