Spring has arrived in our School Library with World Book Day just around the corner and our upcoming author visit by Ele Fountain. Check out all of Ele’s books in our school library and on Sora.
Thank you to everyone who took out one of our mystery wrapped up “Blind Date with a book” novels. We had an amazing 85 books borrowed. There is still time to get your review slips in, simply complete your review and bring it the library desk to receive an achievement point.
We are very excited to be announcing our Scholastic Book Fair which will run from 17th March – 20th March in our school library. Read all about it below, including details of our pre fair competition.
Lunar New Year 2026
Year of the Horse
Lunar New Year, also called Chinese New Year, is a special celebration in many East and Southeast Asian countries. It happens in late January or early February and marks the start of a new year based on the moon’s cycle.
In the Chinese zodiac, each year is linked to one of 12 animals in a repeating cycle. People born in each year are believed to share traits of that year’s animal. 2026 is the Year of the Horse. The horse represents courage, grace, strength, loyalty, freedom, and success.
Lunar New Year celebrations last several days. Families decorate their homes with red lanterns, enjoy special meals, give red envelopes with money, and watch fireworks and colourful parades.
Ms Lo has picked some great reads to celebrate the Year of the Horse. Check out fascinating myths to modern stories in our school library. And of course, we couldn’t not mention some classic fictional horses who have won the hearts of readers: Shadowfax from Lord of the Rings; Pegasus from Greek Mythology; Roach from the Witcher Series; Bucephalus from Alexander the Great; Black Beauty; Joey from War Horse. Gallop into your imagination and pick a book to borrow today.
Carnegies Longlist 2026 is Announced
The Carnegies, the UK’s longest running and best loved book awards for children and young people, have announced their longlists for 2026. Independent publishers excel on the longlist, with the Medal for Illustration featuring a fresh line up of 17 artists longlisted for the very first time. Identity is a stand-out theme across both Medals, explored through class, family, precious relationships, wild journeys and meaningful connections with nature. Retellings, folklore and history are also frequently used to reflect on the present, and a notable collection of funny books for all ages also make a joyous addition to the longlist.
A total of 37 titles have been selected from 20 different publishers; 19 titles for the Carnegie Medal for Writing, and 19 for the Carnegie Medal for Illustration.
The Carnegies are managed by CILIP, the library and information association, and celebrate outstanding reading experiences in books for children and young people. They are unique in being judged by librarians, with the Shadowers’ Choice Medal voted for by children and young people. The awards aim to spark a lifelong passion for reading by connecting more children with books that will change lives. The longlists were chosen from 127 nominations by the Judging Panel which includes 14 children’s and youth librarians from CILIP’s Youth Libraries Group.
The 2026 Carnegie Medal for Writing longlist is
(alphabetical by author surname):
Black Star by Kwame Alexander (Andersen Press)
Ghostlines by Katya Balen (Bloomsbury Publishing)
Stealing Happy by Brian Conaghan (Bloomsbury Publishing)
On the Wall by Anne Fine (Old Barn Books)
Fia and the Last Snow Deer by Eilish Fisher, illustrated by Dermot Flynn (Penguin)
Not Going to Plan by Tia Fisher (Bonnier Books UK)
Popcorn by Rob Harrell (Bonnier Books UK)
The Boy I Love by William Hussey (Andersen Press)
Songs for Ghosts by Clara Kumagai (Head of Zeus)
When It’s Your Turn for Midnight by Blessing Musariri (Head of Zeus)
Birdy Arbuthnot’s Year of ‘Yes!’ by Joanna Nadin (Fox & Ink Books)
Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody by Patrick Ness, illustrated by Tim Miller (Walker Books)
Wolf Siren by Beth O’Brien (HarperCollins Publishers)
Shrapnel Boys by Jenny Pearson (Usborne)
Handle With Care by Louisa Reid (Guppy Books)
Twenty-Four Seconds from Now by Jason Reynolds (Faber & Faber)
Birdie by J. P. Rose (Andersen Press)
Traumaland by Josh Silver (Oneworld Publications)
The Spick and the Span by Pil Van Martin (HarperCollins Publishers)
Credit: The Carnegies https://carnegies.co.uk/
Remember to keep safe online. Always ask your parent/guardian or a member of staff if you are unsure.
All of these longlist titles and the Carnegies longlist for Illustration titles are available to borrow on Sora.
Our School library has purchased all the books for Carnegies longlist for writing. Our KS3 Book Club will be doing the shadowing of these titles. If you would like to get involved, please come along to Book Club on Wednesday Week B, during Lunch break in our School library. Our next meeting will be 11th March 2026.
International Women’s Day
8 March 2026
Celebrating 100 Years 1911- 2026
International Women’s Day (IWD) has been celebrated for more than 100 years, and many of the challenges women face today have been around just as long. Since it began in 1911, IWD has been a day for everyone who believes in fairness and equality.
IWD is about:
Celebrating the achievements of women in all areas of life
Understanding and speaking up about the discrimination women still experience
Taking action to help create a world where everyone has the same opportunities, no matter their gender.
This important day is open to everyone wishing to get involved in whatever way they can to support equality and inclusivity. This year’s IWD theme is “Give to Gain,” encouraging generosity, collaboration and teamwork. We have some great books in our library for you to borrow: And So I Roar by Abi Daré (KS5); Headstrong: 52 Women Who Changed Science-and the World by Rachel Swaby (KS4); New Methods for Women: 51 lessons for the life you want by Sharmadean Reid (KS5); Rad Women Worldwide by Kate Schatz (KS3); Women in White Coats by Olivia Campbell (KS4); Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World by Rachel Ignotofsky (KS3).
Scholastic Book Fair Week coming to
SGS on 17th March 2026
We are getting very excited for our Scholastic Book Fair which we are hosting from 17th March – 20th March. The book fair will be open to all students to come into the school library and browse the brilliant books that are on offer by Scholastic. If you see a book that you and your parent/guardian would like to consider purchasing, remember the title of it and let your parent/guardian know, so together you can look them up on Scholastic website at home. All payments will be made by your parent/guardian through the Scholastic website (which will go live from 17th March 2026 and finish at 4pm 20th March 2026). There will be no cash payments in school. All purchases made will go towards supporting new book resources for our school library.
There will be “Wishlist” forms available for students to fill in the names of multiple the titles. You can then browse together with your parent/guardian and keep track of the books that catch your eye! Once payment has been made, you will be able to come and collect your purchased book/s from the school library from 18th March onwards.
Your parent/guardian will be emailed with details of the Scholastic Book Fair.
Please email the school library if you have any questions:
library@suttongrammar.school
Please note, the Wishlist is not an order form. If your parent/guardian purchase books using the Scholastic online payment system, the Wishlist must be returned to school, together with confirmation of payment (a 7-digit confirmation number). This is so our school library can distribute the chosen books.
We have lots of books titles included in the fair available to borrow in our library today, here are a selection: The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak; Cirque Du Freak by Darren Shan; The Crossing by Manjeet Mann, Fearless by Lauren Roberts; Kill Creature by Rory Power; Heartstopper Volume 3 by Alice Oseman.
Book Fair Competition
Enter our Book Fair competition and win vouchers to put towards titles at our Scholastic Book Fair 17th – 20th March 2026. Simply write a book review and inspire others to read. £10 Book Fair Voucher for WINNERS! Achievement Point for all participants.
Rules:
1. Borrow a book from the School Library
2. Write a book review of 50–100 words
3. Upload your review to Libresoft
Submit your review to Libresoft librarian by 10th March 2026
“Wall of Fame” Gallery Walk
3 March 2026
As part of our World Book Day celebrations our school library will have a “Wall of Fame” Gallery Walk set up around the library. There are 12 posters all with quotes from famous books and pictures of the authors who wrote them. Grab a book bingo card to take around the walk with you and tick off the authors and their books that you see. There is a quiz question on the bottom – see if you can guess the answer? One entry per student. An Achievement point will be awarded for all correct answers.
Our School library would like to wish our Muslim families a Happy Ramadan.
If you are interested in learning more about Ramadan, here is a great link from BBC Bitesize explaining more about how it is observed.
www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/
Check out Sora for some books on Ramadan and the celebration of Eid ul-Fitr.
Remember to keep safe online. Always ask your parent/guardian or a member of staff if you are unsure.