December Booklist: Write the Future

The Way Back Home
Oliver Jeffers
HarperCollins
9780007182329
Having found an aeroplane in his cupboard a small boy flies up, up and away past planets and stars until he runs out of petrol and crashes into the moon. A friendly Martian helps him come up with a plan to escape back to Earth so he can collect his toolbox and return to rescue his new friend. Strange and surreal illustrations are perfect for bringing to life this sparkling intergalactic adventure about the importance of being and having a friend.

Man on the Moon: a day in the life of Bob
Simon Bartram
Templar
9781840114911
This story is about life out in space. Bob’s work is to look after the Moon, entertaining visitors and selling them souvenirs. He has to check that the visitors have left at four-thirty each day and tidy up after them. Little does he realise that there are Aliens! This is an amusing introduction to the world of science fiction and a ‘must’ for reading aloud, with wonderful illustrations.

George's Secret Key to the Universe
Lucy and Stephen Hawking
Corgi Children's
9780552559584
Take a rollercoaster ride through the vastness of space and, in the midst of an exciting adventure, discover the mysteries of physics, science and the universe with George, his new friends next door - the scientist Eric and his daughter, Annie - and a super-intelligent computer called Cosmos, which can take them to the edge of a black hole and back again. Or can it? And who else would like to get their hands on Cosmos? This title is a funny and hugely informative romp through space, time and the universe.
It can be read aloud to younger children who love to imagine other worlds and what the future brings, but can also be enjoyed by older readers.

Eager
Helen Fox
Hodder
9780340875834
It is later this century; the earth's natural resources have been rationed for use by technocrats and all major decisions are made by LifeCorp, a global company. Robots do most of the work and the Bell family acquire a new, state-of-the-art robot, EGR3, to help their much-loved old-fashioned robot butler Grumps. EGR3, known as Eager, is something different - programmed to learn through his experiences, like a human child, and to experience human emotions. When the new glamorous BDC4 robots start to malfunction, he helps the Bell family investigate - with hilarious consequences. Questions are asked of LifeCorp and of Eager's creator and the answer to all the puzzles is finally solved. It leaves only the final question to be answered - the one closest to Eager's heart: am I alive? The book has echoes of Isaac Asimov’s work. Look out for the sequels.

Sir's a Robot
Mario Marco
Book Guild
9781857769333
Fed up with the same old teachers treating you like little children and setting too much homework? Well – imagine that the teachers were replaced by robots. Billy and Chris find that the prospect of robots taking over from real teachers is not something they relish. It is up to them and their friends to devise a plan to stop the robots before they take over. An interesting futuristic look at the world of schools!

Exodus
Julie Bertagna
Macmillan
9780330399081
It is 2099 - and the world is gradually drowning, as mighty Arctic ice floes melt, the seas rise, and land disappears forever beneath storm-tossed waves. For 15-year-old Mara, her family and community, huddled on the fast-disappearing island of Wing, the new century brings flight. Packed into tiny boats, a terrifying journey begins to a bizarre city that rises into the sky, built on the drowned remains of the ancient city of Glasgow. But even here there is no safety and, shut out of the city, Mara realizes they are asylum-seekers in a world torn between high-tech wizardry and the most primitive injustice. To save her people, Mara must not only find a way into the city but also search for a new land and a new home.

The Supernaturalist
Eoin Colfer
Puffin
9780141317410
Set in Satellite City, in the not-too-distant future. Thirteen-year-old Cosmo Hill is unfortunate enough to come into the world unwanted by his parents. And so, as are all orphaned boys his age, Cosmo is dipped in a vaccine vat and sent - freight class - to the Clarissa Frayne Institute for Parentally Challenged Boys. His attempt to escape goes badly wrong and he is only saved through the help of some ragamuffins. This is a pacy page-turner which is full of futuristic gizmos and high-tech gadgets. It takes a cleverly disguised sideswipe at multinationals and man’s effect on nature.

Mortal Engines
Philip Reeve
Scholastic
9780439979436
Tom and Hester have been thrown out of a city on wheels (while it hares off after its prey) and left in the middle of a post-nuclear landscape. Hester is desperate for revenge, and Tom is only desperate to get back on board his beloved London. This is a stunning literary debut from Philip Reeve. A novel that defies easy categorisation, it is a gripping adventure story set in an inspired fantasy world, where moving cities trawl the globe. Peopled with convincing and utterly likeable characters, this story is a magical and unique read and a worthy winner of the Smarties Book Prize 9-11 Category 2002 and Smarties Book Prize Gold Award 2002. Sequels are Predator’s Gold, Infernal Devices and A Darkling Plain.

The First Men in the Moon (Penguin Classics)
H.G. Wells
Penguin Classics
9780141441085
This is one of the first science fiction novels (published in 1901), by a master of prophetic imagination. When penniless businessman Mr Bedford retreats to the Kent coast to write a play, he meets by chance the brilliant Dr Cavor, an absent-minded scientist on the brink of developing a material that blocks gravity. Cavor soon succeeds in his experiments, only to tell a stunned Bedford that the invention makes possible one of the oldest dreams of humanity: a journey to the moon. With Bedford motivated by money, and Cavor by the desire for knowledge, the two embark on the expedition. But neither of them is prepared for what they find: a world of freezing nights, boiling days and sinister alien life, on which they may be trapped forever.
Other titles include: The Time Machine (1895) and The Shape of Things to Come (1933).

2001: A Space Odyssey
Arthur C. Clarke
Orbit
9781857236644
Arthur C. Clarke is arguably one of the greatest and most prophetic science fiction writers. Written when landing on the moon was still a dream and made into one of the most influential films of the 20th century, this story tackles the enduring theme of man's place in the universe. On the moon an enigma is uncovered. So great are the implications that men are sent out deep into the solar system. But, before they can reach their destination, things begin to go wrong, horribly wrong…

Life as We Knew It
Susan Pfeffer
Scholastic
9780439944335
No shops. No TV. No electricity. No daylight. No idea if your family is alive or dead. Could you survive? When a freak asteroid knocks the moon from its orbit, horrific tides engulf parts of the globe and life on earth changes overnight. For 15-year-old Miranda as power, communications and food supplies start to break down, a desperate battle for her family's survival begins.

Uglies
Scott Westerfeld
Simon and Schuster
9781416911043
Tally lives in a world where your sixteenth birthday brings an operation which transforms you from an 'Ugly' into a 'Pretty'. As well as guaranteeing supermodel looks, life as a Pretty seems to revolve around having a good time. But then she meets Shay, who is also fifteen - but with a very different outlook on life. Shay plans to escape to a community in the forest - the Rusty Ruins - where Uglies go to escape ' turning'. Tally is not prepared to sacrifice everything she's ever wanted for a lot of uncertainty but finds herself sent to the Ruins anyway on an undercover mission; if she refuses to go she will forfeit her birthday operation. What she discovers in the Ruins reveals that there is nothing 'pretty' about the transformations.

The Knife of Never Letting Go
Patrick Ness
Walker
9781406320756
This is an unflinching novel, by an award-winning writer, about the impossible choices of growing up. Imagine you're the only boy in a town of men. And you can hear everything they think. And they can hear everything you think. Imagine you don't fit in with their plans...Todd Hewitt is just one month away from the birthday that will make him a man. But his town has been keeping secrets from him. Secrets that are going to force him to run.

Brave New World (Flamingo Modern Classics)
Aldous Huxley
Flamingo
9780006545798
Far in the future, the World Controllers have created the ideal society. Through clever use of genetic engineering, brainwashing and recreational sex and drugs, all its members are happy consumers. Bernard Marx seems alone harbouring an ill-defined longing to break free. A visit to one of the few remaining Savage Reservations where the old, imperfect life still continues may be the cure for his distress... Huxley has created a novel which decades after its first edition (1932) is still essential reading and current; it tackles issues of genetic modification, cloning and totalitarianism, while managing to avoid the pitfall of being too scientific or political. A classic, and frighteningly prophetic, look at what the future may bring.

1984
George Orwell
Penguin Classics
9780141187761
Hidden away in the Record Department of the sprawling Ministry of Truth, Winston Smith skilfully rewrites the past to suit the needs of the Party. Yet he inwardly rebels against the totalitarian world he lives in, which demands absolute obedience and controls him through the all-seeing telescreens and the watchful eye of Big Brother, symbolic head of the Party. In his longing for truth and liberty, Smith begins a secret love affair with fellow worker Julia, but soon discovers the true price of freedom is betrayal.

Hello H20
John Agard
Hodder Children's
9780340893838
Full of wonder and excitement at the discoveries of science, this is another highly original collection of poems from one of Britain's leading poets, uniquely complemented by witty and entertaining illustrations. Certain to be enjoyed by all who have an interest in science and the natural world, this collection is poetry of the highest order. Providing numerous links between literacy and science, subjects range from water vapour to the wind, from robots to outer space, from physics to chemistry and biology. Always entertaining, often thought-provoking and sometimes deeply moving, this is a collection to treasure and return to time and again.

Doctor Who - The Visual Dictionary
Andrew Darling
Dorling Kindersley
9781405318679
This “Visual Dictionary" is a lavishly illustrated guide to the characters, aliens, monsters, locations and technology of the successful new Doctor Who series. The photography reveals more in-depth details, from the fascinating aliens to the demise of the Time Lords: the characters, technology and locations are shown in graphic detail. Fantastic gatefolds reveal the amazing features of the TARDIS's exciting new console and interior design, and a blue gem "Dalek eye" enhances the foil effect front cover. A must for all Doctor Who fans of any age.

The Science of Harry Potter
Roger Highfield
Headline
9780755311514
Invisibility cloaks, flying broomsticks, magic doors - all the stuff of children's fantasy. But have you ever wondered if this magic could feasibly work? Roger Highfield explores the extraordinary world of the Harry Potter stories and shows how cutting edge science can explain much of it. Exciting new concepts are tackled, such as wormholes and general relativity, and also explained are the more historical links between magic and science. The author also investigates the archaeological and anthropological evidence for witchcraft and dragons.

The Physics of Star Trek
Lawrence M. Krauss
Flamingo
9780006550426
An easy-to-understand introduction to the complexities of today's and tomorrow's physics. The author assesses what is and what is not actually possible according to the laws of physics, among all the weird and wonderful things that Kirk, Spock and Scotty got up to in their parallel universe.

An Inconvenient Truth: The Crisis of Global Warming
Al Gore
Bloomsbury
9780747590965
The truth about the climate crisis means we are going to have to change the way we live our lives - and this affects young people above all. Al Gore, former Vice President of the United States, writes about the urgent need to solve the problems of climate change, presenting facts and information on all aspects of global warming in a direct, thoughtful and compelling way, using explanatory diagrams and dramatic photos to clarify and highlight key issues. For this young adult edition, the text has been edited down from 320 to 192 pages, with younger readership in mind, so sections aimed specifically at adults (e.g. insurance implications, investing in energy and political material) have been omitted in favour of clear text, appropriate photographs and easily understandable graphs. The overall aim is to gear the content to the people who will in fact be dealing with global warming for the rest of their lives.