Uncle Mike and I play hide and seek. And when its time for him to leave, he says "I'll see you soon, my Pumpkin. Well play some more next week." Uncle Mike didn't come back the next week and I didn't understand why. So Daddy picked me up, kissed my cheek and said, "There's something I want to show you, up in the sky."

The Brightest Star In The Sky is beautifully told, and helps children deal with the loss of a loved one.

Here is a collection of blogs, stories, poems, and articles to get you thinking, talking, laughing - and crying.

Read about being in love with the wrong person, about growing up gay, about living without a father, about being in student protests... and much, much more. These popular pieces have been selected from FunDza's mobi site and they have been compiled here for your reading pleasure!

Each piece also has discussion and writing activities for reading clubs and classes.

It all begins with a fugitive billionaire and the promise of a cash reward.

Turtles All The Way Down is about lifelong friendship, the intimacy of an unexpected reunion, Star Wars fan fiction, and tuatara. But at its heart is Aza Holmes, a young woman navigating daily existence within the ever-tightening spiral of her own thoughts.

In his long-awaited return, John Green shares Aza's story with shattering, unflinching clarity.

From the show's creators comes the groundbreaking novel inspired by the Broadway smash hit Dear Evan Hansen. Dear Evan Hansen, Today's going to be an amazing day and here's why... When a letter that was never meant to be seen by anyone draws high school senior Evan Hansen into a family's grief over the loss of their son, he is given the chance of a lifetime: to belong. He just has to stick to a lie he never meant to tell, that the notoriously troubled Connor Murphy was his secret best friend. Suddenly, Evan isn't invisible anymore. And Connor's parents, with their beautiful home on the other side of town, have taken him in like he was their own, desperate to know more about their enigmatic son from his 'closest friend'. As Evan gets pulled deeper into their family, he knows that what he's doing can't be right, but if he's helping people, how wrong can it be? No longer tangled in his once-incapacitating anxiety, this new Evan has a purpose. He's confident. He's a viral phenomenon. Every day is amazing. Until everything is in danger of unravelling and he comes face to face with his greatest obstacle: himself. A simple lie leads to complicated truths in this big-hearted coming-of-age story of grief, authenticity and the struggle to belong in an age of instant connectivity and profound isolation.

30 years after Disney's The Little Mermaid movie was released, it's time for a feminist reimagining for a new generation. "A masterpiece" Marian Keyes "A fierce torrent of a book, raging and forceful and gripping. I was swept away" Kiran Millwood Hargrave "Her prose cuts and rages and her vision of the Sea Witch is truly transformative" The Observer. Think you know the story of the Little Mermaid? Think again... Deep beneath the sea, off the cold Irish coast, Gaia is a young mermaid who dreams of freedom from her controlling father. On her first swim to the surface, she is drawn towards a human boy. She longs to join his carefree world, but how much will she have to sacrifice? What will it take for the little mermaid to find her voice? Hans Christian Andersen's original fairy tale is reimagined through a searing feminist lens, with the stunning, scalpel-sharp writing and world building that has won Louise her legions of devoted fans. A book with the darkest of undercurrents, full of rage and rallying cries: storytelling at its most spellbinding.

The heart-pounding sequel to THE FANDOM! 'I cannot recommend The Fandom highly enough.' LOUISE O'NEILL Nate's time is running out. Violet and Katie re-enterThe Gallows Dance to rescue him, but when a rogue fanfiction writer emerges online - determined to put the dys back into dystopia - Alice is the only one with the power to save the story ...

Written by Toby Ibbotson, son of the bestselling author Eva Ibbotson, this exceptional middle grade epic is captivating, heartfelt and brilliant in equal measure. When a storm hits a small and sleepy town, it ravages every living thing. But storms don't just destroy, they uncover. Andwhen a young boy discovers a mysterious object that has lay hidden beneath a centuries-old tree, he instantly knowsthat it's special. What he doesn't know is that his unexpected find will unite him with a girl searching forher missing father and trigger a series of events that will see them travelling across Europe under the most unusual circumstances. Beautifully written, The Unexpected Find is Toby Ibbotson's break-through masterpiece that's a classic in the making.

'Our hearts were broken in the same places. That's something like love, but maybe not quite the thing itself'

Aza's life is filled with complications.

Living with anxiety and OCD is enough but when Daisy, her Best and Most Fearless Friend, brings her on a mission to find a fugitive billionaire things are about to get even more complicated.

To find Russell Pickett, Aza must enter the world of his geeky, but maybe kind-of-cute son, Davis.

But the chances of a first kiss, and maybe even a first love, could send Aza into a spiral of anxiety...

A perfect coming-of-age novel filled with love, mystery and Star Wars fan-fiction.

'John Green writes from the heart'- The Times

_________

In his long-awaited return John Green, the acclaimed author of the Fault in Our Stars, shares Aza's story with shattering, unflinching clarity in this brilliant novel about mental health, love, resilience, and the power of lifelong friendship.

'A gripping story that cuts to the heart of friendship and first love' The Scotsman

'Acknowledging the difficulties of loving someone with a chronic mental illness is both ethically noble, and, with this novel, skilfully done.' Claire Hennessy, Irish Times

'The friendships in Green's novels are stirring and powerful.' The New York Times

Oh, what a Grumpycorn! A must-have unicorn picture book treat from the bestselling, award-winning Sarah McIntyre. Unicorn wants to write the most fabulous story in the world. He has a fancy notebook. A special fluffy pen. He has everything just perfect. But Unicorn has NO IDEA what to write! When his friends try to join in, will Unicorn turn into a ... GRUMPYCORN? A funny and feisty picture book celebrating teamwork, friendship and the joys of storytelling.

In grey, 1930s England, Bea has grown up kicking against the conventions of the time, all the while knowing that she will one day have to marry someone her parents choose - someone rich enough to keep the family estate alive. But she longs for so much more - for adventure, excitement, travel, and maybe even romance. When she gets the chance to spend the summer in Italy with her bohemian uncle and his fiancee, a whole world is opened up to Bea - a world that includes Ben, a cocky young artist who just happens to be infuriatingly handsome too. Sparks fly between the quick-witted pair until one night, under the stars, a challenge is set: can Bea and Ben put aside their teasing and have the perfect summer romance? With their new friends gleefully setting the rules for their fling, Bea and Ben can agree on one thing at least: they absolutely, positively will not, cannot fall in love... A long, hot summer of kisses and mischief unfolds - but storm clouds are gathering across Europe, and home is calling. Every summer has to end - but for Bea, this might be just the beginning.

Sammy Baker is a quiet kid who wishes he wasn't so shy and timid. He is frightened but eager to prove he can be brave. On Halloween night, he follows his friends to the Marple House, an abandoned mansion on the other side of town. Just past midnight, he feels a cold tingle at the back of his neck. The cold seeps down, a heavy chill he has never felt before. Soon, his whole head feels like a block of ice. He's about to scream-but the cold feeling vanishes. Sammy doesn't realize that he has just met The Haunter, and that his nightmares are only just beginning.

Be FIERCE, be BOLD, be INSPIRED ... DREAM BIG! 100 people,100 ways to change the world. The ultimate empowering guide, Dream Big! Heroes Who Dared to Be Bold introduces fearless men, women, boys and girls whohave spoken out and changed our lives for the better. They did it, so why can't you! From Emma Gonzalez to Nicola Adams, Adwoa Aboah to Muhammad Ali, this book celebrates sung and unsung heroes, reaching across all areas of life and to all four corners of the globe. Each personality is given a short biography detailing the inspirational things they have achieved by speaking out, highlighted with striking colour illustration. With a call to action for each profile - something YOU can do to make your dreams come true.

Elise is eensaam, en sy is vir alles bang. Sy bly alleen in haar huis en praat met niemand nie. Maar op ’n dag gebeur iets ongewoons. ’n Blou papiervliegtuig vlieg by haar venster in. En kort daarna is daar ’n klop aan haar deur. Eers wil sy nie oopmaak nie. Maar dan doen sy dit tog. En die onverwagse kuiergas verander haar lewe heeltemal. Dit het uiteindelik weer KLEUR!

The sensational debut YA of 2016 that everyone will be talking about. Parker Grant doesn't need perfect vision to see right through you. That's why she created the Rules: Don't treat her any differently just because she's blind, and never take advantage. There will be no second chances. When Scott Kilpatrick, the boy who broke her heart, suddenly reappears at school, Parker knows there's only one way to react - shun him so hard it hurts. She has enough to deal with already, like trying out for the track team, handing out tough-love advice to her painfully naive classmates, and giving herself gold stars for every day she hasn't cried since her dad's death. But avoiding her past quickly proves impossible, and the more Parker learns about what really happened - both with Scott, and her dad - the more she starts to question if things are always as they seem. Exhilarating and real, `Not if I See You First' will change the way you see things forever.

Al vyf van die gewilde Nederlandse Polleke-boeke is nou saam in een band in Afrikaans beskikbaar! Polleke het ’n kerel, Mimoen. Maar sy geloof en sy kultuur maak hulle vriendskap byna onmoontlik. Polleke se pa, Spiek, loop rond en gebruik dwelms. En Polleke se onderwyser is skielik haar ma se nuwe vriend – hulle praat glad van trou … Dit is nie maklik om opgeruimd te bly as so baie dinge skeefloop nie. Maar Polleke gooi nie sommer tou op nie. Daar is darem ook Oupa en Ouma se plaas buite die stad waar sy tot rus kan kom. Daarnatoe gaan sy graag – sy het selfs haar eie kalfie wat sy Polleke gedoop het! Guus Kuijer het verskeie toekennings vir die Polleke-boeke ontvang, waaronder ’n Gouden Griffel, ’n Zilveren Griffel en die Woutertje Pieterse-prys. Die boeke is ook met groot sukses in Nederland verfilm.

A brave and bold new picture book by Matt Carr, perfectly timed for the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing. Meet the mole on a mission! Armstrong the star-nosed mole doesn't dig living underground. His friends think building a rocket to go to the moon, alone, is an astronomically bad idea, but Armstrong is determined to boldly go where no mole has gone before. On the moon, Armstrong bounces around in his space suit, but soon starts to miss his cautious mole mates. How can a mole with big dreams have it all: adventure AND friendship?

Jess Aarons se grootste droom is om die vinnigste in sy graad te hardloop. Hy het die hele somervakansie geoefen en kan nie wag om sy klasmaats se gesigte te sien wanneer hy hulle almal wen nie.

Maar op die eerste skooldag is ’n nuwe meisie dapper genoeg om die seuns aan te durf en boonop almal uit te stof.

Dis nie ’n baie belowende begin vir ’n vriendskap nie, maar Jess en Leslie Burke word onafskeidbaar. Saam skep hulle Terabithia, ’n magiese koninkryk in die woud waar hulle twee as koning en koningin heers.

Dan is daar eendag ’n verskriklike tragedie.

Eers wanneer Jess hierdie tragedie begin verwerk, besef hy uiteindelik hoeveel krag en moed Leslie vir hom gegee het.

INK taught Leora that all was not what it seems on the surface. SPARK taught her that there are two sides to every story. Now Leora has had enough of lessons - she wants to make her own story. The explosive finale to the best-selling INK trilogy sees Leora struggling to reconcile her past and her future - and recognising that there may be no easy answers.

Sometimes life can be pretty amazing. But other times it feels like:

A. Your heart and stomach have been steamrolled into a grisly organ pancake

B. You are being put through an emotional spiralizer that creates human courgetti

C. Both of the above. You're a courgetti pancake

No, Instagram filters won't make it look any better. And, yes, we all feel this way.

An honest, thoughtful and hilarious survival guide for young people by social media sensation, Lex Croucher. Learn that you can face whatever today throws at you, because it has terrible aim anyway. And realise that only you scrutinise your flaws - seriously, no one else is paying attention, there's far too much interesting stuff on Netflix. A must-read for anyone who wants to embrace their actual, real, unedited life. Just always remember . YOU'RE CRUSHING IT.

Lex Croucher's frank and candid text is THE survival guide to help you make it through the crazy, topsy-turvy, whirlwind ride we call life. Brace yourself!

Topics include: family and friends, body confidence, technology and social media, relationships, mental health, success and more.

The fourth and final book in the hilarious bestselling WHO LET THE GODS OUT series; perfect for fans of David Solomons! 'I totally fell in love with Elliot and the gods, and I think you're all going to love them too.' ROBIN STEVENS on book 1 'One of the funniest new voices in children's literature. The laughs come thick and fast' DAVID SOLOMONS on book 1 In the series finale of Maz Evans' bestselling Who Let the Gods Out? series, Elliot faces his darkest period yet. As well as facing up to his fears, he realises that the future of mankind - and the survival of everything he holds dear - is at stake. But can a bunch of misfit gods, a lost constellation and a mortal boy stand up to the daemon hordes?

An LGBTQ+ journal for anyone from 13 to 103 - by writer, illustrator and utterly fabulous merman, Dom&Ink.

Every rainbow-coloured page is packed with LGBTQ+ activities, advice and attitude.

With spreads to colour, scribble, design and glitter, you'll meet dancing drag queens, rainbow donuts and the world's sassiest LGBTQ+ dinosaur: Brett the Sassysaurus!

Read quotes from real-life rainbow icons, find out how to throw your own Pride Party, and learn about the history of gay rights. Most importantly: celebrate being yourself and what makes YOU amazing!

Warm, hilarious, caring and insightful, Free To Be Me will fill every reader with self-esteem, confidence, colour and pride.