Military history gifts for 10 to 12 year olds

Before the Steven Spielberg film, before the National Theatre production, there was the classic children’s novel – War Horse. From the nation’s favourite storyteller, Michael Morpurgo. In the deadly chaos of the First World War, one horse witnesses the reality...

A beautifully rendered graphic novel adaptation of Lauren Tarshis's bestselling I Survived the Nazi Invasion, 1944, with text adapted by Georgia Ball and art by Alvaro Sarraseca. It's been years since the Nazis invaded Max Rosen's home country of Poland....

The 40th anniversary of Puffin's bestselling modern classic title. The 40th anniversary of one of the best-loved stories set during the Second World War. Goodnight Mister Tom by Michelle Magorian is the unforgettable story of young Willie Beech, evacuated to...

In Nazi-occupied Denmark, ten-year-old Annemarie Johansen is called upon for a selfless act of bravery to help save her best friend from a terrible fate. Winner of the Newbery Medal. “They plan to arrest all the Danish Jews. They plan...

A battle that changes the course of the war... Paul Colbert’s French village has been under Nazi control for years. His Jewish best friend has disappeared. Food is scarce. And there doesn’t seem to be anything Paul can do to...

An unforgettable war-time adventure story Although the silver sword was only a paper knife, it became the symbol of hope and courage which kept the Balicki children and their orphan friend Jan alive through the four years of occupation when...

The powerful novel from award-winning Australian writer Katrina Nannestad. Shortlisted in the 2021 CBCA Book of the Year Awards. Winner of the 2021 Australian Book Design Awards. Longlisted in the 2021 Australian Book Industry Awards. Sometimes it's good to be...

Meet Pocket, created as a good luck charm for soldiers going into battle, whose bravery and loyalty lives on long after the war. Thimble-born from tip to toe, Pocket Bear remembers every moment of his becoming: the glimmering needle, the...

Remember, you are bound by the Official Secrets Act… Summer, 1940. Nineteen-year-old Jakob Novis and his quirky younger sister Lizzie share a love of riddles and puzzles. And now they’re living inside of one. The quarrelsome siblings find themselves amidst...

From the bestselling author of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, a warm and moving story of a boy's search for his missing father during the First World War. The day the First World War broke out, Alfie Summerfield's father...

From million-copy bestselling author Liz Kessler comes the powerful new landmark World War II novel for fans of Michael Morpurgo and Phil Earle. When Liv finds a secret box from her grandmother’s childhood she uncovers an extraordinary war-time story of bravery, betrayal and daring...

'Ever since I can remember, people have stared at me and my family. Dad tells me it's because we're 'special'. But if we're so special, how come nobody ever looks like us in the books at school? Not even the...

From the bestselling author of Wonder comes White Bird: an unforgettable Second World War story about bravery, friendship and the power of kindness. Soon to be a major film starring Helen Mirren and Gillian Anderson. From the bestselling author of...

A heartwarming tale of courage, set against the backdrop of the Second World War, about a deserted village, a lifelong friendship and one very adventurous cat! ‘A master storyteller at his best’ Sunday TimesIt’s 1943. Lily lives in a seaside...

I hoped the Nazis would be defeated. And they were. I hoped the war would be over. And it was. I hoped we would be safe. But we aren't. Soon continues the incredibly moving story of Felix, a Jewish boy...

A new heart-wrenching, impeccably researched historical novel for middle-grade readers The Nazis want everyone to be the same. If you're different, you don't belong. Not belonging is dangerous ... Anna's little sister, Eva, is frail and needs time to learn...

A visual guide to the conflict that shook the world \"This comprehensive visual encyclopedia explores World War II in fascinating detail and explains why this global event must never be forgotten.? World War II: Visual Encyclopedia shows children the causes,...

Learn about the most well-known battles (and little-known secrets) of World War I with author-illustrator Nathan Hale’s Treaties, Trenches, Mud, and Blood, a Hazardous Tale from the New York Times bestselling graphic novel series.“These books are, quite simply, brilliant. ....

Violet's Scarf is an incredible true story about a small girl, World War 1, and a hand-knitted scarf. Violet Cloughley lived in Riverton at the bottom of the South Island, New Zealand. When WWI started in 1914, Violet, aged eight,...

Step behind the control panel and into the action with the Electronic Battleship game, as each player is out to destroy their opponent's fleet before their own is destroyed. This edition of the classic game of naval combat features an...

Le Quesnoy (pronounced Leck con wah) is a town in northern France. It is surrounded by high walls and deep trenches. In World War I, it was occupied by the German army for four long years. In November 1918, the...

The start of a thrilling new World War Two mystery series from the number-one-bestselling and multi-award-winning author of Murder Most Unladylike. The start of a thrilling new mystery series from the number-one-bestselling, award-winning author of Murder Most Unladylike. 1940. The...

"I have been accused of whitewashing the Nazi leadership in my memoirs. Some people say I make them seem human. But therein lies the problem. I saw these men up close. They were human. If we think of them only...

In the dead of winter, deep in the Forest of Ardennes, as the devastation of World War II drew to a close, a desperate Nazi army launches a surprise attack on Allied forces in the early morning hours of December...

Heroism or cowardice? A stunning story of the First World War from a master storyteller ‘Full of warmth as well as grief, conveying vividly how precious it is to be alive’ Sunday TimesAs young Thomas Peaceful looks back over his...

From New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen comes a thrilling World War II story of espionage and intrigue, as one girl races to save her father and aid the French resistance.Six hundred and fifty-seven days ago, Meg Kenyon's...

A museum in a book, this collection of treasures from the past brings history to life, from Stone-Age tools to smartphones From ancient history to modern times, journey through the past with this picture-packed encyclopedia of curiosities. Explore galleries of...

The brilliant first book in the Leviathan steam-punk trilogy. Now a Netflix series! It is the cusp of World War 1, and all the European powers are arming up. The Austro-Hungarians and Germans have their Clankers, steam-driven iron machines loaded...

The discovered diary of Yoko, a 13-year-old Japanese girl who lived near Hiroshima during the war. 1945 was a hard time to be a child in Japan. Many had seen their cities destroyed by US bombers. Food, fuel, and materials...

The New York Times bestselling author of Pax delivers an incredible WWIIanimal rescue adventure, about an orphan who discovers unexpected couragewhen he becomes involved with the Resistance. Petit éclair. That's what the other boys at the orphanage call Lucas DuBois....

This Battleship board game is the classic game of naval combat that brings together competition, strategy, and excitement! In head-to-head battle, 2 players search for the enemy's fleet of ships and destroys them one by one. With convenient portable battle...

Young Joe is living in pre-World War II Berlin, with his British father and NZ mother, attending school and witnessing the excitement of his friends who are enthusiastically joining the Hitler Youth Movement. Joe feels uncomfortable with the growing mistreatment...

Peter, a boy of five, makes an extraordinary journey through war-torn Europe, travelling with his parents from a small Hungarian town, through Austria and on to Germany. Along the way, unforgettable images of adventure flash one after another: sleeping in...

The illuminating and deeply moving true story of twin sisters who survived Nazi experimentation, against all odds, during the Holocaust.Eva and her identical twin sister, Miriam, had a mostly happy childhood. Theirs was the only Jewish family in their small...

A special anniversary edition of a modern classic. Winner of the CBCA Book of the Year for Young Readers. The bombs were falling, the smoke was rising from the concentration camps, but Hitler's daughter knew nothing of this. All she...

From the bestselling author of Finn's Epic Fails comes the multi-award-winning story about the incredible friendship between a young boy and a silverback gorilla in the Second World War, inspired by a true story. 1941. War is raging. And Joseph...

The powerful, unforgettable new novel from the bestselling author of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. When Pierrot becomes an orphan, he must leave his home in Paris for a new life with his Aunt Beatrix, a servant in a...

BECOME A TOP SECRET CODEBREAKER! - The ultimate puzzle book for kids and families.Welcome to Bletchley Park, once the top-secret home of the Second World War codebreakers. Here, some of the greatest minds helped crack near-impossible codes.. You can join...

Tarn grapples with the loss of her brother at Dunkirk as she faces the threat of Nazi invasion in the Cumbrian countryside in this gripping wartime tale from Tom Palmer. July 1940 – as Tarn struggles to come to terms...

The World of David Walliams brings you The Twilight Towers Amazing Break-out Board Game!  Is it the end of days for Jack’s rather confused grandpa or can you help him ESCAPE the evil clutches of the Twilight Towers!  It’s a...

“Dear Jim, Your postcard arrived today. I showed it to the family. Mum misses you…” Between December 1914 and August 1915, Tom and Jim write to each other whenever they get a chance. Tom talks about life at home on...

Inspired by the true story of his father's cousin, Michael Rosen presents an astonishing wartime story of perseverance and hope in the face of horrors and hardship. Beginning in 1939, young Solly in London exchanges letters with his teenaged cousin,...

This story is based on the true experiences of a remarkable horse called Bess, one of 10,000 NZ horses sent overseas to battle in World War One. Tragically, at the end of the war, the horses could not return to...

Five minutes ... Two minutes ... Young soldier Jim McLeod waits in the trenches of World War I for the order to attack the enemy. With him are his friends and Nipper, the messenger dog. When they charge across no-man’s...

Life has never been easy for Antonio, but since the war began, there are German soldiers on every corner, fearsome gangsters and the fascist police everywhere, and no one ever has enough to eat. But when Antonio decides to trust...

Young Michael Morpurgo always loved the small painting of a boat hanging on Aunty Iris’s wall. But all she would ever say about it was that her beloved Alfie had painted it and given it to her years ago—before he’d...

Ron Whitcombe wants to get out of Wellington and see the world.But it's the middle of the Great Depression and he is stuck in a dead-end job as an office boy. He can't see any way of changing his destiny.In...