Our Library is a warm and welcoming place and is open daily from 8am-4pm which is staffed by our Librarian, Mrs Booth, and a team of Student Library Assistants who are on hand to offer help, advice and recommendations.
All students become an automatic member of the Library and are allowed up to three books at a time for four weeks.
Borrowing and reserving books
Students can now reserve or take books out using their ID card if taking books out in the library. If students would like to reserve a book they be issued with a barcode number to stick in their planner. Students can log onto the Libresoft website by clicking here which allows them to access the Library system remotely. This enables them to check the catalogue, reserve and renew books and leave reviews for the books they’ve read.
The Library stocks a wide and diverse range of fiction and non-fiction books. There is something for all tastes and reading abilities including a growing collection of graphic novels. First News and the i Newspaper are also available.
The Librarian offers daily suggestions based on a ‘Genre of the Week’ and can offer more personalised recommendations based on individual taste. Suggested reading lists can also be found at the bottom of the page.
All Year 7-9 students have a fortnightly Library lesson as part of their English provision. This is a chance to further develop their reading skills and to take the time to benefit from reading for pleasure.
Book clubs are also held throughout the year for Year 7-10, including a shadowing group for the prestigious Carnegie Award during the summer term. If any students are interested in joining please see Mrs Smith in the Library where you will be issued with your passkey and further instructions.
Students wrote and illustrated the below Poetry Anthology entitled Resilience, based on one of our REACH school values:
Respect & Resilience
Equality
Achievement
Community
Honesty & Intergity
Click the above image to view
Our Library has a wealth of research material available to all key stages including a subscription to JSTOR which is an online research resource package with over 2,800 archival journals – the majority of which are unavailable on the open web – four primary source collections, and more than 2,000 open access eBooks, the JSTOR Secondary Schools Collection provides students with a safe and trusted environment to research topics across the curriculum. JSTOR is an invaluable resource for independent study and is used by most universities in the UK. This is particularly helpful to our EPQ students. To access the JSTOR site, using the computers in the library click hereand log on using the username and password available from the library. The JSTOR research facility can then be accessed in school or at home.
University, Apprenticeships, Careers and Study Guides Available in the Library. We have a wide range of the latest Guides and reference books to support students as they plan their further education and career future pathways. To view a selection of titles please click here
WGSG take part in the annual Bookbuzz which is a scheme run by the Book Trust with the aim of further developing a love of reading and reading for pleasure. This scheme is generously funded by the PFA and allows us to be able to gift a book to every Year 7 student at the end of the Autumn term.
We love celebrating reading and hold a range of events over the school year such as a Harry Potter Day celebration, World Book Day and Author visits. Many of the students also enjoy entering the competitions we hold throughout the year – examples from this year include: The Opening Lines Christmas Quiz and Book Hide and Seek.
Research has shown that reading for pleasure has wide ranging positive effects, not just on reading ability but across general academic progress, socially and to personal well-being.
Year 7 Students will have their own Reading Record which outlines our expectations and provides a wide range of ‘recommended reads’ to view the Reading Record, please click here
Reading Websites
Booktrust
Inspiring a love of books.
Carnegie/Greenaway Awards
Two yearly awards for outstanding children’s literature and illustration.
Books for Keeps
A fantastic online magazine.
World Book Day
A once yearly celebration of reading.
Children’s Laureate
An outstanding author or illustrator of children’s books awarded every two years.
Bookbuzz
A school reading initiative from Booktrust to support schools and encourage reading for pleasure
Reading Zone
A great website for book recommendations, reviews, competitions etc.
The Guardian Teen Books
Great for book ideas, reviews etc
Book Riot
Dedicated to the idea that writing about books and reading should be just as diverse as books and readers are.
Tips for Parents to Encourage Reading
• Be seen reading by your daughter – newspapers, magazines and books. Discuss topics of interest or get them to read a particular article/paragraph. Students are more likely to continue to be readers in homes where books and reading are valued.
• If your daughter attends a sports club/youth club in the evening then reading in the car is ideal if they travel well.
• Visit your local library together and choose books that appeal to you both. Swap them afterwards, talk about which one you prefer and why. This could be something you do once a month.
• When you go shopping incorporate a visit to Waterstones for a browse of the latest books/bestsellers.
• Fifteen minutes reading a day will make a huge difference. Try to encourage your daughter to make this a habit; e.g. straight after brushing her teeth before bedtime. Perhaps you could read your own book with them at the same time?
Year 7 & 8 Suggested Reading
Fantasy, Dystopian and Sci-Fi
● Scott Westerfeld – Uglies, Pretties, Specials, Extras.
● J K Rowling – Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
● Veronica Roth – Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant, Four.
● James Dashner – The Maze Runner, The Scorch Trials, The Death Cure, The Kill Order, The Fever Code.
● Rick Riordan – Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters, Percy Jackson and the Titan’s Curse, Percy Jackson and the Battle of the Labyrinth, Percy Jackson and the Last Olympian.
● Suzanne Collins – The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay.
● Marissa Meyer – Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, Winter.
Mystery and Crime Thrillers
● Lauren Child – Ruby Redfort series – Look into my Eyes, Take Your Last Breath, Catch Your Death, Feel the Fear, Pick Your Poison, Blink and you Die.
● Ally Carter – I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You, Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy, Don’t Judge a Girl by Her Cover, Only the Good Spy Young, Out of Sight, Out of Time, United We Spy.
● Robin Stevens – Murder Most Unladylike, Arsenic for Tea, First Class Murder, Jolly Foul Play, Mistletoe and Murder, Cream Buns and Crime, A Spoonful of Murder.
● Kim Slater – Smart.
● Mark Haddon – The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time.
● Penny Joelson – I Have No Secrets.
● Philip Pullman – His Dark Materials: Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife, The Amber Spyglass; Sally Lockhart: The Ruby in the Smoke, The Shadow in the North, The Tiger in the Well, The Tin Princess.
● Siobhan Dowd – The London Eye Mystery, The Guggenheim Mystery
Real Life/Contemporary Fiction
● Susin Nielsen – We Are All Made of Molecules.
● Susin Nielsen – No Fixed address
● Patrick Ness – A Monster Calls.
● Alice Kuipers – Life on the Refrigerator Door.
● Sarah Crossan – One, Apple & Rain, The Weight of Water, Toffee
● R J Palacio – Wonder.
● Annabel Pitcher – My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece, Silence is Goldfish
● Tamsin Winter – Being Miss Nobody, Jemima Small versus the Universe
● Jo Cotterill – Jelly
Romance
● Meg Cabot – The Princess Diaries, Princess in the Spotlight, Princess in Love, Princess in Waiting, Valentine Princess, Project Princess, Princess in Pink, Princess in Training, The Princess Present, Party Princess, Sweet Sixteen Princess, Princess on the Brink, Princess Mia, Forever Princess, Royal Wedding.
● Jenny McLachlan – Stargazing for Beginners.
● Jerry Spinelli – Stargirl.
● Sophie Kinsella – Finding Audrey.
● Scott Westerfeld – Afterworlds.
Action/Adventure
● Robert Muchamore – The Recruit, Class A, Maximum Security, The Killing, Divine Madness, Man vs Beast, The Fall, Mad Dogs, The Sleepwalker, The General, Brigands MC, Shadow Wave.
● Anthony Horowitz – Stormbreaker, Point Blanc, Skeleton Key, Eagle Strike, Scorpia, Ark Angel, Snakehead, Crocodile Tears, Scorpia Rising, Russian Roulette, Never Say Die.
● Kenneth Oppel – Boundless.
● Mark Walden – Higher Institute of Villainous Education, The Overlord Protocol, Escape Velocity, Dreadnought, Rogue, Zero Hour, Aftershock, Deadlock.
● C S Lewis – The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, The Horse and His Boy, The Magician’s Nephew, The Last Battle.
Popular Fiction
● Holly Smale – Geek Girl, All That Glitters, Forever Geek, Model Misfit, Picture Perfect, Head Over Heels, Geek Drama.
Rachel Renee Russell – Dork Diaries, Party Time, Pop Star, How to Dork Your Diary, Skating Sensation, Dear Dork, Holiday Heartbreak, TV Star, Once Upon a Dork, Drama Queen, Puppy Love, Frenemies Forever, Crush Catastrophe.
● David Walliams – Gangsta Granny, Mr Stink, Awful Auntie, Demon Dentist, Ratburger, The Boy in the Dress, Billionaire Boy, The Midnight Gang, Grandpa’s Great Escape, The World’s Worst Children.
● Jacqueline Wilson – The Story of Tracy Beaker, The Dare Game, Starring Tracy Beaker, My Mum Tracy Beaker, Hetty Feather, Sapphire Battersea, Emerald Star, Diamond, Little Stars, Hetty Feather’s Christmas, Clover Moon, Rose Rivers, The Suitcase Kid, The Mum Minder, The Bed and Breakfast Star, Double Act, Bad Girls, The Lottie Project, The Illustrated Mum, Vicky Angel, The Worry Website, Lola Rose, Midnight, Best Friends, The Diamond Girls, Love Lessons, Lily Alone, Little Darlings, Cookie.
● Zoe Sugg – Girl Online, Girl Online On Tour, Girl Online Going Solo.
Year 9 & Above Suggested Reading
Fantasy, dystopian and Sci-fi
● Scott Westerfeld – Uglies, Pretties, Specials, Extras.
● Malorie Blackman – Noughts and Crosses series.
● S.J Kincaid – The Diabolic
● Alexandra Bracken – The Darkest Minds Series
● L.A. Weatherly – Broken trilogy (Book 1 – Broken Sky)
● Sally Gardner – Maggot Moon
● Chris Priestley – Anything That Isn’t This
● Lisa Heathfield – I Am Not a Number
● Giovanna Fletcher – Eve of Man
● Julie Mayhew – The Big Lie (Yr10+)
● Malorie Blackman – Chasing Star (Yr10+)
● Cat Clarke – Undone (Yr10+)
Mystery and Crime Thrillers
● Will Hill – After The Fire
● Nancy Werlin – Black Mirror
● Mark Haddon – The Curious Incident Of The Dog in The Night-time
● Jodi Lynn Anderson – The Moment Collector
● Tracy Darnton – The Truth About Lies
● Holly Jackson – A Good Girls Guide to Murder
● Karen McManus – One of Us is Lying, One of Us is Next, Two Can Keep a Secret
● Chelsea Pitcher – This Lie will Kill you
● Alice Seabold – The Lovely Bones (Yr10+)
● Kate Atkinson – Case Histories (Yr10+)
● Jessica Warman – Beautiful Lies (Yr10+)
● Jeffery Deaver – The Empty Chair (Yr10+)
● Teri Terry – Fractured (Yr10+)
● Stephen King – Bag of Bones (Yr10+)
● Kara Thomas – Little Monsters (Yr10+)
● Kara Thomas – The Cheerleaders (Yr10+)
Real Life/Contemporary Fiction
● Holly Bourne – Are We all Lemmings and Snowflakes?
● Sarah Crossan – Toffee, No Fixed Address, Optimists Die First, Moonrise
● Laura Steven – A Girl Called Shameless
● Patrice Lawrence – Indigo Donut
● Leila Sales – If You Don’t Have Anything Nice To Say
● Jennifer Niven – Holding Up The universe
● Cat Clarke – Girlhood
● Patrick Ness – Release
● John Boyne – My Brother’s Name is Jessica
● Lucy Powrie – The Paper and Hearts Society
● Sabina Khan – The love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali
● Annabel Pitcher – My Sister Lives on the Mantlepiece, Silence is Goldfish, Ketchup Clouds
● Holly Bourne – Am I Normal Yet? The Manifesto On How To Be Normal, The Places I’ve Cried in Public (all Yr10+)
● Sara Barnard – Floored (Yr10+)
● Alice Oseman – Solitaire (Yr10+)
● Laura Bates – The Burning (Yr10+)
● Val Emmich – Dear Evan Hansen (Yr10+)
● Brian Conaghan – The Weight of a Thousand Feathers (Yr10+)
Romance
● Jenny McLachlan – Stargazing for Beginners, Truly Wildly Deeply
● Sophie Kinsella – Finding Audrey.
● Scott Westerfeld – Afterworlds.
● David Levithan – Everyday
● Katherine Webber – Only Love can Break your heart
● Sarah Mlynowski – Don’t even think about it
● Julie Berry – All The Truth That’s In Me
● Sarah Mlynowski – Don’t Even Think About It
● Kiera Cass – The Selection series
● Mel Darbon – Rosie Loves Jack
● Becky Albertalli – The Upside of Unrequited
● Justin Reynolds – The Opposite of Always
● Robin Talley – Lies We Tell Ourselves
● Krystal Sutherland – Our Chemical Hearts (Yr10+)
● Jennifer Niven – All The Bright Places (Yr10+)
● Rainbow Rowell – Eleanor and Park (Yr10+)
● Judy Blume – Forever (Yr10+)
● Holly Bourne – The Places I’ve Cried in Public (Yr10+)
Action/Adventure
● Anthony Horowitz – Alex Rider Series (Book 1 – Stormbreaker)
● Veronica Roth – Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant, Four.
● Suzanne Collins – The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay.
● James Dashner – The Maze Runner series
Popular Fiction
● Zoe Sugg – Girl Online, Girl Online On Tour, Girl Online Going Solo.
● Holly Smale – Geek Girl, All That Glitters, Forever Geek, Model Misfit, Picture Perfect, Head Over Heels, Geek Drama.
● Rachel Lippincott – Five Feet Apart
● Nicola Yoon – The Sun is Also a Star
● Angie Thomas – The Hate U Give, On The Come Up
● Sophie Kinsella – My Not So Perfect Life
● John Green – The Fault In Our Stars
● Paula Hawkins – The Girl on the Train (Yr10+)
● Zadie Smith – White Teeth (Yr10+)
● Jodi Picoult – My Sister’s Keeper (Yr10+)
● Julie Murphy – Dumplin’ (Yr10+)
Graphic Novels
● Stevenson et.al – Lumberjanes Series
● Emily Carroll – Through the Woods
● Kami Garcia – Beautiful Creatures
● Michael Burgan – Bram Stoker’s Dracula
● Neil Gaiman – The Sleeper and the Spindle
● Manga Shakespeare – A Midsummer Night’s Dream
● Neil Cameron – Tamsin and the Deep
● Raina Telgemeier – Ghosts
● Svetlana Chmakova – Crush series
● Jessica Abel – Trish Trash: Roller Girl From Mars
Historical
● Laurie Halse Anderson – Chains
● Anne Frank – Diary of a Young Girl
● John Boyne – The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
● Laura Wood – A Sky Painted Gold
● Cora Harrison – Debutantes
● Things a Bright Girl Can Do
● Robin Talley – Lies We Tell Ourselves
● Kate Atkinson – Life After Life
● Nick Lake – In Darkness
● Markus Zusak – The Book Thief
● Frank McCourt – Angela’s Ashes (Yr10+)
● Pat Barker – Another World (Yr10+)
● Phillipa Gregory – The Favoured Child (Yr10+)
● Mal Peet – Beck (Yr10+)
● Sebastian Faulks – Birdsong (Yr10+)
● Thomas Keneally – Schindler’s List (Yr10+)
