First: two collections of myths and legends from around the world. Moon Tales, by Rina Singh and Debbie Lush (Bloomsbury. £8.99 in UK), is a collection of folk tales about the moon which, with it's simple telling, generous spacing and jewel-bright illustrations, should entrance young children and appeal to advanced readers, too. 100 World Myths & Legends, by Geraldine McCaughrean (Orion. £12.99 in UK ), is a one-volume edition of her previous four books of myths and legends. The stories are beautifully (and often humorously) told.
Moving on to anthologies dealing with the present day, Thicker than Water, Irish stories edited by Gordon Snell (Orion. £5.99 in UK), contains a dozen stories about growing up, written by both "adults" writers (there's a welcome new story from Maeve Binchy, for example) and acclaimed children's writers (such as Marita Conlon-McKenna), all aimed at older teenagers. Authors include Ita Daly,June Considine, Helena Mulkerns, Emma Donoghue and Chris Lynch. Top of my list, though, is Peter Cunningham's 'On the Verge of Extinction', a beautifully-written story which makes no attempt to get into the mind-set and jargon of a modern teenager. In it, an old woman in a nursing home recalls how she, as a child, discovered the griefs of the adult world.
Mirrors, edited by Wendy Cooling (Collins. £12.99 in UK ), is a collection of stories about mirrors for the eight-to-nine-plus age-range. Each story is surprisingly different, from the obligatory horror/ghost story to the moralising tale, from wacky humour to a dilemma about the fate of a girl in a coma. There is also a beautiful re-telling of the story of Echo and Narcissus by Elizabeth Laird. Billed as "Sparkling New Stories from prize-winning authors," it lives up to its hype. Anne Fine is here; so are Vivian French, Melvin Burgess, Jeremy Strong and many others. Particularly welcome is the inclusion of two Irish authors, Mary Arrigan and Kate Thompson. The latter's subversion of the dragon-and-princess story is a delight. The book is beautifully produced on good paper with an eye-catching dust-jacket, large clear print and atmospheric, though scanty, illustrations by Sarah Young and Tim Stevens.
Out of Bounds, by Beverley Naidoo (Puffin. £4.99 in UK), is a powerful collection of thematically-connected stories by one author. Naidoo recounts the history of South Africa from 1948 to 2000 through the stories of children, black, white and coloured. The strength of this book lies in its lack of didacticism - and in the quality of the writing. The title story, set in 2000, is especially relevant: how do we act towards beggars and squatters when our humane instincts are checked by fears of exploitation or worse?
And finally: Love that Dog, by Sharon Creech (Bloomsbury. £9.99 in UK ). This defies categories. It is, I believe, a tour de force, but . . . Is it a diary? A novel? A collection of poems? Who is it aimed at: children, young adults or adults? It is short, very short, and consists of notes from Jack (who doesn't write poetry because boys don't) to his teacher, Miss Stretchberry. In the course of one school year, Jack develops in confidence and is finally able, not only to write honestly about the death of his dog, but to write to a famous poet and invite him to the school. This is a charming, moving book - go out, read it and think of somebody to share it with.
Margrit Cruickshank is a writer and critic