Early Reader: Albert and the Garden of Doom

Phil Earle was born in the great city of Hull in 1974, and spent the next eighteen years playing a lot of sport, messing around in plays and trying to sing in bands. He has had jobs as a care worker in a residential kids' home and a bookseller, and now works as sales and marketing director for David Fickling books. In 2016, Phil was appointed as Reading charity BookTrust's new writer-in-residence. He lives on a hill in Yorkshire with his wife and three children and his favourite place to write is on the bus. Visit Phil's website, www.philearle.com, or follow him on twitter @philearle. Jamie Littler graduated from the Arts Institute at Bournemouth in 2008. He has won a High Commendation Award at the Macmillan Children's Book Awards and is the creator of 'Cogg and Sprokit', which is serialised in the PHOENIX. He has worked on high-profile projects including The Famous Five. Follow him on Twitter @jamieillustrate or visit his website at http://jamielittler.co.uk/

Neatly constructed and perfectly pitched for new readers, this is just right for encouraging young football fans to pick up a story