Dr Jenner reaches for his lancet and cuts James Phipps's arm. He pokes a stick covered in slimy gunge into the wound. He is infecting the boy with a deadly disease - smallpox.

But Edward Jenner wants to save lives, not to destroy them. It is 1796 and smallpox kills one in four children. He plans to end its reign of terror - through a strange new process he calls vaccination.

Jenner must fight ignorance and fear as well as the killer virus. His enemies pour scorn on him. They say vaccination is dangerous.

Will Dr Jenner win the battle against smallpox? Will James Phipps survive?

A story worth telling - Guardian

One for the information shelves - TES

A great text - The School Librarian

Imagine you are on a wooden ship, tossed by a stormy sea. Your legs are chained to the timbers, there is no light and little air. Around you are dozens of other wretches, wailing and cursing. You think you are going to die. You think you are already in hell.

It is 1834 and James Brine is bound for Australia on a convict ship. His crime is joining with other men to ask for fair pay. His punishment is transportation - seven long years far from everything he knows and loves.

Can James survive the hardships of convict life? And will he ever see his beloved Elizabeth again?

I really enjoyed reading this novel - Teen Titles

Ordinary people doing extraordinary things - TUC

Wonderfully clear - PTA