Combat Zone (Rugby Academy 1)

First instalment in an explosive rugby trilogy. Woody is the new boy at Borderlands, a boarding school for children whose parents are in the armed forces, but he is already desperate to leave and get back to his dad. Can rugby help him get through? Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers aged 8+

First title in a rugby trilogy. Borderlands is no ordinary school – all of the students boarding there have parents in the armed forces, and the UK is drawing perilously close to war in the Middle East. New boy Woody is desperate to escape the school and find his way to his dad's military base, but his dad has been mobilised. He's gone. Worried and unhappy, Woody turns to the only thing that could help get him through – rugby. Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers aged 8+

Tom Palmer was a reluctant reader as a child and credits articles about football with getting him into reading. He is now the multi-award-winning author of many books for young readers, including the Young Quills Award winner After the War and FCBG Children's Book Award winners Armistice Runner and D-Day Dog. In 2019 Tom was awarded the National Literacy Trust's Ruth Rendell Award in recognition of his significant contribution to literacy work in the UK.