Collins Big Cat supports every primary child on their reading journey from phonics to fluency. Top authors and illustrators have created fiction and non-fiction books that children love to read. Levelled for guided and independent reading, each book includes ideas to support reading. Teaching and assessment support and eBooks are also available.


Miya is looking forward to the new year – she has great friends and exciting things planned … But things change both at home, where her beloved gran starts to lose her memory, and at school, when a new girl joins, which throws her into a whirlwind of uncertainty. Can her love for art, family and her friends help her?


Pearl/Band 18 books offer fluent readers a complex, substantial text with challenging themes to facilitate sustained comprehension, bridging the gap between a reading programme and longer chapter books.


Pages 78 and 79 allow children to re-visit the content of the book, supporting comprehension skills, vocabulary development and recall.


Ideas for reading in the back of the book provide practical support and stimulating activities.


Mio loved writing 'My Name is Miya' as it weaves in many threads of her life, including Japanese culture and food, a biracial family (her children are half Japanese and English, like Miya!), best friends, and the things she learned whilst looking after her grandpa and her mother-in-law, who both had Alzheimer’s – which results in memory loss and confusion.

Illustrated by: Millie Liu
Prepared for publication by: