Dark Blue books offer a diverse selection of stories and non-fiction titles, presenting varied content, narrative styles and points of view. This level encourages readers to develop opinions and discuss their reading preferences. These books feature more complex text features, including overarching plots, deeper character relationships and themes. Pupils should be acquainted with various authors and capable of discussing their works critically. Dark Blue Book Banded books are suitable for higher achieving Year 4, confident Year 5 and lower achieving Year 6 pupils.