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Five Children and It
by E Nesbit'Don't you know a sand-fairy when you see one?'I dare say you have often thought about what you would do if you were granted three wishes. The five children - Cyril, Anthea, Robert, Jane, and their baby brother - had often talked about it but when they are faced with the grumpy sand-fairy they find it difficult to make up their minds. And that is just the beginning of their dilemmas.As they discover, there is nothing quite like a wish for getting you into terrible trouble.EXTRA ACTIVITIES INCLUDED: Learn about what it was like to be a child in 1902 and try some fun activities! This special edition includes fantastic extra educational resources.
Epitaphs for Underdogs
by Andrew Szepessy'A wonderful discovery' (Ian McEwan), this is a beguiling dystopian tale of a young man confronted with the truth about freedom. On a hot summer night, a young man sits in a dark cell in a Hungarian prison. The guards do not explain why he is here; he does not know if he will ever be released. But he is far from alone. Others, too, are trapped within the stone walls - singers and students, sages and spies. As the days pass, the man is drawn into their conversations and their lives, and soon becomes a witness to their sometimes outlandish acts of rebellion.Written in the early 1980s and inspired by Andrew Szepessy's own experiences, Epitaphs for Underdogs is a beguiling and exhilarating novel about power, justice and freedom, and about the solidarity that can be found in even the most unexpected places.'Beautiful... With its sense of the absurd, its laughter in the dark, it belongs in the great tradition of dystopian literature, with echoes of early Kundera and Nabokov' IAN McEWAN
Five Children and It (Puffin Classics)
by Edith NesbitWhen Cyril, Anthea, Robert, Jane and their baby brother go digging in the gravel pit, the last thing they expect to find is a Psammead – an ancient Sand-fairy! Having a Sand-fairy for a pet means having one wish granted each day. But the children don't realize all the trouble wishes can cause . . .A timeless classic with an introduction by Quentin Blake, award-winning illustrator and first-ever Children's Laureate (1999–2001).
Fin and the Memory Curse
by Helenka StacheraA chilling Victorian London adventure about one girl's mission to break a centuries-old curse with her long-lost family at its heart - perfect for fans of Cogheart and The Castle of Tangled Magic.Fin is a foundling growing up in the Hackney marshes, living in a tiny attic and selling leeches for a living. When she accidentally discovers she is the long-lost child of a rich Polish family called the Kaminskis, she is swept up into a supernatural adventure where she has to use everything she has learned on the streets of London and deep in the marshes to stay alive.For the Kaminskis are haunted by an ancient evil - and Fin is the key to stopping it forever . . .PRAISE FOR THE ICE WHISPERERS:'Heart-warming, adventurous and thought-provoking . . . An enchanting debut from Helenka Stachera' - Sophie Kirtley, author of The Wild Way Home'A gorgeously-written book full of magic and adventure' - Radiya Hafiza, author of Rumaysa: A Fairytale
The Final Rising (Tomorrow's Ancestors)
by A.E. WarrenThe future is within their grasp - can they rise to meet it? In this powerful conclusion to the Tomorrow's Ancestors series, the rebels of Uracil have one final choice to make.After the devastating attack on Uracil, the safety it once offered Elise and her friends has been shattered. Desperate, alone and scared, they need to find the residents captured during the attack, and create a new place of safety before they are found once more.But how can they ever truly feel safe when they suspect there is a traitor among them?And when Samuel and Genevieve unexpectedly return, it throws things even further into disarray. With competing motivations and loyalties around every corner, should they focus on finding safety for themselves, or try once more to change the world for the better?Can they rise, one final time?__________________________________________________PRAISE FOR THE TOMORROW'S ANCESTORS SERIES'An unputdownable exploration into the ethics of science' Buzz Magazine'Incredible . . . without a doubt one of the best YA sci-fi books I've ever read' Out and About Books'Instantly engaging . . . widens out from a tale of a girl trying to find her own identity to a broader story encompassing an entire population's burden of oppression, and the desire for freedom' Track of Words'One of the rare debuts that are really five star reads. Subject Twenty One grabbed me instantly and I couldn't put it down' Dom Reads__________________________________________________Make sure you've read the whole series!1. Subject Twenty-One2. The Hidden Base3. The Fourth Species4. The Final Rising
Fintan's Tower
by Catherine FisherJamie was at the library looking for a book that was different, one he could get lost in. But he didn't mean it literally. The Book with his own name in it leads Jamie and his sister Jenny into the Summer Country - a world of magic and danger, where even time behaves strangely; where Fintan's Tower has held its prisoner since the days of Camelot, and will keep Jamie and Jenny, too, unless Jamie can read the book right . . .
Flatland (Penguin Science Fiction)
by Edwin AbbottThe book that influenced writers from Carl Sagan to Stephen Hawking, Flatland is set in a two-dimensional world where life exists only in lines and shapes - until one of its inhabitants, 'A. Square', has his perspective transformed forever. This brilliantly eccentric classic is an invitation to see beyond our own reality.'At once a playful brainteaser about geometry, a pointed satire of Victorian manners - and a strangely compelling argument about the greatest mysteries of the Universe' Wall Street Journal'Flatland could lead to very profound thought about our Universe and ourselves' Isaac Asimov
The Fourth Species (Tomorrow's Ancestors #3)
by A.E. Warren__________________________________________________To protect the past, they must fight for their future. In the thrilling third book in the Tomorrow's Ancestors series a devastating change is on the horizon.'A stonking good sci-fi & coming-of-age story all wrapped into one . . . a book that tackles humanity, hardship, and classism at the deepest level.' - Magic Radio Book ClubElise has now been working for the infiltration department for a year, but is growing frustrated with their lack of progress, their unwillingness to fight back against an unjust world. When it's announced that they're going on the offensive, will she be ready for the consequences?Twenty-Two finally has her freedom after serving her term of imprisonment. But not everyone believes she deserves to be released. If she is not welcome in Uracil, then where does she belong?Genevieve's life as a high-ranking Medius is perfectly crafted to hide all weakness, but when she finds out what the Potior's have planned next at the Museum of Evolution, she starts to question her choices, and the cracks begin to show. Can she keep herself from shattering?When a threat none of these women could have predicted comes to pass, they are all left to fight for their futures. Whether they are ready for it or not, their worlds will collide and nothing will be the same again . . .__________________________________________________PRAISE FOR THE TOMORROW'S ANCESTORS SERIES'An unputdownable exploration into the ethics of science' Buzz Magazine'Incredible . . . without a doubt one of the best YA sci-fi books I've ever read' Out and About Books'Instantly engaging . . . widens out from a tale of a girl trying to find her own identity to a broader story encompassing an entire population's burden of oppression, and the desire for freedom' Track of Words'One of the rare debuts that are really five star reads. Subject Twenty One grabbed me instantly and I couldn't put it down' Dom Reads__________________________________________________Make sure you've read the whole series!1. Subject Twenty-One2. The Hidden Base3. The Fourth Species
Frankenstein
by Mary ShelleyOne of the BBC's '100 Novels That Shaped Our World''That rare story to pass from literature into myth' The New York TimesMary Shelley's chilling Gothic tale was conceived when she was only eighteen, living with her lover Percy Shelley on Lake Geneva. The story of Victor Frankenstein who, obsessed with creating life itself, plunders graveyards for the material to fashion a new being, but whose botched creature sets out to destroy his maker, would become the world's most famous work of horror fiction, and remains a devastating exploration of the limits of human creativity. Based on the third edition of 1831, this volume contains all Mary Shelley's revisions to her story, and also includes 'A Fragment' by Lord Byron and Dr John Polidori's 'The Vampyre: A Tale'. Edited with an Introduction and notes by MAURICE HINDLE
Frankenstein (The Penguin English Library)
by Mary ShelleyOne of the BBC's '100 Novels That Shaped Our World'The Penguin English Library Edition of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley'Never did I behold a vision so horrible as his face, of such loathsome, yet appalling hideousness'A twisted, upside-down creation myth, Mary Shelley's chilling Gothic tale lays bare the dark side of science, and the horror within us all. It tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, who plunders graveyards to create a new being from the bodies of the dead - but whose botched creature causes nothing but murder and destruction. Written after a nightmare when its author was only eighteen, Frankenstein gave birth to the modern science fiction novel.The Penguin English Library - 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the beginning of the First World War.
The Frankenstein Teacher
by Tony BradmanThe floor shook. The tables and chairs shook. The children shook. Suddenly, the door creaked open... and a huge figure loomed over them. It was... The Frankenstein Teacher!Class 3F get a very unusual new teacher. Frankenstein! But although Frankenstein looks very very scary, he has a very big heart and Class 3 learn to see beyond his scary appearance to the real person beneath when the class hamster meets a very sticky end...
The Essential Terrance Dicks Volume 1
by Terrance Dicks"I think if you can get a kid reading for pleasure, not because it's work, but actually reading for pleasure, it's a great step forward. It can start with me, you know, start with Dicks and work its way up to Dickens - as long as you get them reading." - Terrance DicksFor over 50 years, Terrance Dicks was the secret beating heart(s) of Doctor Who - from joining production of The Invasion in 1968 to his final short story in 2019. As the undisputed master of Doctor Who fiction, Terrance wrote 64 Target novels from his first commission in 1973 to his last, published in 1990. He helped introduce an entire generation to the pleasures of reading and writing, and his fans include Neil Gaiman, Sarah Waters, Mark Gatiss, Alastair Reynolds, Russell T Davies, Steven Moffat, Frank-Cottrell Boyce, and Robert Webb, among many others.This two-volume collection, features the very best of his Doctor Who novels as chosen by fans - from his first book, The Auton Invasion, to his masterwork, the 20th anniversary celebration story The Five Doctors, voted all-time favourite.This volume contains, complete and unabridged:DOCTOR WHO AND THE DALEK INVASION OF EARTHDOCTOR WHO AND THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMENDOCTOR WHO AND THE WHEEL IN SPACEDOCTOR WHO AND THE AUTON INVASIONDOCTOR WHO AND THE DAY OF THE DALEKS
The Essential Terrance Dicks Volume 2
by Terrance Dicks"I think if you can get a kid reading for pleasure, not because it's work, but actually reading for pleasure, it's a great step forward. It can start with me, you know, start with Dicks and work its way up to Dickens - as long as you get them reading." - Terrance DicksFor over 50 years, Terrance Dicks was the secret beating heart(s) of Doctor Who - from joining production of The Invasion in 1968 to his final short story in 2019. As the undisputed master of Doctor Who fiction, Terrance wrote 64 Target novels from his first commission in 1973 to his last, published in 1990. He helped introduce an entire generation to the pleasures of reading and writing, and his fans include Neil Gaiman, Sarah Waters, Mark Gatiss, Alastair Reynolds, Russell T Davies, Steven Moffat, Frank-Cottrell Boyce, and Robert Webb, among many others.This two-volume collection, features the very best of his Doctor Who novels as chosen by fans - from his first book, The Auton Invasion, to his masterwork, the 20th anniversary celebration story The Five Doctors, voted all-time favourite.This Volume contains, complete and unabridged:DOCTOR WHO AND THE GENESIS OF THE DALEKSDOCTOR WHO AND THE PYRAMIDS OF MARSDOCTOR WHO AND THE TALONS OF WENG-CHIANGDOCTOR WHO AND THE HORROR OF FANG ROCKDOCTOR WHO AND THE FIVE DOCTORS
The Goose Girl: A Magic Beans Story
by Gillian CrossWhen a princess is sent away to begin a new life, little does she know what lies in store . . . Discover how this heroine, cruelly tricked by her evil maid, struggles to prove her innocence to the handsome prince she is destined to marry.This story is a magic bean. It may not look much like a bean, but I can promise you that it is. For if you plant it in a young mind, it will grow into a love of story and reading. These beans are favourite fairytales and legends that will delight, thrill and thoroughly entertain. Each story has been brilliantly crafted by one of the best-loved writers for children. This story was published by David Fickling Books as part of the Magic Beans anthology. The complete anthology is available in hardback and in ebook format.
Fright Night: The Howling Castle
by Steve Rogers"Welcome to Fright Night! So here we are in the corridors of Castle Dragomir . . ." The cast and crew of the Fright Night TV show are filming at the spookiest castle they’ve ever seen! The owner looks eerily like Count Dracula, growling wolves bare their fangs in the forest below and there’s even talk of vampires. Twins Adam and Lana suspect the count has something sinister to hide – can they uncover the mystery of the creepy castle before it’s too late? Perfect for readers of 8+ who love to be seriously spooked!
Fright Night: The Shrieking Stones
by Steve Rogers'Welcome to Fright Night! Tonight’s destination is . . . Ireland: at the Shrieking Stones of Bray.'The cast and crew of Fright Night are roaming the country in search of all things spooooooky. Just when it seems the ghosts and ghouls are staying hidden, twins Adam and Lana make a chilling discovery, which leads them to an eerie circle of standing stones. Something very sinister awaits them – and the question isn’t what, but WHO is lurking inside? First in a brilliantly creepy new series. Perfect for boys and girls of 8+ who love to be seriously spooked!
Gargantua and Pantagruel
by Francois RabelaisThe dazzling and exuberant moral stories of Rabelais (c. 1471-1553) expose human follies with their mischievous and often obscene humour, while intertwining the realistic with carnivalesque fantasy to make us look afresh at the world. Gargantua depicts a young giant, reduced to laughable insanity by an education at the hands of paternal ignorance, old crones and syphilitic professors, who is rescued and turned into a cultured Christian knight. And in Pantagruel and its three sequels, Rabelais parodied tall tales of chivalry and satirized the law, theology and academia to portray the bookish son of Gargantua who becomes a Renaissance Socrates, divinely guided in his wisdom, and his idiotic, self-loving companion Panurge.
Greta and the Ghost Hunters
by Sam CopelandThe hilarious tale of a family coming to terms with its ghosts - literally.Greta Woebegone did not believe in ghosts until the day she was knocked over by a car and almost died. Then everything changed...Now Greta can not only see the spirits that haunt her ancestral home, she can talk to them too - from her grumpy Grandpa Woebegone and Percy the poo-pushing plague victim to the sinister spook in the cellar.Can Greta help the ghosts avoid being exorcised (a fate worse than undeath)? Can the ghosts help Greta stop her beloved Grandma being put in a home? And can they all help each other overcome the pain in their past that's holding them back from the future?From the acclaimed author of Charlie Changes Into a Chicken comes a touching and side-splitting new story guaranteed to delight readers of nine and up.'Hilarious, fast-paced and full of heart' - Sunday Express'Funny, engaging and utterly heartfelt' - LD Lapinski, author of The Strangeworlds Travel Agency
Grey Wolf, Prince Jack and the Firebird: A Magic Beans Story
by Alan GarnerWhen fruit is stolen from his golden tree, the King is furious! Prince Jack must locate the culprit, but his simple quest to find the thief soon turns into a thrilling tale of love, friendship and betrayal . . .This story is a magic bean. It may not look much like a bean, but I can promise you that it is. For if you plant it in a young mind, it will grow into a love of story and reading. These beans are favourite fairytales and legends that will delight, thrill and thoroughly entertain. Each story has been brilliantly crafted by one of the best-loved writers for children. This story was published by David Fickling Books as part of the Magic Beans anthology. The complete anthology is available in hardback and in ebook format.
The Grid: 'A stunning thriller’ Terry Hayes, author of I AM PILGRIM
by Nick Cook'A highly original, electrifying read' The Times'A stylish, riveting thriller' Daily Mail'An assured page-turner ... it combines action and foreign locations with big ideas a la Dan Brown' Sunday TimesThe US President Thompson has been dreaming of his own death. A repeating nightmare that hounds him night after night that he can't ignore: something tells him it's not just a dream, it feels too real.Thompson's doctor, military psychiatrist Josh Cain, is summoned to a church tower near the White House. He thinks he is there to talk down another suicidal ex-Marine. But the man he finds tells him of a plot to kill Thompson, revealing secrets he can't possibly have known - just seconds before a sniper's bullet takes him out . . .Battles have been fought man to man, then machine to machine, and even in cyberspace. But now there is a different battlefield emerging: human consciousness and the fight for our minds.What readers are saying:'A classy, intelligent and reflective investigative thriller.''A layered plot, engaging characters and a spine chilling ring of truth to the plot, which lured me in and kept me trapped until the final page.''A real page turner with plenty of surprises and twists. Great read.''THE BEST BOOK THAT I'VE READ ALL YEAR!'
Gridlock
by Ben EltonGridlock is when a city dies. Killed in the name of freedom. Killed in the name of oil and steel. Choked on carbon monoxide and strangled with a pair of fluffy dice. How did it come to this? How did the ultimate freedom machine end up paralysing us all? How did we end up driving to our own funeral, in somebody else's gravy train?Deborah and Geoffrey know, but they have transport problems of their own, and anyway, whoever it was that murdered the city can just as easily murder them.
Guards! Guards!: The Play (Discworld Novels #8)
by Terry PratchettTerry Pratchett's infamous city of Ankh-Morpork is under threat from a 60-foot fire-breathing dragon, summoned by a secret society of malcontented tradesmen.Defending Ank-Morpork against this threat is the entire, underpaid, undervalued City Night Watch - a drunken and world-weary Captain, a cowardly and overweight Sergeant, a small opportunistic Corporal of dubious parentage...and their newest recruit, Lance Constable Carrot, who is upright, literal, law-abiding and keen. Aiding them in their fight for truth, justice and the Ankh-Morporkian way are a small swamp dragon and the Librarian of Unseen University (who just happens to be an orang-utan).
Ghost Detectives: The Lost Bride (Ghost Detectives)
by Emily MasonSome ghosts are haunted by their past. When the local museum needs volunteers to help it reopen, Abi, Hannah, Sarah and Grace sign up. The girls discover that the museum has a link to the spirit world when they find an ancient diary and meet a ghost bride from another century. She can't rest in peace until she finds out why her true love left her at the altar. The Ghost Detectives have a romantic first mystery to solve!
Ghost Detectives: The Missing Dancer (Ghost Detectives)
by Emily MasonGhost Detective: The Lost Dancer is brilliant for younger fans of the spy series The Gallagher Girls and also paranormal fiction. Girls of 9+ will love the gentle romance, school friendships and thrilling detective case to be solved. The perfect series for aspiring tweens.Some ghosts are haunted by their past . . .When Abi, Sarah , Hannah and Grace are visited by the ghost of a littl lost girl trying to dance one last time so that her spirit can rest, they jump at the chance to help. But this Ghost Detective case seems to be shrouded in secrets and everywhere they look, people get upset. With clues runing out, can the Ghost Detectives solve the mystery of the missing dancer?Emily Mason is an exciting new Irish author. Her previous book Ghost Detective: The Lost Bride was her debut novel for Puffin. Emily has been a bookworm since she was little. She is now an editor and author but has yet to see any ghosts herself...
Gulliver's Travels
by Jonathan SwiftThe classic tale of shipwreck and adventure in strange lands, Gulliver's Travels is also a wickedly clever satire on the nature of humankind 'A masterwork of irony ... that contains both a dark and bitter meaning and a joyous, extraordinary creativity of imagination' Malcolm Bradbury Shipwrecked and cast adrift, Lemuel Gulliver wakes to find himself on Lilliput, an island inhabited by little people, whose height makes their quarrels over fashion and fame seem ridiculous. His subsequent encounters - with the crude giants of Brobdingnag, the philosophical Houyhnhnms and brutish Yahoos - give Gulliver new, bitter insights into human behaviour. Swift's savage satire views mankind in a distorted hall of mirrors as a diminished, magnified and finally bestial species, presenting us with an uncompromising reflection of ourselves. This text, based on the first edition of 1726, reproduces all the original illustrations and includes an introduction by Robert Demaria, Jr, which discusses the ways Gulliver's Travels has been interpreted since its first publication.