England (UK)

Flood and Fire

She survived the epic battle of the raiders on the rough waters that flood England. Now poor fishergirl Lilly is determined to return Lexy, the Prime Minister’s kidnapped daughter, to her home. And since his father was killed in the clash, Zeph is equally determined to claim leadership of his family’s clan before more savage tribes invade the marshlands. But will the electromagnetic pulse of an omnipotent computer set the world aflame and wipe out all humans so that artificial intelligence can take over the future?! It’s up to the unlikely trio of children — and their petulant, unpredictable gameboard PSAI — to rage against the machines.

Nature Adventures

Nature Adventures is a treasure trove of activities, information, observation, pictures and poetry, featuring habitats such as town and city, woodland and headgerow, ponds and rivers, moorland and seaside. And even including car journeys. This is a unique and inspirational book that will encourage families everywhere to explore the beauty and diversity of the natural world.

J. R. R. Tolkien

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien’s novels were strongly influenced by his childhood both in South Africa, where lions prowled and wild beasts roamed, and in the English countryside, where he imagined that elves and gnomes dwelled. J. R. R. Tolkien wrote many stories, studied languages–even inventing one of his own–and founght bravely in World War I. He wrote The Hobbit, a children’s book about a courageous creature with pointed ears and furry feet, which was an instant success. His next book, The Lord of the Rings, made Tolkien, an ordinary man with an extraordinary imagination, one of the world’s most beloved authors.

Batty

Batty’s efforts to impress visitors at the zoo fail, but he is determined to be popular like the other animals. First he goes to the penguin pool but the water is cold and he doesn’t like fish. Then he tries the gorilla enclosure but he doesn’t have any fleas for the gorillas to pick off him. He tries to laze in the sun with the lions but its far too bright for his sensitive eyes. When eventually he returns to his bat cave he finds that everyone else is trying to be like him, hanging upside down. This clever and witty story is brought to life with Batty’s upside down view of his surroundings, involving the reader in turning the book upside down with him.

My Two Grandads

Aston’s Grandad Roy played in a steel band and Grandad Harry played the trumpet in a brass band. Aston always enjoyed going to visit them and listen to them practice. But soon he wanted to join in. So he asked Grandad Roy to teach him to play the steel drums and then he asked Grandad Harry to teach him to play the trumpet. He loved practicing both instruments. Then the school needs a band to play at the school fair, and both grandads want their own band to play. Finally Aston had an idea – both bands join together to make one big band, and Aston joins in first on steel drums and then on trumpet. This story of a mixed-race family reconciling their cultures is a celebration of diversity. Written by one of Britain’s foremost campaigners and media personalities and illustrated by a highly regarded illustrator, this book is sure to build on the success of My Two Grannies.

Aftershock

Makis and his moher Sofia escape a devastating Greek earthquake which has claimed his father’s life. North London is a ver different place – but Makis quickly wins a covetted place in the school football team. Unlike her son, Sofia, isolated by her grief and lack of English, sinks into depression. Makis has a brilliant idea to help her – using books from school he begins to teach her to read. But competing loyalites mean that sooner or later, something has to give and his hard-won reputation at school appears to be in ruins.

A Proper Place

The fourth in the very successful series about Kevin (a Catholic) and Sadie (a Protestant) who meet (The Twelfth Day of July), grow up and fall in love (Across the Barricades) and leave Belfast to marry and find some peace (Into Exile). A Proper Place finds them still in Liverpool, with a two-room flat and baby Brendan, and coping with Kevin’s sullen seventeen-year-old brother, Gerald;’ but a job and a tied cottage on a Cheshire farm offer a new direction

Hostages to Fortune

When the death of Kevin’s employer confronts him and his wife Sadie with the sudden loss of both job and home, an uncertain future looms up before them. Sequel to “A Proper Place.”