This inspired collection of short stories is based on the original illustrations of Chris Van Allburg in his esteemed & mysterious The Mysteries of Harris Burdick" & features many remarkable best-selling authors in the worlds of both adult & children's literature: Sherman Alexie M.T. Anderson Kate Di Camillo Cory Doctorow Jules Feiffer Stephen King Tabitha King Lois Lowry Gregory Maguire Walter Dean Myers Linda Sue Park Louis Sachar Jon Scieszka Lemony Snicket & Chris Van Allsburg himself. Van Allsburg's Harris Burdick illustrations have evoked such wonderment & imagination since Harris Burdick's original publication in 1984; many have speculated or have woven their own stories to go with his images. More than ever the illustrations send off their eerie call for text & continue to compel & pick at the reader's brain for a backstory
- a threaded tale behind the image. In this book we've collected some of the best storytellers to spin them."
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They say the king's gone mad!" Blinded by grief & rage Conan the King has let matters of state fall by the wayside as he mourns the apparent death of his son & heir Conn. The barbarian king's erratic behavior & the void of leadership is troubling but where some see a kingdom on the brink of chaos others see an opportunity to seize the moment & pull the reins of power from the preoccupied monarch's hands. Dead hands that is!" ...

The Chronicles of Narnia have enchanted millions of readers over the last fifty years & the magical events described in C.S. Lewis's immortal prose have left many a lasting memory for adults & children alike. All seven Chronicles are bound together in this new paperback edition (rebranded with Harper Collins logo). The Chronicles of Narnia have enchanted millions of readers over the last fifty years & the magical events described in C.S. Lewis's immortal prose have left many a lasting memory. For here is a world where a witch decrees eternal winter; where there are more talking animals than people; & where battles are fought by Centaurs Giants & Fauns. ...

Here are five gripping episodes of early Pern -- from the very first space survey recommending colonisation to the last where the early world its young dragon culture undetected is condemned to be isolated in space. Here is the saga of the mass evacuation from the volcanic southern continent an entire group of people moved across the dangerous seas guarded & guided by a flotilla of dolphins. Here too is the story of the creation of Ruatha Hold -- a mammoth undertaking in the early days of Pern. & here is one of the most fascinating dragon tales ever written by Anne Mc Caffrey when Fort Weyr was the only weyr & when dragonriders & dragons were overcrowded to danger point. As the news broke of three fresh weyrs to be established a young girl Torene came to realize that her dragon could be the next Queen of the newly formed Benden Weyr. ...

Darkness wars with darkness as the hard-bitten men of the Black Company take their pay & do what they must. They bury their doubts with their dead. Then comes the prophecy: The White Rose has been reborn somewhere to embody good once more.. . This is fantasy for all fans of Steven Erikson Joe Abercrombie & David Gemmell. Available for the first time in a UK edition. Contains the first three Black Company novels: THE BLACK COMPANY SHADOWS LINGER & THE WHITE ROSE With the Black Company series Glen Cook single-handedly changed the face of fantasy
- something a lot of people didnt notice & maybe still dont. He brought the story down to a human level dispensing with the cliche archetypes of princes kings & evil sorcerers. Reading his stuff is like reading Vietnam fiction on Peyote STEVEN ERIKSON
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This is the only Bible that means that you can study Scripture in the order of events as they happened. The Chronological Study Bible" presents the text of the New King James Version in chronological order
- the order in which the events actually happened
- with notes articles & full-color graphics that connect the reader to the history & culture of Bible times. It is the only study Bible arranged in chronological order. Features include: the entire NKJV text with translators notes arranged in chronological order for absorbing & effective Bible study; full-color illustrations of places artifacts & cultural phenomena that give the reader a dramatic you are there experience; fascinating articles that connect the Bible text to world history & culture; Daily Life Notes that explain how people lived in Bible times; Time Panels & Charts that show the flow of Bible history; & In-text & full-page color maps of the biblical world."

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The disturbing post-apocalyptic novel The Chrysalids" by John Wyndham author of " The Day of the Triffids" & " The Kraken Wakes" & dramatised on BBC Radio 4. David Strorms father doesnt approve of Angus Mortons unusually large horses calling them blasphemies against nature. Little does he realise that his own son & his sons cousin Rosalind & their friends have their own secret abberation which would label them as mutants. But as David & Rosalind grow older it becomes more difficult to conceal their differences from the village elders. Soon they face a choice: wait for eventual discovery or flee to the terrifying & mutable Badlands..." The Chrysalids" is a post-nuclear apocalypse story of genetic mutation in a devastated world & explores the lengths the intolerant will go to keep themselves pure. " Perfect timing astringent humour.. .one of the few authors whose compulsive readability is a compliment to the intelligence". (" Spectator"). " Remains fresh & disturbing in an entirely unexpected way". (" Guardian"). John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Benyon Harris was born in 1903 the son of a barrister. He tried a number of careers including farming law commercial art & advertising & started writing short stories intended for sale in 1925. From 1930 to 1939 he wrote short stories of various kinds under different names almost exclusively for American publications while also writing detective novels. During the war he was in the Civil Service & then the Army. In 1946 he went back to writing stories for publication in the USA & decided to try a modified form of science fiction a form he called logical fantasy. As John Wyndham he wrote " The Day of the Triffids" " The Kraken Wakes" " The Chrysalids" " The Midwich Cuckoos" (filmed as " Village of the Damned") " The Seeds of Time" " Trouble with Lichen" " The Outward Urge" " Consider Her Ways & Others" " Web" & " Chocky". John Wyndham died in March 1969." ...

A powerful post-apocalyptic allegory of persecution & intolerance the Penguin Modern Classics" edition of John Wyndhams science fiction masterpiece " The Day of the Triffids" contains an introduction by M. John Harrison. Nuclear war has devastated the world bringing with it a host of genetic mutations. In the bleak primitive society that has emerged from its ruins any sign of deviation no matter how small is ruthlessly rooted out & destroyed. David lives in fear of discovery for he is part of a secret group of children who are able to communicate with each other by transferring thought-shapes into each others minds. As they grow older they feel increasingly isolated. Then one of them marries a norm with terrifying consequences. John Wyndham (1903-1969) the son of a barrister tried a number of careers including farming law commercial art & advertising before writing short stories intended for sale in 1925. After serving in the Civil Service & the Army during the Second World War he decided to try writing a modified form of Science Fiction which he called logical fantasy. Among his most famous books are " The Day of the Triffids" (1951) " The Kraken Wakes" (1953) " The Chrysalids" (1955) " The Midwich Cuckoos" (1957 filmed twice as " Village of the Damned") " Trouble with Lichen" (1960) & " Chocky" (1968). If you enjoyed " The Chrysalids" you might like Arthur Millers " The Crucible" also available in " Penguin Modern Classics". " One of those few authors whose compulsive readability is a compliment to the intelligence". (" Spectator")." ...

In this beautifully illustrated childrens fantasy story two siblings struggle against sharp-edged bedazzling foes to arrive at a place of knowing to which they & everything belong. Its Christmas but thirteen-year-old Maggie & her ten-year-old brother Jesse are anything but joyful. Their mother is dying the bank is about to foreclose on their home & very soon everything about their lives will change. In an adventure that takes them below the earths surface to a realm inhabited by crystalline life forms
- some of which seem to have been spawned from the children themselves
- the sister & brother discover the strength of their bond the breadth of their courage & the awesome power of love. Amid dazzling displays of colours & shapes Maggie & Jesse must move through crystal planes & canyons as they do battle with King Bloo the princes Red & Orange & Holy Clear. Jesse learns from Princess Amethyst that the thing that scares him the most can waken him to his greatest strength. Sharing his secret with Maggie ultimately leads the two to a place of forgiveness called home.

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Meet Chu. Chu is a small panda with a very big sneeze. When Chu sneezes you REALLY don't want to get in the way. But a whole day of adventure will test Chu's sneeze-resisting powers to the limit
- there's the library (dusty books!) the diner (pepper!) & then the circus (all those animals!). How big can a sneeze really be? Just wait & see.. .
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