A former rough sleeper & troubled child of poverty John Bird founder of The Big Issue has written an excoriating attack on orthodox thinking around the gap between rich & poor. Provoking an intellectual revolution he spares neither himself nor others in identifying what needs to be done to end poverty. A lifelong autodidact Bird has learned much from his time in orphanages in prison in slums
- & on the streets. With The Necessity of Poverty the social entrepreneur offers a fresh perspective as one who was once part of the problem & has now become part of the solution.
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This is how it all began. From A Necklace of Raindrops" to " The Patchwork Quilt" here are eight classic stories to treasure & enjoy. Beginning & ending with a birthday this spell-binding collection conjures up a world filled with magic where wishes can come true. A necklace of raindrops that keeps its owner dry in the heaviest rainstorm; a tiger that runs faster than the wind; a huge floating apple pie with a piece of sky in it; a bakers cat who swells to the size of a whale when his mistress feeds him yeast; & a house that stands on one leg
- these are just some of the objects & characters that figure in these delightful stories."
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Once she was Eon a girl disguised as a boy risking her life for the chance to become a Dragoneye apprentice. Now she is Eona thrust into the role of her countrys saviour. But Eona has an even more dangerous secret
- she cannot control her power. When she tries to bond with her Mirror Dragon the anguish of the ten spirit beasts whose Dragoneyes were murdered surges through her. The result: a killing force that destroys everything before it. On the run from High Lord Sethons army Eona & her friends must help the Pearl Emperor Kygo wrest back his throne. Everyone is relying on Eonas power. Can she face her own darkness within & drive a dangerous bargain with an old enemy? A wrong move could obliterate them all. Against a thrilling backdrop of explosive combat ruthless power struggles & exotic lore Eona is the gripping story of a remarkable warrior who must find the strength to walk a deadly line between truth & justice. Full of pulse-racing drama heart-stirring romance dazzling fight scenes & myriad surprises The Necklace of the Gods brings this extraordinarily imagined & exciting fantasy epic to a resounding climax.
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Sophie & Josh have returned to San Francisco. They must protect themselves from the Dark Elders but they've not yet mastered the magic they'll need to do so. Their trust in Nicholas Flamel is shaken & their friend Scatty is missing. Unbeknownst to the twins John Dee has amassed an enormous army of foul creatures with which he plans to battle Nicholas & his wife Peronelle. In order for his plan to work he must train a necromancer to raise the Mother of the Gods from the dead. The twins of legend will make the perfect pupils in his diabolical scheme. ...

WIKIPEDIA says: 'H.P. Lovecraft's reputation has grown tremendously over the decades & he is now commonly regarded as one of the most important horror writers of the 20th century exerting an influence that is widespread though often indirect.' H.P. Lovecraft's tales of the tentacled Elder God Cthulhu & his pantheon of alien deities were initially written for the pulp magazines of the 1920s & '30s. These astonishing tales blend elements of horror science fiction & cosmic terror that are as powerful today as they were when they were first published. This handsome leatherbound tome collects together the very best of Lovecraft's tales of terror including the complete Cthulhu Mythos cycle just the way they were originally published. It will introduce a whole new generation of readers to Lovecraft's fiction as well as being a must-buy for those fans who want all his work in a single definitive highly attractive volume. ...

This is the eagerly-awaited fourth book in this bestselling series. Hong Kong has been taken over by the Old Ones & has become Necropolis city of the dead. Once in there is no way out... Evil has been unleashed on the world & only five children
- with special powers
- can save it. Matt & the other three desperately need to find Scar the final gatekeeper who has been trapped in Hong Kong where puddles of water turn into puddles of blood where ghosts demons & hideous creatures stalk the streets. Matt has no choice but to follow her. Now both imprisoned their only hope of survival is to reach a secret door in the Man Ho temple. But even if Scar can find her psychic power it may already be too late.

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From Roman burial rites to the horrors of the plague from the founding of the great Victorian cemeteries to the development of cremation & the current approach of metropolitan society towards death & bereavement -- including more recent trends to displays of collective grief & the cult of mourning such as that surrounding the death of Diana Princess of Wales -- NECROPOLIS: LONDON & ITS DEAD offers a vivid historical narrative of this great citys attitude to going the way of all flesh. As layer upon layer of London soil reveals burials from pre-historic & medieval times the city is revealed as one giant grave filled with the remains of previous eras -- pagan Roman medieval Victorian. This fascinating blend of archaeology architecture & anecdote

Includes:: such phenomena as the rise of the undertaking trade & the pageantry of state funerals; public executions & bodysnatching. Ghoulishly entertaining & full of fascinating nuggets of information Necropolis leaves no headstone unturned in its exploration of our changing attitudes to the deceased among us. Both anecdotal history & cultural commentary Necropolis will take its place alongside classics of the city such as Peter Ackroyds LONDON.

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Evil has been unleashed on the world & only five children
- with special powers
- can save it. Matt & the other three desperately

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When railwayman Jim Stringer moves to the garish & tawdry London of 1903 he finds his duties are confined to a mysterious graveyard line. Perplexingly the men he works alongside have formed an instant loathing for him. & his predecessor has disappeared under suspicious circumstances. Can Jim work out what is going on before he too is travelling on a one-way coffin ticket aboard the Necropolis Railway? A gripping detective story fabulously rich in atmosphere & period detail The Necropolis Railway steams toward an unexpected conclusion. ...

Zara collects phobias the way other high school girls collect Facebook friends. Its little wonder since shes had a fairly rough life. Her father left when she was a baby her stepfather just died & her mothers almost given up
- in fact shes sent her to live with her grandmother in cold & sleepy Maine to keep Zara safe. Zara doesnt think shes in danger; she thinks her mother just cant cope. Zaras wrong. The man she sees everywhere
- the tall creepy guy who points at her from the side of the road
- is not a figment of her imagination. Hes a pixie. But not the cute sweet kind with little wings. Maines got a whole assortment of unbelievable creatures. & they seem to need something
- something from Zara...



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