The brilliant new book from bestselling author Jacqueline Wilson set in the children's ward of a 1950s hospital. It's 1953 the year Elizabeth is to be crowned Queen of Engl&. Elsie Kettle can't wait to go to London to see the celebrations on Coronation Day. Elsie lives with her Nan
- her mum works as a showgirl so she's not around very often. Spirited & imaginative but often lonely Elsie longs for a best friend. Luckily she & Nan are very close; Elsie just wishes she was allowed a cat to keep her company sometimes. Then tragedy strikes. Nan & Elsie both fall ill with tuberculosis & Elsie finds herself whisked away to the children's ward of the hospital. Confined to bed for months on end Elsie finds it very hard to adapt to the hospital's strict regime. But she invents astonishing ways of entertaining the other children on the ward & for the first time finds herself surrounded by true friends
- including Queenie the hospital's majestic white cat. Finally Elsie is well enough to leave hospital. But before she does she has one very special very unexpected visitor...

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England's medieval queens were elemental in shaping the history of the nation. In an age where all politics were family politics dynastic marriages placed English queens at the very centre of power
- the king's bed. From Matilda of Flanders the Conqueror's queen to Elizabeth of York the first Tudor consort England's queens fashioned the nature of monarchy & influenced the direction of the state. Occupying a unique position in the mercurial often violent world of medieval state-craft English queens had to negotiate a role that combined tremendous influence with terrifying vulnerability. Lisa Hilton's meticulously researched new book explores the lives of the twenty women who were crowned queen between 1066 & 1503 reconsidering the fictions surrounding well-known figures like Eleanor of Aquitaine & illuminating the lives of forgotten figures such as Adeliza of Louvain. War adultery witchcraft child abuse murder
- & occassionally even love
- formed English queenship but so too did patronage learning & fashion. Lisa Hilton considers the evolution of the queenly office alongside intimate portraits of the individual women dispelling the myth that medieval brides were no more than diplomatic pawns.


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Home to ancient rainforests tropical islands rugged mountains & the stunning Great Barrier Reef Queensland harbors some of ...

Originally written in 1952 but not published till 1985 Queer" is an enigma
- both an unflinching autobiographical self-portrait
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A classic memoir from Irelands favourite storyteller. Here Taylor follows To School Through The Fields with these equally captivating further recollections of family life in pastorial County Cork. Infused with wit & lyricism the story centres on the 1950s when the author & her friends were budding teenagers. She describes the past vividly & without complaint as the years of hard labour for herself parents & siblings were also filled with fun in the close knit community. ...

* A brand new collection of tales from Quentin Blake & John Yeoman * Wonderfully retold magical folk tales from around the world. Packed full of adventure exotic locations & mystery * Illustrated by the worlds favouite childrens artist Quentin Blakes Magical Tales is a wonderful collection of more than a dozen tales of magical fun from all over the globe. Retold in wonderful detail by long-time Quentin Blake collaborator John Yeoman these stories sparkle with enchantment adventure & beautifully imagined far away places. ...

'A is for Apples some green & some red B is for Breakfast we're having in bed.' With a simple rhyming text & characteristically brilliant illustrations from Quentin Blake this wonderful ABC" is an absolute must for young children just getting to grips with their alphabet." ...

Every table at Quentins Restaurant has a thousand stories to tell: tales of love betrayal & revenge. Ella Brady wants to make a documentary about the renowned Dublin restaurant that has captured the spirit of a generation & a city in the years it has been open. In Maeve Binchys magical QUENTINS you will meet new friends & old: the twins from SCARLET FEATHER the Signora from EVENING CLASS Ria from TARA ROAD
- & a host of fresh faces. There is Monica the ever-cheerful Australian waitress & Blouse Brennan whose simplicity disguises a sharp mind & a heart of gold. Presiding over Quentins are Patrick & Brenda Brennan who have made Quentins such a legend. But even they have a story & a sadness which is hidden from the public gaze. As Ella uncovers more of what has gone on she wonders about the wisdom of bringing it to the screen. Should the restaurant keep its secrets?
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Wilbur Smith returns with the eagerly awaited sequel to his thrilling Egyptian series. Following on from River God The Seventh Scroll & Warlock The Quest continues the story of the Warlock Taita wise in the lore of the ancient Gods & a master of magic & the supernatural. Egypt is struck by a series of terrible plagues that cripple the Kingdom & then the ultimate disaster follows. The Nile fails. The waters that nourish & sustain the land dry up. Something catastrophic is taking place in the distant & totally unexplored depths of Africa from where the mighty river springs. In desperation Pharoah sends for Taita the only man who might be able to win through to the source of the Nile & discover the cause of all their woes. None of them can have any idea of what a terrible enemy lies in ambush for The Warlock in those mysterious lands at the end of their world ...

In The Quest" master storyteller leading energy expert & Pulitzer prize-winner for The Prize Daniel Yergin shows us how energy is the ultimate engine of global political & economic change in a gripping story that spans the old energies on which our civilization has been built the new energies that are competing to replace them & the battle over climate change. Epic in scope & never more timely " The Quest" vividly reveals the decisions technologies & individuals that are shaping our future." ...