A magical collection of short stories from double Carnegie Medal winner Margaret Mahy. A wizard's house with coloured windows that look into worlds of treetops and deserts, cloud-castles and diamonds. Two riddles that, once solved, will stop Shock Forest from burning. A flute-playing bear and a boy who just wants to spread his wings and fly... These fantastical short stories will take readers on a journey; sometimes haunting, sometimes surreal but always enchanting.This collection of brilliant stories from double Carnegie Medal winner Margaret Mahy has wonderful illustrations by TBC and is perfect for children who are developing as readers. The Bloomsbury Readers series is packed with brilliant books to get children reading independently in Key Stage 2, with book-banded stories by award-winning authors like double Carnegie Medal winner Geraldine McCaughrean and Waterstones Prize winner Patrice Lawrence, covering a wide range of genres and topics. With...

An exciting adventure from Margaret Mahy – blended with her trademark surreal humour and writing that makes you want to read it. Sophie Sapwood, daughter of the famous explorer, Bonniface Sapwood, discovers a whalebone pendant hidden at the back of her chest of drawers. At the same time, deep in the frozen wastes of the Antarctic, the ghost of Captain Cathcardo awakens from an ancient sleep, trapped in the Antarctic on his ship, The Riddle. His three cries for "Help" travel through the stratosphere to three different sets of ears – famous explorer Bonniface Sapwood, renowned naturalist Corona Wottley and oily villain Rancid Swarthy – descendant of Escher Black who was first mate on the Riddle. All three parties immediately organise trips to the Antarctic – all with the same goal in mind (solving the mystery of the Riddle) but each with very different intentions.

Three short zany stories, all featuring weird and wonderful animals with illustrations by Tony Ross. The Gargling Gorilla, The Runaway Reptiles and The Dog Magician – three hilarious stories in one volume from an award-winning author with a wicked sense of humour.The Gargling Gorilla is a perfext text for confident young readers, with its accumulative storyline, use of repetition and alliteration and humour. Tim is animal-sitting for a neighbour who tells him which animal has which food and where it is kept. So, for example, 'The cat likes cat snacks and the cat-snack pack is in the tall cupboard. The tall cupboard is beside the fridge, and the fridge is over there on the other side of the sink. However, when the vulture sees the cat being fed, he will get a little peckish. SO the vulture chunks are inside the fridge...' etc. After a long list of instructions Tim finally hears 'and the gorilla is in the cupboard under the sink.' Tim is hugely inventive and...

The kitten has climbed the Christmas tree! Climbed so high and climbed so far to cling with her claws to the Christmas star. So begins the magically illustrated story of the - Christmas Tree Tangle - in which the kitten, the cat, the dog, the goat and even the pigs get stuck in the branches of the town Christmas tree. This is a delightful tale to read along with Children at the festive season.

In a time not far from our own, a colourful group of travellers braves the twisting, unpredictable landscape of a world trying to remake itself years after near-destruction. They are the magicians, clowns, trapeze artists and musicians of Maddigan's Fantasia, healing the injured land with wonder and laughter.When three mysterious children join the Fantasia - children with uncanny abilities and a secret past - they bring with them powerful enemies who will stop at nothing to hunt them down.Soon Garland Maddigan, the 12-year-old daughter of the Fantasia's ringmaster finds herself embroiled in a series of terrifying adventures that will take her within perilous underground tunnels, through the land of the Witch-Finder and across time itself . . .

'What we need is a powerful enchantress,' Meredith cried. 'Someone who could put a spell on Marriott.' As she spoke, a strange thought came into her head, running round and round inside her like a mouse on a pet-shop wheel. It was not a thought she could share, for it had a wickedness hidden in it and Meredith did not want anyone to know just how wicked she could be, even if it was only in her dreams.The brooding island of Kaitangata lies just across the water from Meredith's home. It seems to have a supernatural presence, a will and a voice of its own, although only Meredith can hear it.Can Meredith save the island from an unscrupulous developer? How could the dreamer of the family succeed where grown-ups have failed? Only Kaitangata can tell...

Compelling drama in which 17-year-old Ellis comes to terms with the meaning of death... Ellis is an ordinary 17-year-old; someone who's planning to finish school and go to university like any other teenager. The difference is that four months ago, his best friend Simon killed himself. Still -- that was four months ago. Ellis has now 'got over it'. Except, of course, he hasn't. Returning to his home town, he gets drawn into a situation in which the 'old' Ellis would never have become embrangled. He gatecrashes a party and persuaded to 'rescue' two sisters -- Ursa and Leo, driving them back to the Land of Smiles -- the ex-motel where they live. From that moment on, nothing is the same again. The story is narrated hour-by-hour, as Ellis packs a life-time of experiences into the next twenty-four hours. Giving in to high spirits and booze, Ellis wakes next morning in a strange bed, with a stonking hangover and a shaven head!...

"Watch the road! Watch the road!" screamed David. "I don't have to," Harley replied in a strangled voice. Slumping back in his seat, he took his foot off the accelerator and held his hands away from the wheel. The soft hum of the car's motor did not decrease. The car did not lose speed. If anything, it seemed to move even faster than before. "It's driving itself," Harley said. A thrilling tale of danger, ghosts and secret experiments hidden deep in the forest.

When her little brother seems to become possessed by an evil spirit, fourteen-year-old Laura seeks the help of the strangely compelling older boy at school who she is convinced has supernatural powers

A legend is born. Heriot has always known that he was different with his terrifying dreams and psychic powers. Ripped from his family farm, he is forced to serve as the King's magician in the capital city of Diamond. Isolated and lonely, his only friends are the 'mad prince' Dysart and Cayley, a mysterious wild city child. But their friendship is about to be tested to the limit when chilling violence and ambition threatens to crush Diamond and its King. Heriot's psychic abilities hide a deeper power that has the strength to bring Diamond's enemies to their knees. But will he be able to control this power without becoming a monster himself? 'Margaret Mahy is outstanding in the richness of her ideas and in her great story-telling ability. She has a fresh and vivid imagination, which speaks directly to the imagination of the child and an ability to use language to increase the force of her imagery to great effect.' Twentieth Century Children's Writers 'The queen of children's...