Written for Learners of English by John EscottWhat does the name Agatha Christie mean? To many people, it means a book about a murder mystery a whodunnit. Im reading an Agatha Christie, people say. Im not sure who the murderer is I think its . . . But they are usually wrong, because it is not easy to guess the murderers name before the end of the book.But who was Agatha Christie? What was she like? Was her life quiet and unexciting, or was it full of interest and adventure? W...

A level 1 Oxford Bookworms Library graded reader. This version includes an audio book: listen to the story as you read. Written for Learners of English by John Escott. Nick Lortz is sitting outside a café in Whistler, a village in the Canadian mountains, when a stranger comes and sits next to him. She’s young, pretty, and has a beautiful smile. Nick is happy to sit and talk with her. But why does she call Nick ‘Mr Hollywood’? Why does she give him a big kiss when she leaves? And who is the...

The Cat steals things from houses in Hollywood. He steals from movie stars and nobody can stop him. Or can they? Natalie is a movie star. Nathan is her stand-in. Nathan does all Natalie’s stunts in the movie. But when Natalie and Nathan see The Cat driving away from Zak Wakeman’s Hollywood home, they both go after him. Natalie drives fast. ‘Be careful,’ Nathan tells her. ‘You have a movie to finish!’

Sherlock Holmes is the greatest detective the world has ever seen, and he knows it. As the famous bank-robber John Clay says to him, ‘You think of everything, Mr Holmes. You’re very clever.’ People come to him with problems that no one, not even the police, can solve. Holmes sits, and thinks, and smokes his pipe, and in the end he finds the answer. In these plays, based on two of his stories, Holmes, helped by his old friend, Dr Watson, uses his great intelligence to solve two unusual and ...

The men and the woman in this book - William Tell, Tom Blood, Lord Bao, King Matthias, Johnny Appleseed, and Lady Godiva - are all real people from history. But every time someone tells an old story, they change things in it, to make them bigger, better, and more exciting. So what is true in this book and what is not? Read all six of the stories, and see what you think.

A Starter level Oxford Bookworms Library graded reader. This version includes an audio book: listen to the story as you read. Written for Learners of English by John Escott. Greg is a porter at the Shepton Hotel in New York. When a girl with beautiful green eyes asks him for help, Greg can't say no. The girl's name is Cassie, and she says she is an artist. She tells Greg that her stepfather has her sketchbooks, and now she wants them back. Cassie says her stepfather is staying at Greg's ho...

‘Suddenly, there was a high voice screaming in the darkness: “Pieces of eight! Pieces of eight! Pieces of eight!” It was Long John Silver’s parrot, Captain Flint! I turned to run . . .’ But young Jim Hawkins does not escape from the pirates this time. Will he and his friends find the treasure before the pirates do? Will they escape from the island, and sail back to England with a ship full of gold?

When Jake Stevens goes to work for some months in Ireland, he feels happy. He loves travelling, and talking about his job – making computer games for BananaTech in America. ‘Your new game’s going to be the best thing at the Irish Computer Exhibition!’ people at BananaTech Ireland tell him. But living with a noisy parrot isn’t easy, and when Jake asks the most beautiful girl at work out to dinner, she says ‘no’. Then someone steals Jake’s game the night before the show. Who – or what – can ...

Zoe Baker works in a bookstore. She also likes acting, and she has a part in the play Romeo and Juliet. Mike Morrison writes about the play for the newspaper. What does he write about Zoe? Is Zoe a good actress ... or is she just 'a pretty face'? What does Zoe think when she reads the newspaper? What does she do?

What does the name ‘Agatha Christie’ mean? To many people, it means a book about a murder mystery – a ‘whodunnit’. ‘I’m reading an Agatha Christie,’ people say. ‘I’m not sure who the murderer is – I think it’s…’ But they are usually wrong, because it is not easy to guess the murderer’s name before the end of the book. But who was Agatha Christie? What was she like? Was her life quiet and unexciting, or was it full of interest and adventure? Was there a mystery in her life, too?

Greg is a porter at the Shepton Hotel in New York. When a girl with beautiful green eyes asks him for help, Greg can’t say no. The girl’s name is Cassie, and she says she is an artist. She tells Greg that her stepfather has her sketchbooks, and now she wants them back. Cassie also says her stepfather is staying at Greg’s hotel . . . so what could go wrong?

The men and the women in this book – William Tell, Tom Blood, Lord Bao, King Matthias, Johnny Appleseed, and Lady Godiva – are all real people from history. But every time someone tells an old story, they change things in it, to make them bigger, better, and more exciting. So what is true in this book and what is not? Read all six of the stories, and see what you think.