'Tripitaka, can you go to the west for me – and for Buddha?' When the holy woman Guanyin asks the young Chinese monk Tripitaka to bring some holy writings back from India, he says 'yes'. But how can he travel across rivers, and fight terrible monsters and demons, on his long journey? He needs three strong helpers – Monkey, Pigsy, and Sandy – to do that! But where do they come from? Do they always help? And can they bring the holy writings home again? Read this old Chinese story, and find o...

Join New York Times columnist David Brooks for an in-depth discussion about what constitutes character as explored in his new book.Some people seem to possess inner lives that are more substantive than the rest of ours. How do they do it? Depth, argues Brooks, is the core of our being and something we cultivate over time; it’s engraved by thought and action; it’s built through the commitments we make—to a nation, a faith, a calling or loved ones—and the sacrifices we endure because...

Tom Walsh had a lot to learn about life. He liked travelling, and he was in no hurry. He liked meeting people, anyone and everyone. He liked the two American girls on the train. They were nice and very friendly. They knew a lot of places. Tom thought they were fun. Tom certainly had a lot to learn about life. This is a collection of short stories about adventures on trains. Strange, wonderful, and frightening things can happen on trains - and all of them happen here.

A man from the British royal family leaves an expensive gold and emerald crown at Holder and Stevenson's – one of the best banks in London. When someone tries to take the crown from Mr Holder's desk, he asks Sherlock Holmes for help. Who wants the crown and why? Only Sherlock can find the answers.

Read and discover all about art. What do artists paint? What shapes can you see in art? Read and discover more about the world!This series of non-fiction readers provides interesting and educational content, with activities and project work.An Oxford Press Audio production.

'My first journey was a pilgrimage to Mecca. I got on a donkey and said "Goodbye" to my parents in Tangier when I was 21. My mother cried.' In this way Ibn Battuta, one of the greatest travellers in the world, begins telling his story to his nephew, Ahmed. His many journeys take him to new and interesting places far from home. He sees many strange and wonderful things, has many funny and frightening experiences, and meets many different people along the way. This is his story...

Outside, the night is cold and wet. Inside, the White family sits and waits. Where is their visitor? There is a knock at the door. A man is standing outside in the dark. Their visitor has arrived. The visitor waits. He has been in India for many years. What has he got? He has brought the hand of a small, dead animal – a monkey’s paw. Outside, in the dark, the visitor smiles and waits for the door to open.

Dr Huxtable has a school for boys in the north of England. When the Duke of Holdernesse decides to send his young son there, that is good news for the school. The Duke is a very important person, and Dr Huxtable is happy to have his son in the school. But two weeks later Dr Huxtable is the unhappiest man in England. Why? And why does he take the train down to London and go to Baker Street? Why does he need the help of the famous detective Sherlock Holmes? Because someone has kidnapped the ...

It is 1880, in the Opera House in Paris. Everybody is talking about the Phantom of the Opera, the ghost that lives somewhere under the Opera House. The Phantom is a man in black clothes. He is a body without a head, he is a head without a body. He has a yellow face, he has no nose, he has black holes for eyes. Everybody is afraid of the Phantom - the singers, the dancers, the directors, the stage workers ...But who has actually seen him?

Dolphins Readers are interactive graded readers specially designed to make developing language skills fun for younger learners.Full-color illustrations and cross-curricular content stimulate students' interest and maintain their attention, while carefully graded English introduces them to new language points in an entertaining context. Integrated activities for every page of story text encourage students to practice newly acquired language skills.An Oxford Press Au...

It is the year 2030, and an e-mail message arrives at New York Café: 'I want to help people and make them happy!' But not everybody is happy about the e-mail, and soon the police and the President are very interested in the New York Cafe.

When the Emperor calls every man to join the army and fight the enemy, Mulan's father is old and ill, and cannot go. Wearing men's clothes and riding a horse, Mulan leaves her family and fights bravely for the Emperor in her father's place. She is soon a hero for all the soldiers in the Chinese army. One of them, Ye Ming, is her best friend. But does he know that she is a woman? And can Mulan fall in love with a friend?