Ned’s gotten into an elite new school. But there’s a problem—everyone there can do magic. And Ned can’t. Ned tries to adjust to his new situation, avoid making enemies, and jump-start his magic skills, all with very little luck. Then, just as he’s getting accustomed to having his hair turned into snakes and his books into bricks, Necromancers strike and Ned and his classmates are kidnapped. But without magic, how can he possibly help them escape?

Can a dog really learn to drive? Horace the car-mad hound thinks so; and he can't wait to get behind the wheel of his owner's car. With the help of two stunt hamsters, Tickety and Boo, and the supercilious snake Kimi, he sets out on the road - and drives straight into trouble!Full of thrills, laughs and crashes, PETROL PAWS is the first in the new WHEElers series, and the perfect read for car-crazy kids - or anyone who just likes fun.

It's fast, it's sleek, it's beautiful - it's the Golden Arrow car, first prize in a competition that Horace the driving dog is determined to win. All he has to do is design a car that uses alternative energy. Easy! What should he try? Wind, water or nuclear power? How about a flying car?But all the other dogs want the prize as well, to say nothing of the stunt hamsters Tickety and Boo. Soon everyone is trying to build their own, very unusual cars, and causing mayhem along the way. ...

"Wuthering Heights" is one of the great classics of English literature, yet many readers find it difficult to finish. This edition has shortened the book to two-thirds of its original length, and slightly simplified it, whilst preserving the book's character. It offers readers with good English a more approachable version of this famous novel.

Thackeray's Vanity Fair opens as two girls are leaving school together: the gentle, innocent Amelia and the sharp-witted, impoverished Becky. Their fortunes are intertwined over the next twenty years, through the Battle of Waterloo and after, in a novel full of lively and perceptively drawn characters.Though regarded as one of the great works of English literature, Vanity Fair is also extremely long and discursive. This abridgement shortens the book to around 60% of the original len...

The Plague of 1665 was the last great epidemic of plague to strike London, and the only one of which numerous written accounts survive. This book contains an overview of the plague's history and pathology, and examines the contemporary accounts, with an abridged version of the most famous book about the epidemic, Daniel Defoe's "A Journal of the Plague Year." Another ten works, by diarists, doctors and others, are summarised, with extensive extracts illustrating the reactions and attitudes...

Three dinosaur stories with full colour illustrations. "Earthshaker" - a very large dinosaur comes to stay. "Elly and Aargh" - Elly the ankylosaur makes a fearsome friend! "KIng of the Killers" - can a T Rex outwit two huge and hungry dinosaurs?Combining humour and excitement, these three stories are perfect for reading aloud to younger children, or for more confident readers to enjoy on their own.

It's a huge, silver, table-tennis trophy, and it has Abby's name on it. So she's devastated when her brother Liam gets to keep it first. He won't even let her take it into school for Prize Assembly.So Abby decides to steal the trophy back - and revenge herself on Liam. But neither task proves easy, especially since Abby tends to leave a trail of disaster in her wake. And when the moment comes for her revenge, things take an unexpected turn...A fast and funny chapter book fo...

Sam just loves sweet things - unknown to his mother, a dentist who thinks his favourite food is celery. When Sam wins a thousand giant rainbow lollipops, he's delighted.But hiding his prize is only the first of his problems. The lollipops are all prune and mango flavour - and he quickly discovers that he can't stand them!Children aged eight and over will enjoy reading about Sam's increasingly desperate and funny attempts to get rid of his lollipop mountain.

Humdrum the little hippo lives with his family - but why do none of them want to listen to his wonderful story? Maybe the giant crocodile will like it... This easy chapter book for younger readers is also perfect to read aloud.

What is the secret of the mysterious black dog, Doofus? Can he really call up creatures from the distant past? When Holly and Clive take him to stay by the sea, strange things start to happen... This sequel to 'Doofus, Dog of Doom' can also be read as a stand-alone adventure story.

Donal's school trip to the zoo turns into an unexpected journey across space. Accompanied only by a lofty camel and a stowaway lemming, he finds himself trapped on a alien spaceship which is hurtling towards a distant planet.The little green Meerie who greet him look friendly enough. But when they send him on a quest to find their missing space fleet, it means a dangerous journey across the desert where far more terrifying aliens live...An exciting and humorous science fict...