David Hughes enjoyed a long career as a secondary-school teacher and his pupils used to say of him that although he was not always right, by golly he was never wrong. He is certainly never one to follow fashions blindly or to accept without thinking the views of those around him. He is always prepared to listen carefully to the arguments of others. He likes a good debate. He is always asking questions. Here he expounds the common-sense ideas he has formed about humankind and the world of today and he attempts to explain why so many of the changes he has seen during his lifetime have not been for the better.

At Barnaby Grange the garden is abuzz with life. All through the seasons little creatures are bustling about among the flowers and shrubs, never stopping until the very coldest days of winter. They are building and repairing their homes, searching for food and trying to keep out of trouble. They also like to get together now and then for a chat, especially in the fine, long days of summertime. Milly Pede is perhaps the busiest creature of them all. Her tiny legs are hardly ever still as she hurries to and fro, keeping a watchful eye on all her friends and neighbours at Barnaby Grange.

Sylvia is just a normal girl with huge, normal problems – her mother’s attempted suicide; how to adjust to life on the Upper East Side; trying to make friends in a rich prep school where she doesn’t belong; whether or not to trust the cute boy with the dangerous eyes. She thinks that’s more than she can handle, but she tests the limits of her endurance when she learns that she is the long awaited Phantasmer, a human who can change the fabric of Fairy simply by believing in a new story. Sylvia’s life is thrown off course as two warring Courts, the Seelie and Unseelie, both attempt to co-opt her gift to fight the other Court, which she has to deal with while trying not to get kicked out of school for fighting. And it doesn’t help matters that the fairies begging for her help are both attractive young men – with their own agendas.

This compilation, comprising a Baker's (street) Dozen of his adventures, re-creates the gas-lit, fog-enshrouded world of Victorian London as once more Sherlock Holmes urges - Come, Watson, the game is afoot!

Harry, the Wonder Cat, is no ordinary cat! Two centuries ago, he was tasked with caring for the Johnson family, helping them through life's ups and downs. Fast forward to the present. This story begins when Nikki Johnson, accompanied by her close friend Heather Murphy, had planned her annual quiet and relaxing Christmas visit to Harrot Reef to visit her beloved Aunt Lynn. Plans changed when Nikki's aunt summoned her to come earlier because something was terribly wrong. The two friends arrived the next day to a shocking discovery. Loud howling led them to the library where they found Aunt Lynn's crumpled body lying on the floor with her cat, Harry, next to her. The two women landed in the middle of a mystery. The only clues consist of a teacup, a copy of Agatha Christie's "The Mysterious Affair at Styles", and a note on the mantle. This Christmas visit was going to be anything but quiet and relaxing.The Legend of the Pink Diamond is a fantastical story passed down through generations of Johnsons and well known by the townspeople of Harrot Reef. A pink diamond is one of the most precious stones in the world, priceless and treasured for its beauty and rarity. As the story goes, accounts allege that one of these rare pink diamonds, mysteriously tied to crazy Frank Johnson, is still in the possession of the Johnson family. But is it just a story? ?Harry's magical powers help unravel the mystery behind the Legend of The Pink Diamond.

The truth is only half the story… Ten year old Vivienne’s parents disappeared without a trace.Twenty years later, an anonymous email claims to know where they are.Now, pregnant with her second child, Vivienne must confront her past to find out what happened to her parents. But as her family’s secrets and lies unravel, she starts to realise that the truth is only half the story… Who are her parents? And what have they done?

The days are growing shorter, but on Sunny Hill Farm Mr and Mrs Evans are working as hard as ever, looking after the animals and bringing in the last of the year's harvest. Meanwhile preparations are under way for a wedding in Rosehill village - Chris, the vet, is marrying his assistant, Tracy, and everyone has been invited. It is going to be a magnificent occasion. The Green Dragon Inn will be decorated with flowers for the wedding reception, and after the food and dancing Mr Marvellous will be performing his celebrated magic show to bring an incredible year to a truly magical end.

Carol Christofferson?is a versatile artist and writer who?carves words,?molds letters?and?paints emotions?with such flair and mastery. Carol's short stories and poems?are inspired?by his?watercolor paintings,?reflections of the world around us,?illustrations of his own life experiences?and?expressions of women’s and men’s emotions. His poems and short stories are?insightful and inspiring, and?they enable the reader to feel strong emotions. He invites us to walk with him on unknown avenues, using a?voice?that ranges from?melodic?and?sweet?at times to?melancholic?and?whimsical. When asked what the intention of this book was, Carol answered, “The stories in this book are meant?to bring to life the feelings?that may have been buried for a long time, or forgotten altogether, a world seen through the eyes of a child again, memories of a mother’s touch, in short, the pleasures and pain of life.”

This invaluable, time-saving resource provides intercultural ideas for every month of the year. For each festival and tradition you will find background information, key vocabulary, detailed lists of possible teaching activities and optional pupil sheets. Ideas range from making cards and reading/writing poems to playing game and cooking traditional recipes.

This book, Charles Dickens' final novel, was never completed, leaving the reader to wonder at the final fate of the characters. Edwin Drood's uncle, a choirmaster named John Jasper, falls in love with his pupil, who happens to be Drood's fiance, Rosa Bud, who is also fancied by Neville Landless, a man from Ceylon (now better known as Sri Lanka). Amid these turbulent relationships Drood mysteriously vanishes.

From the well-worn tin dispatch box belonging to Dr J. H. Watson, three untold stories are brought to light. In Sherlock Holmes and The Murder At Lodore Falls, Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson are drawn into a case that involves murder, blackmail and robbery. It is a case that leads to danger to both Homes and Watson and brings a confrontation with their old adversary. With Dr Watson facing his own personal nightmares, will Holmes be able to solve the mystery and help his troubled friend? The two other tales are Christmas stories. In The Adventure Of The Wooden Boat, Dr Watson is haunted by an old tragedy and copes by building a model boat, which is an old family tradition. In The Call of Angels, Dr Watson has an accident while travelling back to Baker Street and is aided by a mysterious stranger. Who is this mysterious stranger? Sherlock Holmes is determined to uncover the truth, but all is not as it appears as his investigation comes to a stunning conclusion.

Arthur Conan Doyle's fantastic second adventure starring the intrepid Professor Challenger. The Professor sends cryptic telegrams to his companions from the events of 'The Lost World', Edward Malone, Lord John Roxton, and Professor Summerlee, telling them to join them at his home. There he tells them that he has detected a giant belt of poisonous ether that the Earth is about to come in to contact with, and they must all seal themselves in a room with oxygen tanks to protect themselves. How will they survive as the whole world dies around them?

Based on a true story and set during the American Civil War this novel follows the tale of Edwin, one of three children placed in a poorhouse by their mother who has lost her husband in the war and cannot afford to care for them.

Choking Back the Devil by Donna Lynch is an invocation, an ancient invitation that summons the darkness within and channels those lonely spirits looking for a host. It's a collection that lives in the realm of ghosts and family curses, witchcraft and urban legends, and if you're brave enough to peek behind the veil, the hauntings that permeate these pages will break seals and open doorways, cut throats and shatter mirrors. You see, these poems are small drownings, all those subtle suffocations that live in that place between our ribs that swells with panic, incubates fear. Lynch shows her readers that sometimes our shadow selves--our secrets--are our sharpest weapons, the knives that rip through flesh, suture pacts with demons, cut deals with entities looking for more than a homecoming, something better, more intimate than family. It's about the masks we wear and the reflections we choose not to look at, and what's most terrifying about the spells is these incantations show that we are the possessed, that we are our greatest monster, and if we look out of the corner of our eyes, sometimes--if we've damned ourselves enough--we can catch a glimpse of our own burnings, what monstrosities and mockeries we're to become. So cross yourselves and say your prayers. Because in this world, you are the witch and the hunter, the girl and the wolf. "Lynch mixes in childhood fables with waking nightmares, the result is electrifying; sometimes in a few razor sharp words; sometimes in longer numbered verses counting down the cycle of a damaged life. The silent cries of souls tormented to healthiness by pills and poultices, force fed by imperfect humans, echo in the silhouette of these poems. I smiled at the shadows unexpectedly delivered by her words, as will you."--Linda D. Addison, award-winning author of How to Recognize a Demon Has Become Your Friend and HWA Lifetime Achievement Award winner "This collection is not for the chronically disturbed, as fear is doled out in terse, potent portions. I got the shivers reading these unsettling poems."--Marge Simon, Bram Stoker Award winner, SFPA Grand Master Poet "Choking Back the Devil is unlike any other poetry collection you've ever read. Donna Lynch crafts beautifully terrifying worlds, packed with dense imagery and horrifying yet lush details. This collection will get your blood racing even as it breaks your heart." --Gwendolyn Kiste, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of The Rust Maidens "Some dark poets use their verse as a means to exorcise their demons. Lynch instead embraces her torment, nurtures it, and transforms it into equal parts hideous and heavenly. With a mix of wicked wit, carnal fury, and commentary that has sharpened its fangs to drain you until you're left with nothing but despair, Choking Back the Devil is essential sustenance for harrowed souls."--Chad Stroup, author of Secrets of the Weird and Sexy Leper

Sam's Football Stories are specially written to stimulate and motivate your slower learners and reluctant readers. Written by Sheila Blackburn, an experienced primary school teacher, the books will appeal particularly to reluctant boy readers. The six compelling stories in Set A, tell the story of Sam, a football crazy boy. Sam is totally crazy about football. He is desperate to belong to a proper football team. He asks everyone he meets if they can help - all the teachers at his school, the headteacher, even Mrs Ford who runs the corner shop.... Will Sam's dream come true? Will one of the people he asks be able to help?

n the Complete Horoscope: AQUARIUS 2020, leading astrologer Tatiana Borsch shares with you her forecasts on major everyday issues; career and business, finances, family and romantic relationships and health. In her look ahead to 2020 for Aquarius, Borsch includes a general annual forecast for Leo and a detailed monthly forecast that helps you to recognize auspicious occasions, to seize good luck, to avoid trouble and resolve conflicts, to organize personal affairs and to achieve professional success. Also included is a Zodiac compatibility guide to help you with relationships that are happy and not so happy. This Complete Horoscope: AQUARIUS 2020 features guidance from the astrologer and gives you an insight into what lies in store for you in the turbulent year of the metal rat. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Tatiana Borsch is a well-known Russian astrologer and the author of twenty-eight astrological almanacs and horoscopes. She has prepared a general forecast for each sign of the Zodiac every year since1992. She currently lives and works in Moscow where she writes astrological columns for popular Russian publications and is the founder and director of the AstraArt television company.

A fantastic collection of light, chirping articles originally published in Fraser's Magazine from Church of Scotland minister Andrew Kennedy Hutchison Boyd.

A fantastic historical novel by the creator of Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Set in France during the reign of Louis XIV, the story follows Amory de Catinat, a Huguenot (Protestant) guardsman of the king during a time when France, then predominantly Catholic, became more and more difficult for Protestants, resulting in the Edict of Nates being revoked and the Huguenots being deported to America.

1903 saw The Adventure of The Empty House and the return of Sherlock Holmes to 221b Baker Street where he explains the deception of his death at the Reichenbach Falls to his faithful friend Dr John Watson. 2012 sees The Crime of The Empty House where the former home of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Undershaw, lies in disrepair and the threat of being destroyed forever. Commissioned by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself, Undershaw was witness to the creation of many of his most famous works, including The Hound of the Baskervilles and The Return of Sherlock Holmes. It is a building deserving preservation for the British nation, and indeed the world, for all time. Sadly, the building is currently under threat from the property developers who wish to divide the house into 3 separate units and build a further 5 alongside. Planning permission for development has already been approved by Waverley Borough Council. The Undershaw Preservation Trust (UPT), with Mark Gatiss [BBC Sherlock] as Patron, is dedicated to the preservation and protection of this important literary building and are campaigning to get this decision overturned, so the house can be restored to its original glory and enjoyed as the single dwelling Sir Arthur Conan Doyle intended it to be. This book is a collection of short Sherlock Holmes stories and poems written by fans from around the world in support of the Save Undershaw campaign - even the cover has been designed by fans. Royalties from the book go towards the UPT to preserve this wonderful house for future generations of Doyleans, Sherlock Holmes enthusiasts and literary fans of all kinds. More information on the Save Undershaw campaign can be found on their website: www.saveundershaw.com.

A Russian classic by author Leonid Andreyev. Seven men, five terrorists and two common peasants, are condemned to death by hanging. The book follows each of the men's personal journey as they seek to deal with their fate.

Three best friends uncover a brooding secret in a deserted castle: 3 huge mechanical knights. They set about repairing them but their enthusiasm turns to panic when the Iron Knights turn out to be bonkers and almost completely evil. They reduce the boysi village to rubble and the friends are exiled. By luck, they are taken in by 3 separate Lords who look after them. They return a few years later to do the honourable thing: become warriors themselves and destroy the Iron Knights.