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Christine Nostlinger

'The story I'm going to tell is true. It happened to me. It is a tale of Gunpowdertown’ 
 
Life for Cristal has been upside down for a long time. She can’t even remember a time before the war began. Before potatoes for every meal and bombs raining down from the sky. Before being forced to shelter in the dark, damp cellars. Then one day, Cristal’s home is turned into a pile of rubble and dust five metres high. 
 
But a chance offer saves her family. They move to the safety of a wealthy suburb, camping out amongst the chandeliers and family portraits of someone else’s house. That is until the dreaded Russians roll into Vienna and move in too… 
 
Includes exclusive material: In the Backstory you can test your knowledge of the book, and learn more about the Second World War 
 
 Vintage Children’s Classics is a twenty-first century classics list aimed at 8-12 year olds and the adults in their lives. Discover timeless favourites from The Jungle Book and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

Fly Away Home

Bram Stoker

‘I am Dracula. And I bid you welcome to my house’ 
 
He is deathly pale. His fingernails are cut to sharp points. His teeth protrude menacingly from his mouth in clouds of rancid breath… Yet even Count Dracula’s unnerving appearance and the frightened reaction of the local peasants fail to warn Jonathan Harker, a young man from England, about his host. Little does Jonathan know that this is a land where babies are snatched for their blood and wolves howl menacingly from the forest, where reality is far more frightening than superstition. What’s more, it’s going to be up to him to stop the world’s most bloodthirsty predator… 
 
Includes exclusive material: In the Backstory you can learn all about the strengths and weaknesses of vampires! 
 
 Vintage Children’s Classics is a twenty-first century classics list aimed at 8-12 year olds and the adults in their lives. Discover timeless favourites from The Jungle Book and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

Dracula

Joan Aiken

Can you go a little faster? Can you run? 
 
Long ago, at a time in history that never happened, England was overrun with wolves. But as Bonnie and her cousin Sylvia discover, real danger often lies closer to home. Their new governess, Miss Slighcarp, doesn't seem at all nice. She shuts Bonnie in a cupboard, fires the faithful servants and sends the cousins far away from Willoughby Chase to a place they will never be found. Can Bonnie and Sylvia outwit the wicked Miss Slighcarp and her network of criminals, forgers and snitches? 
 
BACKSTORY: Find out a few things you didn't know about wolves and learn all about the wonderful world of the author.

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase

Arthur Ransome

The Ds can't wait to go and stay with Nancy and Peggy in the Lake District during the summer holidays. But when the Amazons’ dreadful Great Aunt invites herself to stay too, the summer is threatened with dullness. Staying indoors and reading poetry is not what anyone had in mind. To save the Ds from total boredom, the Amazons arrange for their friends to stay in a tumble-down hut in the woods. And as long as no one discovers they're there they can sail all summer long... 
 
In the Backstory you can learn how to make a campfire! 
 
Vintage Children’s Classics is a twenty-first century classics list aimed at 8-12 year olds and the adults in their lives. Discover timeless favourites from The Jungle Book and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

The Picts and the Martyrs

or Not Welcome At All

Antoine De Saint-Exupery

A NEW TRANSLATION BY MICHAEL MORPURGO, AUTHOR OF WAR HORSE 
 
 If a little fellow comes along, if he laughs, if he has golden hair, and if he never answers questions, then you will know who he is. 
 
 He is the Little Prince, the mysterious, innocent and beautiful boy who appears to a pilot stranded in the desert and makes an extraordinary request. He has journeyed to our planet from his home among the stars, encountering all sorts of peculiar grown-ups along the way, and a fox who teaches him to see the important things in life. But the Prince has left behind a flower growing on his star, a rose which is his treasure and his burden, and before long he must return to it. 
 
 Master storyteller Michael Morpurgo, author of War Horse, has translated what is for him 'one of the greatest stories ever written' so that more English readers might discover the joy of reading this enchanting fable. The Little Prince is a story for everyone, for children and grown-up children, for kings, geographers and lamp-lighters, even for the very serious and the very wise. 
 
A beautiful hardback edition - the perfect present to enchant children and grown-up children this Christmas.

The Little Prince

A new translation by Michael Morpurgo

Eric Linklater

'I have often wondered what I would be when I grow up, but never, never, never did I expect to be a Kangaroo!' 
 
When the wind on the moon blew straight into Dinah and Dorinda&rsquo;s hearts it meant that they couldn&rsquo;t help but behave badly for a whole year. Transformed into kangaroos, they terrorise the sleepy town of Midmeddlecum with glee. But what they didn&rsquo;t count on was being locked in a zoo. Things get even stickier for the mischievous sisters when they learn their father has been imprisoned in a dungeon by Count Hulagu Bloot, the tyrant of Bombardy. Their poor father! Can they rescue him in time? 
 
Includes exclusive material: In the Backstory you can find out what life was like when this book was written and meet some more naughty children!

The Wind on the Moon

R.L Stevenson

'For God's sake, hold on!' 
 
On a stormy night off the coast of Scotland, young David Balfour faces his most terrifying test yet. He's been double-crossed by his wicked uncle, tricked into a sea voyage and sold into slavery. When the dashing Alan Breck Stewart comes aboard, he finds a brave friend at least, and the pair fight back against their treacherous, black-hearted shipmates. But then the ship hits a reef, it's every man for himself, and David must battle against the raging sea itself! 
 
BACKSTORY: Learn about the true stories that inspired this adventurous tale!

Kidnapped

Betty MacDonald

'Big snowflakes fluttered slowly through the air like white feathers and made all of Heavenly Valley smooth and white and quiet and beautiful' 
 
So here we are on Christmas Eve, locked up in rotten Mrs Monday's boarding house with no presents and no Christmas dinner, while all the other children have gone home for the holidays. I'm Nancy, by the way, and this is my sister Plum. Luckily, we're both pretty good at making up stories about the adventures and pretty dresses that we'd like to have, and that helps us put up with Mrs Monday and her awful niece Marybelle. But one day, we're going to escape, and maybe we'll find a nice home and a family all of our own. Wouldn't that be just wonderful? 
 
Includes exclusive material: In ‘The Backstory’ you can take the quiz and find out why Nancy and Plum is Jacqueline Wilson's favourite children's book! 
 
 Vintage Children’s Classics is a twenty-first century classics list aimed at 8-12 year olds and the adults in their lives. Discover timeless favourites from The Jungle Book and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

Nancy and Plum

Kenneth Grahame

"Ho! ho! I am the Toad, the motor-car snatcher, the prison-breaker, the Toad who always escapes!" 
 
Tired of spring cleaning, Mole ventures above ground into the warm sunshine, and happens upon his friend Ratty. Together they picnic on the sparkling, burbling river, brave the sinister Wild Wood in wintertime to visit the bad-tempered Badger, and take to the open road in a caravan with dear, silly old Toad. But when Toad's attention turns to motor cars, his reckless behaviour goes from bad to worse. Badger, Rat and Mole must save their friend from ruin, and Toad Hall from the clutches of the rascally Stoats and Weasels. 
 
BACKSTORY: Get outdoors and explore the natural world, and test your knowledge of The Wind in the Willows.

The Wind in the Willows

Bruce Carter

Brighton is braced for war. It’s a time in history that never happened, and England’s coast has become the front line of the Second World War. Rolls of barbed wire line Brighton Beach, soldiers scan the horizon, people wait nervously for an attack. When an emergency evacuation is announced, people hurry to pack up and get out, but in the panic Drake, Gillian and Sammy miss the last train… 
 
And then, one night, in the deserted city, the pier mysteriously lights up. Which leaves the children wondering – who else got left behind? 
 
In the Backstory you can find out more about the Second World War and hear from Deborah Moggach, the author's daughter, what inspired this wartime tale! 
 
Vintage Children’s Classics is a twenty-first century classics list aimed at 8-12 year olds and the adults in their lives. Discover timeless favourites from Peter Pan and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

The Children Who Stayed Behind

Louisa May Alcott

'As they sat together in the twilight, talking over their small plans, the future always grew so beautiful and bright' 
 
Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy have grown up together in Orchard House with their friend Laurie next door, and now it's time for them to go out and find their places in the big wide world, to do the great and marvellous things they've dreamed of and discover their 'castles in the air'. They each find themselves tested, and fall in love, but when tragedy strikes they find their best comfort is in each other, and home. 
 
BACKSTORY: Learn more about the unusual author and have a go at making jam!

Good Wives

Arthur Conan Doyle

‘On the contrary, my dear Watson, you can see everything. You fail, however, to reason from what you see’ 
 
Herein lie the problems: a stolen jewel, the inexplicable death of a young woman, the disappearance of one of the most remarkable racehorses in England, a missing butler, the curious symbols of dancing men, a broken bust of Napoleon, a possible kidnapping and the bad business of a coachman shot through the heart. 
 
The solution? Elementary my dear friend. Call the super sleuth famed for his rapid deductions, his swift intuitions and ingenious solutions - Sherlock Holmes of 221b Baker Street. 
 
Includes exclusive material: In the Backstory you can test your powers of observation and deduction, learn about the author and brush up on your detective skills! 
 
 Vintage Children’s Classics is a twenty-first century classics list aimed at 8-12 year olds and the adults in their lives. Discover timeless favourites from The Jungle Book and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

The Extraordinary Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

Various

Come bathe in stew, and dine on meals of eels or worms or jellied gnats, 
See shoes and ships and sealing wax and fuzzy bears and owls and cats, 
Depart for the Land where the Bong Tree grows or the Land of Bumbley Boo 
Find sky in your pie and teatrays up on high and a place where mice say moo. 
But be warned of the things that lurk and linger, the creatures that snatch and shock 
Be sure to bamboozle the Blunderbat and beware the Jabberwock! 
 
If rhymes and riddles your brain have fried 
For shame! then set this book aside, 
But daring children, more courageous, 
Will take a peek inside these pages... 
 
Includes exclusive material: In the Backstory you can about the different sorts of nonsense and read Michael Rosen’s tips on how to write your own! 
 
Vintage Children’s Classics is a twenty-first century classics list aimed at 8-12 year olds and the adults in their lives. Discover timeless favourites from The Jungle Book and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

The Book of Complete Nonsense

‘Why do they call him Black Jake? Is it because of his hair?’ Titty asked. 
‘Because of his heart’ said Peter Duck 
 
The Swallows and Amazons, as well as Captain Flint and the ancient able seaman Peter Duck, set sail on the Wild Cat bound for the Channel. But they are shadowed by the Viper, manned by none other than Black Jake - a beastly pirate with a dark plan. Can the children race ahead and uncover the buried treasure before the pirate? Can they survive storms, earthquakes, crabs and even a waterspout and make it home? 
 
BACKSTORY: Find out if you would be a good sailor aboard the Wild Cat and learn all about the real location that inspired the author.

Peter Duck

‘Wait, wait! Save us! What’ll we do?’ 
 
Simon is determined to become a painter when he grows up so he sets off to London to make his fortune. But the city is plagued by wolves and mysterious disappearances. The Twite household, where Simon is lodging, seems particularly shifty. Before he even gets a chance to open his glistening new paints Simon stumbles right into the centre of a plot to kill the King. And worse than that Simon is kidnapped and sent to sea! Luckily there are two friendly stowaways aboard – the feisty Dido Twite and the spoiled young Justin. But when the ship catches fire things look pretty dire. Can they escape? Will they save the king in time? 
 
BACKSTORY: Test your knowledge of Black Hearts in Battersea and play the name game.

Black Hearts in Battersea

Noel Streatfeild

If you love Noel Streatfeild&rsquo;s Ballet Shoes, you&rsquo;ll adore The Bell Family. 
 
'Well, little people, what's the news?&rsquo; 
 
Meet the big, happy Bell family who live in the vicarage at St Marks. 
 
Father is a reverend; Mother is as kind as kind can be. Then there's all the children &ndash; practical Paul, dancing Jane, mischievous Ginnie, and finally the baby of the family, Angus, whose ambition is to own a private zoo (he has already begun with his six boxes of caterpillars). And not forgetting Esau, a surefire competitor for the most beautiful dog in Britain. 
 
Follow their eventful lives from tense auditions to birthday treats; from troubled times to hilarious escapades. The perfect Christmas gift for ballet-loving children. 
 
Includes exclusive material: In the Backstory you can find out which one of the Bell children you most resemble!

The Bell Family

E Nesbit

'"Stand firm'" said Peter, "and wave like mad!"' 
 
They were not railway children to begin with. When their Father mysteriously leaves home Roberta (everyone calls her Bobbie), Phyllis and Peter must move to a small cottage in the countryside with Mother. It is a bitter blow to leave their London home, but soon they discover the hills and valleys, the canal and of course, the railway. But with the thrilling rush and rattle and roar of the trains comes danger too. Will the brave trio come to the rescue? And most importantly, can they solve the disappearance of their Father? 
 
BACKSTORY: Find out all about steam trains and learn what it was really like to be a child in Edwardian times.

The Railway Children

Malorie Blackman

Laura Barrett

Malorie Blackman retells 'Bluebeard'. A Fairy Tale Revolution is here to remix and revive our favourite stories. These twists on familiar tales make the perfect Christmas gift. 
 
'Please don't even try to get down to the basement. Just leave it alone - okay? Otherwise you'll ruin things for both of us...' 
 
Nia has met the man she wants to marry. Marcus is kind, clever and handsome, with a beard so dark it is nearly blue-black. Nia demands a single promise from him - that Marcus will never enter her study in the basement, her private space. 
 
But when Marcus's curiosity begins to mount Nia feels more and more uneasy. Will he betray her? Can he accept that no means no? Can a woman ever have a room of her own?

Blueblood

A Fairy Tale Revolution

Jack London

‘Mush on!’ 
 
 Buck does not read the newspapers. If he had, he’d have known that for good strong dogs like himself trouble is brewing. Man has found gold and because of that Buck is kidnapped and dragged away from his sunny home to become a sledge dog in the harsh and freezing North. With strength, imagination and cunning on his side Buck must fight for survival. But will he ever trust Man again? 
 
 This book also includes White Fang a story about a wild young cub, part dog and part wolf. 
 
 Includes exclusive material: In the Backstory you can find out if you’re a wild wolf or a faithful dog and learn more about the Arctic gold rush! 
 
 Vintage Children’s Classics is a twenty-first century classics list aimed at 8-12 year olds and the adults in their lives. Discover timeless favourites from The Jungle Book and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

The Call of the Wild and White Fang

Janusz Korczak

‘Children! I, Matt the First, appeal for your help in carrying out my reforms’ 
 
Little Matt becomes King Matt when he is just a young boy. He can barely even read or write and he certainly doesn’t know anything about governing a country. What should he do? What would you do? 
 
Ignoring his grown-up ministers, he builds the finest zoo in the world and decrees that children should be given chocolate every day. But ruling turns out to be a much trickier business than Matt ever realised. 
 
Can the happiness of a nation depend on one small boy? Well, let’s find out… 
 
Includes exclusive material: In the Backstory you can discover the life story of the brave author and put your governing skills to the test. 
 
Vintage Children’s Classics is a twenty-first century classics list aimed at 8-12 year olds and the adults in their lives. Discover timeless favourites from The Jungle Book and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

King Matt The First

Enter the magical world of Susan Cooper. Perfect for fans of His Dark Materials. 
 
It's Christmas-time in the Stanton family house: presents, carol singing, good cheer. But for eleven-year-old Will Stanton, something sinister has begun, inching round his subconscious, shouting silent warnings he can't decipher. Then on Midwinter Day, Will wakes up to a different world: silent, covered in snow and ancient forest, a world of another time. A world where evil lurks. 
 
Because Will is not the ordinary boy he always thought he was. He is the last of the Old Ones and the power to vanquish the evil magic of the Dark lies within him. 
 
Includes exclusive material: In the Backstory you can read an interview with the author and discover the ancient beliefs that inspired the story.

The Dark is Rising

Norman Hunter

Rediscover Professor Branestawm this Christmas – soon to become a brand new drama on BBC ONE written by Charlie Higson and starring Harry Hill 
 
‘Once you started anything in Professor Branestawm’s house you never knew when it might finish or even if it ever would’ 
 
Poor Mrs Flittersnoop! It’s not easy being Professor Branestawm’s housekeeper. People may say he’s a genius, but all his inventions always make life more complicated, alarming and extraordinary than it was before. An innocent bottle of old cough mixture turns out to be an elixir that makes all the waste paper in the bin come to life, the burglar-catcher and the pancake-maker operate just a little too efficiently, and about the spring-cleaning machine, the less said the better. You could write a book about it, but nobody would believe it. 
 
Includes exclusive material: In the Backstory you can find out about accidental inventions that changed our lives and try a few experiments of your own! 
 
 Vintage Children’s Classics is a twenty-first century classics list aimed at 8-12 year olds and the adults in their lives. Discover timeless favourites from The Jungle Book and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

The Incredible Adventures of Professor Branestawm

Johanna Spyri

'I would rather be with my grandfather on the Alp than anywhere on earth!' 
 
When Heidi is sent to live in the Swiss mountains with her bad-tempered old Grandfather, everyone in the village feels sorry for her. What will a little girl do in such an isolated home, and with such a grumpy companion? But Heidi soon discovers a secret: Grandfather isn't nearly as cross as he looks - plus she can play all day in the fields among the bright flowers. But then Heidi is whisked away again to be a companion to a injured girl in the city. She longs for her beautiful mountain home - how will she ever get back again? 
 
BACKSTORY: Find out which character you most resemble and try out some Heidi-inspired activities!

Heidi

Anna Sewell

"You saved your mistress's life, Beauty! yes, you saved her life" 
 
Black Beauty is the prettiest young horse in the meadows, and spends many happy days under the apple trees with his friends Ginger and Merrylegs. But this easy life comes to an end when Beauty is sold and goes from farm to inn to cabhorse in London, enduring rough treatment from foolish and careless masters. Beauty remains faithful, hardworking and full of spirit despite his trials, and through him we learn that all horses and humans alike deserve to be treated with kindness. 
 
BACKSTORY: Find out about the unusual author and learn some horsey vocabulary.

Black Beauty

Lewis Carroll

CELEBRATE 150 YEARS OF ALICE 
 
Oh my ears and whiskers, how late its getting! 
 
Would you be surprised to see a white rabbit take a watch out of his waistcoat pocket? It certainly seems a remarkable sight to Alice and, full of curiosity, she follows him down a rabbit-hole into a very strange world. She meets a disappearing cat, plays croquet with a bad-tempered Queen, joins a mad Hatter's tea party and becomes entangled in the case of some missing tarts. In Wonderland nothing but out-of-the-way things happen... 
 
Includes Through the Looking Glass. 
 
BACKSTORY: Learn about the author and what inspired him to create Wonderland, and try writing some nonsense verse!

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Erin Morgenstern

The circus arrives without warning. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Against the grey sky the towering tents are striped black and white. A sign hanging upon iron gates reads: 
 
Opens at Nightfall 
Closes at Dawn 
 
As dusk shifts to twilight, tiny lights begin to flicker all over the tents, as though the whole circus is covered in fireflies. When the tents are aglow, sparkling against the night sky, the sign lights up: 
 
Le Cirque des Rêves 
The Circus of Dreams 
 
The gates shudder and unlock, seemingly by their own volition. 
They swing outward, inviting the crowd inside. 
 
Now the circus is open. 
Now you may enter. 
 
Discover this amazing fantasy read with a different kind of magic. 
 
The Starless Sea, the second novel from the author of the The Night Circus, is available for pre-order now.

The Night Circus

'Don't you know a sand-fairy when you see one?' 
 
I dare say you have often thought about what you would do if you were granted three wishes. The five children - Cyril, Anthea, Robert, Jane, and their baby brother - had often talked about it but when they are faced with the grumpy sand-fairy they find it difficult to make up their minds. And that is just the beginning of their dilemmas. 
 
As they discover, there is nothing quite like a wish for getting you into terrible trouble. 
 
EXTRA ACTIVITIES INCLUDED: Learn about what it was like to be a child in 1902 and try some fun activities! This special edition includes fantastic extra educational resources.

Five Children and It

Mark Twain

'It's lovely to live on a raft. We had the sky up there, all speckled with stars, and we used to lay on our backs and look up at them' 
 
Huck Finn spits, swears, smokes a pipe and never goes to school. With his too-big clothes and battered straw hat, Huck is in need of 'civilising', and the Widow Douglas is determined to take him in hand. And wouldn't you know, Huck's no-good Pap is also after him and he locks Huck up in his cabin in the woods. But Huck won't stand too much of this, and after a daring escape, he takes off down the Mississppi on a raft with an runaway slave called Jim. But plenty of dangers wait for them along the river - will they survive and win their freedom? 
 
BACKSTORY: Discover how to write secret messages in code, and learn about the extraordinary Mark Twain.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

'Ahoy! Ahoy! Swallows! Ahoy!' 
 
Have you ever sailed in a boat or built a camp? Have you caught trout and cooked it yourself? The four Swallows, John, Susan, Titty and Roger return to the lake full of such plans and they can't wait to meet up with Nancy and Peggy, the Amazon Pirates. When the Swallow is shipwrecked and the Amazon's fearsome Great-Aunt makes decides to make a visit their summer seems ruined. Then they discover a wonderful hidden valley and things take a turn for the better... 
 
BACKSTORY: Discover the real Swallowdale, swot up on seafaring and learn all about the adventurous author.

Swallowdale

Ian Serraillier

Discover this amazing adventure story set in the Second World War 
 
 'If you meet Ruth or Edek or Bronia, you must tell them I'm going to Switzerland to find their mother. Tell them to follow as soon as they can’ 
 
Having lost their parents in the chaos of war, Ruth, Edek and Bronia are left alone to fend for themselves and hide from the Nazis amid the rubble and ruins of their city. They meet a ragged orphan boy, Jan, who treasures a paperknife - a silver sword - which was entrusted to him by an escaped prisoner of war. The three children realise that the escapee was their father, the silver sword a message that he is alive and searching for them. Together with Jan they begin a dangerous journey across the battlefields of Europe to find their parents. 
 
BACKSTORY: Read a letter from the author's daughter and find out about the amazing true stories that inspired The Silver Sword.

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