Children

Titles in This Set:

1. No Ordinary Boy
2. The Dark Sorceress
3. The Sword in the Stone
4. Twelve Rebel Kings
5. Gawain and the Green Knight
6. Tristan and Isolde
7. Lancelot
8. The Quest for the Holy Grail
9. The Death of Merlin
10. The Fall of Camelot

Description:

No Ordinary Boy
All Merlin knows is the village where he mixes potions for wary customers, and dreams strange dreams that sometimes come true. Then a mysterious hooded man appears, seeking a boy with no mortal father, and Merlin is taken far away, to a crumbling tower and a ruthless king. To a place where his is not the only magic.

The Dark Sorceress
Morgan’s happy childhood ends when King Uther declares war on her father. Sent from her beloved home of Tintagel, she spends the next eight years in a nunnery. There Morgan’s dark powers grow alongside her hatred, restrained only by the teachings of the secretive Iona. Until a surprising letter arrives, and with it the chance for revenge.

The Sword in the Stone
When two boys save an old man from robbers, they learn of a competition in Londinium to decide the next king of Britain. The elder, Kay, is determined to prove himself worthy as a knight or a king. The younger is Arthur, a farm boy through and through – until he sees the sword in the stone.

Twelve Rebel Kings
Arthur Pendragon must defend his crown against the many other kings who would take it. For that he needs a new sword and a magical scabbard from the Lady of the Lake. If he wins, will the beautiful Guinevere return to Camelot with him as his bride? And who will sit at the Round Table?

Gawain and the Green Knight
Sir Gawain is impatient to prove himself worthy of his seat at the Round Table, and the arrival of a giant provides the perfect opportunity – or so it seems. But the result is not the glorious quest Gawain had hoped for. It is a seemingly doomed one that will test his honour as a knight to the hilt.

Tristan and Isolde
Sir Tristan leaves Camelot to defend Tintagel against an Irish invader. In doing so he receives a wound that can only be healed by going to Ireland himself. There he meets Isolde the Fair, doomed to become Tristan’s true love. ‘Doomed’ because not all love stories have a happy ending. Especially when poison and potions are involved.

Lancelot
Determined to overcome his love for Queen Guinevere, Lancelot leaves Camelot on a quest for distraction. He finds it in the form of a fearsome knight in black armour, and an impossible choice set by a sorceress. Can Lancelot escape Morgan le Fay’s trap? And can he bear to return to Camelot and King Arthur even if he does?

The Quest for the Holy Grail
When Galahad arrives in Camelot, the last seat at the Round Table is finally filled. Then a vision of the Holy Grail appears and one by one King Arthur’s knights set out to prove themselves worthy of it. Little do they know that it is not their strength or skills that will be tested. It is their souls …

The Death of Merlin
All his life, Merlin has seen visions of other people’s fates. Never his own. That changes shortly before he meets Nimue. While his nights are plagued by confusing dreams, his days are spent falling in love and sharing his powers. Until the time comes when he must face his future – and his past.

The Fall of Camelot
Guinevere has been kidnapped! King Arthur is determined to rescue her and so is Lancelot. Camelot’s favourite knight has hidden his forbidden love for their queen for years, but it will soon become known to everyone. Then Morgan le Fay will finally make her move to take everything that Arthur holds dear. Will she succeed?

Packed with battles, forbidden love and what it was like to live in medieval times, the retelling of legends about the boy who would be king is a great way to introduce young readers to folk tales in modern literature. Each one has a plot that includes every last detail to make these compelling tales, keeping readers gripped throughout. There is an array of characters, whether it’s the queen or a powerful king and plenty of twists and turns. From kidnapping to romance and even magic, every one of these 10 books presents its own challenge, leaving readers guessing what will happen next. These books can be enjoyed by reading aloud to really bring the characters to life, complete with an accent if children are feeling brave enough, or to encourage independent reading as children become more confident in chapter books. Readers can choose to work their way through in any particular order, the only difficulty is deciding which one to pick first!

Titles in This Set :

1. The Hobbits of Tolkien 
2. The Dark Powers of Tolkien
3. The Heroes of Tolkien
4. Tolkien: An Illustrated Atlas
5. The Battles of Tolkien 
6. A Dictionary of Tolkien

Description :

The Hobbits of Tolkien 
An entire race was born when J.R.R. Tolkien scrawled on a leaf, 'In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.' From the invention of that single word (hobbit) Tolkien became the explorer and chronicler of the character, their race and their significant role in his fantastical world, Middle-earth.

The Dark Powers of Tolkien
J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit and The Silmarillion are some of the greatest tales of good versus evil ever told. From the creation of Arda to the War of the Ring, Tolkien's Middle-earth has seen war and rebellion, devastation and loss, in which the powers of darkness emerged.

The Heroes of Tolkien
R. R. Tolkien's fictional world of Middle-earth is filled with great heroes who rose in the face of crisis to shape the course of that world's history. This volume examines the complexities surrounding Tolkien's portrayal of good and evil, analyzing the most celebrated heroes from the earliest days of Arda to the end of the War of the Ring. Men, elves, dwarves, and their allies are covered in detail, and each hero's role in the battle against the forces of evil is discussed at length.

Tolkien: An Illustrated Atlas
This lavish colour atlas is a complete guide to the weird and wonderful geography of Tolkien's world. Packed with full page maps and illustration of events in the annals of Middle Earth, it is the perfect companion to the bestselling Tolkien: A Dictionary.

The Battles of Tolkien
Analyzes each battle in depth, with clear maps showing the lay of the land, and exactly how and where the armies attacked. This is essential reading for anyone who loves Tolkien's works and wants to explore the wars within them. The Heroes of Tolkien If you love The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit or The Silmarillion (or knows someone who does) then this is the perfect companion to unearthing the history, influences and genius behind each title, and the beloved heroes they contain .J. R. R Tolkien's Middle-earth has endured cataclysmic wars and critical battles, causing great men and women to arise and shape the course of its history.

A Dictionary of Tolkien
Explores and explains the creatures, plants, events and places that make up these strange and wonderful lands. It is essential reading for anyone who loves Tolkien's works and wants to learn more about them. This book is unofficial and is not authorised by the Tolkien Estate or HarperCollins Publishers. The Battles of Tolkien Tolkien's works are punctuated by dramatic and explosive battles. Men versus Orcs, Elves versus Sauron, Goblins versus Dwarves - the history of Middle-earth has seen some of the greatest characters pitted against each other time and time again. From the iconic battle of Helm's Deep to the Destruction of Isengard.

In Bizzy Bear: Aeroplane Pilot, Bizzy Bear is working as a pilot! Follow him through the airport, help fly the plane and land it safely! A funny little story with loads of details to spot and chat about.

This story needs YOU! By pushing, pulling and turning the mechanisms, little hands can move the story onto the next scene and bring the rhyming text to life! The high level of interaction builds confidence and engagement with books, which is a key stepping-stone to reading for toddlers.

Illustrated by multi-award-winning Benji Davies, illustrator of The Storm Whale, and Grandad's Island

Collect the whole series; other title available include: Bizzy Bear: Farmyard Fun, Bizzy Bear: Fire Rescue, Bizzy Bear: Pirate Ship and lots, lots more!

Nobody has everything they need, all the time - so how can we make do with what we have? Economics is all about understanding the choices we make to solve this problem. With bright, infographics pictures, this informative book describes why markets are so important, how businesses work out what to sell, and how governments choose how to run a country. Includes Usborne Quicklinks to specially selected websites for more information.

Chapters in this book include:
- What is economics?
- What is an economy?
- What do economists study?
- How do you do economics?

Not enough to go around
The things we need to survive, how we choose them, and why there's never enough time: the big reasons why economies exist.

Markets
Buying and selling and how prices are set - as if by magic.

Making choices
How do people make choices and why are those choices often unexpected? How can businesses and governments change people's choices? Why would they want to?

Production, profit and competition
What big choices do businesses face? Why is competition so important? Why do some businesses produce pollution and what should we do about it?

Economic systems
Is there a set of rules that would make it possible to share everything fairly? Or is it better to have winners and losers? What systems have people tried?

Macroeconomics
What tools do governments use to measure the economy? What effects do their choices have on individual people and the economy as a whole?

International trade
Why everyone from around the world benefits from buying and selling each other's products - and why governments sometimes don't like it.

Big questions (and a few answers)
How the tools of economics help us make sense of everything, from war to famine to saving the planet.

What's next?