Synopsis: Not only voyages in space like the Apollo missions but the particular voyage in space of Dr Sally Ride, first US woman astronaut. If being an astronaut is something you want to do, this lively book puts you in the space-suit, takes you close to the machines, and uses acetates and throw-outs and holes to say what it’s like.

Review:  Kingfisher have produ ...

Synopsis: No one can be trusted – scientists, police, military, teachers, church leaders – when genetic research gets into the wrong hands. Scientific writer Rose weaves issues about plague and bioterrorism, retribution from God and how far we can trust science into a thriller about young people in Liverpool.

Review: Clichés about controlling science hav ...

Synopsis: In the glory years of the Victorian Age, young Arthur Mumby lives with his father and elder sister in his mother’s ancestral home, Larklight, a madly sprawling structure with a wonky gravity field, nestled in a quiet backwater somewhere between Earth and the Moon. Their life is quiet and ordinary, until a horde of giant arachnoids storm Larklight, forcing Arthur and Myrtl ...

Synopsis: The Book of the City of Ember tells its residents that Ember is the only light in a world of darkness; that there is nothing in the world but Ember and the shadows that lie beyond. But the book also says that Ember is a place of plenty, equipped with everything its people will ever need, and yet the supplies are running out and even the mighty generator that provides her lights ...

Synopsis: Edmund and Elspeth, a prince and a sailor’s daughter, are thrown together by a terrible shipwreck, but this is just the start of their troubles. The sudden and unseasonable storm heralds the coming of an ancient, long-dormant dragon named Torment and the cruel servants of an ambitious, grasping sorcerer. To meet their destiny, the two children must embrace gifts that seem ...

Synopsis: Following a family member’s accident that requires his father to leave London, Joe is sent to stay with his mother and stepfather in Canterbury for the Christmas holiday. Before the journey is over, he finds himself part of a dramatic conspiracy surrounding an ancient book of magic, with witches who are both friend and foe. Coupled with magic spells that do not always do ...

Synopsis: Khyber has to find X fast, but she doesn't know where to start looking. X might be the only person who can solve the chaos of Khyber's life, prove she's not a rebel and save her autistic brothers from being sent away...

Review: Anyone who thinks that shorter reads have dumbed down content needs to take a good look at this small book. This novel pulls n ...

Synopsis: Matty has always been able to see ghosts. When she goes to Tagram House as companion to the strange girl Catherine, she senses that there is a dark secret there. Catherine’s guardian, Dr Hobbes, seems charming but can be ruthless. Matty must untangle the mystery of what happened to Catherine’s previous companions, Guido and Bella, before she herself becomes a victi ...

Synopsis:  Poor Jack is part of a large, talented family and has no talent himself. In fact he often makes a fool of himself. Uncle Parker comes up with a bright idea to rectify the matter. Jack’s acting skills are put to the test as he attempts to convince his family that he has the special gift of being able to see visions. The ruse proves to be highly successful, until his ...

Synopsis: Something even stranger than normal is happening in the Bagthorpe house. Ever since Uncle Parker won a luxury cruise, the whole family have gone competition crazy. Only Jack and his dog Zero are staying out of it, so how does the unsuspecting dog become a media superstar? This is a welcome re-issue of the second in the series of Helen Cresswells’ Bagthorpe Family stories ...