A Puffin Book - stories that last a lifetime. Puffin Modern Classics are relaunched under a new logo: A Puffin Book. There are 20 titles to collect in the series, listed below, all with exciting new covers and fun-filled endnotes. The Borrowers live in the secret places of quiet old houses; behind the mantelpiece, inside the harpsichord, under the kitchen clock. They own nothing, borrow everything, and think that human beings were invented just to do the dirty work. Arrietty's father, Pod, was an expert Borrower. He could scale curtains using a hatpin, and bring back a doll's teacup without breaking it. Girls weren't supposed to go borrowing but as Arrietty was an only child her father broke the rule, and then something happened which changed their lives. She made friends with the human boy living in the house... 'Beautifully written, poetic and almost always alarming, the Borrowers have something very mysterious, sad and exciting about them' - Sunday Times Mary Norton was born in 1903 and brought up in a house in Bedfordshire, which was to become the setting for The Borrowers. First published in 1952, The Borrowers was an immediate success, winning the Library Association's Carnegie Medal. There followed four more Borrowers books: The Borrowers Afield (1955), The Borrowers Afloat (1959), The Borrowers Aloft (1961) and The Borrowers Avenged (1982). Poor Stainless was the last Borrowers story Mary Norton wrote. She died in 1992. Also available in A Puffin Book: GOODNIGHT MISTER TOM and BACK HOME by Michelle Magorian CHARLOTTE'S WEB, STUART LITTLE and THE TRUMPET OF THE SWAN by E. B. White THE BORROWERS by Mary Norton STIG OF THE DUMP by Clive King ROLL OF THUNDER, HEAR MY CRY by Mildred D. Taylor A DOG SO SMALL by Philippa Pearce GOBBOLINO by Ursula Moray Williams CARRIE'S WAR by Nina Bawden MRS FRISBY AND THE RATS OF NIMH by Richard C O'Brien A WRINKLE IN TIME by Madeleine L'Engle THE CAY by Theodore Taylor TARKA THE OTTER by Henry Williamson WATERSHIP DOWN by Richard Adams SMITH by Leon Garfield THE NEVERENDING STORY by Michael Ende ANNIE by Thomas Meehan THE FAMILY FROM ONE END STREET by Eve Garnett

First published in 1943, The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry has been translated into more than 250 languages, becoming a global phenomenon.The Sahara desert is the scenery of Little Prince’s story. The narrator’s plane has crashed there and he has scarcely some food and water to survive. Trying to comprehend what caused the crash, the Little Prince appears. The serious blonde little boy asks to draw him a sheep. The narrator consents to the strange fellow’s request. They soon become friends and the Little Prince informs the pilot that he is from a small planet, the asteroid 325, talks to him about the baobabs, his planet volcanoes and the mysterious rose that grew on his planet. He also talks to him about their friendship and the lie that evoked his journey to other planets. Often puzzled by the grown-ups’ behavior, the little traveler becomes a total and eternal symbol of innocence and love, of responsibility and devotion. Through him we get to see how insightful children are and how grown-ups aren’t. Children use their heart to feel what’s really important, not the eyes.Heart-breaking, funny and thought-provoking, it is an enchanting and endlessly wise fable about the human condition and the power of imagination. A book about both childhood and adulthood, it can be read as a parable, a war story, a classic children's fairy-tale, and many more things besides: The Little Prince is a book for everyone; after all, all grown-ups were children once.

In the middle of the countryside there are three farms, all in a row. Everybody calls them Noisy Village because the children who live there are very noisy indeed! Join the adventures of Lisa and her friends, where walking home from school turns into a pirate party looking for treasure, a trip to the local shoemaker becomes a mission to save one lonely dog from his grumpy owner, and a fishing trip ends with a night under the stars. A charming collection of stories from one of the world's best-loved children's authors.

Anna hasn’t a friend in the world – until she meets Marnie among the sand dunes. But Marnie isn’t all she seems... A major motion picture adaptation by Studio Ghibli, creators of SPIRITED AWAY and ARRIETTY. Sent away from her foster home one long, hot summer to a sleepy Norfolk village by the sea, Anna dreams her days away among the sandhills and marshes. She never expected to meet a friend like Marnie, someone who doesn’t judge Anna for being ordinary and not-even-trying. But no sooner has Anna learned the loveliness of friendship than Marnie vanishes...

'Swallows and Amazons for ever!'The Walker children - also known as Captain John, Mate Susan, Able-Seaman Titty, and Ship's Boy Roger - set sail on the Swallow and head for Wild Cat Island. There they camp under open skies, swim in clear water and go fishing for their dinner. But their days are disturbed by the Blackett sisters, the fierce Amazon pirates. The Swallows and Amazons decide to battle it out, and so begins a summer of unforgettable discoveries and incredible adventures.BACKSTORY: Crack the Swallow's code and learn all about the adventurous author.

Martin's school is no ordinary school. There are snowball fights, kidnappings, cakes, a parachute jump, a mysterious man called 'No-Smoking' who lives in a railway carriage and a play about a flying classroom. As the Christmas holidays draw near, Martin and his friends - nervous Uli, cynical Sebastian, Johnny, who was rescued by a sea captain, and Matthias, who is always hungry (particularly after a meal) - are preparing for the end of term festivities. But there are surprises, sadness and trouble on the way - and a secret that changes everything. The Flying Classroom is a magical, thrilling and bittersweet story about friendship, fun and being brave when you are at your most scared. (It also features a calf called Eduard, but you will have to read it to find out why).

The acclaimed novel We Were a Handful is the humorous story of five small-town boys. In 1943 during one of the lowest points of his life – as he awaited his deportation to Theresienstadt – Karel Poláček recalled his youth, inviting readers to see the world through the eyes of a child.Written as a first-person narrative from one of the boys, the natural humor of the material is intensified by the language of the narrator as he attempts a grandiose tone to satirize and celebrate the people of his town. Poláček masterfully avoids the clichés of childhood naïveté as he weaves his tales of adventures, battles with the boys from a neighboring village, and first love – as well as the clash between the fantastic world of children and the prosaic world of adults. With We Were a Handful Karel Poláček beautifully portrays the world of a child from a Jewish family on the eve of tragedy.„Conveys how humour can deal with tragedy… There is actually a lot of humanity in it.”—David Vaughan, www.radio.cz

What is it like to be a fly on the wall in our neighbours' houses? With these eight gently humorous stories, Philippa Pearce lifts the lid from the neighbours' houses and shows us the lives within. From the author of Tom's Midnight Garden and A Dog So Small.

From glistening ice roads to frozen canals, in a wonderland where even the richest nobles thrill to the gliding joys of winter, everyone is awaiting the fabulous race to win the magnificent Silver Skates --Except Hans Brinker and his sister Gretel. For the Brinkers are desperately poor, friendless; with a father felled by a crippling head wound, Mother and the children must battle simply to survive. And while Hans and Gretel are strong, fast, disciplined, and loyal...on hand-crafted wooden skates, they can't complete against trained rich kids with fine steel blades...But sometimes...sometimes...good people are given a chance. Sometimes strangers do care. And sometimes a family's love and loyalty can struggle against even the cruelest twists of fate...Sometimes...At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett is a magical novel for adults and children alike'I've stolen a garden,' she said very fast. 'It isn't mine. It isn't anybody's. Nobody wants it, nobody cares for it, nobody ever goes into it. Perhaps everything is dead in it already; I don't know.'After losing her parents, young Mary Lennox is sent from India to live in her uncle's gloomy mansion on the wild English moors. She is lonely and has no one to play with, but one day she learns of a secret garden somewhere in the grounds that no one is allowed to enter. Then Mary uncovers an old key in a flowerbed - and a gust of magic leads her to the hidden door. Slowly she turns the key and enters a world she could never have imagined.***With a heartwarming introduction by Sophie Dahl****** A behind-the-scenes jounrey, including an author profile, a guide to who's who, activities and more...****** a much-loved classic***Frances Hodgson Burnett (1849-1924) was born in Manchester. She had a very poor upbringing and used to escape from the horror of her surroundings by writing stories. In 1865 her family emigrated to the USA where she married and became the successful author of many children's books including Little Lord Fauntleroy and A Little Princess.

One of Rosemary Sutcliff's acclaimed books set in Roman Britain. The Eagle of the Ninth tells the story of a young Roman officer who sets out to discover the truth behind the mysterious disappearance of the Ninth Legion, who marched into the mists of northern Britain and never came back.Rosemary Sutcliff spent most of her life in a wheelchair, suffering from the wasting Still's disease. She wrote her first book for children, The Queen's Story, in 1950 and went on to become a highly respected name in the field of children's literature. She received an OBE in 1975 and died at theage of 72 in 1992.

Within the English-speaking world, no work of the German High Middle Ages is better known than the Nibelungenlied, which has stirred the imagination of artists and readers far beyond its land of origin. Its international influence extends from literature to music, art, film, politics and propaganda, psychology, archeology, and military history. Now for the first time all references to the vast Nibelungen tradition have been catalogued in this comprehensive encyclopedia containing nearly 1000 entries by several dozen international contributors, including the most distinguished scholars in the field. Readers will find illuminating passages on a variety of topics, including literary and extra-literary references, characters and place names, significant motifs and concepts, historical background, and cultural reception through the centuries. This monumental work is an invaluable guide to a fascinating, age-old tradition.

A historical romance, The Three Musketeers tells the story of the early adventures of the young Gascon gentleman, D'Artagnan and his three friends from the regiment of the King's Musketeers - Athos, Porthos and Aramis. Under the watchful eye of their patron M. de Treville, the four defend the honour of the regiment against the guards of Cardinal Richelieu, and the honour of the queen against the machinations of the Cardinal himself as the power struggles of seventeenth century France are vividly played out in the background.

Ged, the greatest sorcerer in all Earthsea, was called Sparrowhawk in his reckless youth. Hungry for power and knowledge, Sparrowhawk tampered with long-held secrets and loosed a terrible shadow upon the world. This is the tale of his testing, how he mastered the mighty words of power, tamed an ancient dragon, and crossed death's threshold to restore the balance.

The old ivy-covered house of Flambards has seen many changes since Christina first arrived as a young girl. With the First World War coming to an end, Christina feels the time has come to leave the past behind and make a new future for herself. But she finds her loyalties divided between tradition and progression, and between the two men who stand for such opposing values. She knows there is a terrible decision to be made . . . A welcome reissue of this much-loved family saga.

The sixth book in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s treasured Little House series, and the recipient of a Newbery Honor—now available as an ebook! This digital version features Garth Williams’s classic illustrations, which appear in vibrant full color on a full-color device and in rich black-and-white on all other devices.The town of De Smet in the Dakota Territory is hit with terrible blizzards in the hard winter of 1880-81, and the Ingalls family must ration their food and coal. When the supply train doesn’t arrive, all supplies are cut off from the outside. Soon there is almost no food left, so young Almanzo Wilder and a friend must make a dangerous trip in search of provisions. The nine Little House books are inspired by Laura’s own childhood and have been cherished by generations of readers as both a unique glimpse into America’s frontier history and as heartwarming, unforgettable stories.

The adventures of the Langerud family; continued by "A Norwegian family".

Johanna Spyri's classic tale brings us from the height of the Alps to a drawing room in Frankfurt and back. Meet Heidi, Grandfather, Peter, Grannie, and Clara in this charming story of friendship and family. Join Heidi on her many adventures in the mountains with the goats and in the city with Clara and the kittens in the Calico Illustrated Classics adaptation of Spyri's Heidi.

"This is Mark Twain's first novel about Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, and it has become one of the world's best loved books. It is a fond reminiscence of life in Hannibal, Missouri, an evocation of Mark Twain's one boyhood along the banks of the Mississippi during the 1840s. "Most of the adventures recorded in this book really occurred," he tells us. The Mark Twain Library edition contains the only text since the first edition (1876) to be based directly on the author's manuscript and to include all of the "200 rattling pictures" Mark Twain commissioned from one of his favorite illustrators, True W. Williams. This landmark anniversary edition contains a selection of original documents by Mark Twain, including several letters in his inimitable voice about writing Tom Sawyer and about its original publication."--Back cover.

For a fleeting instant Maria thought she saw a little white horse with a flowing mane and tail, head raised, poised, halted in mid-flight, as though it had seen her and was glad.' The beautiful valley of Moonacre is shadowed by the memory of the Moon Princess and the mysterious little white horse. When Maria Merryweather comes there on a visit she finds herself involved with an ancient feud. She is determined to restore peace and happiness to the whole of Moonacre Valley. And Maria usually gets her own way

An American boy goes to live with his grandfather in England, where he becomes heir to a title and a fortune.

When eight-year-old Tistou is sent home from school, his parents decide that he wall learn from real life instead, and where better to start than gardening? With Moustache the dreamy gardener, Tistou discovers a remarkable gift--that he has green thumbs! Everything he touches sprouts beautiful plants. Now Tistou has lots to do. With the power of flowers, he can change everything--prisons, slums, hospitals...even war. A witty, charming, and wise tale about an unlikely guerrilla gardener, Tistou is a French children's classic that ranks with The Little Prince and The Man who Planted Trees. (Ages 7-11)