NINA BAWDEN

I am an outside child. That is what Plato Jones calls me.Jane Tucker is thirteen years old when she discovers she has a half-brother and sister, a revelation which promises to bring both excitement and succour to her ordinary life.But obstacles lie in her path when, for unknown reasons, she is prevented from meeting them. Aided by her friend Plato, Jane tracks down her brother and sister to their home in the East End of London. There she finds still more surprises lie in store for her.Can Jane at last be part of a proper family, or must she always remain the outside child?This is the story of a girl and her family and the secrets they keep from one another. Both funny and poignant, The Outside Child is a beautifully drawn study of adolescence from one of Britains most skilled writers for children.

Lonely and forlorn after their mothers death and their sudden arrival at Aunt Mabels seaside boarding-house, John, Mary and Ben Mallory are unimpressed with their new life in England. But there are wonderful surprises in store for them when they discover a secret way into the grand and empty house next door. Soon all sorts of unexpected events will unfold as the siblings encounter a whole host of eccentric characters and happenings.Completed in 1963, The Secret Passage is Nina Bawdens first childrens novel and was written especially for her own three children after they had discovered a secret passage in the cellar of their house. It beautifully reflects her own inquisitive nature - as she herself has said: I was a keyhole child, fearsomely curious - wedded to her subtly innovative ability to empathise with the childs view.

Johnnie was only the runt of the litter, a little peppermint pig. He'd cost Mother a shilling, but somehow his great naughtiness and cleverness kept Poll and Theo cheerful, even though it was one of

Deeply unhappy at the recent divorce of her parents, Mary is sent away to live by the sea with her distant grandfather and the detestable Aunt Alice. Feeling abandoned, without even the company of her beloved pet cat Noakes, the summer looks set to become one long stretch of unendurable loneliness. But suddenly she is dragged, half unwittingly, into a situation that will force her to come to the aid of others more vulnerable than herself. So begins her runaway summer, as she sets about helping Simon, the son of a local policeman, and a young illegal immigrant boy arrived from Kenya, frightened and all alone.The Runaway Summer was first published in 1969 to typically universal acclaim. It is, in the words of the Times Educational Supplement, an unputdownable gem of a book. The tale is beautifully constructed in diamond-hard language.

On the Scottish island of Skua, friendship develops between the lonely and mysterious Perdita and a blind girl, Janey. Both possess a kind of second sight - Janeys is the ability to hear, feel and remember more than others, and Perditas is the ominous legacy of her being a witchs daughter. When Janeys brother, Tom, starts investigating a cluster of mysterious events and suspicious characters, all three become entwined in an adventure of hidden jewels, desperate criminals and dangerous detection.Written in 1963, TheWitchs Daughter showcases Nina Bawdens innate regard for the integrity of her young characters. As she has said: I like writing for children. It seems to me that most people underestimate their understanding and the strength of their feelings and in my books for them I try to put this right. Hugely admired on publication by both reviewers and readers, it was described as thrilling by the Times Literary Supplement.

A beautiful hardback edition to mark the 50th anniversary of one of the most beloved and enduring children s classics of the 20th century

One of the most loved and enduring wartime novels Carrie s War is a modern classic Published for the first time as a Virago Modern Classic with a foreword by Michael Morpurgo

The expulsion from school of their eldest son shatters the middle-class secutiry of Maggie, a writer, and Charlie, a journalist. Since childhood, Toby has been diffident and self-absorbed, but the threat of drug taking and his refusal (or inability) to discuss his evident unhappiness, disturbs them sufficiently to seek professional help. Veering between private agony and public cheerfulness, Maggie and Charlie struggle to support their son and cope with the reactions- and advice- of friends and relatives. Noted for the acuity with which she reaches into the heart of relationships, Nina Bawden here excels in revealing the painful, intimate truths of a family in crisis. Toby's situation is explored with great tenderness, while Maggie's grief and self-recrimination are rigorously, if compassionately, observed. It is a novel that raises fundamental questions about parents and their children, and offers tentative hope but no tidy solutions.

Evacuated from London to Wales during the Second World War, Carrie and her brother are sent to live with the very strict Mr Evans. But in trying to heal the breach between Mr Evans and his estranged sister, Carrie does the worst thing she ever did in her life. Puffin Modern Classics highlight the most successful and enduringly popular stories published for children in recent years.