'Uteless' is a coming of age story that follows Bran Kelleher and his friends from the age of 14 to 18. The story begins in New Zealand where Bran is a pupil at a famous boarding school with a reputation for producing top athletes. He's on course to become a junior All Black rugby player and even has his own ute (utility vehicle), a gift from his car-dealer dad. But when his mother falls ill and has to return to England, Bran's circumstances change dramatically. He finds himself living on his wits in another country. It doesn't help that he's assigned a place on the school bus in a row of seats called 'rehab' with three other so-called 'losers'. They include David, an obese and apparently lazy boy whose claim to fame is having 21 half-siblings thanks to his absent, loose-living, criminal father. There is Yasmin, of Iranian descent, immensely shy but formidably bright. Also a member of a single parent household is Bel (Belinda), a budding poet, who offers occasional commentary in verse. The teachers at Bran's new state school are divided about his character and abilities. Some jump to conclusions and constantly mark him for behaviour, not achievement. Others see a boy with potential struggling with a family background that is only gradually being revealed to him. The big question for Bran is how to navigate his way through the rest of his schooling. Will the values and work ethic he learned in New Zealand see him through relative poverty and social discrimination? Can he hold on to his earlier dreams of sporting prowess? Will the kids in 'rehab' be more of a hindrance than a help? What effect will this boy from a different culture have on their lives? Will he survive the family secrets that slowly emerge and re-shape his identity?

In the Malvoir Valley, a little-known corner of England, an elderly woman wills her landed estate to her middle-aged niece and rich, Californian husband instead of passing it to her grandson. In need of even more cash to fund their lifestyles, the new landowners team up with the leader of the local Council to develop part of their land. The move sparks upheaval in the local community, bringing into sharp focus the accumulated discontent over the power of vested interests. Into this turbulence step the Zielinskys, a large, extended family of entrepreneurial Polish workers. They are given free lodging in a dilapidated barn owned by Hugh, the dispossessed heir to his grandmother's estate. At first, few realise what their arrival could mean for Hugh and rest of the Malvoir Valley. Alex Weaver, the local Council leader, sees an opportunity to leave his mark on local history with a sports stadium, upmarket retail outlets and a large estate of mostly 'executive-style' homes. His party's 39 - 6 majority on the Council and his links to local building firms all but guarantee the realisation of his vision. Resistance, he believes, is futile. Residents in a village likely to be worst affected by the development begin their campaign of opposition and recruit the impoverished Hugh and his Polish allies to the cause. They form the backbone of a hundred or so inexperienced, political 'virgins' whose only real hope is to go down fighting. In a light-hearted satire, set one year before the 2016 referendum on EU membership, Oscar Fovarge presents a microcosm of the nation as a heavily outgunned community rises up to resist complacency, groupthink and venality.

'Uteless' is a coming of age story that follows Bran Kelleher and his friends from the age of 14 to 18. The story begins in New Zealand where Bran is a pupil at a famous boarding school with a reputation for producing top athletes. He's on course to become a junior All Black rugby player and even has his own ute (utility vehicle), a gift from his car-dealer dad. But when his mother falls ill and has to return to England, Bran's circumstances change dramatically. He finds himself living on his wits in another country. It doesn't help that he's assigned a place on the school bus in a row of seats called 'rehab' with three other so-called 'losers'. They include David, an overweight and apparently lazy boy whose claim to fame is having 21 half-siblings thanks to his absent, loose-living, criminal father. There is Yasmin, of Iranian descent, immensely shy but formidably bright. Also a member of a single parent household is Bel (Belinda), a budding poet, who offers occasional commentary in verse. The teachers at Bran's new state school are divided about his character and abilities. Some jump to conclusions and constantly mark him for behaviour, not achievement. Others see a boy with potential struggling with a family background that is only gradually being revealed to him. The big question for Bran is how to navigate his way through the rest of his schooling. Will the values and work ethic he learned in New Zealand see him through relative poverty and social discrimination? Can he hold on to his earlier dreams of sporting prowess? Will the kids in 'rehab' be more of a hindrance than a help? What effect will this boy from a different culture have on their lives? Will he survive the family secrets that slowly emerge and re-shape his identity?

A Wag to the Wise: wit and wisdom from the dog world. Over 80 cartoons showing why dogs and people get along famously in spite of their constant misunderstandings. Over 80 waggish captions with a dog's version of common proverbs and sayings given prominence over the human versions. The cartoons cover the main features of a dog's life, including food, walks, owners, cats, vets, other dogs, puppies, home comforts, digging holes and chasing anything that moves.