Duncan is a soppy dog - sometimes. He lives with Mr Hipstone, who may once have been a pirate, and is even now rather grumpy - sometimes. However, neither Duncan nor Mr Hipstone turn out to be quite what each other (and the reader!) expects when they set sail across the seas to a secret island, in search of treasure. There they encounter a band of ferocious pirates - will Duncan be sacrificed for the hidden loot? Could an old bone be the only treasure worth claiming? Only one thing is for certain: nothing is as it seems in this wryly funny, understated yet action-packed story, written and illustrated by the incomparable Peter Utton.

** Winner of the Children's Book Award - Gold ** ** Runner-up for the Smarties Prize ** 'Simple but ingenious' Sunday Telegraph Shhh! You are about to enter a giant's castle. Be very quiet. Can you get through the book without waking up the enormous scary giant? What will you do if he wakes up? Why shut the book of course! An interactive retelling of a classic fairy tale with flaps and peepholes that will keep children hooked! From the bestselling, award-winning author Sally Grindley, this is the perfect book for reading aloud and sharing together. Adored by children around the world for nearly 30 years! 'This book is FANTASTIC for storytime with a group of children. It's great to read it with inflection, pretending to be scared of the giant and telling the kids to SHHH!' Goodreads reviewer 'With its understated text and imaginative artwork, this unusual work draws readers into story and setting in a way that few picture books can' Publishers Weekly 'I have worked in a pre-school for 24 years and this is by far their favourite book. The children sit there quietly and as you read the book they are hooked!' Amazon reviewer

The second set of four in this lively new series of comic strip novels for younger readers now available in paperback. Comix are aimed at 7-9 year olds, particularly though not exclusively boys, and children who find reading hard work. The subject matter is pacy and exciting and the main characters are usually boys, and there is plenty of action and dialogue to keep the story moving. Feisty heros and heroines use quick-thinking tactics to get them out of all kinds of scrapes and dilemmas. The series is aimed at developing reading ability and the text is integrated with illustrations using the comic strip conventions of speech bubbles, thought bubbles and sound effects. Established authors have written a variety of tales - adventure, science fiction and fantasy, comedy and football stories. All the titles have been illustrated by the best strip-cartoon artists around. The resulting combination is a visually-exciting series that should get any 7-9 year-old reading no matter how reluctant they have been to pick up a book in the past.