Written by bestselling author Saviour Pirotta, this fast-paced story is set in the Islamic Golden Age when Baghdad was the largest and most dazzling city in the world. Perfect for fans of thrilling adventure. Thirteen-year-old Jabir is hoping to save his family from being made homeless by finding work in Baghdad. Famished after his long journey to the city, Jabir is caught stealing bread and sent to prison. Luckily, one of the guards there notices that he has a gift for carving wooden models and he is released on the orders of the grand caliph Harun al Rashid himself. In return Jabir must carve twelve golden horsemen, a gift from the caliph to the emperor Charlemagne. But someone is determined to stop Jabir from completing the work and he will stop at nothing, not even arson, to achieve his aim. Can Jabir and his friend Yasmina finish the horsemen or will Jabir be sent back to prison? Ideal for readers aged 8+, this exciting and readable adventure story is packed with great characters and insight into Islamic civilisation and the historic culture of the Middle East circa AD 900, a period which is now studied in the National Curriculum. The Flashbacks series offers dramatic stories set in key moments of history, perfect for introducing children to historical topics.

Find out about the many colourful and exciting Italian festivals celebrated in honour of patron saints, including Christmas, New Year, Epiphany, Carnival and Easter. Learn what foods are eaten at the various events, and discover how to prepare the delicious feasts yourself. Including a section on farming, step-by-step recipes and a further information section.

The pirates Adam, Amy and Ali are tired of their quiet life on Cutlass Island and wish that they could go and live in the exciting, big city. So when they spot a ship, they climb on board and hide in a hamper filled with costumes... and tutus! Soon they're on an adventure filled with sea monsters, ballet dancers and a swindling pirate. Will they ever make it ashore?

This swashbuckling, adventure-filled tale from bestselling author Saviour Pirotta is perfect for children who are learning to read by themselves and for Key Stage 1. It features engaging illustrations from Erica Salcedo and quirky characters young readers will find hard to resist.

Bloomsbury Young Readers are the perfect way to get children reading, with book-banded stories by brilliant authors like Julia Donaldson. They are packed with gorgeous colour illustrations and include inside cover notes to help adults reading with children, as well as ideas for activities related to the stories.

Book Band: Purple
Ideal for ages 6+

Build your child’s reading confidence at home with books at the right level A traditional Persian tale about three orphaned siblings who embark on a journey of discovery to find a magical talking bird. Find out if they make it home again, and whether they learn anything about themselves along the way. Ruby/Band 14 books give increasing opportunities for children to develop their skills of inference and deduction.. Text type: A traditional tale from another culture Curriculum links: English: fairy stories, myths and legends; books from other cultures and traditions This book has been quizzed for Accelerated Reader.

How can Taro and Yuko help to protect the sea turtles?   This new edition of a classic, pioneering story about turtle conservation is needed today more than ever.   Taro and Yuko help old Jiro San to clean up the beach, and one amazing evening they discover why their work is so important.    Now the beach is safe, sea turtles come out of the ocean to lay their eggs in the clean sand. And a few weeks later, the children watch the miracle of. baby turtles hatching and scurrying down to the sea.

The fourth book in the ancient Greek Mysteries series is a mix of Sherlock Holmes and ancient Greece from bestselling author Saviour Pirotta, with stunning illustrations from up-and-coming illustrator Freya Hartas. This exciting adventure will have readers gripped from start to finish. Scribe Nico and his perceptive friend Thrax are back in Athens and Nico is looking forward to the spooky festival of Anthesteria and the lavish feasting at Master Lykos's house. But when the boys suspect a plot to assassinate the general of Athens, they must put the fun aside and infiltrate the Society of Centaurs. Will they discover the true identity of the society's leader, and will they stop the assassination? This dramatic and mysterious tale is packed with wonderful characters and insight into the daily life of the ancient Greeks, a required topic in the Key Stage 2 History curriculum. Perfect for fans of the Roman Mysteries, or anyone interest in ancient Greece.

A thrilling mix of Sherlock Holmes and Ancient Greece from prize-winning author Saviour Pirotta, with stunning illustrations from up-and-coming illustrator Freya Hartas. This exciting adventure will have readers gripped from start to finish. Young scribe Nico's new friend Thrax has a strange knack for figuring things out. When they travel to wedding with their master, a valuable vase is broken and Thrax's special skills might just come in useful. Can the boys prove that slave girl Gaia is innocent, and discover what the mark of the cyclops means? Winner of the North Somerset Teachers Book Award for Quality fiction, this dramatic and mysterious tale is packed with wonderful characters and insight into the daily life of the ancient Greeks, which is a required topic in the KS2 History curriculum. Perfect for fans of the Roman Mysteries, or anyone interested in ancient Greece.

An ideal introduction to the celebration of Chinese New Year for children aged 4-7 in Foundation Stage and KS1 classes. This book describes how Chinese people prepare for New Year by cleaning their house and having their hair cut. It shows how people around the world scare the monster Nian away with fireworks and watch the dragon dance in the street. Attractively designed, its simple text and wonderful full-colour photos make this an essential resource in every Early Years setting. 'Did You Know?' boxes highlight interesting and unusual facts about Chinese New Year to give further points for children and adults to discuss. And a chart enables them to work out what Chinese year they were born in.

A thrilling mix of Sherlock Holmes and ancient Greece from bestselling author Saviour Pirotta, with stunning illustrations from up-and-coming illustrator Freya Hartas. This exciting adventure will have readers gripped from start to finish. When scribe Nico and his perceptive friend Thrax travel with their master to the island of Aegina, the boys are once again faced with a mystery. A merchant is seeking a valuable ring that was stolen from him, so he can avoid a curse. But on the seas around one of the richest islands in the world lurks a pirate with a golden mask, who is also in pursuit of the ring. Can Nico and Thrax follow the clues, rescue the ring and escape from the pirates of Poseidon? This dramatic and mysterious tale is packed with wonderful characters and insight into the daily life of the ancient Greeks, a required topic in the KS2 History curriculum. Perfect for fans of the Roman Mysteries, or anyone interested in ancient Greece.

Jean and his friends are fishermen. Jean throws a spear at a passing dolphin to show his strength and suddenly the crew are swept into a terrible storm. Jean soon realises that he has injured the Dolphin King and put the lives of his friends in peril. Will Jean be able to make up for his mistakes? Collins Big Cat Progress builds confidence, helping struggling pupils not only to read, but to love reading Dual-banded books provide age-appropriate interest level material matched with a lower reading ability level Every book is levelled by reading expert Cliff Moon to ensure precise, systematic, measurable progression to help close the ability gap The books use a range of reading strategies: phonic, graphic, syntactic and contextual to build confident, accurate, fluent readers Designed to build speaking and listening skills, as well as reading skills, the books are highly visual and include incredible illustrations and photographs Every book has a Key Stage 2 look-and-feel to engage older pupils and avoid stigmatisation Topics are relevant for children in years 3-6 and connected to the curriculum and framework objectives for these years to support inclusion Progress titles contain a Reader Response page to encourage the pupil to respond to and recall what they have read. This offers an ideal opportunity to check comprehension Ideas for Reading, written by primary literacy expert Gill Howell are included in the back of every book to help you support the reading needs of each child This book has been quizzed for Accelerated Reader.

Build your child's reading confidence at home with books at the right level Princess Sabra has a simple happy life until her kingdom is attacked by a fierce, fire-breathing dragon. As she struggles to find a way of saving the land and the people, there appears only one answer and one very high cost...Can the strange soldier who appears be the only one who can rescue her and save her kingdom from the mighty beast? Topaz/ Band 13 books offer longer and more demanding reads for children to investigate and evaluate. This book has been quizzed for Accelerated Reader.

A fox was having a nap when a tiger leapt out at him, ready to attack. Could the fox use his cunning to save his own life? This traditional story has been beautifully illustrated by Tomislav Zlatic. Green/Band 5 books offer early readers patterned language and varied characters Text Type: A traditional story Curriculum Links: Citizenship:Animals and us, Geography: Global eye

When Pedro the fisherman catches a big swordfish, he decides to share his meal with a man in the local prison - a captured pirate. But when Pedro himself is later captured by a pirate gang, he finds his generosity hasn't been forgotten. This traditional tale is written by Saviour Pirotta and wonderfully illustrated by Shahab Shamshirsaz. Collins Big Cat Progress builds confidence, helping struggling pupils not only to read, but to love reading Dual-banded books provide age-appropriate interest level material matched with a lower reading ability level Every book is levelled by reading expert Cliff Moon to ensure precise, systematic, measurable progression to help close the ability gap The books use a range of reading strategies: phonic, graphic, syntactic and contextual to build confident, accurate, fluent readers Designed to build speaking and listening skills, as well as reading skills, the books are highly visual and include incredible illustrations and photographs Every book has a Key Stage 2 look-and-feel to engage older pupils and avoid stigmatisation Topics are relevant for children in years 3-6 and connected to the curriculum and framework objectives for these years to support inclusion Progress titles contain a Reader Response page to encourage the pupil to respond to and recall what they have read. This offers an ideal opportunity to check comprehension Ideas for Reading, written by primary literacy expert Gill Howell are included in the back of every book to help you support the reading needs of each child This book has been quizzed for Accelerated Reader

Samira's grandparents are coming to stay for the weekend, to celebrate Grandpa's birthday. Samira has a surprise in store for them. A cooked breakfast! Sadly, Samira's dad scoffs the baked beans when he comes home from work in the early hours of the morning. (He has no idea they were meant to be part of grandpa's surprise.) There is no time for Samira's mum to go to the supermarket so Samira has to go to the corner shop. This is a dusty old place run by Mrs. April. Samira is scared of her because she has a moustache and has never been in the place. But, seeing this is an emergency, she plucks up the courage. Mrs April has only one tin of beans in stock, and it has a very special offer printed on the label. One magic wish come true with every spoonful of beans. (only one wish per person) Back home, everyone thinks the offer is a joke. Buy when Grandpa wishes for a hardback book by his favourite author (he's waiting for the paperback), it comes true. Immediately everyone in the family makes a wish, and the wishes keep on getting bigger, greedier and more ridiculous. When Grandma wishes for a horse, it wrecks the cramped living room so Mum wishes for a bigger house. This has the unfortunate effect of squashing the adjoining houses. The neighbours come to complain and soon the whole estate is at war. Samira wants to make her own wish, to be transported away from the chaos and to a far off place on a unicorn. But there are no beans left. She visits Mrs April in the hope that there might be another tin left, one that Mrs April overlooked. There are none. Mrs April looks in the tin and there is one last bean stuck to the underside of the lid. Is it enough to make Samira's wish come true? Mrs April warns Samira that she has to wish wisely. Samira thinks for a bit, then she eats the bean and wishes she hadn't opened the tin yet. Suddenly everything goes back to what it was before, no fighting on the estate, no squashed houses, no horse wrecking the living room... Now Samira has a whole tin of wishes all over again. But what will she wish for.....?