Showing results by author "Chris Riddell" in All Categories

In Poems to Fall in Love With, Chris Riddell OBE, political cartoonist for the Observer, has selected his very favourite classic and modern poems about love. This gorgeous collection celebrates love in all its guises, from silent admiration through passion to tearful resignation. These poems speak of the universal experiences of the heart and are brought to life by Juliet Stevenson and David Rintoul. This collection features famous poems, old and new, and a few surprises. Classic verses sit alongside the modern to create the ultimate collection.

Cade has never met his uncle, the infamous ‘descender’ Nate Quarter, who years ago committed heresy by lowering himself over the cliff-face of the Edge. But Nate has returned, and the Academy of Flight are looking for revenge against all of his supporters - including Cade. So now he has to run. With no money and nowhere else to go, Cade’s only option is to stow away aboard the Xanth Filatine - a mighty sky-ship bound for the city of Hive. But getting onto the ship is only the beginning of his troubles....

Lord Goth is throwing a music festival at Ghastly-Gorm Hall, with performances from the finest composers in the land. Ada can't wait, but it's quite distracting when her grandmother is trying to find her father a fashionable new wife, there's a faun living in her wardrobe and Maltravers is up to his old tricks. Ada must make sure everything goes to plan...and luckily, help is at hand from a very interesting houseguest.

In Legion of the Dead, Barnaby finds himself embroiled in a plot that includes a legion of zombies raised from the dead. In Dickensian times, people were terrified of being buried alive, and so were left in their coffin with a wire, attached to a bell, running from above the ground, down through the earth and the lid of the coffin, and tied to the little finger of the buried body. Those who found themselves awake in the darkness of their coffin could wiggle their finger and summon help.

The Kingdom of Thrynne is a place where fairy tales don’t behave, and magic can be found in unexpected places. But magic brings danger to Zam, Phoebe and Bathsheba, because it is forbidden. Now, the future of magic itself is under threat from powerful enemies: those who fear it and, worse, those who want to use it for their own ends. What can three ordinary children do to protect it?

Barnaby Grimes is a tick-tock lad, high-stacking his way across the rooftops of his city in search of adventure and mystery. In each tale, he encounters a supernatural force and must battle the horrors that await him.

The Guardians of Magic disappeared ten years ago, leaving the Kingdom of Thrynne in the icy grip of a powerful sorceress. Most people have fled in desperate search of warmer lands, escaping the Ice Monsters that roam the streets. Meanwhile, young Tiggy Thistle lives hidden and safe with a kindly Badger until the day she meets one of the crafty Stiltskin brothers and she has to run from her happy home. So begins Tiggy's quest to find Zam, Phoebe and Bathsheba—the only people, she believes, who can save Thrynne from the curse of endless winter.

Rook Barkwater dreams of becoming a librarian knight - sent out to explore the mysteries of the Edgeworld. So when his chance comes, he grabs it. Breaking all the rules, he sets out on a journey to the Free Glades and beyond.

The planet Bienvenido is in crisis. It has finally escaped the Void, emerging into regular space. But it's millions of light-years from Commonwealth assistance, and humans are battling the Fallers for control of their world. This rapacious adversary, evolved to destroy all sentient life, has infiltrated every level of human society - hijacking unwilling bodies so its citizens fear their leaders, friends and family. A mysterious figure known as the Warrior Angel leads a desperate resistance.

High in the crumbling Palace of Statues, oily Vox Verlix - nominally the Most High Academe but no more than a prisoner in reality - is brewing a terrible plot to destroy the goblins and the shrykes at a stroke, leaving him free to take over once again. Rook Barkwater, a young librarian knight, stumbles upon the truth when he is taken captive and forced to work for Vox. But can Rook foil Vox's plan and save the lives of his librarian colleagues?

Preparations for the Ghastly-Gorm Garden Party and bake-off are under way. Celebrity cooks are arriving at the hall for the big event and Maltravers, the indoor gamekeeper, is acting suspiciously. Elsewhere at Ghastly-Gorm Ada's wardrobe-dwelling lady's maid Marylebone has received a marriage proposal. Ada vows to aid the course of true love and find out what Maltravers is up to, but amidst all this activity, everyone appears to have forgotten her birthday!

Cade Quarter is building a new life for himself in the wild of the Farrow Ridges, miles away from civilisation - and from the enemies who are seeking him. His lakeside home is idyllic, and he lives a peaceful existence with his prowlgrin, Rumblix, and Tug, the nameless one. But when his new home is threatened by villainous mire-pearlers, Cade and his friends must find a way to defend the land they love. The arrival of the ship Doombringer means Cade must leave the Farrow Ridges and compete in an ultimate challenge to bring aid to the Lakes.

Cade Quarter has spent the last few years of his life running from an enemy he’s never even met - the ruthless and power-hungry High Professor of Flight, Quove Lentis. But Quove’s deadly agenda has finally caught up with Cade, and now he must leave his home and flee once more, this time to the legendary floating city of New Sanctaphrax. But even reuniting with his uncle, Nate Quarter, isn’t the end of Cade’s troubles - and now, more than ever, he must find the courage to defy his enemies, unite his friends and unlock the secrets of descending.

Barnaby Grimes is a tick-tock lad, running errands in his city, day and night, and "high-stacking" around the rooftops in search of new mysteries to solve. In this first adventure, Barnaby is attacked one night by an enormous dog. He kills it: but that's not the end of this particular mystery...as Barnaby finds himself swept up in a world of crooked doctors, poor and ill-advised patients, strange tonics, and very expensive furs.

Ottoline is back in Ottoline and the Purple Fox, a brand-new adventure from Children's Laureate Chris Riddell. Ottoline and Mr Munroe love puzzles, clues and mysteries. One day they meet an enigmatic purple fox who offers to take them on a nighttime urban safari. The fox shows them all the hidden animals of the city, and Ottoline makes notes on them in her field notebook. Mr Munroe is making notes, too - on the anonymous poems he finds stuck to lampposts on their journey. Who is the secretive poet, and how can he and Ottoline help them mend their broken heart?

Meet Ottoline and her hairy, helpful friend, Mr. Munroe. Ottoline is off to the Alice B. Smith School for the Differently Gifted, but she is rather worried that she doesn't have a special gift. Mr. Munroe is more worried about the ghost who is said to haunt the school halls at night. Does Ottoline discover her hidden talent, and can they expose the spook?

Ottoline and Mr. Munroe do everything and go everywhere together. That is until the day Mr. Munroe mysteriously disappears, leaving a strange clue written in string.... Armed with her Amateur Roving Collectors' travel pass, Ottoline sets off on a journey over, under, and on top of the sea to find her hairy best friend - and bring him back home.

If his inventions go wrong, Wendel just throws them away and starts again. So when Clunk, his robot assistant, fills the sock drawer with cups and saucers and makes tea in a Wellington boot, Wendel throws him on the scrap heap and makes himself a new assistant: the Wendelbot. But he gets more than he bargained for, and soon Wendel finds himself on the scrap heap. Can he win back his workshop from the mighty Wendelbot? Let the robot battle commence!

People are flocking to Ghastly-Gorm Hall to compete in Lord Goth's Literary Dog Show. The judges are in place, and the contestants are all ready to win. But there's something strange going on at Ghastly-Gorm - mysterious footprints, howls in the night and some suspiciously chewed shoes. Can Ada, the Attic Club and their new friends, the Vicarage sisters, work out what's going on before the next full moon?

A fantastic new adventure in the world of the Edge Chronicles. These exciting new tales are ideal for those new to the Edge, or as an addition to the collection of any fan.

They feature tales from each of the Edge trilogies: one from the time of Twig, hero of Beyond the Deepwoods; one from the time of Quint, Twig's father and hero of Clash of the Sky Galleons; and one from the time of Rook, Twig's grandson.