John Lawrence Knihy

In this compelling collection of tales Roald Dahl's urbane and sophisticated wit is directed at the unfathomable mysteries and eccentricities of rural life.

For David Copperfield, orphaned and with a cruel stepfather, the future looks bleak. But a new start beckons with the magnificent Mr Micawber, then with his eccentric aunt, Betsey Trotwood.

This is the story of Robert Lawrence of the Scots Guards who was severely wounded as he led his platoon in an attack against an Argentinian machine-gun position during the battle for Tumbledown Mountain in 1982. The injury to Lawrence's head was so severe that it was assumed that he would die and he had to wait for four hours before medical staff could help him, but he did eventually make a recovery, coming to terms with his paralysis.

The memoir offers a humorous and candid glimpse into the trials of medical school, chronicling John's evolution from a hesitant liberal-arts student to a confident medical doctor. Through entertaining anecdotes, he shares the challenges of gaining admission, mastering anatomy with quirky mnemonic devices, and the realities of delivering babies. His self-deprecating humor and unique storytelling style keep readers engaged as he reveals the often unseen experiences within the medical profession.

Another mesmerising episode from the universe of His Dark Materials including the very first meeting of those two legends and friends, Lee Scoresby, the Texan balloonist, and Iorek Byrnison, the armoured bear.Set in the far frozen Arctic, Once Upon a Time in the North contains other teasingly authentic memorabilia and clues, together with a thrilling board game, Peril of the Pole – complete with spinner, game board, and pieces.Cover illustration and engravings by John Lawrence

Proud and solitary, Eel Marsh House surveys the windswept reaches of the salt marshes beyond Nine Lives Causeway. Arthur Kipps, a junior solicitor, is summoned to attend the funeral of Mrs Alice Drablow, the house's sole inhabitant, unaware of the tragic secrets which lie hidden behind the shuttered windows. It is not until he glimpses a wasted young woman, dressed all in black, at the funeral, that a creeping sense of unease begins to take hold, a feeling deepened by the reluctance of the locals to talk of the woman in black.

Unwelcome ghosts are joined by uninvited dragons, gryphons, Martians, and magicians, in eight twisty stories with everyday English settings

Two young sisters living in the Cornish countryside find a strange boy in the woods who doesn't seem to speak, eat, or sleep