Blitz Boy is a fascinating recollection of life in the Blitz and of evacuation to Cornwall. Charismatic author Alf Townsend tells the harrowing and touching tale of what it was like for a young inner-city child to suffer the trials of war at first hand. The mass exodus of kids from Britain's major cities in 1940 was unique and the government's hasty organisation programmes left a lot to be desired. It must have been a shock to rural communities to take in frightened, scruffy, poverty-stricken cases from the poorest areas of Britain's cities. Many of the foster parents who took in these children did so purely for the cash (8s 3d per week). The family which took in Alf and his siblings did not treat them well. There were beatings and other punishments from the foster-mother, who thought nothing of mistreating a six-year-old child. This only ended when the author's real mother turned up on the doorstep to reclaim her children. The author and his siblings remained in Cornwall with their mother until the end of the war to evade the danger of being bombed-out back in London. Eventually, though, they did return to the capital. The sight that greeted them on their return came as a shock. Rows of houses had been destroyed and huge areas had been totally flattened. Although life was tough back in London, at least the Townsend children were back in the fold of their loving family. Alf recalls this time with much fondness, going into the details of day-to-day life back home.

The stories in the World War II Flashbacks series draw the reader into the experiences and emotions of a young person's life, caught against a period backdrop of historical upheaval. The child reader can also absorb important historical details that might otherwise be taught only as dry facts.

London 1940. Rachel is alone and adrift in a stricken city as the Blitz reaches its most deadly stage and thousands die in nightly air raids. Her father is under arrest as a suspected spy, her mother seriously ill in hospital. As German bombers pound the city each night, she must survive in the murky blackout alongside London’s criminals and unearth the real traitors. Age 12-plus.

Blitz was no ordinary horse. He had within him a quality of greatness which gave him the power to give his best—and more—whenever it was needed. Carefully trained and well cared for, he soon became the most talked about fire horse in Drumlin—fast and sure and first at almost every fire. Then a fearful accident injured both Blitz and his driver and the great fire horse days were over. Blitz was sold to a cruel master, and needed all of his courage and strength to live through the next few years. The story of how he is saved by the love and care of a boy, an do how he in turn is able to save a child’s life makes a dramatic and moving book in the old tradition. There are happy times and sad times, and a warmth in the telling that will satisfy anyone who loves a great horse story.

In this engaging autobiographical account, veteran journalist and broadcaster Bob Trevor recalls his childhood experiences in war-torn London during the Battle of Britain and the Blitz and as an evacuee, first in rural Southern England and later in Liverpool. The result is as powerful an evocation of civilian life in wartime Britain as you are ever likely to read. This is a compelling and at times deeply moving portrayal of family life, childhood, friendship and collective fortitude in the face of adversity. Just five years old when war is declared in 1939, Bob and his gang of childhood friends are soon watching in awe as the dogfights of Battle of Britain take place in the skies above their local streets in suburban Thornton Heath, although their initial excitement gives way to trepidation as the nightly bombing raids of the Blitz begin. With London under siege, Bob, his mother and baby sister are evacuated to Pangbourne in rural Berkshire, where for the next two years they will share a single room in a dilapidated old Rectory, struggling to survive on their meagre wartime rations. To add to his hardships, Bob is sent to the local village school, where he and a few fellow evacuees face relentless bullying by local children who resent intruders on their turf. The daily playground battles of this plucky band of uprooted city kids mirrors the hostilities taking place in the wider world, where Allied forces face a similarly intractable enemy. Just as all seems lost, a unit of the Royal Canadian Engineers is stationed nearby and Bob is befriended by a trio of native Canadian soldiers. Far from home and victims of prejudice themselves, these 'Red Indian' servicemen empathise with the displaced city kids and tutor them in the art of self-defence. It is a valuable education that will help our young hero overcome the challenges that lie in store for him in Liverpool and back home in London before VE Day finally heralds a longed-for return to normal life.

Young Edward VI is crowned king upon the death of his father, Henry VIII - but he is only nine years old. How can he fight his way through the treacherous adult world to claim the sovereignty he is entitled to? This thoroughly researched novel features some of best-known and most intriguing characters in English history - including, of course, King Henry VIII and his many wives. This story presents a balanced view of Edward VI, who is often portrayed as an unpleasant, rather sickly child, whose death was inevitable. Above all, it's a page-turning read not to be missed.

The only first-hand account of the Blitz to be written as it was happening.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A panoramic experience that tells the story of Beastie Boys, a book as unique as the band itself—by band members ADROCK and Mike D, with contributions from Amy Poehler, Colson Whitehead, Wes Anderson, Luc Sante, and more. The inspiration for the Emmy-nominated Apple TV+ “live documentary” Beastie Boys Story, directed by Spike Jonze NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Rolling Stone • The Guardian • Paste Formed as a New York City hardcore band in 1981, Beastie Boys struck an unlikely path to global hip hop superstardom. Here is their story, told for the first time in the words of the band. Adam “ADROCK” Horovitz and Michael “Mike D” Diamond offer revealing and very funny accounts of their transition from teenage punks to budding rappers; their early collaboration with Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin; the debut album that became the first hip hop record ever to hit #1, Licensed to Ill—and the album’s messy fallout as the band broke with Def Jam; their move to Los Angeles and rebirth with the genre-defying masterpiece Paul’s Boutique; their evolution as musicians and social activists over the course of the classic albums Check Your Head, Ill Communication, and Hello Nasty and the Tibetan Freedom Concert benefits conceived by the late Adam “MCA” Yauch; and more. For more than thirty years, this band has had an inescapable and indelible influence on popular culture. With a style as distinctive and eclectic as a Beastie Boys album, Beastie Boys Book upends the typical music memoir. Alongside the band narrative you will find rare photos, original illustrations, a cookbook by chef Roy Choi, a graphic novel, a map of Beastie Boys’ New York, mixtape playlists, pieces by guest contributors, and many more surprises. Praise for Beastie Boys Book “A fascinating, generous book with portraits and detail that float by in bursts of color . . . As with [the band’s] records, the book’s structure is a lyrical three-man weave. . . . Diamond’s voice is lapidary, droll. Horovitz comes on like a borscht belt comedian, but beneath that he is urgent, incredulous, kind of vulnerable. . . . Friendship is the book’s subject as much as music, fame and New York.”—The New York Times Book Review “Wild, moving . . . resembles a Beastie Boys LP in its wild variety of styles.”—Rolling Stone

It's suicide, Shyla. You're the prize they want. Through her courage and tenacity, Shyla Sun-Kissed has awoken the power of The Eyes of Tamburah. But this feat only marks the beginning of the challenges that the magical order, the Invisible Sword, faces to free the underground city of Zirdai. Though they have allies among the monks and splinter cells inside the city, Shyla knows the Invisible Sword doesn't have the strength to win. With the group fracturing due to the strain of losses from their latest ordeal, thinly veiled suspicions and endless disagreements, it's up to Shyla to forge a new united order. When both the draconian Water Prince and brutal Heliacal Priestess learn of Shyla's new powers, life becomes even more complicated as they will stop at nothing to capture Shyla and take the magic of The Eyes for themselves. Hunted at every turn and unable to hide, Shyla and the Invisible Sword must use every resource at their command - and unearth new ones - in their race to save the city from destruction. But their enemies always seem to be one step ahead. And the cost to win the battle may be more than Shyla would ever be willing to pay...

This is the `amazing` story of a brother and sister`s adventure, which begins in war torn London in 1940. A piece of paper with symbols on it, accidentally comes into Jo and Geordie Cameron`s possession! Could it be a Secret Code? Jo and Geordie are kidnapped and the lad is tortured by the `Ferret`. They escape from their prison and get help from gang members Alan, Eddy and Pete. After a roller coaster ride they find their home bombed and their mother missing. Their father, a Captain in the Royal Marines, sends them to their Uncle in Scotland while he is called to the War Office. At King`s Cross Gang Leader Gary gives Geordie Long Distance Lizzie to look after and Jo acts on impulse! Disaster strikes when a bomb explodes on the train and the Flying Scotsman is dive-bombed by a `Stuka` at the Forth Bridge! When they reach Dundee someone is watching! In Carlogie they meet `Bonnie` the mare and later renew their friendship with `Spot Oor Dog`. There is a GREAT RAT HUNT and Spot gets badly bitten! The next day they get a cable from their father but German Commandos invade the farm! The kids get unexpected help before making their escape on a motorbike! They are taken to an Airfield and fly south in a Lysander! Two more narrow escapes later they reach London to find the Blitz Kids Gang have been warned! An Almighty BATTLE takes place and more discoveries are made before Jo and Geordie and their friends in the BLITZ KIDS GANG fight the invaders to a standstill! There are more surprises in store but to know more you must read the book!