Allan Drummond's classic tale unlocks the intriguing story that hides deep within one of the most distinctive and iconic china patterns ever created: the willow pattern.

To Janey Larkin, the blue willow plate was the most beautiful thing in her life, a symbol of the home she could only dimly remember. Now that her father was an itinerant worker, Janey didn't have a home she could call her own or any real friends, as her family had to keep moving, following the crops from farm to farm. Someday, Janey promised the willow plate, with its picture of a real house, her family would once again be able to set down roots in a community. Blue Willow is an important fictional account of the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression, and has been called The Grapes of Wrath for children. It won a Newbery Honor and many other awards.

On the banks of the Wen River, the legend of the Blue Willow is brought radiantly to life as two lovers face the storms that besiege them. Brilliant color illustrations highlight this warm story about undying love.

The playscripts are adapted from favourite Oxford Reading Tree stories. Each one introduces the conventions of drama, with scope for non-speaking parts and sound effects. They are suitable for group or individual reading and consolidate reading, speaking and listening skills.

9 writers. 24 hours. 1 book. On 11 June 2012, if: book Australia gathered a team of writers and editors together with the challenge of writing, editing and publishing a book - for both print and digital - within a single 24-hour period. This is that book. While its stories weave together a looming disaster, radio shock jocks, missing children, a beautiful vase, and a librarian name Sammi Bernhoff, both the project and the book that has emerged from it demonstrate an experiment in collaboration, distribution, and content generation.

Judge Dee has been appointed emergency governor of the plague- and drought-ridden Imperial City. As his guards help the city fend off a popular uprising, an aristocrat from one of the oldest families in China suffers an "accident" in a deserted mansion. In The Willow Pattern, the illustrious judge uses his trademark expertise to unravel the mysteries of the nobleman, a shattered vase, and a dead bondmaid. Along the way he encounters a woman who fights with loaded sleeves, a nearly drowned courtesan, and an elaborate trap set for a murderer. Packed with suspense, violence, and romance, The Willow Pattern won’t disappoint Judge Dee’s legions of loyal fans. "The China of old, in Mr. van Gulik’s skilled hands, comes vividly alive again."—Allen J. Hubin, New York Times Book Review

Artwork and language activities for five to eleven year-olds based on myths and legends from nine different countries - Africa, Australia, China, England, Greece, India, North America, Scotland and Wales.