After all, in the Kingdom of Ithelia, you need a fairy to guide you to greatness, and fairies just don't bother with knights like him. However, when Percy catches the eyes of the sheltered Princess Matilda, his world expands in new and frightening ways. A victim of an ill-planned Christening, Matty has spent her life in a locked tower, hiding from pixie attacks. Now she'll do anything to escape. And if that means dragging Percy along for a cross country search for Prince Charming, so be it. But not all Prince Charmings are what they seem, and as Matty's plight grows more desperate, Percy finds himself losing his heart. Does a lowly knight have what it takes to uncurse a princess?

    Disgruntled at not being invited to the princess's christening, the wicked fairy casts a spell that dooms the princess to sleep for a hundred years.

    Eighteen authentic fables, recorded as they were told by tribal members of Nigerian and other cultures, range from the imaginative "Story of a Farmer and Four Hyenas" to an entertaining account of "The Man with Seven Dogs."In "The Magic Crocodile," you'll meet a reptile with very strange powers, while "The Boy in the Drum" teaches a valuable lesson in the importance of obeying one's parents. In "The Hare and the Crownbird," a fine, feathered friend is rewarded for its acts of kindness. You'll also learn why a ram has a large head and a tortoise a small one in "The Greedy but Cunning Tortoise"; and in "A She-Goat and Her Children," you'll discover how a clever animal managed to provide food for her children.Set in large, easy-to-read type and enhanced with Yuko Green's 19 lively illustrations, this collection of time-honored folk tales will delight readers of all ages.

    You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

    But then their past creeps up upon them – and what is there to do but face it, and hope that their convoluted paths will finally lead them to their proper place?“Elizabeth… Elizabeth… Elizabeth…” he murmured against her lips, her skin, her hair, and then her lips again. “I cannot forsake you! I cannot! I cannot lose you! I cannot bear to think of a life without you – ‘tis not worth living, ‘tis but a slow death! I cannot lose you! I beg you, do not send me away again! I love you! Elizabeth, I love you!”Friends, rivals, foes, wrong choices and a duel – Fitzwilliam Darcy’s life is never dull! ‘The Subsequent Proposal’ – a story that is primarily about him – follows Mr. Darcy in his struggles to decipher the troubling enigma of Elizabeth Bennet’s feelings – and to correct the worst misjudgement of his life…

    But have you heard that she was a right raver on the dance floor, locked up ladies for getting married, and fell in love with a frog? Get the inside story in another issue of "Dead Famous".

    And then a day came when all that changed . . . when they became our enemy.Now, anyone found harbouring a rogue imaginary person is in for the Cosh, an operation that fries your imagination and zaps whatever's in there, out of existence.That's why I wish Klaris Cliff had never shown up. And why I know that proving her innocence is the last hope I have of saving myself.Funny, quirky, and intriguing. This is a gripping read.

    until a mysterious stranger asks for her hospitality. Part romance, part family story, and part small town semi-satire.

    For age 5 thru 8. This Enid Blyton book contains the stories: The very old kettle --Louise and Bobs have an adventure --The apple that couldn't be found --Well, really, old grandad --Polly piglet --Gillian earns some money --Billy-dog --Mr Tweeky's magic pockets --The talking teapot --How lucky they were --The wizard's needle --What a surprise! --The chocolate cock --Funny face --The Ugly old scarecrow.

    and more

    "The Idle Parent came as a huge relief to the whole family. Suddenly, it was okay to leave the kids to sort it out among themselves. Suddenly, it was okay to be responsibly lazy. This is the most counterintuitive but most helpful and consoling child-raising manual I've yet read."--Alain de Botton, author of The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work and The Consolations of Philosophy"The most easy-to-follow-without-being-made-to-feel-inadequate parenting manifesto ever written . . . A godsend to parents."--The Sunday Times"Add liberal doses of music, jovial company and deep woods to play in--all central to the idle, not to say Taoist, life--and you have a recipe for bright, happy people with need of neither television nor shrink. Who could ask for more?"--The Evening StandardIn The Idle Parent, the author of The Freedom Manifesto and How to Be Idle applies his trademark left-of-center theories of idleness to what can be one of the thorniest aspects of adult life: parenting.Many parents today spend a whole lot of time worrying and wondering--frantically "helicoptering" over their children with the hope that they might somehow keep (or make?) them flawless. But where is this approach to childcare getting us? According to Hodgkinson, in our quest to give our kids everything, we fail to give them the two things they need most: the space and time to grow up self-reliant, confident, happy, and free. In this smart and hilarious book, Hodgkinson urges parents to stop worrying and instead start nurturing the natural instincts toward creativity and independence that are found in every child. And the great irony: in doing so, we will find ourselves becoming happier and better parents.

    Her father has been dead for years. One of her brothers has been conscripted into the Tsar’s army, the other taken as a servant in the house of the local landowner. Her mother is dying, slowly, in their tiny cabin. And there is no food. But then a train arrives in the village, a train carrying untold wealth, a cornucopia of food, and a noble family destined to visit the Tsar in Saint Petersburg — a family that includes Ekaterina, a girl of Elena’s age. When the two girls’ lives collide, an adventure is set in motion, an escapade that includes mistaken identity, a monk locked in a tower, a prince traveling incognito, and — in a starring role only Gregory Maguire could have conjured — Baba Yaga, witch of Russian folklore, in her ambulatory house perched on chicken legs

    But when he comes into the light, she sees his horribly scarred face and his limp. Fitzwilliam Darcy survived a tragic carriage accident that claimed the life of his sister, and by all accounts of those who knew him, he is much changed. Now, he is a beast of a man, often in a bad temper, owing the pain he still suffers from the injuries he incurred. Elizabeth pities the man until he kisses her in the middle of the dance floor at the Netherfield Ball with everyone looking on. He’s trapped her in a marriage that is not of her choosing, and now she must travel with him to the isolated estate of Pemberley. Mr. Darcy knows what he’s done is monstrous. But there are monstrous things within him now. He doesn’t know what has possessed him to trespass against this beauty that will now be his wife. He knows he is beyond any hope. And yet… she stirs things within him. He will not let her go. This first book in the Happily Ever Collection unites Beauty and the Beast and Pride and Prejudice. Though each story in the collection takes its cue from a fairy tale, there are neither magic nor otherworldly elements in the stories.

    They include stories of princes and princesses who have been transformed into animals, trolls, and maneating giants who possess magical powers, and good-hearted, clever young men and women, often poor and ridiculed, who eventually come away with wealth and love beyond measure.In addition to such well-known favorites as "Dapplegrim," "Katie Woodencloak," "Tatterhood," and "Legend of Tannhäuser," this collection also brings to light many gems difficult to find elsewhere. In "The Werewolf," a cruel stepmother thwarts a beautiful princess's marriage plans by transforming her fiancé into a hunted denizen of the forest. The hilarious "Such Women Are" proves the world is never without a sufficiency of fools, while "The Three Dogs" tells of a youth whose four-legged friends defeat a serpent with the nasty habit of devouring a town's young women. Among many other hard-to-find stories are "King Gram," "The Magician's Pupil," "The Outlaw," "Temptations," "The Widow's Son," "The Three Sisters Trapped in a Mountain," and "The Goatherd" (the inspiration for Washington Irving’s story of Rip van Winkle).These stories preserve the ancient myths of Western Europe that have been passed down from generation to generation, but aside from their importance as seminal folktales, they are simply good reading — full of passion and excitement, magic, mystery, and sheer storytelling power. Popular Tales from Norse Mythology will delight any student or admirer of myths and mythology.Excerpt:The Dasent family is believed to have been originally of French extraction, the name having been traced to an ancient Norman source. It has owned property in the West Indies since the Restoration, and is repre sented in the island of St. Vincent at the present day. Some of its members were amongst the earliest colonists in St. Christopher's at a time when that island and Martinique were held jointly by the French and the English; and the highest judicial and administrative offices in St. Christopher's, in Nevis, in Antigua, and, more recently, in St. Vincent itself were filled by Sir George Dasent's ancestors.

    It's wilder than the African savanna, more fantastical than Disneyland and more magical than Shangri-la.So when ordinary eleven-year-old Vincent meets the hotel's young Florence he sets off on a path leading into his most wondrous dreams.But of course, dreams have a funny way of taking strange and surprising turns and, before long, Vincent is torn between right and wrong, friendship and family and the most enticing of desires - to see into the future . . .Warning- this book includes insanely cute pocket dogs, travelling by llama or jet pack, chocolate fountains and shoes that play Bach.