At odds with her strict new teacher, and concerned that her unmarried mother is falling for the divorced father of the little boy she childminds, Charlie's life becomes increasingly stressful. She throws herself into a school project, writing a fictional diary of Lottie, a young Victorian nanny whose problematic life draws many parallels with her own. This is a humorous, touching story, particularly useful for those coming to terms with the idea of a potential stepfamily.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Posh India and streetwise Treasure forge a friendship based on a shared secret – they lead unhappy lives with inadequate parents.

India’s designer mother wants her to be thin, while Treasure is ill-treated by her mother and bullying boyfriend.

When Treasure becomes distraught at the idea of returning home, India hides her in her attic, in the manner of her heroine Anne Frank. Following their discovery, they come to terms with their ‘unsatisfactory’ parents in new and positive ways.

This is Jacqueline Wilson at her best, exploring adolescent issues and parental neglect with empathy, sensitivity and humour.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Everyone adores Dad, with his glamorous ponytail and his wonderful storytelling gifts. Even Em, though he is not her real dad. His Christmas presents, which include a real (well, probably) emerald ring for Em, are the best ever too.

But Dad has another surprise: he is leaving. As the family struggles to accept the new situation, Em bravely tries to rally them all, while seeking secret consolation in comfort eating. Will Dad ever return or is he about to make a clean break from the whole family?

Em is a complex and likeable heroine at the centre of a sometimes comic and often moving family drama.

Jacqueline Wilson proves once again why, as one of the most highly-gifted and most resonant voices in contemporary children's literature, she is also deservedly one of the best-loved.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

The Diamond girls are sisters: Martine, Jude, Rochelle and the heroine Dixie, who together comprise a convincing portrait of all the complexities of contemporary family life - complete with the usual sibling rivalries.

Plain Dixie is not pretty or clever or streetwise like her sisters, but she lives in the vivid world of her own imagination with her toy budgie, Bluebell.

When Mum, who is expecting a new baby, decides to move the whole family to another estate, they are aghast to find it is almost derelict. Then Mum goes into labour...

Aimed at older readers, this is ostensibly one of Jacqueline Wilson's more hard-hitting novels. It deals with adult themes of birth, sexuality, teen pregnancy, gang-culture, abuse and post-natal depression, but all in Wilson's usual credible, accessible, first-person narrative style, with a charm and lightness of touch that belies the serious subject-matter.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

When Jayni's violent father starts hitting her as well as her mother, her mum realises that she has to move away. Fortunately, mum has had a win on a lottery card so Jayni, her younger brother Kenny and mum all move to London.

Here they change their names to Lola Rose, Kendal and Victoria and go on a spending spree. Hardly more than a child herself, Lola's feckless mother discovers a lump in her breast and has an operation, leaving the children to fend for themselves.

The story is told by Lola Rose, aged about 10 but acting as the adult in the family. Fortunately she has the sense to contact her mum's estranged sister, and Aunty Barbara comes to the rescue.

Jacqueline Wilson demonstrates her skill by capturing the experiences of a young carer, fearful about what the cancer will do to her mother.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Prue feels increasingly stifled by life with her tyrannical father and passive mother. She and her sister Grace are home-educated and made to wear home made dresses – their only real contact with the outside world comes from the books they read.

Things change when Prue’s father has a stroke and she is forced to attend the tough local school. Prue’s precocious artistic talent and flair for literature does not endear her to fellow pupils but she forms a bond with her sympathetic and handsome art teacher, Rax.

Their feelings for each other deepen and soon things begin to spiral out of control. Wilson deals with a controversial subject, portraying the teenage agonies of forbidden love in a sensitive manner. Although there is no immediate happy ending for Prue, the reader is left with a degree of hope for her future.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Tracy Beaker is back and this time she's been cast as Ebenezer Scrooge in her school play. Bringing her usual mixture of confidence and fiery temper to the part, Tracy is determined to make the most of her starring role - not least because she's invited her mother along to watch her perform.

With help from her potential foster mother Cam, Tracy prepares for her part and looks forward to a reunion with her mother. As usual things don’t turn out exactly as Tracy expects but she and Cam eventually manage to create a Christmas to remember.

Sensitively and humorously written, the reader aches for Tracy and her desire for acknowledgement from her absent mother. Still as fresh as the first Tracy Beaker novel 15 years ago, this will delight Tracy's army of fans and new readers alike.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Tracy Beaker is a funny, imaginative and articulate ten-year-old girl, but she can also be angry, impulsive and a bit violent too. Tracy lives in a children's home but constantly hopes that her absent, glamorous mum will come and take her away.

One day Cam visits the home, to write a piece on the children. Tracy, being something of a writer herself, resolves to help out. The two form a bond and Tracy begins to wonder if Cam might represent a way out of the home for good.

Tracy's story is told as a series of diary entries, liberally illustrated with doodles and drawings from the pen of Nick Sharratt. She is an endearing narrator and her bouts of temper serve only to make her seem more believable.

Both funny and touching by turns, it is easy to see why Tracy's story has become a modern-day classic.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

One of Wilson's novels for older readers, Kiss considers the problems surrounding the difficulties encountered when childhood friendship develops into adolescent love.

Sylvie and Carl have grown up together and still share a childhood fantasy existence in Carl's garden shed.

Throughout their friendship, Sylvie's unthinking expectation has been that they will marry. However their moves to separate schools, and Carl's growing friendship with Paul, and Sylvie's with the extrovert Miranda, cause a rift.

Carl is driven to the edge by the homophobic bullying he encounters at school, and Sylvie is forced to re-evaluate the places of friendship and love in her life.

Wilson skilfully combines an approachable and involving teenage story with a debate about true friendship, sexual identity and growing up.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Mabel the cat is very special. She used to belong to Verity's mother, who died when Verity was born. One day Mabel goes missing; Verity searches for her but discovers that the cat has curled up and died at the bottom of her wardrobe.

After she learns at school that the Ancient Egyptians worshipped cats, she decides to mummify Mabel - however, a combination of Verity's odd behaviour, and an increasingly unpleasant smell emanating from her room, begins to arouse the suspicions of Gran, and Verity is very worried that she will not be able to keep her Cat Mummy secret for much longer.

As well as focusing on the trauma of a family pet dying, Wilson also examines the fact that the family never really came to terms with the death of Verity's mother. A deceptively simple tale which explores the issue of bereavement for younger readers.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Nick Sharratt's silhouettes perfectly reflect the mood of Jacqueline Wilson's first historical fiction, set in London's Foundling Hospital in the 1870s.

The infant Hetty is left there by her distraught mother, then farmed out to a family in the country, before returning to the Hospital aged five.

Removed from her beloved foster parents and siblings, the rebellious Hetty seeks desperately to uncover her birth mother’s identity, eventually reaching an unexpected and reassuring resolution.

A fellow of the Foundling Museum, Wilson has researched her subject meticulously, and incorporated her own knowledge and love of late nineteenth-century children’s fiction.

Hetty is a typical feisty Wilson heroine, challenging authority and exhibiting emotions and concerns entirely familiar and relevant to a twenty-first century audience.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

In this hugely enjoyable sequel to Cliffhanger, only child Tim and his fun friend Biscuits join Tim's rather strait-laced parents for a holiday in Wales.

Everything goes well until until two bullies, known as Prickle-Head and Pinch-Face, decide to spoil the boys' fun. Hand-written entries from Tim and Biscuits' diaries open each chapter, charting the mounting tension as their relaxing holiday turns into a lively adventure, and Tim tries to avoid the bullies, cope with his over-protective mum, and keep the peace between his girlfriend - the extrovert Kelly - and Biscuits.

This humorous tale sensitively highlights issues such as friendship and bullying.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Ellie, Magda and Nadine are the Girls in Love of the title. Ellie, whose mother died when she was young, lives with her dad, his new wife Anna, and her half-brother Eggs. But she misses her mother's love and advice terribly, particularly when it comes to the ever-difficult area of boys.

When her best friend Nadine gets a boyfriend, Ellie feels pressured to find one too. But she also learns the true value of female friendship.

This first book in a trilogy aimed at young teens is a humorous yet sensitive look at friendship, the lovelife of young teenagers and coming to terms with a step-family.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Jade is devastated when her best friend is killed by a car and wonders how she will manage without her. She is initially thrilled when Vicky’s ghost appears to her, but the 'angel' is determined to be in control and Jade gradually realises just how manipulative her friend was when she was alive.

A moving novel about guilt and bereavement, written with humour and sensitivity.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Bitterly unhappy and fed up with being teased at school, Mandy White is in need of a friend. However, with her spiky orange hair, strappy stilettos and tendency to shoplift, the colourful Tanya isn't exactly what Mandy's parents would have wished for.  

Bad Girls effortlessly depicts the sort of insecurities and concerns to which many young readers will surely relate.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Lily's self-centred young mother jets off to a holiday in Spain with her new boyfriend. Lily and her three younger siblings are carelessly left behind.

Responsible Lily takes on the task of feeding and amusing the family while trying to keep their plight a secret from her school, neighbours and social services.

Desperate for a solution, Lily decides to take the children camping in the park for a few days. However, an accident requiring a visit to the hospital unravels all Lily's plans and leads to police intervention and foster care.

With overtones of an abusive step parent and an ending that suggests an uncertain future for our heroine and her family, this is an unsettling and thought-provoking story.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Dinah is having a bad day – nothing seems to be going right: so far she’s made her Dad cross and argued with her best friend. Even a class trip to the museum doesn’t cheer Dinah up, it just makes her feel sad that unlike her classmates, she doesn’t have a Mum to make her a delicious packed lunch.

However, when a disconsolate Dinah wanders into the museum’s dinosaur room, her day is transformed by an encounter with a friendly iguanodon who presents her with a bottle of magical dinosaur juice...

This simply-written book is aimed at children who are learning to read and is enlivened by Nick Sharratt’s characteristically humorous illustrations. This may well be the first of many Jacqueline Wilson books read by children as they embark upon their reading journey.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

14 fairy tales are plucked from the Storybag and given new life by acclaimed writers from Michael Morpurgo to Jacqueline Wilson. Old favourites including Aesop’s Fables and 'The Snow Queen' meet less familiar stories such as 'Grey Wolf', 'Prince Jack and the Firebird', retold by Alan Garner and 'The Seal Hunter', set in verse by Tony Mitton.

The tales contain life lessons for young readers. Generosity and kindness are rewarded in 'The Three Heads in the Well', while 'The Little Mermaid' gives up everything for love. 'Mossycoat', an imaginative version of 'Cinderella', shows the importance of honesty and hard work. Children learn to think before they make hasty decisions and that love and friendship are more valuable that any treasure.

Things have changed a lot for Ella. For years now it's been just her and mum, which suited Ella fine. Now they live with Jack, her mum's annoying new husband and soon Ella will have a baby brother too. When a rare condition causes her mum's pregnancy to go wrong, leaving her lost in a coma, Ella's life goes into free-fall. Suddenly, nothing is as it was; her best friend is distant, her beloved Dad keeps saying the wrong thing and stupid Jack… well, stupid Jack is just there. Always.

Wilson's clear, honest writing crackles through this moving tale. Her expertly drawn characters, full of human flaws, sharpen a potentially sentimental story. This absorbing novel packs an emotional punch which should satisfy Wilson's many fans, old and new.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Marty is an imaginative, untidy tomboy who loves spending time in her room drawing cartoons of her superhero - Mighty Mart. But sometimes she thinks her friends and family would prefer her to be more like her big sister Melissa who is always clean and tidy and loves anything and everything pink and girly.

Marty and Melissa just about manage to get along until they are forced to share a bedroom when Mum needs extra room for her new business. Soon they are fighting every day, and to make things worse, Marty finds herself in trouble at school too. But when Melissa is hurt in an unexpected accident, Marty realises just how much her sister really means to her.

All fans of Jacqueline Wilson's warm-hearted family stories are sure to enjoy this enjoyable tale of the ups and downs of a relationship between two very different sisters, accompanied by Nick Sharratt's much-loved illustrations.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'

Ellie hasn't ever thought much about her size, or how much she weighs - until Nadine has a chance to become a cover girl for a teen magazine, and Ellie begins comparing herself with her friends. Tall, slender Nadine and glamorous Magda are both drop-dead-gorgeous, and Ellie feels like the ugly duckling. She decides to go on a diet and even to take up exercise, much to her teachers' amazement, but soon gets carried away with her plan to lose weight. Ellie's friends and family voice their concerns - but it's schoolfriend Zoe who finally helps Ellie to realise why she has to stop her obsession with being skinny.

Jacqueline Wilson's popular Girls series continues with this engaging and readable story, which touches on a range of issues relating to body image, and will particularly appeal to younger teenage and pre-teen girls. As always, Wilson manages to balance humour with a thoughtful approach to the challenges of growing up, bringing a distinctive lightness to a serious subject.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

It's 1953, and Elizabeth is about to be crowned Queen of England. Elsie's mother works as a showgirl in a theatre, so Elsie lives with her lovely Nan, and they dream of attending the coronation together. But then tragedy strikes - Nan gets TB and is taken into a sanatorium. It's a double shock for Elsie when she discovers she has TB too.

   
Elsie must spend several months in a leg-brace, confined to bed, in a specialist children’s hospital. But at the hospital, she finds solace through new friendships with those around her - including Queenie, the hospital's majestic white cat - and finds inventive ways to entertain the other children on the ward.

Jacqueline Wilson demonstrates the power of storytelling in this historical novel, which lovingly recreates the 1950s in full period detail.

Children's Laureate 2005-2007
Jacqueline Wilson was born in Bath in 1945, and spent her childhood in Kingston-on-Thames, Surrey, where she still lives today. She started her writing career as a teenage journalist with D.C. Thompson, writing for the teenage magazine Jackie which was named after her. Today her popular books for children have sold millions of copies and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Jacqueline's books include The Story of Tracy Beaker, which has become a hugely successful BBC TV series; Girls in Love, which together with its two sequels was filmed for ITV television; and Double Act, which she adapted for Channel 4 and which won the Royal TV Society's Best Children's Fiction Award. As the fourth Children's Laureate (2005-2007) she promoted the importance of sharing books, and reading aloud together.

Visit Jacqueline's website

Nick liked drawing from an early age. 'When I was nine,' he says, 'a picture that I'd drawn at school was pinned up in the hall, and the husband of one of the teachers saw it and offered me five pounds to do a similar picture for him. That's when I decided I was going to be a professional artist one day! I nearly always drew in felt tip pens then, and I liked drawing big crowd scenes. I'd start in the bottom left-hand corner of the paper and just let the picture grow, telling myself stories about each of the characters in turn as I drew them.'