ICARUS: an ancient Greek legend retold

My latest book, ICARUS, is a retelling of a legend from Ancient Greece.
Published by Oxford University Press
Illustrations by Joe Todd-Stanton

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Daedalus and Icarus are locked in a tower by evil King Midas. How can they get out? Daedalus is watching seagulls flying from the tower window and suddenly thinks of a brilliant but highly risky escape plan .......

Icarus trying out his new wings.

Icarus falling through the air. .

NEW BOOK FOR 2016!


COMING SOON!

Published Cambridge University Press. Illustrations Laura Sua.

Hanna grows a massive pumpkin. She's very proud of it. But it turns into a monster! Can Hanna save the people in her town?

Grandma and the Leopard

GRANDMA AND THE LEOPARD

NEW BOOK! PUBLISHED SEPTEMBER 2015

ILLUSTRATIONS BY GALIA BERNSTEIN

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When Grandma was a little girl in Africa, she got chased and nearly eaten by a leopard! Ava hears Grandma's scary story and becomes terrified of leopards. She won't even go to school, even though there are no leopards where she lives, in case one leaps from a bush and eats her! How can big sister Elise and Grandma save the day?

The Dog of Truth

THE DOG OF TRUTH

NEW BOOK! PUBLISHED SEPTEMBER 2015

ILLUSTRATIONS BY BISTRA MASSEVA

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Cal gets a dog from a rescue centre. Then finds out his new pet has an amazing talent. It can tell when people are lying! At first Cal is thrilled because now he knows when his friends aren't telling him the truth. But then the Dog of Truth starts using its special powers on him!

THE INVASION OF THE VAMPIRE SPIDERS

NEWLY AVAILABLE ON AMAZON AUDIBLE!

ILLUSTRATIONS TONY BLUNDELL

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO A SAMPLE CHAPTER

Cover by Tony Blundell

Vampire spiders should be extinct. They're as big as small dogs and not very bright. They make modern spiders look clever. Millions of years ago they hunted in packs and chased their prey along the ground with big stabbing claws. But somehow they've survived in caves  underneath the creepy and sinister mansion "The Lair."

Illustration by Tony Blundell

Find out what happens when spider fanatic Finn and his big sister Phoebe do battle with them.  Also with the terrible Lady Withers, cruel Victorian Agony Aunt and crusher of servant girls' dreams - who's obsessed with dusting, handwriting and flannel knickerbockers. And who just can't stop giving advice even though she's been dead over a 100 years.

Illustration by Tony Blundell

Also in the story: Lord Withers, author of the famous " Pooter Hunting for Boys", Finn's favourite book.

Sadly, Lord Withers' is now just a crystallized skeleton.

Illustration by Tony Blundell

But his giant Pooter survives, which is convenient for Finn, because it's just the right weapon for catching primitive spiders alive!

Illustration by Tony Blundell

Click here to find out how to make your own pooter

Meet also Dr. Clinton C. Clinton, Finn's hero, TV star and spider psychologist who can talk spider language and who's hiding a terrible secret.

Illustration by Tony Blundell

They're all in this funny, thrilling, creepy tale, "Invasion of the Vampire Spiders"!!

RUN! RUN! IT'S SCARY POO!

 Illustrations are by Charles Fuge

This is a picture book about Tiny Shrew. Here he is:

It's his first time outside his cosy nest. He's got a LOT to learn.

"Right," said Ma Shrew. "Let's get cracking! You need to know how to tell safe poo from scary poo."

"Pardon?" asked Tiny Shrew, puzzled.

"We shrews can't see danger," said Ma Shrew, blinking her poor, weak eyes. "But we can smell it. We just have to sniff some poo and we can tell if it's parrot poo. Or .... PANTHER POO!"

"What do we do if it's panther poo?" asked Tiny Shrew.

"RUN LIKE MAD!" said Ma Shrew.

Problem is, Tiny Shrew can't sniff the difference between safe poo and scary poo. He can't even tell if he's sniffing poo at all! 
He sniffs something.

"It's scary poo, Ma! Run for your life!" shrieked Tiny Shrew.

"Calm down," said Ma. "It's not scary poo. It's a butterfly."
  

 Tiny Shrew sniffs something else.

" AAAARGH! Run Ma! Run for your life!" he screamed. "It's scary panther poo!"
"You just sniffed a toad!" Mum sighed.

Ma and Pa Shrew are really worried. Their son can't smell scary poo. How will he survive in the jungle? 
But then the worst thing happens!
Tiny Shrew lands in a big pile of poo.

But is it safe poo or scary  PANTHER poo?
Tiny Shrew's life depends on knowing the difference!

Read "Run, Run It's Scary Poo!" to find out what happens.

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WOLF MAN

HOW TO BECOME A WEREWOLF

1. Is your Mum or Dad a werewolf? Then you're probably one already so you don't need to read this.
2 Wear a shaman's magical wolf cloak.
3 Drink rainwater at midnight from a werewolf's footprint.
4 Eat a lycanthropous flower. Which is what Ellis does in "WOLF MAN".

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Lycanthropous flowers look like daisies, the old tales tell us. They only bloom at night, they GLOW in the dark. Here's what happens when Ellis eats one:

"Ellis plucked the lycanthropous flower off its furry stem and ate it. He'd expected it to taste foul, like rotting meat. But it tasted sweet, like honey.
Ellis felt his heart beating faster, his blood surging around his body. Curiously, he watched hairs springing from his own skin, first a few bristles, then a thick furry coat. There were seconds of searing agony as his bones crunched or lengthened, his tendons cracked. It seemed like his body was being ripped apart, then reassembled.
He dropped to all fours, opened his mouth in a scream. But only a snarl came out ....."

Click to check out these savage wolf fangs! 

Click to hear a howling wolf pack: