Elizabeth Laird retells a beautiful set of folk stories from East Africa and the Middle East. These stories in this collection have travelled across countries, survived through centuries, been retold by generations and have found their way into this book. They are stories of tricks and jokes, leopards and goats, heroes and fools, sorrows and joys - each one of them a perfectly formed gem. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the world's best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children.The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book.Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Original / British English Simon Simple is going on holiday and the police are looking for a spy. On the train, Simon meets a beautiful girl. He likes her and she likes him. But the spy is there too. Simon and the police can't see the spy. Can you?

Eleven-year-old Solomon loves to run The Ethiopian national team are his heroes and he dreams of being a gold-medal winner like themt. When his grandfather announces he's going to take Solomon to Addis Ababa, Solomon cannot believe his ears. His joy increases when he realizes that the Ethiopian running team will be in the city that day. But as Solomon follows his grandfather through the city, he learns something he cannot believe. The strict old man is a war hero who once risked his life to save a friend, and has been in hiding ever since. When grandfather collapses, Solomon must make a 20-mile run to home, his grandfather's life hanging in the balance. Can he do it?

Beatrice's mum has asked her to take a bunch of bananas to Grandad. On her path through the jungle, Beatrice meets a giraffe who accidentally flicks them into a stream. Whoops! But the giraffe picks some flowers for Beatrice to take instead. As her journey continues flowers are swapped for honey, honey is swapped for some mangoes . . . and so it goes on until a friendly elephant swaps a feather for . . . a beautiful bunch of bananas! A lovely circular story, based onan African folktale, about family, friendship, and teamwork. Written by best-selling author Elizabeth Laird, and illustrated by Liz Pichon, creator of Tom Gates.

In Elizabeth Laird's A Little Piece of Ground, twelve-year-old Karim Aboudi and his family are trapped in their Ramallah home by a strict curfew. Israeli tanks control the city in response to a Palestinian suicide bombing. Karim longs to play football with his mates - being stuck inside with his teenage brother and fearful parents is driving him crazy. When the curfew ends, he and his friend discover an unused patch of ground that's the perfect site for a football pitch. Nearby, an old car hidden intact under bulldozed buildings makes a brilliant den. But in this city there's constant danger, even for schoolboys. And when Israeli soldiers find Karim outside during the next curfew, it seems impossible that he will survive . . .

Do you ever wonder whether cats know a bit more than people night think? The cats in these stories in When a Cat Ruled the World do...Captivating versions of some of the best myths and legends from around the world. TreeTops Myths and Legends are fascinating and action-packed stories that will motivate and inspire readers. These are some of the oldest and most enduring stories in the world, retold by leading contemporary children's authors to bring out all of the action, drama, humour and depth of the original stories in a way that makes them as exciting and meaningful today as ever. The stories are beautifully illustrated ina range of styles to bring each tale to life.Books contain inside cover notes to support children in their reading. Help with children's reading development also available at www.oxfordowl.co.uk.The books are finely levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book.

Have you ever wondered about dogs and noticed their bravery, their curiosity, their sense of mischief and their loyalty? The stories in Why Dogs Have Black Noses explain many mysteries about dogs.Captivating versions of some of the best myths and legends from around the world. TreeTops Myths and Legends are fascinating and action-packed stories that will motivate and inspire readers. These are some of the oldest and most enduring stories in the world, retold by leading contemporary children's authors to bring out all of the action, drama, humour and depth of the original stories in a way that makes them as exciting and meaningful today as ever. The stories are beautifully illustrated ina range of styles to bring each tale to life.Books contain inside cover notes to support children in their reading. Help with children's reading development also available at www.oxfordowl.co.uk.The books are finely levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book.

Inspired by the true story of an African childhood lived on the edge of destitution, award-winning Elizabeth Laird's The Garbage King takes readers on an unforgettable emotional journey.When Mamo's mother dies, he is abandoned in the shanties of Addis Ababa. Stolen by a child-trafficker and sold to a farmer, he is cruelly treated. Escaping back to the city, he meets another, very different runaway. Dani is rich, educated - and fleeing his tyrannical father. Together they join a gang of homeless street boys who survive only by mutual bonds of trust and total dependence on each other.

Twelve-year-old Anna is looking forward to the birth of her baby brother. Ben arrives, but is disabled and will never be like other children. Anna loves him with her whole heart, but she finds herself unable to admit the truth of Ben's condition to her school friends. Eventually the truth gets out and leads not to the ridicule Anna expected, but to sympathy and understanding.An emotional and wonderfully written story by Elizabeth Laird, Red Sky in the Morning was Highly Commended for the Carnegie Medal.

Oranges in No Man's Land brings Elizabeth Laird's emotional and gripping adventure to her next generation of fans. Since her father left Lebanon to find work and her mother tragically died in a shell attack, ten-year-old Ayesha has been living in the bomb-ravaged city of Beirut with her granny and her two younger brothers. The city has been torn in half by civil war and a desolate, dangerous no man's land divides the two sides. Only militiamen and tanks dare enter this deadly zone, but when Granny falls desperately ill, Ayesha sets off on a terrifying journey to reach a doctor living in enemy territory.

What's the good in keeping secrets?Secret Friends is a heartbreaking story about friendship and bullying from the multi-award-winning Elizabeth Laird. Rafaella doesn't find it easy to make friends. She looks and feels different from the others at school. And Lucy is the first to tease, the first to call her 'Earwig', until they get to know one another and Lucy sees that Rafaella is full of hopes and ideas, just like she is. Lucy loves keeping her own secret friend, until tragedy strikes and secrets can't be kept any longer.Shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal and the Children's Book Award and reissued with gorgeous illustrations, more than twenty years after first publication, Elizabeth Laird's moving and unflinching novella brings home the crucial importance of cultivating empathy in young people.'[A] humane and honest story. It conveys so much, so simply and so well' Scotsman'[A] fine weepy with a moral, about the dangers of playground cliquishness and cruelty' The Sunday Times

På vei hjem til England fra biltur i Frankrike, stopper Peter og familien på en rasteplass. Der finner Peter en hule som han vil undersøke nærmere. I mellomtiden kjører familien hans avgårde, uten å ha merket at han er borte. Nå må han klare seg selv, i et fremmed land, uten penger og mat.

En viktig roman for barn - som i et vakkert og dempet språk får fram det meningsløse ved krig. Etter at moren hennes døde i en granateksplosjon, og faren hennes leter etter arbeid i utlandet, har Ayesha bodd i en krigsherjet bygning sammen med bestemoren sin og de to småbrødrene. Nå har bestemors medisin tatt slutt, og det ser ut til at hun også kommer til å dø. Men Ayesha vil ikke la det skje. Hun vil gjøre hva som helst for å finne en lege til henne. Til og med å foreta en forbudt reise gjennom det farlige og øde ingenmannslandet ... En viktig og tematisk tung roman for barn. Forfatteren mestrer kunsten å skildre dramatiske krigssituasjoner og smertefull erkjennelse uten å ty til politiske pekefingre, sentimentalitet og overdrevne virkemidler. Derimot er boken skrevet med et krystallklart, vakkert og dempet språk, som i desto større grad får frem stemningsfylte skildringer av det meningsløse ved krig.

A powerful story about the importance of ocean conservation and looking after your environment from the award-winning author, Elizabeth Laird.

There's a monster hiding under the bed! This classic bedtime fear is hilariously brought to life by award-winning author Elizabeth Laird and Finnish illustrator Jenny Luncander. Amir thinks that a monster will come and eat him up! And maybe the monster will have a mum and dad too! But Dad reassures Amir that if the monster family comes to play, then the parents will have a good old chat whilst Amir makes a new friend.

Welcome to Nowhere is a powerful and beautifully written story about the life of one family caught up in civil war by the award-winning author Elizabeth Laird, shortlisted for the Scottish Teen Book Award and winner of the UKLA Book Award.Twelve-year-old Omar and his brothers and sisters were born and raised in the beautiful and bustling city of Bosra, Syria. Omar doesn't care about politics - all he wants is to grow up to become a successful businessman who will take the world by storm. But when his clever older brother, Musa, gets mixed up with some young political activists, everything changes . . . Before long, bombs are falling, people are dying, and Omar and his family have no choice but to flee their home with only what they can carry. Yet no matter how far they run, the shadow of war follows them - until they have no other choice than to attempt the dangerous journey to escape their homeland altogether. But where do you go when you can't go home?'[Sings] with truth' The Times'A muscular, moving, thought-provoking book' Guardian'Humane and empathetic . . . an effective call to action' The Sunday Times'Powerful, heart-breaking and compelling' Scotsman

Bored with her little brother Pog's childish games, Dindy decides that she's finally grown-up enough for a real adventure. While her mother is sleeping and the servants are busy, she takes Pog deep into the tea gardens, a place they are never supposed to go alone. Terrified by wild animals and snubbed by the local children, Dindy starts to realize how little she really knows about India, even though it's the only place she's ever called home. But little does she know her life is about to be turned upside down when her mother is taken ill and her father tells her they are leaving India, for good. This is a wonderful portrait of a young British child coming to terms with leaving her beloved childhood home, while at the same time realizing that many of the things she has been raised to believe are wrong.

Tara is an ordinary teenager. Although her country, Kurdistan, is caught up in a war, the fighting seems far away. It hasn't really touched her. Until now. The secret police are closing in. Tara and her family must flee to the mountains with only the few things they can carry. It is a hard and dangerous journey--but their struggles have only just begun. Will anywhere feel like home again?

Jake is an unhappy little boy whose dream is to live in a tower, protected by a moat and a drawbridge. His room would be at the tower's very top, where he would always be safe and happy. In real life, Jake is never safe and he's seldom happy. He is often beaten by his mother's boyfriend, and his real father is somewhere far away. All Jake knows is that his real father gave him a cuddle and a fluffy duck on the day he was born, then went away, never to return. But that was many years ago. Finally, life becomes so unbearable for both Jake and his mother that they run away, seeking protection at the home of a formidable grandmother who has always refused to acknowledge Jake's existence.

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