And The Clock Struck Thirteen

Stage 4 book of Puddle Lane series; left-hand pages are read by older reader; beginning reader read right-hand pages.

This is the story of Kaurna man Uncle Lewis O'Brien and his family, beginning with his great, great grandmother Kudnarto - the first Aboriginal woman to marry a white man in South Australia.

"Tom is not prepared for what is about to happen when he hears the grandfather clock strike thirteen. Outside the back door is a garden, which everyone tells him does not exist."--Page 4 de la couverture.

"Nineteen Eighty-Four: A Novel", often published as "1984", is a dystopian social science fiction novel by English novelist George Orwell. It was published on 8 June 1949 by Secker & Warburg as Orwell's ninth and final book completed in his lifetime. Thematically, "Nineteen Eighty-Four" centres on the consequences of totalitarianism, mass surveillance, and repressive regimentation of persons and behaviours within society. Orwell, himself a democratic socialist, modelled the authoritarian government in the novel after Stalinist Russia. More broadly, the novel examines the role of truth and facts within politics and the ways in which they are manipulated. The story takes place in an imagined future, the year 1984, when much of the world has fallen victim to perpetual war, omnipresent government surveillance, historical negationism, and propaganda. Great Britain, known as Airstrip One, has become a province of a totalitarian superstate named Oceania that is ruled by the Party who employ the Thought Police to persecute individuality and independent thinking. Big Brother, the leader of the Party, enjoys an intense cult of personality despite the fact that he may not even exist. The protagonist, Winston Smith, is a diligent and skillful rank-and-file worker and Outer Party member who secretly hates the Party and dreams of rebellion. He enters into a forbidden relationship with a colleague, Julia, and starts to remember what life was like before the Party came to power.

"What an amazing theme park," Dad exclaimed. "Let's go home." And so, ironically, begins the greatest family adventure of a lifetime! Ten-year-old Ben has arrived at that dreadful moment in life where one wonders whether having a childlike imagination is, well... just too childish. In fact, it wasn't long ago that he loved going to theme parks. Honestly, he really... did. But now: 1) Ben's favorite park has magically imprisoned him, 2) the attractions within it have become, shall we say, "alive," 3) their characters have put him on trial for a ridiculous yet perplexing shortcoming, 4) an alien vacuum cleaner intends to bulldoze Earth into a planetary theme park, and 5) if Ben, his sister, and his irritating cousin don't escape by the time the menacing clock tower strikes thirteen, they are doomed to become pieces of the park themselves. (Watch Out For) Thirteen O'Clock is a joyride of adventure, wordplay, and comedy meant for all ages but targeting the middle-grade reader. Set inside the many "lands" of the world-famous Spooky Times theme park, this rollicking odyssey features characters like the bumbling secret Agent Whoops, the decidedly unhelpful Annoying Seagull, the barbaric Flying Vikings (who love bashing in heads only a little less than singing a catchy chart-topper), the Wishy-Washy Witches (all of whom are sort of evil but not really...it just depends), the superhero Wormest (whose superpowers last only as long as nobody informs him he has them), and Prosto: the Automated-Vacuum-Cleaner-But-Aspiring-Intergalactic-Conqueror! Between the action and humor is a heartwarming story about what family means, whether growing up to "be cool" demands leaving your childlike imagination behind, and why you should never let seven proboscis monkeys represent you in a trial before the alligator queen. (Don't scoff. Ben found it quite made sense at the time.)

Neil Gaiman's Coraline meets Stranger Things in a dark and twisted story about a sleepy town with a dark secret--and the three kids brave enough to uncover it. Every thirteen years in the town of Eden Eld, three thirteen-year-olds disappear. Eleanor has just moved to the quiet, prosperous Eden Eld. When she awakes to discover an ancient grandfather clock that she's never seen before outside her new room, she's sure her eyes must be playing tricks on her. But then she spots a large bird, staring at her as she boards the school bus. And a black dog with glowing red eyes follows her around town. All she wants is to be normal, and these are far from normal. And worse--no one else can see them. Except for her new friends, Pip and Otto, who teach her a thing or two about surviving in Eden Eld. First: Don't let the "wrong things" know you can see them. Second: Don't speak of the wrong things to anyone else. The only other clue they have about these supernatural disturbances is a book of fairytales unlike any they've read before. It tells tales of the mysterious Mr. January, who struck a cursed deal with the town's founders. Every thirteenth Halloween, he will take three of their children, who are never heard from again. It's up to our trio to break the curse--because Eden Eld's thirteen years are up. And Eleanor, Pip, and Otto are marked as his next sacrifice.

An orphan and thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy train station. He desperately believes a broken automaton will make his dreams come true. But when his world collides with an eccentric girl and a bitter old man, Hugo's undercover life are put in jeopardy. Turn the pages, follow the illustrations and enter an unforgettable new world!

The work of a young woman doing research on "1984" and on a period of Orwell's life when he apparently "disappeared" takes on critical implications as an American executive carries on his plans for an interactive cable television network