Strawberry Thief

DISAPPEAR INTO THE WORLD OF THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING CHOCOLAT . . . 'So wise, so atmospheric, so beautifully written' Marian Keyes 'The most magical, stunningly beautiful novel' Joanna Cannon 'It will intrigue and charm readers every bit as much as Chocolat' Monica Ali --------------------------- Faith. Secret. Magic. Murder...? Vianne Rocher has settled down. Lansquenet-sous-Tannes, the place that once rejected her, has finally become her home. With Rosette, her youngest child, she runs her chocolate shop in the square, talks to her friends on the river, is part of the community. Even Reynaud, the priest, has become a friend. But when old Narcisse, the florist, dies, leaving a parcel of land to Rosette and a written confession to Reynaud, the life of the sleepy village is once more thrown into disarray. Then the opening of a mysterious new shop in the place of the florist's across the square - one that mirrors the chocolaterie, and has a strange appeal of its own - seems to herald a change: a confrontation, a turbulence - even, perhaps, a murder . . . What will the wind blow in today? --------------------------- Return to the world of the multi-million-copy bestselling Chocolat.... 'A writer whose wit and sharp observation enhances her engaging story-telling' Salley Vickers 'The most magical, stunningly beautiful novel . . . I sobbed at the end because I couldn't bear to leave. Joanne is truly one of the world's finest storytellers' Joanna Cannon 'A place of magic and mysteries, and Harris excels in this delicate balance of realism and enchantment . . . It will intrigue and charm readers every bit as much as Chocolat' Monica Ali 'Sheer pleasure from start to finish. The Strawberry Thief is a delight' James Runcie 'I devoured it in one go' Christopher Fowler 'Compelling, captivating, incredibly moving, The Strawberry Thief whirls you into a thrilling world you will never forget . . . A perfect novel that shimmers with brilliance and truth' Kate Williams

When the exotic stranger Vianne Rocher arrives in the old French village of Lansquenet and opens a chocolate boutique called “La Celeste Praline” directly across the square from the church, Father Reynaud identifies her as a serious danger to his flock. It is the beginning of Lent: the traditional season of self-denial. The priest says she’ll be out of business by Easter. To make matters worse, Vianne does not go to church and has a penchant for superstition. Like her mother, she can read Tarot cards. But she begins to win over customers with her smiles, her intuition for everyone’s favourites, and her delightful confections. Her shop provides a place, too, for secrets to be whispered, grievances aired. She begins to shake up the rigid morality of the community. Vianne’s plans for an Easter Chocolate Festival divide the whole community. Can the solemnity of the Church compare with the pagan passion of a chocolate éclair? For the first time, here is a novel in which chocolate enjoys its true importance, emerging as an agent of transformation. Rich, clever, and mischievous, reminiscent of a folk tale or fable, this is a triumphant read with a memorable character at its heart. Says Harris: “You might see [Vianne] as an archetype or a mythical figure. I prefer to see her as the lone gunslinger who blows into the town, has a showdown with the man in the black hat, then moves on relentless. But on another level she is a perfectly real person with real insecurities and a very human desire for love and acceptance. Her qualities too - kindness, love, tolerance - are very human.” Vianne and her young daughter Anouk, come into town on Shrove Tuesday. “Carnivals make us uneasy,” says Harris, “because of what they represent: the residual memory of blood sacrifice (it is after all from the word "carne" that the term arises), of pagan celebration. And they represent a loss of inhibition; carnival time is a time at which almost anything is possible.” The book became an international best-seller, and was optioned to film quickly. The Oscar-nominated movie, with its star-studded cast including Juliette Binoche (The English Patient) and Judi Dench (Shakespeare in Love), was directed by Lasse Hallstrom, whose previous film The Cider House Rules (based on a John Irving novel) also looks at issues of community and moral standards, though in a less lighthearted vein. The idea for the book came from a comment her husband made one day while he was immersed in a football game on TV. “It was a throwaway comment, designed to annoy and it did. It was along the lines of...Chocolate is to women what football is to men…” The idea stuck, and Harris began thinking that “people have these conflicting feelings about chocolate, and that a lot of people who have very little else in common relate to chocolate in more or less the same kind of way. It became a kind of challenge to see exactly how much of a story I could get which was uniquely centred around chocolate.” Rich with metaphor and gorgeous writing...sit back and gorge yourself on Chocolat.

Pursued by the determined Strawberry Snatcher, who silently, steadily, stealthily stalks her on her way home, the Grey Lady manages to elude her pursuer in marvelously improbable ways

Teresa doesn't like being blamed for the farm's missing strawberries, but who is behind it? A Different Life Moving to a different town can be hard, but Sofia and Omar must move to a different country! How will they and their parents find it? The Travellers series has the lowest reading level of all our reluctant reader collections - age 5-8. The stories are incredibly short - only 100-300 words each, and each book in the set of 14 titles contains 2-3 stories. Collecting the stories in this way gives more of an appearance of a 'real' book even though the stories are bite-sized, which helps to make the reader feel less self-conscious that they are reading something 'specialised'. The language level throughout this set of books is very low, and features such as short sentences, line spacing and illustrations help to create an encouraging experience for the reader.

ISSN: 2397-9607 Issue 359 In this 359th issue of the Baba Indaba’s Children's Stories series, Baba Indaba narrates the Fairy Tale "THE STRAWBERRY THIEF”. Baba Indaba is a fictitious Zulu storyteller who narrates children's stories from around the world. Baba Indaba translates as "Father of Stories". A long time ago and far, far away, the mid-day sun was shining brightly as two children ran merrily down the steep grassy slope leading from the little village to the neighbouring forest. Their loose, scanty clothing left head, neck, and feet bare. But this did not trouble them, for the sun's rays kissed their little round limbs. They were brother and sister; each carried a small jar to fill with strawberries, which their mother would sell in the town on the morrow. They were very poor, almost the poorest people in the village. Their mother, a widow, had to work hard to procure bread for herself and children. When strawberries or nuts were in season, or even the early violets, the children went into the forest to seek them, and by the fruit or flowers they gathered helped to earn many a groschen. The forest berries were still scarce, and would fetch a high price in the town; this is why they started so early in the afternoon, whilst other people still rested in their cool rooms. Deep in the forest was many a spot, well known to the children, where large masses of strawberry plants flourished and bloomed, covering the ground with a luxurious carpet. Very slowly the work proceeded, and as the gathered treasures in their small jars grew higher and higher the sun sank lower and lower. Busy with their task, the children forgot laughter and chattering. When his jar was full, Fried helped little Lorchen fill hers. The task over the children spied at a little distance a small stretch of meadow shimmered through the trees. The bright sunshine still rested on the fresh, green grass, and thousands of daffodils, bluebells, pinks, and forget-me-nots unfolded there their varied beauties. It was a delightful play-place for the children. They hastened thither, placed their jars carefully behind a large tree-trunk, and soon forgot their hard afternoon's work in a merry game Only when the shadows were long did the children feel the cool, wet dew on their bare feet, and hunger began to make itself felt, did they feel the urge to return home. They ran to the tree behind which they had placed their jars, but oh, horror! The jars were no longer there. They searched farther, behind every trunk, behind every bush, but no trace of the jars could they find. Now that night had fallen, they shivered in their thin clothing, and little Lorchen wept with fear, hunger, and fatigue. Fried took his little sister's hand, and said: "Listen, Lorchen: you must run home, it is night now in the forest. Tell mother our jars have disappeared, eat your supper, and go to bed and to sleep. I will remain here and search behind every tree and everywhere, until I find the jars. What happened next you ask…? Well many things happened, some strange, some fun and some serious. Did little Lorchen make it home safely? And did Fried survive the night in the forest? Had someone stolen their precious strawberries, leaving the family to starve? To find the answers to these questions, and others you may have, you will have to download and read this story to find out! BUY ANY 4 BABA INDABA CHILDREN’S STORIES FOR ONLY $1 33% of the profit from the sale of this book will be donated to charities. INCLUDES LINKS TO DOWNLOAD 8 FREE STORIES Each issue also has a "WHERE IN THE WORLD - LOOK IT UP" section, where young readers are challenged to look up a place on a map somewhere in the world. The place, town or city is relevant to the story. HINT - use Google maps.

"A sweet romance set in the tiny town of Pick, Texas, about finding a place to truly call home"--

Someone has stolen all of the ripe strawberries from Mika's garden and the Secret Mystery Club is on the case. Could it be the gardener? Or the neighbor who just made a huge batch of strawberry jam? Whoever it was they won't get far - not with the SMC on their trail.