The Skylarks War

A Boston Globe Best Book of 2018 A Horn Book Best Book of 2018 “Vivid, hilarious, and heartbreaking.” —Elizabeth Wein, New York Times bestselling author of Code Name Verity “The best children’s book I’ve read this year.” —Katherine Rundell, Boston Globe–Horn Book Award–winning author of Cartwheeling in Thunderstorms “A near-miraculous balance of light and joyous touch with sometimes serious and even heartbreaking material.” —BCCB (starred review) From award-winning author Hilary McKay comes a “wholly satisfying” (Booklist, starred review) story full of wit, heartbreak, and hope as a girl fights for her independence during World War I. Clarry Penrose finds the good in everyone. Even in her father, who isn’t fond of children, and especially girls. He doesn’t worry about her education, because he knows she won’t need it. It’s the early twentieth century, and the only thing girls are expected to do is behave. But Clarry longs for a life of her own. She wants to dive off cliffs and go swimming with her brother Peter and cousin Rupert. And more than anything, she wants an education. She helps Peter with his homework all the time, so why can’t she manage it by herself? When war breaks out, Clarry is shocked to find that Rupert has enlisted. Then he is declared missing, and Clarry is devastated. Now she must take a momentous step into the wide world—for if she misses this chance, she may never make it. This is an inspirational, funny, and heartwarming story about a girl who dares to open doors that the world would rather keep closed.

Winner of the Costa Children’s Book Award. The Skylarks' War is a beautiful story following the loves and losses of a family growing up against the harsh backdrop of World War One, from the award-winning Hilary McKay. Clarry and her older brother Peter live for their summers in Cornwall, staying with their grandparents and running free with their charismatic cousin, Rupert. But normal life resumes each September – boarding school for Peter and Rupert, and a boring life for Clarry at home with her absent father, as the shadow of a terrible war looms ever closer. When Rupert goes off to fight at the front, Clarry feels their skylark summers are finally slipping away from them. Can their family survive this fearful war? 'This belongs among the classic of children’s literature . . . Funny, sad, warm, it is about growing up and finding what you love.' – The Sunday Times, Children’s Book of the Week

"Originally published in Great Britain in 2021 by Pan Macmillan."

Five starred reviews! “An instant classic.” —The New York Times Book Review From award-winning author Hilary McKay comes “a memorable family story” (Booklist, starred review) about a girl adjusting to her new home—with the help of a little magic. When Abi’s father marries Max and Louis’s mom, their families start over together. Abi suddenly finds herself the middle child, expected to share far too much—especially with grubby little Louis. Then they move into an eerie, ivy-covered house, big enough for all of them. But for the children, strange things start to happen in that house. Abi reads alone, and finds herself tumbling so deep into books, they almost seem real. Louis summons comfort from outdoors, and a startling guest arrives—is it a cat or something else? Max loses his best friend…and falls in love. Meanwhile, Louis’s secret visitor is becoming much too real. Now Abi, Max, and Louis must uncover the secrets of their new home—for there can be danger in even the most beautiful magic. From award-winning author Hilary McKay comes a story that is at once enchanting and thrilling—if you don’t get lost in it first.

Saffy's Angel was the winner of the 2002 Whitbread Award and is the first novel in Hilary McKay's hilarious Casson Family series. After Saffron discovers that she's adopted, life is never quite the same. Her artistic parents and doting siblings adore her, but Saffy wants a piece of her past. So when her grandfather bequests her a stone angel – a relic from the childhood she never knew – Saffy knows she has to find it. Realizing that Siena holds the key, she stows away on a car trip to Italy. The rest of the family are engaged in their own wacky projects: Caddy, a hopeless student, is revising for her A levels and desperately trying to pass her driving test. Indigo, the only boy in the Casson family, is determined to rid himself of his fear of heights. And the youngest, Rose, a budding artist, has a knack for baiting her pompous dad, with entertaining results . . . Follow the family's adventures in the rest of the beloved series: Indigo's Star, Permanent Rose, Caddy Ever After, Forever Rose and Caddy's World.

Daisy May Johnson's How to Be Brave is a delightfully zany yet heartwarming middle-grade novel about a young girl who bands together with her boarding school friends to find her missing mother. Calla North and her mother Elizabeth live a quiet but happy life together. Elizabeth happens to be the world's leading expert on ducks—but unfortunately, being an expert on ducks doesn't always pay the bills (no pun intended). When Elizabeth is offered a well-paid research trip to the Amazon, it's an opportunity too good to miss. But while her mother’s off exploring, Calla winds up at boarding school. No adventures are likely to find her there—or so she thinks. Then Calla receives the terrible news that her mother's plane has gone missing. Can Calla, her friends, and a motley crew of nuns defeat an evil new headmistress and find Elizabeth before it’s too late?

From the winner of the Costa Children's Book Award 2018. Binny's life has been difficult since her father died and her dreadful old Aunt Violet disposed of her beloved dog, Max. Her world changed then, to a city flat with not enough space for her Mum, her big sister Clem and her small brother James. Definitely no room for a pet. Then one day Aunt Violet dies, leaving a small cottage in Cornwall to Binny and her family. Binny finds herself in a new world once more, full of sunshine and freedom and Gareth, the enemy-next-door and the ideal companion for dangerous dares. But Max is still lost in the past, and it seems impossible that she'll ever find him again...

Winner of the Guardian Children's Award and first in the highly acclaimed EXILES series. The Conroys are no ordinary family. For a start, they don't have a television. Nor are they allowed to keep pets. And Mr and Mrs Conroy never take their daughters - Ruth, Naomi, Rachel and Phoebe - on holiday. But then Mr and Mrs Conroy inherit £5000, and, to their daughters' dismay, decide to spend it redecorating the house over the summer. So the girls are packed off to Big Grandma's house for the holidays, where lots of chores and horribly long walks await them. At first it seems as though Big Grandma is determined to put a stop to any fun. But, being Conroys, the girls soon find novel ways to entertain themselves, and start having as many adventures and mishaps as usual . . . and after a while, even Big Grandma doesn't seem so bad . . .