Bøker av Leon Garfield

One stormy December night some time in the eighteenth century, a coach came thundering down the long hill outside of Dorking on its usual journey into London. But something unusual was to happen that night as one of the passengers unexpectedly gave birth to a child.Not until he was eight did Sam Chichester discover that the coachman and guard he called 'Ma and 'Pa' were not his real parents. Sam will need to grow up, leave home, and find love before he will finally uncover the truth about his parentage.

Two boys, Lewis and Richard, travel to paris in 1789 for very different reasons, and find their ideals challenged in the events of the French Revolution and the September massacre.

'When you take out the heart of gold, you must put something back in its place. Otherwise our princess would die.'Giorgio, a poor student, sets out on a journey to win the heart of Princess Charlotte of Oberweselberg. On the way an old woman promises he shall have the princess - but for a price. Giorgio must bring her the princess's golden heart. Can he do the wicked deed which will possess for him the fortune he desires?

In a cave on the wild side of St James's Park live two ragged children; young Nick and his nine-year-old sister Jubilee. Once they had a father, but now they are alone and Nick knows it is his responsibility to find Jubilee a husband. But who would want to marry a girl who can neither cook nor sew, read nor write?

Secrets whispered up a chimney, a golden locket with a broken chain, murder in the streets of London and suddenly young Barnacle is plunged into a terrifying mystery. The December Rose is a thrilling tale of deceit, espionage and murder set in the teeming, colourful Victorian London.

'As far as the eye can see, scarlet men are marching . . . A rich and splendid company, but none more so than the drummer boy.'But a moment later, the sound of Charlie Samson's drum was swallowed in a wild thunder. The glorious scarlet troops had been ambushed. Men were dead and dying all around, and all the beauty was gone. All that was left was himself and his drum, and a few shady nightwalkers - cowards who came crawling from the ditches and knaves who scoured the dead for wealth . . .

'Him what's born on the chime . . . he's the one what'll have communications with the devil.'At the age of fourteen, 'chime-child' Peter Gannet is apprenticed to a locksmith in Covent Garden. But his desperate longing to escape from the insufferable adults around him and go to sea leads him into some dubious undertakings. Before long, the old ship's carpenter's dire prophecy comes true, for in the locksmith's workroom he meets a phantom with an empty sleeve.Tense and atmospheric, this is a gripping thriller about ghosts, a wall of hands, envy, dishonesty and finally murder!

The Confidence Man follows 14-year-old Hans Ruppert and a band of Protestants as they leave their home town and seek peace and freedom from Persecution in the New World. They are led by a mysterious hussar, who has offered to lead then to safety. To Hans he is a fascinating figure, but to the others he is a swindler, likely to abandon them at any moment.

Young Smith was a pickpocket - a very accomplished one. But one day his pick-pocketing was to lead him into a sinister and dangerous web of murder, intrigue and betrayal.

Eastward in Clerkenwell lies the Mulberry Pleasure Garden: six acres of leafy walks, colonnades and pavillions. In this bosky setting parade a variety of characters of awesome granduer, innocence and evil - and all are subject to a ring of blackmail terror.

Leon Garfield and Edward Blishen retells some of the most famous Greek myths in this classic of children's literature. This is the epic history of the Greek Gods told from their violent beginnings to the creation of man.

Discover timeless favourites from The Jungle Book and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland to modern classics such as The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

Mr Corbett is a cruel employer and his young apprentice Benjamin can't help but wish he were dead. So when a strange old man offers to make this wish come true, Benjamin finds it impossible to refuse. Sure enough, Mr Corbett meets an untimely death, but the tables turn on the terrified apprentice who finds himself cursed with the ghost of the man he hated most in the world . . .A brilliant collection of three short stories from a master story-teller, who will keep you turning the pages until the very end.

Across the continents of the ancient world wandered the Storyteller, enchanting all who heard him with his wondrous tales of the gods. He longed for a glimpse of the all-powerful deities of his stories, and listened eagerly to those who had experiences such encounters. And interwoven with his journey is the story of Heracles a magnificent story with all the intense drama and high tragedy of the Greek Myths.

Set in the streets of London, the story follows the hopes and aspirations of young Tim and his pet monkey, Pistol, as they use their wits to get money out of rich folk. Their apparent success is brought to a halt one disasterous foggy evening , and Tim and Pistol are led off to Newgate Gaol . . .

On the night that Piggot s Comet will appear over Brighton, the town plan to honour it with music and dancing. Harris, however, has other ideas. Being scientifically minded, he thinks only of observing the comet in detail. He persuades his good friend Bostock to part with his father s telescope in exchange for the affections of Harris s sister, Mary. Unfortunately, as Mary does not care for Bostock, Harris is forced to apply his powerful mind to the problems of courtship and love.

Life in eighteenth-century London was hard and especially so for the city's apprentices. For seven long years they struggled for their livelihoods among the fetid houses and sinister quays of old London. But despite their hardships there was hope and even fun.This compelling story-cycle follows them round the year, through the dark, cold winter nights to midsummer in the city, The lamplighter, the pawnbroker, the midwife or the clockmaker, their stories interweave delightfully to paint a colourful picture of life in London 200 years ago.

Harris and Bostock are best friends, but they are as different from one another as night and day. Harris thinks up harebrained schemes and Bostock gets in trouble for them.When Harris puts his baby sister Adelaide in the woods to see if she will be adopted by a fox, little do they realize that they are starting a chain of events that will be remembered in their little seaside town as the Strange Affair of Adelaide Harris.

A bargain of a lifetime - seven years off the end of his life in exchange for a fortune now!By day, Mr Fast was a solicitor s clerk, drawing up strangle-tight agreements and contracts. By night he repaired to his rooms to spy upon his neighbours (for he had no friends) and to dream of being richer than other men. But when old Mr FIshbane offers him what he most desires in return for seven years off the end of his life, he could never imagine the little lost spectre that will come to haunt him . . .Another remarkable novel from Leon Garfield.

One of a series which offers classic and contemporary fiction for schools to suit a range of ages and tastes this book contains adaptations of "Macbeth", "Romeo and Juliet", "A Midsummer Night's Dream", "Twelfth Night", "The Merchant of Venice" and "The Tempest".

Contains twelve Shakespeare plays in narrative form. This book presents an introduction to Shakespeare for the young.