Michelle Magorian Bücher

It's 1945. World War II has just ended and twelve-year-old Rusty comes back home to Britain after being evacuated to the US. The greyness and bleakness of life in England is a shock, but even worse is adapting to the strict discipline of her family, including a brother she's never met, after the warmth and openness of her adopted American family.

Henry misses his father who died a war hero. One day Mrs Beaumont lends Henry a camera for his school project. Henry is disgusted that he's been put in a group with Jeffries, the son of a man who went AWOL, and Pip, who was born illegitimate; but he's about to learn that tolerance and friendship are more important than social stigmas.

The war is over but Elsie is still fighting her own battles. She's bullied because she's the only scholarship pupil at the grammar school, and she has an awkward relationship with her father as he struggles to assume a normal life after fighting in the war. But when she begins working at the local theatre, Elsie discovers she can escape.

It is the summer of 1943 and war continues to rage. For Rose and her sister Diana, it's a time of independence and self-discovery as they find first loves. But when Rose unearths a love story from another war, she realises that wartime intensifies emotions, and maybe she isn't in love with Derry as she first thought she was.

As an evacuee, Ralph received a good education, but after the war Ralph's working-class father resents his education and his ambition to be an actor, and is furious when Ralph is sacked from the paper mill. The story traces Ralph's struggle to reconcile the disparate strands of his life.

Henry, missing his war hero father, is frustrated to be grouped with Jeffries and Pip for a school project. Through the experience, he discovers that tolerance and friendship matter more than social stigmas.

12-year-old Josie attends a finishing-style stage school where she is firmly told she has no acting ability. Fortunately she finds herself cast by a boy in an American comedy - but mistaken for the star she is kidnapped and imprisoned in a dockside warehouse. Managing to escape, she and a fellow runaway take refuge in the Theatre Royal, Stratford. They are offered work by the legendary Joan Littlewood, founder of the Theatre Workshop Company. Much to Josie's surprise this leads to a role in a Saturday-morning film. However, the kidnappers haven't given up yeat and they are on Josie's trail.

Absolutely charming Little Gem about changing families and new siblings, from Carnegie Medalist Michelle Magorian with illustrations by Sam Usher. High quality cream paper and a special easy to read font ensure a smooth read for all.