The Battle for Castle Cockatrice

The Battle for Castle Cockatrice
Author: Gerald Durrell
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 208
Release: 1999-06-04
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 9780064407809

What do you get when you cross a bunch of odious toads and ornery fire-breathing birds with one parrot, a distressed dragon, a group of weasels, a troop of mermaids, a herd of unicorns, a band of gryphons, and three children? When Penelope, Simon, and Peter go to the beach, they get a surprise they'll never forget. A package washes ashore and begins to speak! The children open it up to reveal a talking parrot and spider who were kidnapped and sent away. Their home is Mythologia, where sunrise takes place all day long and magical creatures like Mooncalves and Will-o'-the-Wisps lived peacefully--until the evil Cockatrices decided to take over. And now the new rulers are threatening to turn it into a land of cruelty and fear. It's only a matter of time before the Cockatrices become all powerful. So with the help of a counterspy toad, Penelope, Simon, and Peter decide to do everything they can to help overthrow the wicked birds. But will they be able to survive a trip to Mythologia's scariest places and defeat the evil Cockatrices? For Penelope, Simon, and Peter, a day at the beach is the beginning of an unforgettable adventure. A big brown package washes ashore and begins to speak! Imprisoned inside are Parrot and his companion Ducibelle, a spider, exiles from the land of Mythologia, where magical creatures like unicorns, dragons, and mermaids live together happilyuntil the villainous cockatrices (half serpent, half rooster) take over and enslave the entire population. Can the children help defeat the evil cockatrices and restore peace to Mythologia?A charming, whimsical tour-de-force, The Battle for Castle Cockatrice is a classic story that fantasy readers will welcome back into print.A marvelously created fantasy. The Horn Book

The Talking Parcel

The Talking Parcel
Author: Gerald Durrell
Publisher:
Total Pages: 190
Release: 1974
Genre: Children's stories
ISBN: 9780006712183

Do. Fail. Learn. Repeat.

Do. Fail. Learn. Repeat.
Author: Nicholas Haralambous
Publisher: Jonathan Ball Publishers
Total Pages: 186
Release: 2018-06-25
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0639926436

Are you bored and baffled by spin doctors telling you how to succeed, how to make $1 000 000 or how to build the best business in just 30 days? Everyone claims to have the next best short cut or hack to help you along the path of entrepreneurship. It's all bullshit. In his business autobiography Do. Fail. Learn. Repeat. Nicholas Haralambous discusses the truth about the last 15 years of his entrepreneurial journey. ANYONE CAN START SOMETHING. Nic openly discusses his failures and sacrifices over the past decade and a half spent building businesses. There is advice all over the place about the rules to follow if you want to succeed, the do's and don'ts of running a company, the how-to of how-to do this, that or the next thing. There are also many personalities out there telling young entrepreneurs to hustle non-stop, risk everything and never sleep if they want success. YOUR CHANCE OF FAILURE IS ALMOST GUARANTEED. No one talks about how hard it is, how lonely it is and how difficult it is to build a business. No one is willing to forgo their ego and be honest. If nothing else, Nic Haralambous is honest about his journey. MOST PEOPLE WON'T LEARN. Nic has lived the hustle; he has pushed through physical pain, mental suffering, business failures, personal torment and relationship strife all in the name of building businesses. ALMOST NO ONE DOES IT AGAIN. Nic decided to write a big book of his failures so that entrepreneurs around the world can begin to understand that it is not always glamorous, easy or fun to build a business. If entrepreneurship is calling you then you absolutely cannot miss out on the truth, behind the business, written by Nic Haralambous.

The Descendants

The Descendants
Author: Kaui Hart Hemmings
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks
Total Pages: 321
Release: 2011-10-04
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0812982959

Now a major motion picture starring George Clooney and directed by Alexander Payne Fortunes have changed for the King family, descendants of Hawaiian royalty and one of the state’s largest landowners. Matthew King’s daughters—Scottie, a feisty ten-year-old, and Alex, a seventeen-year-old recovering drug addict—are out of control, and their charismatic, thrill-seeking mother, Joanie, lies in a coma after a boat-racing accident. She will soon be taken off life support. As Matt gathers his wife’s friends and family to say their final goodbyes, a difficult situation is made worse by the sudden discovery that there’s one person who hasn’t been told: the man with whom Joanie had been having an affair. Forced to examine what they owe not only to the living but to the dead, Matt, Scottie, and Alex take to the road to find Joanie’s lover, on a memorable journey that leads to unforeseen humor, growth, and profound revelations.

The Parcel

The Parcel
Author: Anosh Irani
Publisher: Knopf Canada
Total Pages: 259
Release: 2016-09-06
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0345816765

Finalist for the Writers' Trust Fiction Prize and for the Governor General's Literary Award, this powerful new work, about a transgender sex worker in the red-light district of Bombay who is given an unexpected task, is a gripping literary page-turner--difficult and moving, surprising and tender. Anosh Irani's best novel yet, and his first with Knopf Canada. The Parcel's astonishing heart, soul and unforgettable voice is Madhu--born a boy, but a eunuch by choice--who has spent most of her life in a close-knit clan of transgender sex workers in Kamathipura, the notorious red-light district of Bombay. Madhu identifies herself as a "hijra"--a person belonging to the third sex, neither here nor there, man nor woman. Now, at 40, she has moved away from prostitution, her trade since her teens, and is forced to beg to support the charismatic head of the hijra clan, Gurumai. One day Madhu receives a call from Padma Madam, the most feared brothel owner in the district: a "parcel" has arrived--a young girl from the provinces, betrayed and trafficked by her aunt--and Madhu must prepare it for its fate. Despite Madhu's reluctance, she is forced to take the job by Gurumai. As Madhu's emotions spiral out of control, her past comes back to haunt her, threatening to unravel a lifetime's work and identity. This is a dark, devastating but ultimately redemptive novel that promises to be one of the most talked-about publications of the year.

A Parcel for Anna Browne

A Parcel for Anna Browne
Author: Miranda Dickinson
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Total Pages: 529
Release: 2015-09-24
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1447276043

The gift of a lifetime? Anna Browne is an ordinary woman living an ordinary life. Her day job as a receptionist in bustling London isn't exactly her dream, yet she has everything she wants. But someone thinks Anna Browne deserves more . . . When a parcel addressed to Anna Browne arrives, she has no idea who has sent it. Inside she finds a beautiful gift - one that is designed to be seen. And so begins a series of incredible deliveries, each one bringing Anna further out of the shadows and encouraging her to become the woman she was destined to be. As Anna grows in confidence, others begin to notice her - and her life starts to change. But who is sending the mysterious gifts, and why? A Parcel For Anna Browne is an utterly captivating novel by Sunday Times bestselling author Miranda Dickinson.

The Mockery Bird

The Mockery Bird
Author: Gerald Durrell
Publisher:
Total Pages: 280
Release: 1982
Genre: Fiction
ISBN:

The Mockery Bird takes place on a tropical island called Zenkali. The island seems to be populated by the most eccentric people who came there from all around the world, along with the two indigenous tribes, the Fangoua and the Ginka. The Ginkas used to worship a dolphin god, while the Fangouas worshipped a strange avian, the Mockery Bird, which was hunted to extinction by the former French colonizers. Zenkali is ruled by King Tamalawala III, usually referred to as "Kingy" by his people. Peter Foxglove arrives to Zenkali to be the assistant of Hannibal Oliphant, Kingy's Political Advisor. Zenkali, once a British colony, is about to get self-government. They are also planning to construct a military base, an airport and a power station, and this will mean the flooding of a large, unexplored valley, owned by the villainous businessman, Looja. Peter, along with the beautiful Audrey Damien, visits the valley before it is totally destroyed, and makes a fantastic discovery: a small population of Mockery Birds still live in the valley. Peter's discovery attracts the attention of the world press, environmentalists, politicians and businessmen from all around the world, and this leads to a couple of adventures. Finally, Professor Droom, a biologist, discovers that the main and only agricultural product of Zenkali, the Amela tree is ecologically linked to the Mockery Birds (explained below), so the flooding of the valley will make the island's economy collapse. Consequently, the construction of the airport is cancelled.

My Family and Other Animals

My Family and Other Animals
Author: Gerald Durrell
Publisher: Penguin Books Limited
Total Pages: 307
Release: 2011-04-07
Genre: Corfu Island (Greece)
ISBN: 9780241951460

'What we all need,' said Larry, 'is sunshine . . . a country where we can grow.' 'Yes, dear, that would be nice,' agreed Mother, not really listening. 'I had a letter from George this morning - he says Corfu's wonderful. Why don't we pack up and go to Greece?' 'Very well, dear, if you like,' said Mother unguardedly. Escaping the ills of the British climate, the Durrell family - acne-ridden Margo, gun-toting Leslie, bookworm Lawrence and budding naturalist Gerry, along with their long-suffering mother and Roger the dog - take off for the island of Corfu. But the Durrells find that, reluctantly, they must share their various villas with a menagerie of local fauna - among them scorpions, geckos, toads, bats and butterflies. Recounted with immense humour and charm My Family and Other Animals is a wonderful account of a rare, magical childhood. 'Durrell has an uncanny knack of discovering human as well as animal eccentricities' Sunday Telegraph

The Talking Parcel

The Talking Parcel
Author: Gerald Durrell
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 190
Release: 1974-01-01
Genre: Animals, Mythical
ISBN: 9780001848283

Three children travel to the land of mythical animals and try to save it from the evil Cockatrices.

Book Review Index

Book Review Index
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 460
Release: 1984
Genre: Books
ISBN:

Every 3rd issue is a quarterly cumulation.