Alan Marks – illustratör

WITH A NEW FOREWORD BY EMMA CARROLL''A touching, utterly convincing book'' JACQUELINE WILSON ''What a deep, dark, deceptively simple, brilliant novel it is'' EMMA CARROLL ''Poignant and realistic . . . Carrie''s War captures the true reality of war for a child, and it doesn''t sentimentalise war'' SHIRLEY HUGHES, GUARDIAN ''I did a dreadful thing, the worst thing of my life, when I was twelve and a half years old, and nothing can change it''When the bombs rain down on London, Carrie and her little brother Nick are evacuated to a small town in the Welsh hills. Without their mother, and away from anything familiar, they must take refuge among strangers. Reluctantly, Mr Evans, the grocer, takes them in, with his kind, timid sister, Aunt Lou. But the children find little comfort in his austere home.Their fellow evacuee, Albert, is luckier, living in a rambling old mansion with Hepzibah Green and Mister Johnny. Hepzibah is rumoured to be a witch, but the children feel safe in her warm kitchen and are spellbound by her stories. Just as Carrie and Nick begin to settle into their new life, something happens that tests their loyalties: will they be persuaded to betray their friends?ILLUSTRATED BY ALAN MARKS

WINNER OF THE GUARDIAN AWARD FOR CHILDREN''S FICTION''Warm and funny, this tale of a pint-size pig and the family he saves will take up a giant space in your heart'' KIRAN MILLWOOD HARGRAVE''What a consummate storymaker Nina Bawden is'' MICHAEL MORPURGO''Nina Bawden is a master at capturing the taste of growing up'' NEW YORK TIMES''D''ya want a peppermint pig, Mrs Greengrass?''Poll looked at the milkman, thinking of sweets, but there was a real pig poking its snout out of the milkman''s coat pocket. It was the tiniest pig she had ever seen. ''What''s a peppermint pig?''''Runt of the litter. Too small for the sow to raise. He''d only get trampled in in the rush.''Mother took the pig from him and held it firmly while it kicked and squealed. ''Well, he seems strong enough. And even runts grow.''''Oh,'' Poll said. ''Oh, Mother.'' She stroked the small, wriggling body. ''Theo,'' she shouted, ''Look what we''ve got!''It is a difficult year for the Greengrasses. Poll''s father has lost his job and gone overseas, the family are living off the charity of two aunts, and Poll and her brother Theo just can''t seem to keep out of trouble. It takes a tiny, mischievous pig to bring laughter back into their lives.This is a collection of the best children''s literature, curated by Virago, and will be coveted by children and adults alike. These are timeless tales with beautiful covers, that will be treasured and shared across the generations. Some titles you will already know; some will be new to you, but there are stories for everyone to love, whatever your age. Our list includes Nina Bawden (Carrie''s War, The Peppermint Pig), Rumer Godden (The Dark Horse, An Episode of Sparrows), Joan Aiken (The Serial Garden, The Gift Giving), E. Nesbit (The Psammead Trilogy, The Bastable Trilogy, The Railway Children), Frances Hodgson Burnett (The Little Princess,The Secret Garden) and Susan Coolidge (The What Katy Did Trilogy). Discover Virago Children''s Classics.

BY THE BELOVED AUTHOR OF CARRIE''S WAR AND THE PEPPERMINT PIG''A subtle and many-layered story, one of Nina Bawden''s best'' OBSERVER ''What a consummate storymaker Nina Bawden is'' MICHAEL MORPURGO ''The hay stirred. There was a small nibbling sound. A furry head poked out. I saw its dark, beady eyes, its sharp, pointed ears ... his eyes seemed alert and inquisitive, as if he were as interested in us as we were in him.''Henry is only three inches long when naughty Charlie catapults him out of his nest - a poor baby red squirrel, all ragged and skinny. He is too young to survive being released into the wild, but can a squirrel be a pet?Henry''s new human family has also had to adapt to a different way of life. Evacuated from London during the Blitz, to a farm in Wales, they were upturned from their old life just as Henry was ''tipped out'' of his nest. Can this mischievous little creature, who makes nests out of their clothes and runs up the children like they are trees, help them to settle into their new life?A collection that will be coveted by children and adults alike, this list is the best in children''s literature, curated by Virago. These are timeless tales with beautiful covers, that will be treasured and shared across the generations. Some titles you will already know; some will be new to you, but there are stories for everyone to love, whatever your age. Our list includes Nina Bawden (Carrie''s War, The Peppermint Pig), Rumer Godden (An Episode of Sparrows), Joan Aiken (The Serial Garden), E. Nesbit (The Psammead Trilogy, The Bastable Trilogy, The Railway Children), L. M. Montgomery (The Anne of Green Gables and Emily of New Moon series) and Susan Coolidge (The What Katy Did trilogy). Discover Virago Children''s Classics.