Mark Oldroyd – illustratör

Build your child’s reading confidence at home with books at the right levelThis adventure story recounts the first round-world voyage of Tudor explorer Sir Francis Drake through the eyes of Dickon, a lame stowaway, who goes on to become Drake's cabin boy and personal hero. Readers learn about the harsh life that sailors in Tudor times experienced as they coped with storms, mutinies and illness on board ship. Ruby/Band 14 books give increasing opportunities for children to develop their skills of inference and deduction.Text type – An adventure story.Provides lots of opportunities for drama and writing activities. This title is paired with: How to be a Tudor in 20 easy stages, an information book that can be used to locate factual information about Tudor explorers and the Armada.Curriculum links – History: What were the effects of Tudor exploration?This book has been quizzed for Accelerated Reader.

Build your child’s reading confidence at home with books at the right levelCharles Dickens was a famous writer who lived in the 19th century. Discover what life was like for Charles, from spending his childhood working in a factory to finding a job as a law clerk and starting his writing career in this biography by Jim Eldridge. Lime/Band 11 books have longer sentence structures and a greater use of literary languageText type: A biographyPages 30 and 31 present a timeline of Charles Dickens’ life, allowing children to recap the events from the book.Curriculum links: Literacy: Information texts.This book has been quizzed for Accelerated Reader.

Moonfleet tells of the adventures of an orphan boy named John Trenchard. On a cold, dark night in the village of Moonfleet, he hears a tale of cursed treasure. As John and his friend Elzevir search for the treasure they become involved in another Moonfleet secretsmuggling. Will their adventures bring them fortune or lead them into danger?Exciting and powerful classic stories to enrich and extend your children's reading experiences. TreeTops Classics are carefully adapted versions of must-read stories which introduce your readers to significant authors, powerful plots and characters that have stood the test of time. These abridged versions of classics have been sensitively adapted by top children's authors to ensure that language and content is appropriate, but remain faithful to the original. These enchanting stories will appeal to all your junior readers and introduce them to a rich literary heritage. Each book includes author biographies and notes to help with historical and social context and any challenging vocabulary, ensuring the books are easily accessible.Books contain inside cover notes to support children in their reading. Help with children's reading development also available at www.oxfordowl.co.uk.The books are finely levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book.

Sarah Emma Edmonds started pretending at a very early age. Her father only wanted sons, so Sarah pretended to be one. Unlike most kids, though, Sarah never really stopped pretending. In 1861, during the U.S. Civil War, Sarah pretended her way into the Union Army, becoming a male nurse named Frank Thompson. Being a nurse didn''t quite satisfy "Frank," though. She wanted to keep her fellow soldiers from getting hurt. So when the Union Army needed a spy, she leapt at the chance. While still pretending to be Frank, Sarah also pretended to be a male African American slave, a female Irish peddler, and a female African American laundress. She slipped behind enemy lines time after time, spied on the Confederate Army, and brought back valuable intelligence to the Union. Sarah was not only good at pretending; she was also very brave. Later in life, Sarah Emma Edmonds wrote a book to tell her story. She explained, "I am naturally fond of adventure, a little ambitious, and a good deal romantic." She was also truly a great pretender.

Some folks say John Henry was born with a hammer in his hand. He sure loved to pound things and his muscles were harder than rocks. At work, John laid down tracks for the railroad company. The earth shook when he swung down his heavy hammers. John was stronger than the strongest worker, but was he stronger than a machine? Find out in this powerful tale.