Books with author Barbara Mitchelhill

Daisy’s hero is Florence Nightingale, and she hopes to one day become a nurse just like her. But as a girl growing up in the East End of London in 1912, it seems like all her future holds is dropping out of school to work a tough job in a factory for very little money. Then Daisy meets the suffragettes, who are fighting for the rights of women and the poor. They show her that she might be able to achieve her dreams after all. But being a suffragette is dangerous, and Daisy must risk getting in trouble with her dad, neighbours and even the police if she wants to do her bit.Perfect for fans of Opal Plumstead and Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls.

Damian Drooth, the one-of-a-kind detective hero, is back. Criminals beware! Damian is fascinated when the new girl at school says that her grandparents' house is haunted. As the local specialist detective, it is up to Damian to solve the mystery! He agrees to spend a night in the house to see the ghostly figures for himself - but all is not what it seems . . .Packed with rib-tickling pictures from Tony Ross, this is perfect for newly confident young readers of 6 and up!

Thomas is desperate to join 'the players', he'll do anything to watch them perform, even skip school and risk a caning. But when Thomas's rule breaking gets him in trouble with more than just his school master, he has to flee his home and make his way to London. Here he meets his hero, Shakespeare, and his players. But behind the excitement of the theatres is a grimy world of deception, poison and treason. Will Thomas manage to uncover the plot in time? And will he manage to save Shakespeare from a fate worse than death?

When Lizzie's dad refuses to fight in the Second World War, the police come looking to arrest him. Desperate to stay together, Lizzie and her brother Freddie go on the run with him, hiding from the police in idyllic Whiteway. But when their past catches up with them, they're forced to leave and it becomes more and more difficult to stay together as a family. Will they be able to? And will they ever find a place, like Whiteway, where they will be safe again?

Jan Matzeliger felt anything but welcome in Philadelphia in 1873. As well as being a foreigner, Jan was half African American, which meant that most doors were closed to him. Although the Civil War had been over for nearly ten years, inequality for African Americans still persisted in its aftermath. However, Jan refused to let prejudice keep him from achieving his dream of making a shoe-lasting machine to replace the tedious, time-consuming hand sewing that held up shoe manufacturing processes in his day.

Lizzie is lucky. Her dad refuses to fight in the war unlike the other dads in her street. ‘I won’t kill anyone,’ he says ‘War is wrong.’ But she knows that lots of people don’t agree with him and when Dad is threatened with prison, he takes Lizzie and her little brother, Freddie, on a long and adventurous journey hiding from the authorities. Even when they are separated and all seems lost, Lizzie’s special star in the night sky gives her hope that one day her family will be together again.

Eric is an ordinary boy who loves football, and hates tests. Unluckily, a big test is coming up! Then his Auntie Rose sends him a very strange present from her travels in South America: an ugly, stinky, stripy jumper with magical powers. It can turn the wearer into a genius, so long as it is never washed. Eric finds the jumper really does have a miraculous effect on his brain power – but can there be too much of a good thing?

When a neighbour’s dog goes missing, Damian and his gang of detective apprentices are called in to help find it. First they try posters, but the newsagent is not happy that they have super-glued their posters to his window. So they resort to “rescuing” dogs on the street and taking them back to Damian’s shed. Luckily, as angry dog-owners bear down on them, the original missing dog turns up!