Books with author Lily Murray

Imagine if you could have an adventure as a pirate. What if you could have MILLIONS of them? With this story-building book, readers aged 5+ can create their own pirate-inspired adventures, over and over again. Just read the question and choose from the vibrant pictures on the page to build the story. The book is packed full of fun, silly and exciting things for the reader to choose from, including: Visiting a pirate milkshake barWearing a sparkly eye patch and a beardPacking a treasure mapVoyaging on a ghost shipSailing past an island made of chocolateFacing a tentacled sea monster Once they’ve finished, the reader can turn back to the start and make different choices to build a completely new tale. There are millions of possible combinations and endless stories to be told! And can you find the cheeky penguin hidden on each page? You’re the Hero is a series of books designed to help readers dream up their very own adventures. From selecting which hero to be and where to visit, to deciding on how the story will end and choosing a reward, the reader controls the action from start to finish. Packed full of imaginative characters, thrilling places to go, hilarious random objects and extraordinary situations to choose from, these books are made to be read again and again.

In the vein of The Glass Castle, Breaking Night is the stunning memoir of a young woman who at age fifteen was living on the streets, and who eventually made it into Harvard. Liz Murray was born to loving but drug-addicted parents in the Bronx. In school she was taunted for her dirty clothing and lice-infested hair, eventually skipping so many classes that she was put into a girls’ home. At age fifteen, Liz found herself on the streets when her family finally unraveled. She learned to scrape by, foraging for food and riding subways all night to have a warm place to sleep. When Liz’s mother died of AIDS, she decided to take control of her own destiny and go back to high school, often completing her assignments in the hallways and subway stations where she slept. Liz squeezed four years of high school into two, while homeless; won a New York Times scholarship; and made it into the Ivy League. Breaking Night is an unforgettable and beautifully written story of one young woman’s indomitable spirit to survive and prevail, against all odds.

Caleb is a young boy forced to move frequently because of a dark past. His brother Chick and grandmother whom he calls Mama lead the way along with a shadowy figure known as Josh. When Caleb finds himself in this latest home he finds new friends in Jake and Katie who live next door. As the months pass Caleb begins a new life at a new school and a bond forms between him and Jake. At the same time his brother Chick forms an unlikely romance with Katie. All is turned upside down however, when the boys’ estranged father reappears and we discover that he is the reason that they are always on the move. Their grandmother Carol (Mama) explains that the boys’ father caused an accident, killing their mother and Chick’s twin brother Tyger. During this conversation we discover that Josh is really Carol’s long lost son whom she had adopted when she was a teenager.