Books published by publisher W.H. Allen / Virgin Books

Philip Pullman's books – The Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass, making up the trilogy known as His Dark Materials, have been a massive success with children and adults alike. This unofficial guide gives a brief biography of Pullman himself, an explanation of the trilogy's set-up and synopses of the three books and the follow-up novella Lyra's Oxford. This is followed by a gazetteer, an A-Z guide to the people, places and items in these great books. Including notes on the publication history and availability of the books and their foreign editions, Dark Matters then concludes with information on the talking books, the radio plays, the National Theatre production and the current status of the films, making it the indispensable guide to Lyra's and Will’s worlds.

By the time I was seven years old, I understood that we were neglected by my mother who was absent from the house most days and most nights. We rarely received a bath or a wash and I presumed that the fact that my skin was several shades darker than the other kids' in my street was all down to accumulated grime rather than because of my different ethnic origin. Rosie Childs was the talk of her Liverpool council estate when she was born, because she was black. Her mother and her mother's husband were both white and from birth she was stigmatized for this proof of her mother's infidelity. Suffering neglect from her mother, a prostitute and alcoholic, Rosie was left in a bare, filthy council house to fend for herself and her siblings until, aged nine, she was placed in the care of an order of upright and often cruel nuns. She finally embarked on a settled life as a nanny and preschool teacher, but she couldn't escape from herself and the black cloud of her childhood. After suffering a breakdown, Rosie was placed in a series of dehumanising psychiatric hospitals for years, until she was helped to remember the horrifying secret of the childhood she thought she had buried forever. Now, with support as Rosie Childs, she has moved on, and is truly happy at last.

From the creator of the worldwide bestsellers Secret Garden and Lost Ocean, a beautiful new adult coloring book, printed on ivory paper and featuring delicate tangles of holly and ivy, bauble-laden Christmas trees, and mountains of exquisitely wrapped gifts. From flurries of delicate snowflakes to deliciously decorated gingerbread houses and reindeer-led sleighs, Johanna’s Christmas is a celebration of this wonderful holiday season that invites you to pick up your pens and pencils to color, complete, or embellish each of the festive artworks. Each of the 37 images in this book is printed single-sided on perforated paper, so you can color and remove the images—the perfect frameable holiday gift!Now printed on specially selected ivory paper. This paper has been specifically created for Johanna Basford’s coloring books. It has a medium tooth which is perfect for creating beautiful colored pencil effects or chalk pastel backgrounds but also wonderful for pens, which will glide effortlessly over its surface.

Imagine you've been a Star Wars fan from the very beginning. Way back in Ô77, you started collecting everything from Star Wars gum wrappers to now-priceless relics like the original preview questionnaire. Even better, you had access to special screenings, actual film sets, and all the behind-the-scenes parties. You'd be just like Stephen Sansweet, the world's foremost Star Wars collector. In this magnificent scrapbook, Sansweet has carefully selected and arranged the best of his unparalleled collection, authentically reproduced right down to the bristles on the Luke Skywalker toothbrush. Here are Yoda Christmas cards painted by Ralph McQuarrie himself, early prototypes of logos, invitations still in their envelopes, cutout figures, press releases, stickers, patches, trading cards, press photos, and much, much more. Including Sansweet's anecdotes of the early days and featuring treasures from around the world, this is the ultimate Star Wars collectible. ??To the Official Star Wars Web Site??Check out other Star Wars titles published by Chronicle Books!?