Children
Champion of Champions
A boy. A bike. A legend.
By David Brayley
What if you were a professional road cyclist and – due to a run of bad injuries and loss of form – were told your career will be finished if you didn’t succeed in one of the world’s toughest races? Daniel’s dream of being a leading professional cyclist is under threat but, far from being worried, he believes he has the answer. All he has to do is remember it.
For that, he must go back to the very beginning of his journey as a 14-year-old rider in the leafy lanes of Wales’s Gower Peninsula, and then make a shock detour to rural Italy, where he first hears what will become his mantra – “Be the best that you can be.”
The eccentric stranger who tells him so also introduces Daniel to the legendary Italian racer, Fausto Coppi, and inspires the teenage boy with stories of Coppi’s excellence, bravery, success and ultimate heartbreak. But the eerie man with detailed knowledge hides a dark secret. Once before he tried to inspire a teenage cyclist and the horror of that episode is slowly revealed to Daniel.
In a story that threatens to tear a family apart, can Daniel navigate his past and call on the reasons that led to him becoming a professional cyclist in the first place? If so, he may just be able to deliver a performance in the brutal Milan-San Remo race and save not only his cycling career but everything his life has meant so far.
Will the memories be too painful? Or will they lead on to ultimate glory?
What’s a Bear to Wear?
By Tom Palmer
There was once a bear. A big brown bear. And his name was Grubber. But Grubber was not happy. RLWC2013 was about to kick-off … it should have been an amazing day … but Grubber had a problem. A BIG PROBLEM!
What’s A Bear to Wear? is a new picture book for young children featuring Rugby League World Cup 2013 official mascots Grubber and Steed. Rugby’s newest double act were created by Mark O’Hanlon based on the designs of three young designers – Emily Sixsmith, Sam Bithell and Luke James. The book’s original illustrations are by Alex Thomson.
So dive right into What’s A Bear to Wear? to discover what the problem is and find out how Steed helps Grubber to to solve it.
More Details
This book is produced in association with Try Reading, a new project for public libraries. It celebrates and promotes the sporting event of the year – Rugby League World Cup 2013, while encouraging more people to read and to have a go at writing and drama. The project is being funded with an award from the National Lottery supported £6 million Grants for the arts libraries fund by Arts Council England.
The Missing Trophy
And Other Rugby League Stories
By Tracy Maguire
96 pages. Illustrations by Ben Robinson
Are you ready for six original adventures featuring young players, loyal fans and club mascots – who face a desperate race against time to save the Super League Grand Final?
Gateways to Harewood
Tales of a house, a school and a village
By the pupils of Gateways School
Foreword by Patricia, Countess of Harewood
With an original short story by GP Taylor
More Details
Harewood has seen many tales unfold down the centuries and countless changes have altered the face of the village. This book is a treasury of inspirational writing and artwork by the pupils of Gateways School, an establishment with its own part to play in the story. Every contribution captures the beguiling spirit of Harewood. Gateways to Harewood is a special project, the like of which has never before been undertaken. It is unique in its desire not merely to document historical facts, but also to utilise them as a perfect springboard for creativity.
Another Spot On My Bum
More Details
Those intrepid explores from Scratching Shed found me bronzing my lean godlike body in front of a nuclear power plant. All that radiation and I’m still not a superhero. They wanted me to return and annoy the teachers and parents of the world with my in-depth poems about the things that matter most: spots, farts and burps. At first I refused the riches and wealth they offered, but I finally broke when they offered me a cup of tea and a bacon sandwich. There’s only so much a man can take. So here it is, the poetry book I said I would never write. It’s full of poems – many of which you may have read in the hugely successful Potty Poet series, plus lots of new ones that only the people who live here in my little cell with its lovely padding have read (just because you can’t see them doesn’t mean they’re not there). If you really want to know what it’s like to have a spot on your bum or get your willy caught in your zip then read this book. It doesn’t contain any answers to life’s embarrassing problems but it does let us laugh at the misfortune of others.
