William Shakespeare. Born April 1564, at Stratford-upon-Avon. Died April 1616. Married Anne Hathaway: two daughters, one son. Actor, poet, famous playwright. Wrote nearly forty plays. But what was he like as a man? What did he think about when he rode into London for the first time ...or when he was writing his plays Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet ...or when his only son died? We know the facts of his life, but we can only guess at his hopes, his fears, his dreams.

It is 1547 in London, and Tom is a pauper. His father sends him onto the streets of London to beg for money every day, and hits him when he brings nothing back. But Edward is a prince, the son of King Henry VIII, and he has everything. There is something very unusual about these boys: they are from different worlds, but they look the same. When they meet one day, a mistake puts each boy into the wrong life. So what happens when a prince lives as a pauper, and a pauper lives as a king?

Red Dog was a Red Cloud kelpie, an Australian sheepdog. His life was full of excitement and adventure. He travelled all over Western Australia, and never really had an owner. But he had many, many friends, and he always knew where to go for a good meal. Louis de Bernieres collected these stories about the life of a real dog in Western Australia. They are all true stories — some are funny, some are sad, but all are unforgettable. Everybody should have a friend like Red Dog.

Mr James Conway wants to make money. He wants to build new houses and shops — and he wants to build them on an old graveyard, on the island of Haiti. There is only one old man who still visits the graveyard; and Mr Conway is not afraid of one old man. But the old man has friends — friends in the graveyard, friends who lie dead, under the ground. And when Mr Conway starts to build his houses, he makes the terrible mistake of disturbing the sleep of the dead ...

Everybody has bad dreams. Horrible things move towards you in the dark, things you can hear but not see. Then you wake up, in your own warm bed, and turn over to go back to sleep. But imagine that you wake up on a hard floor, in a darkness blacker than the blackest night. You listen to the silence, and smell a wet dead smell. Death is all around you, waiting ...In these stories by Edgar Allan Poe, death whispers at you from every dark corner, and fear can send you mad ...

It is 1547 in London, and Tom is a pauper. His father sends him onto the streets of London to beg for money every day, and hits him when he brings nothing back. But Edward is a prince, the son of King Henry VIII, and he has everything. There is something very unusual about these boys: they are from different worlds, but they look the same. When they meet one day, a mistake puts each boy into the wrong life. So what happens when a prince lives as a pauper, and a pauper lives as a king?

All he wanted to do was to marry the woman he loved. But his country said 'No!' He was Edward VIII, King of Great Britain, King of India, King of Australia, and King of thirty-nine other countries. And he loved the wrong woman. She was beautiful and she loved him — but she was already married to another man. It was a love story that shook the world. The King had to choose: to be King, or to have love ...and leave his country, never to return.

In Sweden, nobody wants a troll to come into their garden, but how do you stop them? On a lonely road at night in Oman, Abdul's car breaks down and he takes a ride with a stranger, but perhaps it is safer to walk. In England some young people play a scary game, and in Asia, a soldier returns home — at last. Every country in the world has stories about ghosts and spirits and monsters of one kind or another. Some people believe in ghosts, and some don't — but everyone enjoys a good ghost story.

In the jungle of Southern India the Seeonee Wolf-Pack has a new cub. He is not a wolf — he is Mowgli, a human child, but he knows nothing of the world of men. He lives and hunts with his brothers the wolves. Baloo the bear and Bagheera the panther are his friends and teachers. And Shere Khan, the man-eating tiger, is his enemy. Kipling's famous story of Mowgli's adventures in the jungle has been loved by young and old for more than a hundred years.

England in 1647: King Charles is in prison, and Cromwell's men are fighting the King's men. These are dangerous times for everybody. The four Beverley children have no parents; their mother is dead and their father died while fighting for the King. Now Cromwell's soldiers have come to burn the house — with the children in it. The four of them escape into the New Forest — but how will they live? What will they eat? And will Cromwell's soldiers find them?

Ellen Shore's family is an ordinary American family, and Ellen is six years old when her brother Al is born. Her parents are very pleased to have a son, but Ellen is not pleased, because now baby Al comes first. And when they are adults, Al still comes first. He begins a rock band and makes records. Soon he is rich and famous — very rich, but he gives nothing to his sister Ellen. She has a difficult life, with three young kids and very little money. And she learns to hate her rich, famous, unkind brother...

In the mountains of Transylvania there stands a castle. It is the home of Count Dracula — a dark, lonely place, and at night the wolves howl around the walls. In the year 1875 Jonathan Harker comes from England to do business with the Count. But Jonathan does not feel comfortable at Castle Dracula. Strange things happen at night, and very soon, he begins to feel afraid. And he is right to be afraid, because Count Dracula is one of the Un-Dead — a vampire that drinks the blood of living people ...

The Oxford Dictionary of English Grammar is a straightforward and accessible A-Z guide to the diverse and often complex terminology of English grammar. It contains over 1,600 entries with clear and concise definitions, enhanced by numerous example sentences, as well as relevant quotations from the scholarly literature of the field. This second edition is written and edited by Professor Bas Aarts of University College London, writer of the acclaimed Oxford Modern English Grammar. It has been fully revised and updated, with particular attention paid to refreshing the example sentences included within the text. There are over 150 new entries that cover current terminology which has arisen since the publication of the first edition, and there are also new entries on the most important English grammars published since the start of the 20th century. Hundreds of new cross-references enhance the user-friendly nature of the text, and the list of works cited has been thoroughly updated to reflect the current state of the field. A short appendix of web links has been added. All in all, this Dictionary is an invaluable guide to English grammar for all students and teachers of the subject, as well as all those with an informed interest in the English language.

A 12-level series of stories with activities to check understanding.

Read with Biff, Chip and Kipper Grammar and Punctuation wipe-clean flashcards with pen are a fun way for children to develop their grammar and punctuation skills, and they support the way children are taught to write at school. These fun grammar games have been specially created to support the National Curriculum and complement the Read with Biff, Chip & Kipper My Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling Kit. Playing these grammar and punctuation games will help children to: *learn word classes, such as nouns and verbs *become familiar with sentence structures, such as simple sentences and commands *practise writing skills This set of 55 cards includes support for parents,fun games and useful tips for using the flashcards. The series provides essential support for parents through www.oxfordowl.co.uk. Visit Oxford Owl for practical advice for helping children learn to read, all you need to know about grammar, as well as lots of fun activities and free eBooks.

TreeTops Non-fiction are part of a structured reading programme for juniors from Oxford Reading Tree, Levels 9-16. The high-interest subject matter they cover will motivate all children to read — especially boys. They are ideal for guided reading. Books contain inside cover notes to support children in their reading. Help with children's reading development also available at www.oxfordowl.co.uk. They are available in mixed packs of six books or class packs of 36 books.

Georg Buchner died in 1837 at a tragically early age, and his three works for the stage remained virtually unknown for half a century. Today all three, especially Danton's Death, his great play about the French Revolution are performed regularly.

Poetry will no longer keep in time with action; it will be ahead of it.' Arthur Rimbaud The active and colourful lives of the poets of nineteenth-century France are reflected in the diversity and vibrancy of their works. At once sacred and profane, passionate and satirical, these remarkable and innovative poems explore the complexities of human emotion and ponder the great questions of religion and art. They form as rich a body of work as any one age and language has ever produced. This unique anthology includes generous selections from the six nineteenth-century French poets most often read in the English-speaking world today: Lamartine, Hugo, Baudelaire, Verlaine, Rimbaud, and Mallarme. Modern translations are printed opposite the original French verse, and the edition contains over a thousand lines of poetry never previously translated into English.

One of the earliest major American novels, Wieland (1798) is a thrilling tale of suspense and intrigue set in rural Pennsylvania in the 1760s. Based on an actual case of a New York farmer who murdered his family, the novel employs Gothic devices and sensational elements such as spontaneous combustion, ventriloquism, and religious fanaticism. Also included is Memoirs of Carwin the Biloquist, the unfinished sequel to Wieland, in which Brown considers power and manipulation while tracing Carwin's career as a disciple of the utopist Ludloe.

Little Women has remained enduringly popular since its publication in 1868, becoming the inspiration for a whole genre of family stories. Set in a small New England community, it tells of the March family: Marmee looks after daughters in the absence of her husband, who is serving as an army chaplain in the Civil War, and Meg, Jo,Beth, and Amy experience domestic trials and triumphs as they attempt to supplement the family's small income. In the second part of the novel (sometimes known as Good Wives) the girls grow up and fall in love. The novel is highly autobiographical, and in Jo's character Alcott portrays a strong-minded and independent woman, determined to control her own destiny. The introduction to this edition provides a fascinating history of the Alcotts,and of Louisa Alcott's own struggles as a writer. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.