Kelpies
4 total works
Siobhan is unhappy at school. Tormented by some classmates, she feels unable to confide in her teacher or her mum. She has no one to talk to, no one to play with.
One day she finds a strange brooch and it seems to help her -- it makes her stronger. But then Siobhan realises that to take revenge means that she might herself become a bully. Will she be able to find the courage to speak out against the bullies?
Includes extra material on bullying, including how to be bullyproof and where to turn for help, with up-to-date contact details.
One day she finds a strange brooch and it seems to help her -- it makes her stronger. But then Siobhan realises that to take revenge means that she might herself become a bully. Will she be able to find the courage to speak out against the bullies?
Includes extra material on bullying, including how to be bullyproof and where to turn for help, with up-to-date contact details.
No one should have to help their own mother with her maths homework! Okay, so Katharine's mother wants to go back to school but did she have to choose HER school? Her friends all think Mrs Douglas is great, but Katharine feels embarrassed, especially when she hears rumours about her mother and hedgehog, the maths teacher. As if she hasn't got enough problems of her own to worry about!
But then Katharine learns something about her mother which puts everything else into perspective, and unexpectedly brings them closer together.
Theresa Breslin deftly deals with the kind of issues which preoccupy today's young people, ranging from hair, boys and clothes to the environment and sexism, with references ranging from Miss Haversham, the Free French, Macbeth and Michelangelo to dilithium crystals, calculus and the Body Shop. There are many enjoyable touches, warmly urbane up-to-the minute humour and repartee immediately identifiable with the style of Bill Forsyth and Gregory's Girl.
But then Katharine learns something about her mother which puts everything else into perspective, and unexpectedly brings them closer together.
Theresa Breslin deftly deals with the kind of issues which preoccupy today's young people, ranging from hair, boys and clothes to the environment and sexism, with references ranging from Miss Haversham, the Free French, Macbeth and Michelangelo to dilithium crystals, calculus and the Body Shop. There are many enjoyable touches, warmly urbane up-to-the minute humour and repartee immediately identifiable with the style of Bill Forsyth and Gregory's Girl.
As Simon passes Peterson's shop one evening, gazing at the fabulous display of computers, nothing seems out of the ordinary. But when the police start asking questions, Simon suddenly realizes he was the sole witness to a major burglary. It was winner of the Kathleen Fidler Award.
It's first term at the Big School for Mary McPherson, and right from the start it looks as if her new friend, Jamie, is going to lead her astray . . . literally!
Using a forgotten footpath on the way home, they are chased by a ferocious bull and narrowly escape being flattened. Meanwhile Mary has to put up with the humiliation of wearing braces and thick-framed glasses, and they both have to get used to new school subjects such as sex education, self-defence and basic soldering. But all this is as nothing compared to the dreaded dinner queues and the obnoxious prefects who police them.
You really don't need all this when trying to establish a right of way. But help comes in the unexpected form of parents and teachers . . . who may just be human after all.
Using a forgotten footpath on the way home, they are chased by a ferocious bull and narrowly escape being flattened. Meanwhile Mary has to put up with the humiliation of wearing braces and thick-framed glasses, and they both have to get used to new school subjects such as sex education, self-defence and basic soldering. But all this is as nothing compared to the dreaded dinner queues and the obnoxious prefects who police them.
You really don't need all this when trying to establish a right of way. But help comes in the unexpected form of parents and teachers . . . who may just be human after all.