Most Popular Books by Frank Cottrell Boyce

In A British Childhood Frank Cottrell-Boyce tells the story of what it means to be young in Britain today and the consequences of growing up at the sharp end of two major crises – the pandemic and austerity. During his time as Children’s Laureate he visited schools that had been forced to make permanent homes in temporary buildings, where teachers doubled up as social workers, therapists and nutritionists. He talked to children abandoned within the prison system, seen to have forfeited their right to the second chance a good education might provide. He met families shuttled from one hotel room to another as they awaited the outcome of asylum decisions. And he talked to the extraordinary array of people working to change the fortunes of the young people around them. These encounters prompted him to reflect on his own upbringing in Merseyside, the difference literature made to his early years, and how, during his lifetime, childhood in Britain has been transformed. He shows how the connections we make and the sense of community are so vital to our future adult selves, and how, in the twenty-first century, these connections are increasingly frayed. A British Childhood is at once a searing account of our failure to look after the nation’s most vulnerable citizens, and a call to arms to all of us to protect the innocence of childhood.

Liam has always felt a bit like he''s stuck between two worlds. This isprimarily because he''s a twelve-year-old kid who looks like he''s about thirty. Sometimes it''s not so bad, like when his new principal mistakes him for a teacher on the first day of school or when he convinces a car dealer to let him take a Porsche out on a test drive. But mostly it''s just frustrating, being a kid trapped in an adult world. And so he decides to flip things around. Liam cons his way onto the first spaceship to take civilians into space, a special flight for a group of kids and an adult chaperone, and he is going as the adult chaperone. It''s not long before Liam, along with his friends, is stuck between two worlds again—only this time he''s 239,000 miles from home. Frank Cottrell Boyce, author of Millions and Framed, brings us a funny and touching story of the many ways in which grown-upness is truly wasted on grown-ups.

When two Mongolian brothers inexplicably appear one morning in her sixth grade class, Julie, who lives in a town near Liverpool, England, named Bootle, becomes their new friend and "Good Guide," navigating them through soccer, school uniforms, and British slang.

Hilariously spot-on comedy from the award winning and bestselling Frank Cottrell Boyce.Hilariously spot-on comedy from the award winning and bestselling Frank Cottrell Boyce, with cover artwork by award-winning Chris Riddell and internal illustrations by Cate James. High quality cream paper and a special easy to read font ensure a smooth read for all.

Dylan and his sisters have some ideas about how to make Snowdonia Oasis Auto Marvel into a more profitable business, but it is not until some strange men arrive in their small town of Manod, Wales with valuable paintings, and their father disappears, that they consider turning to crime.

Two refugee brothers from Mongolia are determined to fit in with their Liverpool schoolmates, but bring so much of Mongolia to Bootle that their new friend and guide, Julie, is hard-pressed to know truth from fantasy.

George is a self-confessed social reject who spends more time with his Warhammer figures than actual people - but when he''s given a bottle of aftershave called ''Desirable'', women can''t resist him How will he cope with his new-found popularity? And what will happen if the magic wears off?

We know Stanislaw Lem, whether or not we consciously know that we do. He may only be recognised in the West as the author of the twice-filmed novel, Solaris, but the influence of his other work is legion. From computer games (The Sims was inspired by one of his short stories), to films (the red and blue pills of The Matrix owe much to his Futurological Congress); from the space comedies of Red Dwarf to the metaphysical satires of Douglas Adams... the presence of this masterly Polish writer can be traced far and wide. Nor was his genius confined to fiction. Lem''s essays and pseudo-essays borne out of the military industrial tensions of the Cold War have outlived their original context and speak to the most current developments in virtual reality, nanotechnology, and artificial intelligence. To celebrate his name, as well as his vision, this anthology brings together writers, critics and scientists who continue to grapple with his concerns. British and Polish novelists join screenwriters, poets, computer engineers, and artists, to celebrate and explore Lem''s legacy through short stories and essays - two literary forms that, as Lem knew well, can blend together to create something altogether new. As one of the barriers to Lem''s fame was language, this book also features specially commissioned translations: three stories never to have appeared in English before. Lem was always ahead of us. It''s time we caught up.