Most Popular Books by K. M. Peyton

The life of an Essex fishing family at the end of the last century.

Fourteen-year-old Ruth acquires what is considered an unsuitable pony and determines to train him so that she can become a member of the Pony Club team. Sequel to Fly-by-Night.

When a new job takes Nicky and her mom to the Scottish border lands, Nicky is concerned. She''s not worried about the job -- taking care of horses -- but about where it is -- ancient Bloodybow Castle, dark, forbidding and full of sercrets. At night, when darkness falls, Bloodybow is attacked by ghosts, ancient raiders that ride out of history to exact revenge against the castle and its denizens, both horse and human. Nicky and her friend Jed are determined to protect Stealaway, the castle''s prize stallion, from these phantom attackers. But how? As Nicky and Jed delve futher into the secrets of Bloodybow''s past, they realize a mysterious white pony may be the key to solving the mystery and saving Stealaway. STEALAWAY is a thrilling story sure to appeal to fans of horse stories, ghost stories and histories set in the Scottish highlands.

This selection of nineteen essays by Nigel Wilkins, in English and in French, is characterised by an inter-disciplinary approach crossing the borders between music, language, literature, history, palaeography and iconography. The principal topic is lyric poetry in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, mostly French and English, both with and without music, and in various contexts. Guillaume de Machaut, the dominant poet-musician of the age, is the central figure: his influence is traced in poets such as Froissart, Deschamps, Christine de Pisan, Charles d''Orl ans, Villon, Gower and Chaucer, and in the poet-musicians who came after him. The question of patronage is investigated. The development of the principal lyric forms, rondeau, ballade and virelai, is explored on both sides of the Channel, as is the way they were used, for example in miracle plays and in court entertainment. A Flemish painting of 1493 helps us discover the r le of music in the ceremonies of trade and religious guilds; a memorial brass from King''s Lynn reveals the importance of music in the ceremonial of feasts. Wider themes are also explored, such as the association of music with the Devil, the use of several languages combined in certain musical contexts, and the controversial role of inspiration in musical composition.

Word count 10,295 Suitable for younger learners

Lauren and Tashy love their ponies, Humpfrey and Monkey, even if - as rescue ponies - they aren''t really very good at anything. Secretly, both girls would love to be able to win rosettes. Then Cobweb appears - a beautiful, silvery, ghost pony from Paradise. And when Cobweb joins the girls on a ride out, some of her magic seems to rub off on to their real ponies and Humpfrey and Monkey can jump beautifully...

In the first of these three pony stories, Ruth learns that keeping a pony is harder than she''d thought. In the second, Faith battles with her fear of horses as she learns to ride on a farm holiday; and in the third, David discovers that reaching the top as a show-jumper is a bumpy ride.

After her husband is killed in the war in 1916, twenty-one-year old Christina returns to take care of the deserted estate where she grew up. Sequel to Flambards and The Edge of the Cloud.

Minna, a Roman servant girl, follows commander Theo into battle along with her brother and her beloved horse.

Twelve year old Christina is sent to live with her uncle and his two sons in the decaying country house, Flambards. Her uncle dominates the household with his sudden rages and callous cruelty, and her cousins Mark and Will could not be more different. Christina finds in stable-lad Dick a sympathetic friend to help steer her through the emotional undercurrents and discord which divide the Russell household.

Despite the danger involved, a young girl is determined that her fiancé shall fulfill his dream of being a pilot during the pioneering days of aviation in England, just before World War I.