Most Popular Books by Nina Bawden

Half-Welsh, half-Greek Plato Jones travels to Greece for his grandfather's funeral, finding hostile villagers and an unsettling discovery: his grandfather may not have been a war hero after all. By the author of Humbug.

'Warm and funny, this tale of a pint-size pig and the family he saves will take up a giant space in your heart' KIRAN MILLWOOD HARGRAVE 'What a consummate storymaker Nina Bawden is' MICHAEL MORPURGO WINNER OF THE GUARDIAN AWARD FOR CHILDREN'S FICTION 'D'ya want a peppermint pig, Mrs Greengrass?' Poll looked at the milkman, thinking of sweets, but there was a real pig poking its snout out of the milkman's coat pocket. It was the tiniest pig she had ever seen. 'What's a peppermint pig?' 'Runt of the litter. Too small for the sow to raise. He'd only get trampled in in the rush.' Mother took the pig from him and held it firmly while it kicked and squealed. 'Well, he seems strong enough. And even runts grow.' 'Oh,' Poll said. 'Oh, Mother.' She stroked the small, wriggling body. 'Theo,' she shouted, 'Look what we've got!' It is a difficult year for the Greengrasses. Poll's father has lost his job and gone overseas, the family are living off the charity of two aunts, and Poll and her brother Theo just can't seem to keep out of trouble. It takes a tiny, mischievous pig to bring laughter back into their lives. This is a collection of the best children's literature, curated by Virago, and will be coveted by children and adults alike. These are timeless tales with beautiful covers, that will be treasured and shared across the generations. Some titles you will already know; some will be new to you, but there are stories for everyone to love, whatever your age. Our list includes Nina Bawden (Carrie's War, The Peppermint Pig), Rumer Godden (The Dark Horse, An Episode of Sparrows), Joan Aiken (The Serial Garden, The Gift Giving) E. Nesbit (The Psammead Trilogy, The Bastable Trilogy, The Railway Children), Frances Hodgson Burnett (The Little Princess,The Secret Garden) and Susan Coolidge (The What Katy Did Trilogy). Discover Virago Children's Classics.

Sam, his cousin Rose, and lonely Abe Turner explore the haunted Gibbet Wood and get into mischief and adventure.

A biography of the young Italian who gave up his wealth in order to devote his life to preaching God's word and caring for the poor.

Held as a political prisoner in a London apartment, an African boy is helped to escape by two friends.

An extremely mesmerising woman, Venetia holds everyone she comes across enraptured. So when Venetia is found dead in suspicious circumstances the question is: exactly who would want to kill the beautiful Venetia? Those who were close to Venetia find themselves forced together as the web around this compelling woman rapidly unfolds. Suspicion and mistrust mount to boiling point as events reveal more and more about the kind of woman Venetia really was. Who Calls the Tune oozes the claustrophobic atmosphere it creates until the reader feels as though they are ensconced amongst the pages, alongside this quirky cast of characters. This novel is a classic murder mystery which will keep you guessing until the final pages.

For thirty years Carrie has not spoken of Druid's Bottom where she and her brother sheltered from the war. It is left to Carrie's own children to unravel the mystery of that time and its legacy of fear and silence. Gradually the story unfolds of Carrie's life under the dreaded Mr Evans, her friendship with the strange inhabitants of Druid's Bottom and the awesome power of an ancient curse.

Evacuated to the Welsh countryside during World War II, a fatherless English family tries to raise a baby squirrel that also lost its home.

Nina Bawden, one of the most accomplished contemporary novelists, is admired as a writer who unravels the complex emotions that simmer beneath respectable family life. Her first book appeared in 1953. Since then, she has published a further nineteen adult novels, including Circles of Deceit, shortlisted for the 1987 Booker Prize and later a BBC film, and the acclaimed Family Money (1991). She is also a successful children's author: her bestselling and televised novel Carrie's War (1973) has become a contemporary classic; most recently she has published The Real Plato Jones (1994). Now Nina Bawden turns an acute eye to her own story. She weaves a rich tapestry of the past, its characters and the 'myths, half-truths, fancies and deceits' that make up family history. She tells of her childhood evacuation to Suffolk and Wales during the War where, billeted with seven different families, she discovered their own dusty skeletons, and of her years at Oxford, where she knew Richard Burton and Margaret Thatcher. She writes, too, in what becomes a tribute to them both, a courageous account of her oldest son, Niki, who was diagnosed as a schizophrenic. With colourful, resonant prose that finely balances laughter and pain, In My Own Time is a triumph from a consummate storyteller.

Der er diktatur i landet og børnene involveres i modstandsbevægelsen, men de mistænker stedfaren for at være spion.

A biography of the young Italian who gave up his wealth in order to devote his life to preaching God's word and caring for the poor.