Oaks Park LRC

  Winter 1917. As the First World War enters its most brutal phase, back home in England, everyone is seeking answers to the darkness that has seeped into their lives. At Blackwater Abbey, on an island off the Devon coast, Lord Highmount has arranged a spiritualist gathering to contact his two sons who were lost in the conflict. But as his guests begin to arrive, it gradually becomes clear that each has something they would rather keep hidden. Then, when a storm descends on the island, the guests will find themselves trapped. Soon one of their number will die. For Blackwater Abbey is haunted in more ways than one ... An unrelentingly gripping mystery packed with twists and turns,  A House of Ghosts  is the perfect chilling read this winter. Publisher:  Zaffre   ISBN:  9781785767111   Number of pages:  400  

  The best-known of Shirley Jackson's novels, and the inspiration for writers such as Neil Gaiman and Stephen King,  The Haunting of Hill House  is a chilling story of the power of fear. Four seekers have arrived at the rambling old pile known as Hill House: Dr. Montague, an occult scholar looking for solid evidence of psychic phenomena; Theodora, his lovely assistant; Luke, the future inheritor of the estate; and Eleanor, a friendless, fragile young woman with a dark past. As they begin to cope with horrifying occurrences beyond their control or understanding, they cannot possibly know what lies ahead. For Hill House is gathering its powers - and soon it will choose one of them to make its own. Publisher:  Penguin Books Ltd   ISBN:  9780141191447   Number of pages:  256  

  Welcome to a strange and twisted world where the spooky, the shocking, and the positively petrifying are lurking just out of sight.  A bus ride home ... turns into your worst nightmare.  A quaint country cottage ... has a grisly secret. A man returns from holiday ... with bubbling skin and bloodshot eyes. Horowitz Horror. It's all around you. Alive. Waiting.  Enter if you dare. Publisher:  Hachette Children's Group   ISBN:  9781408329382   Number of pages:  384  

  Sleep is one of the most important aspects of our life, health and longevity and yet it is increasingly neglected in twenty-first-century society, with devastating consequences: every major disease in the developed world - Alzheimer's, cancer, obesity, diabetes - has very strong causal links to deficient sleep. Until very recently, science had no answer to the question of why we sleep, or what good it served, or why its absence is so damaging to our health. Compared to the other basic drives in life - eating, drinking, and reproducing - the purpose of sleep remained elusive. Now, in this book, the first of its kind written by a scientific expert, Professor Matthew Walker explores twenty years of cutting-edge research to solve the mystery of why sleep matters. Looking at creatures from across the animal kingdom as well as major human studies,  Why We Sleep  delves in to everything from what really happens during REM sleep to how caffeine and alcohol affect sleep and why our sleep

  A comprehensive guide to teenage friendships. Essential reading for teenagers and the adults who care about them. The Teenage Guide to Friends  - written for teenagers but essential for adults who want to understand - tackles the all-important subject of teen friendships. Contents include a section on making friends, keeping friendships strong, and what happens when they break down - as well as a look at online friendships, cyber-bullying, toxic friendships and frenemies, and empathy.  There is also a section on personality types - introverts and extroverts - and quizzes to help you discover what sort of person you are, how you relate to others and how to deal with difficult situations. Complete with a list of helpful resources in the back. Publisher:  Walker Books Ltd   ISBN:  9781406369779   Number of pages:  224  

  No Worries! is an interactive self-care activity book for children aged 7+ to colour and doodle their way to happiness, calm and confidence. The encouraging and simple activities and exercises tackle anxiety, sadness and stress; children will enjoy using their creativity to combat negative feelings, work out why they feel worried and how to put stress back in its place through writing, colouring, doodling and drawing.  Featuring the charming and quirky illustrations of Katie Abey, a UK-based illustrator. Her quirky pictures will keep the reader entertained and focused as they work through the book, or simply dip into the pages for ten minutes of calm colouring.  Includes an introduction and notes for grown-ups by consultant Dr. Sharie Coombes, Child & Family Psychotherapist. Publisher:  Templar Publishing   ISBN:  9781787410879   Number of pages:  96  

  When the bell rings and school is finished for the day, the walkers are finally set free. For ten blocks they have no-one telling them what to do; they can talk about bogies, skateboard, plan dramatic escapes, make jokes, face bullies, and hear about the school bus that fell from the sky... In ten stories (one per block), find out what really happens on the walk home from school, when there are no parents or teachers to supervise (or stop the fun!). From hilarious escapades to brave challenges, join the walkers for one journey and many, many detours... Publisher:  Knights Of Media   ISBN:  9781999642594   Being small can be overwhelming in a city. People don't see you. The loud sounds of the sirens and cyclists can be scary. And the streets are so busy it can make your brain feel like there's too much stuff in it. But if you know where to find good hiding places, warm dryer vents that blow out hot steam that smells like summer, music to listen to or friends to say hi to, ther

  Confronted by the realities of adulthood, Romesh Ranganathan must face an uncomfortable truth: this is not quite how he imagined it. Watching his friends descend into middle age, his waistline thicken and his finances dwindle to fund his family's middle class aspirations, Romesh reflects on the demands of daily life and the challenges of adulting in the modern world. As he reluctantly concludes that he is indeed a grown man, Rom wrestles with the greater questions that threaten his being: Could I save my family in a crisis? Do I possess the skills to assemble flatpack furniture? Am I too old for streetwear? Is it alright to parent my kids through the medium of Fortnite? From one of the countries most beloved comedians and author of the  Sunday Times  bestseller STRAIGHT OUTTA CRAWLEY comes the hilarious and painfully accurate dissection of what it really means to grow up. Publisher:  Transworld Publishers Ltd   ISBN:  9781787633599   Number of pages:  272  

  Tear up the rule book. Find your own lane. You are only in competition with yourself. Marcus Rashford MBE is recognised worldwide for his journey both on and-off the pitch – but how did a boy from the South of Manchester become not only an International footballer but also one of the leading activist voices in the UK? In this inspiring, positive and practical guide, Marcus gives YOU the tools you need to reach your full potential and will show you that your possibilities really can be endless. In  You Are a Champion: Unlock Your Potential, Find Your Voice and Be the BEST You Can Be , Marcus Rashford MBE draws on stories from his own life to show you that success is all about the mindset. You’ll find out how positive thinking can change your life, build mental resilience, learn how to navigate adversity and discover the unstoppable power of your own voice. You already have the tools you need to achieve your dreams; you just might not know it yet. Full of practical advice and engaging

  Neil Gaiman's enchanting, nationally bestselling children's book  Coraline  is brought to new life by acclaimed  artist P. Craig Russell  in this gorgeously illustrated graphic novel adaptation. When Coraline steps through a door to find another house strangely similar to her own (only better), things seem marvelous. But there's another mother there and another father, and they want her to stay and be their little girl. They want to change her and never let her go. Coraline will have to fight with all her wit and courage if she is to save herself and return to her ordinary life.

  April 1976: St Constance, a tiny Caribbean village on the island of Black Conch, at the start of the rainy season. A fisherman sings to himself in his pirogue, waiting for a catch – but attracts a sea-dweller he doesn’t expect. Aycayia, a beautiful young woman cursed by jealous wives to live as a mermaid, has been swimming the Caribbean Sea for centuries. And she is entranced by this man David and his song. Publisher:  Peepal Tree Press Ltd   ISBN:  9781845234577

  The fight for equality begins in the streets. The history of inequality is a long and terrible one. And it's not over yet. Short, sharp and devastating,  The War of the Poor  tells the story of a brutal episode from history, not as well known as tales of other popular uprisings, but one that deserves to be told. Sixteenth-century Europe: the Protestant Reformation takes on the powerful and the privileged. Peasants, the poor living in towns, who are still being promised that equality will be granted to them in heaven, begin to ask themselves: and why not equality now, here on earth? There follows a violent struggle. Out of this chaos steps Thomas Muntzer: a complex and controversial figure, who sided with neither Martin Luther, nor the Roman Catholic Church. Muntzer addressed the poor directly, encouraging them to ask why a God who apparently loved the poor seemed to be on the side of the rich. Publisher:  Pan Macmillan   ISBN:  9781529038538   Number of pages:  80  

  There were dozens of us on the ship, all up on deck for the leaving of Liverpool, gulls wheeling and crying over our heads, calling good-bye... That is all I remember of England. When six-year-old orphan Arthur Hobhouse is shipped to Australia after WWII he loses his sister, his country and everything he knows. Overcoming enormous hardships with fellow orphan Marty, Arthur is finally saved by the extraordinary people he meets and by his talent for boat-design and sailing. Now he has built a special boat for his daughter Allie - a solo yacht designed to carry her to England in search of his long-lost sister. Will the threads of Arthur's life finally come together? I was there on the quayside to see Allie take her out for the first time, saw her dancing through the waves, and I knew I'd never built a finer boat. Publisher:  HarperCollins Publishers   ISBN:  9780007230587   Number of pages:  320