The headline "Armed police throw ring of steel around court" says it all. Stephen Gillen was the most wanted and most feared in the UK. But not everything was what it seemed and this gripping true crime story reveals for the first time what actually happened. The Monkey Puzzle tree is not fiction. It happened. Real people did unspeakable things. Stephen's journey took him through the brutal civil war in Northern Ireland where as a child he witnessed real hell on earth. It took him into London's hidden organised crime scene, and high-security prisons. But in the end, it is an inspirational story of transformation and redemption that takes us from the darkest places back into the light. You will never read a more powerful book.

During the 50s and 60s the CIA directed a serious of programs in mind control, in which they used ordinary citizens as guinea pigs. None went as far as the Allan Memorial Institute set up in Montreal by the eminent psychiatrist Dr. Ewen Cameron, with the connivance of the Canadian government. In the name of research into brainwashing, he cruelly misused people who had minor--ostensibly temporary--psychiatric complaints, such as post-partum depression, as was the case with the author's own mother. Nickson has employed the devices and textures of fiction to reveal the heart of this terrifying story. She tells it from the perspective of a family enmeshed in a web of treachery. She takes us from a Washington courtroom back to bitter-sweet scenes of an idyllic Canadian childhood which held frightening secrets. She shows us a girl, adoring and protective of her beautiful society mother whose behaviour increasingly puzzled and alienated her. Layer by layer, the truth is unwrapped as warily as if it were a time bomb--a time bomb the CIA anticipates with a barrage of lawyers and dirty tricks.

The boxy, spiky monkey puzzle tree stands tall and imposing outside the dormitory window of Woodmaston House For Girls, a forbidding guardian to the school's young charges. Nancy Cameron is a new arrival, not just to Woodmaston but to England. She's rolled up from the backwoods of Canada, eager for a new life brimming with adventure. But boarding school isn't the Famous Five fantasy that Nancy had imagined. It is an austere, loveless world where budding relationships are soon put to the test. Nancy wins friends and finds solace by telling stories, but spinning stories for others can't hide the fact that Nancy feels horribly alone inside. And when she leads her dorm in a special fund-raising event that goes tragically wrong, things go from bad to worse. Nancy longs to meet the glamorous brother of her friend, Caroline, and as her troubles build it's an encounter that can't come soon enough - until a shocking revelation comes to light...

It's Christmas in Wales during the Blitz, and an incident of childhood sexual abuse sparks a lifetime of self-recrimination.

Poor little monkey! He's lost his mum. Luckily butterfly is nearby to help him find her..."I've lost my mum!" It's not too much fun being lost in the jungle, and little monkey wants his mummy. Kindly butterfly is keen to help, but they don't seem to be having much luck as the well-meaning butterfly misunderstands monkey's descriptions and leads him to all sorts of unsuitable animals! But eventually, they find ... Dad! It's just as well that he knows exactly where mum is, and she's waiting with a well-deserved cuddle. Monkey Puzzle is a clever, funny and charming tale from the unparalleled picture-book partnership of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, creators of The Gruffalo. This edition features the classic story with a stunning, redesigned cover and beautiful finish, making it a must-have addition to the bookshelves of all Donaldson and Scheffler fans - big and small! Also available with redesigned covers are The Gruffalo, The Gruffalo's Child, Room on the Broom, The Snail and the Whale, The Smartest Giant in Town, Charlie Cook's Favourite Book, and A Squash and a Squeeze.

Mike Sullivan loves his adopted city of San Francisco, and he loves trees. In The Trees of San Francisco he has combined his passions, offering a striking and handy compendium of botanical information, historical tidbits, cultivation hints, and more. Sullivan's introduction details the history of trees in the city, a fairly recent phenomenon. The text then piques the reader's interest with discussions of 71 city trees. Each tree is illustrated with a photograph--with its common and scientific names prominently displayed--and its specific location within San Francisco, along with other sites; frequently a close-up shot of the tree is included. Sprinkled throughout are 13 sidelights relating to trees; among the topics are the city's wild parrots and the trees they love; an overview of the objectives of the Friends of the Urban Forest; and discussions about the link between Australia's trees and those in the city, such as the eucalyptus. The second part of the book gets the reader up and about, walking the city to see its trees. Full-page color maps accompany the seven detailed tours, outlining the routes; interesting factoids are interspersed throughout the directions. A two-page color map of San Francisco then highlights 25 selected neighborhoods ideal for viewing trees, leading into a checklist of the neighborhoods and their trees.