Timmy Turkey would love to see Christmas come to Pear Tree Farm. But how can that happen when all his family always vote 'NO'? Timmy leads a brilliant campaign. But how will the animals vote? And how will they escape Farmer Carver's turkey twizzling plans? A funny Christmas caper from the duo who created The Mouse That Cancelled Christmas.

No turkey. No fruit to make a decent pudding. No money for presents. Your children away from home to keep them safe from bombing; your husband, father and brothers off fighting goodness knows where. How in the world does one celebrate Christmas? That was the situation facing the people of Britain for six long years during the Second World War. For some of them, Christmas was an ordinary day: they couldn't afford merrymaking - and had little to be merry about. Others, particularly those with children, did what little they could. These first-hand reminiscences tell of making crackers with no crack in them and shouting 'Bang!' when they were pulled; of carol-singing in the blackout, torches carefully covered so that no passing bombers could see the light, and of the excitement of receiving a comic, a few nuts and an apple in your Christmas stocking. They recount the resourcefulness that went into makeshift dinners and hand-made presents, and the generosity of spirit that made having a happy Christmas possible in appalling conditions. From the family whose dog ate the entire Christmas roast, leaving them to enjoy 'Spam with all the trimmings', to the exhibition of hand-made toys for children in a Singapore prison camp, the stories are by turns tragic, poignant and funny. Between them, they paint an intriguing picture of a world that was in many ways kinder, less self-centred, more stoical than ours. Even if - or perhaps because - there was a war on.

First in a multivolume memoir, An Abnormally Normal Childhood follows John Case from birth to the age of eighteen, regaling readers with the details of his deeds and misadventures. While he grew up in a time of depression and war, John was largely protected from the restrictions and troubles of this time, leading a free- range childhood—so long as he was dutiful to his family and religion and respected others. Childish mischief, hilarious situations, and times of fast sadness and joy fill the pages of this absorbing memoir. This is a story of the way we were, of an early childhood full of innocence and simplicity. Industriousness, ingenuity, and perseverance are brought to life in John’s tales of his youthful foibles. John’s reflections touch on topics from the life of a schoolboy during war, religion and its effects, and corporal punishment, to quiet streets and the use of horses, among other things. Told with an engaging voice and a wry sense of humour, An Abnormally Normal Childhood takes the reader on a journey back to a simpler time and place, complicated by depression and war, and to the history of a childhood now past. John’s vivid recollections—laced with humour, intelligence, and curiosity—bring people and events to life on the page, painting a vivacious picture of his early years.

In 1977 Prime Minister James Callaghan and Liberal leader David Steel struck a constitutional deal, by which the Labour government could survive a vote of no confidence and get its business through Parliament, while the Liberals gained access to the anterooms of power. The Pact, a contemporaneous account of the hatching and workings of the 'Lib-Lab' deal of 1977-8, is an invaluable time-capsule of British politics but also a pointer to its future. Coalition government has oft been scorned in Britain, since - as Alistair Michie and Simon Hoggart note - the main parties regard their opponents chiefly as 'targets off which points may be scored'. But hung parliaments and inter-party deals, as revived in May of 2010, may be back to stay. This new edition of The Pact, in memory of its co-author Simon Hoggart (1946-2014), includes new prefaces by David Steel, Roy Hattersley, and the journalist Stephen Bush.

This winter, we are offering to you our own Christmas box – filled up to the top with the best Christmas novels, classics to read during holidays, magical Christmas tales, legends, most famous carols and the unique poetry of the giants of literature dedicated to this one and only holiday: The Gift of the Magi (O. Henry) The Holy Night (Selma Lagerlöf) A Merry Christmas & Other Christmas Stories (Louisa May Alcott) A Letter from Santa Claus (Mark Twain) Silent Night The Night After Christmas The Child Born at Bethlehem The Adoration of the Shepherds The Visit of the Wise Men As Joseph Was A-Walking The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Beatrix Potter) Where Love Is, God Is (Leo Tolstoy) The Three Kings (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow) A Christmas Carol (Samuel Taylor Coleridge) Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (L. Frank Baum) Christmas At Sea (Robert Louis Stevenson) The Savior Must Have Been A Docile Gentleman (Emily Dickinson) The Heavenly Christmas Tree (Fyodor Dostoevsky) The Little City of Hope (F. Marion Crawford) The First Christmas Of New England (Harriet Beecher Stowe) Christmas in the Olden Time (Walter Scott) Christmas In India (Rudyard Kipling) A Christmas Carol (Charles Dickens) The Twelve Days of Christmas The Wonderful Wizard of OZ (L. Frank Baum) Ring Out, Wild Bells (Alfred Lord Tennyson) Little Lord Fauntleroy (Frances Hodgson Burnett) Black Beauty (Anna Sewell) The Christmas Child (Hesba Stretton) Granny's Wonderful Chair (Frances Browne) The Romance of a Christmas Card (Kate Douglas Wiggin) Wind in the Willows (Kenneth Grahame) The Wonderful Life - Story of the life and death of our Lord (Hesba Stretton) The Christmas Angel (A. Brown) Christmas at Thompson Hall (Anthony Trollope) Christmas Every Day (William Dean Howells) The Lost Word (Henry van Dyke) The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (E. T. A. Hoffmann) The Little Match Girl The Elves and the Shoemaker Mother Holle The Star Talers Snow-White The Christmas Hirelings The Blue Carbuncle An Exciting Christmas Eve The Spirit of Christmas…