Most Popular Books by Margaret Mahy

Seventeen-year-old Ellis has just graduated from prep school. In the next 24 hours, he will find an old friend, shave his head, get a tattoo, and help rescue a kidnapped baby.

A brand-new edition of the Carnegie Medal-winning THE CHANGEOVER - written by internationally bestselling author, Margaret Mahy. ''A gorgeous, strange, unforgettable story . . . I more than loved it'' Laini Taylor - author of Daughter of Smoke and Bone ''A clammy hand pressed Laura down onto her knees beside Jacko''s bed. It was the hand of terror, nothing less.'' It was a warning. Laura felt it when she looked in the mirror that morning. There had been others: the day her father left home, the day she met Sorensen - the boy with the strange silver eyes. But nothing had prepared Laura for the horror of today. And now her little brother, Jacko, was fighting for his life after being sucked dry of his youth by the sinister Carmody Braque. Laura knows there is only one way to save Jacko; she must join Sorensen and use his supernatural powers to change over if there is to be any hope for her little brother. An unforgettable, supernatural romance.

A brand-new edition of the Carnegie Medal-winning THE HAUNTING - written by internationally bestselling author, Margaret Mahy. ''Strong and terrifying . . . The novel winds up like a spring. A psychological thriller'' - Times Literary Supplement Eight-year-old Barney has been haunted before. He thought it was something he''d just grow out of, like the imaginary friends his step-mother believes he has. But this time it''s different. Footsteps follow him, there''s a demanding voice barking orders and Barney begins to feel that sometimes his body is not his own at all . . . With the help of his sisters, Tabitha and Troy, Barney sets out to uncover the truth about their family secrets and to find out once and for all who it is who''s haunting him. A thrilling ghost story about a ''mostly ordinary'' family and a secret legacy.

A novel written for young adults by a New Zealander.

The Hamilton family''s beachside Christmas holiday is strangely altered by the intrusion of three mysterious young men.

A collection of short stories by the noted New Zealand author, including "The Giant''s Bath", "The Pumpkins of Witch Ginger", and "The Devil and the Corner Grocer".

Early Readers are stepping stones from picture books to reading books. A blue Early Reader is perfect for sharing and reading together. A red Early Reader is the next step on your reading journey. When the little boy tells his mother he has seen a big, roaring, yellow, whiskery lion in the meadow, she decides to make up a story for him too and gives him a matchbox with a tiny dragon inside. A brand new Early Reader edition of this beautiful classic story.

Seventeen-year-old Ellis finds himself in a series of increasingly bizarre situations in the twenty-four hours following a chance meeting with a childhood acqaintance and three mysterious sisters.

Delphinium & Jason Jones, space orphans on Space Station Vulnick, push a wrong button or two, & whirl off into space on the Skip-ship Dragonfly. In their adventure they must avoid the dreaded Acropola, who is invading this sector of the universe.

Early Readers are stepping stones from picture books to reading books. A blue Early Reader is perfect for sharing and reading together. A red Early Reader is the next step on your reading journey. Sam has an ordinary life - but his mother used to be a pirate! One day at breakfast, they decide to go to sea and an amazing adventure begins. A brand new Early Reader edition of this hilarious story.

With humor and wit, internationally acclaimed author Margaret Mahy captures the courageous adventures of seven brothers who use their supernatural gifts to overpower a cruel emperor. This ALA Notable Book features beautifully executed illustrations full of historical detail. "Exceptional".--School Library Journal, starred review. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.

On the fifth anniversary of his older sister''s death, nineteen-year-old Jonny Dart, troubled by feelings of guilt and an imperfect memory of the event, goes in search of the only other witness to the fatal accident. Through a chance meeting with a senile old woman, he finds a way to free himself of the past.

When Dad loses his car keys, little Mary suggests they might be down the back of the chair. Join in the fun as Dad begins the search, finding everything from a hairy string to a diamond ring-and much, much more! Could the solution to all the family"s problems be down the back of the chair? A lively rhyming text and quirky art come together in this visual explosion of fun and imagination.

An international collection of ghost stories and spooky tales by such authors as Susan Cooper, Roberto Piumini, and Bjarne Reuter.

This stunning repackage of an intense teen romance introduces confident Angela and intellectual Tycho, who seem an unlikely pair. They share a passion for deciphering the universe outside their own personal struggles. To Angela and Tycho, it seems the universe can be ordered; their own lives cannot. As their family struggles swirl around them, they are suddenly desperate to discover where they fit in.

When little Mabel''s bubble gets away from her, it''s her baby brother who gets into trouble. Soon the whole town is in a hubbub about the baby in the bubble as he bibble-bobbles by. Can anyone rescue Baby before he wibble-wobbles away? Full color.

As the only Bancroft in a family of Fortunes, Lolly has always felt left out of her Fortune cousins'' exclusive gang but when her parents separate Lolly discovers a new inner strength and aspects of kinship that go beyond names.

Roland is intrigued that his classmate, the mysterious Jess, is studying alchemy. When a sinister magician from Roland''s past gets involved in the mystery surrounding Jess, Roland realizes he is trapped in a dangerous web of magic, power, and greed.

Though their Saturday morning walk is not as peaceful as planned, a group of children and their dogs, with one brave adult, enjoy themselves.

A legend is born. Heriot has always known that he was different with his terrifying dreams and psychic powers. Ripped from his family farm, he is forced to serve as the King''s magician in the capital city of Diamond. Isolated and lonely, his only friends are the ''mad prince'' Dysart and Cayley, a mysterious wild city child. But their friendship is about to be tested to the limit when chilling violence and ambition threatens to crush Diamond and its King. Heriot''s psychic abilities hide a deeper power that has the strength to bring Diamond''s enemies to their knees. But will he be able to control this power without becoming a monster himself? ''Margaret Mahy is outstanding in the richness of her ideas and in her great story-telling ability. She has a fresh and vivid imagination, which speaks directly to the imagination of the child and an ability to use language to increase the force of her imagery to great effect.'' Twentieth Century Children''s Writers ''The queen of children''s fiction...her plots are complex, her language is both rich and precise.'' Independent on Sunday ''A prolific and versatile writer.'' The Times ''Few writers can match Mahy in her ability to exploit the exuberant possibilities of the playfulness of words.'' Irish Times ''Mahy displays a deep understanding of the emotions and conflicts of growing up.'' Independent on Sunday ''Sympathetic, unsentimental, effortlessly funny.'' Jan Mark, TES

In the first of these two short stories, Bassington, a rich little boy who has never had a birthday, decides to steal one from Mrs. Herringbone and Joanna Joy. In the second story, headmistress Tatiana Taffeta seeks an affluent farmer''s hand in marriage.

Good Baby gets a banana for pudding and, this time, he eats it all up. Boom-biddy-boom-biddy-yum-yum-yum!

"When his parents move to the small town in New Zealand where his father grew up, ten-year-old Pete can hardly wait to meet all his relatives who live there - especially the four cousins his own age. Will he like them? And, more importantly, will they like him? But his cousins - Tracey, Jackson, Tessa and Lolly - decide that Pete must pass a test before he can join their gang: the good fortunes gang. Now Pete must face a scary ordeal that means facing up to his very worst fears - alone in the dark ..."--Back cover

Captain Wafer and the crew of the Sinful Sausage set sail for the Thousand Islands with a plot to kidnap a famous inventor, only to be thwarted by a witch, a firedrake, and the dastardly Dr. Silkweed.

In these two stories the protagonists have mischievous fun with a former pirate and a band of robbers.

Tessa Fortune and her cousins want to raise one hundred dollars for the New Zealand National Telethon.

Margaret Mahy is known throughout New Zealand as a brilliant and prolific children''s writer. Less widely known but equally remarkable are her commentaries on fiction, writing and the imagination. The sense of delight and careful attention which she brings to the writing of others has germinated many astute and fascinating talks and essays which are collected here for the first time.

The seven brothers are precursors to the modern comic book super heroes that are so popular. Each has an unusual skill. The first has remarkable hearing. The second can see over vast distances. The third has unusual strength. The fourth has bones of iron. The fifth has legs that can grow as long and thick as tree trunks. The sixth brother can never be too hot. The seventh brother can cry such large tears that they can drown an entire village. Much effort goes into keeping him happy. The key to the story is that they look alike. The Seven Chinese Brothers is for children who are past the time when they are easily frightened because they take everything very literally (because the brothers face death at the hands of the Chinese emperor in this story). Through great imagination in employing their remarkable talents, teamwork, and an indomitable spirit, the brothers survive the wrath of the emperor. This is the hero story of look-alike brothers who each possess a special physical ability. This rendition has a full-bodied elegance. Cada uno de estos siete hermanos tiene una habilidad especial. El primero tiene un excelente oido. El segundo puede ver sin importar la distancia. El tercero posee una fuerza inusual. El cuarto tiene huesos de hierro. El quinto tiene piernas que pueden crecer tan largas y fuertes como el tronco de un arbol. El sexto hermano no es sensible al calor. El septimo hermano puede llorar lagrimas tan grandes que pueden inundar pueblos enteros. Con una gran imaginacion, sus increibles talentos, su fraternalidad y su espiritu indomable, los hermanos tienen que enfrentarse a la colera del emperador.

When the wicked Miss Taffetanotorious cheater and blackmailer, and former trapeze artist and human cannonballopens a selective school for rich young ladies, everything seems perfectly normal. But as strange occurrences at the school begin to make the students suspicious, Headmistress Taffeta''s true identity comes into question.