Penguin A Kestrel for a Knave Hines Barry

The classic book that inspired Kes, the famous film, now published as a Penguin Essential for the first time • Barry Hines's A Kestrel for a Knave was published in 1968, and was made into one of the key British films of the sixties. Billy Casper is beaten by his drunken brother, ignored by his mother and failing at school. He seems destined for a hard, miserable life down the pits, but for a brief time, he finds one pleasure in life: a wild kestrel that he has raised and tamed himself

Billy Casper is a boy with nowhere to go and nothing to say; part of the limbo generation of school leavers too old for lessons and too young to know anything about the outside world. He hates and is hated. His family and friends are mean and tough and they're sure he's going to end up in big trouble. But Billy knows two things about his own world. He'll never work down the mines and he does know about animals. His only companion is his kestrel hawk, trained from the nest, and, like himself, trained but not tamed, with the will to destroy or to be destroyed. This in not just another book about growing up in the north - it's as real as a slap in the face to those who think that orange juice and comprehensive schools have taken the meanness out of life in the raw working towns

From the Sunday Times bestselling author of A Sting In The Tale comes this practical guide to creating a paradise for pollinators • There are twenty six different species of bumblebees to be found in the UK, of around 250 species worldwide. Bumblebees are among the most important of our insects; these superb pollinators ensure that wildflowers set seed and reappear each year, and that our vegetable and fruit crops give us bountiful harvests. With the decline in the populations of our wild bees, these beloved creatures need looking after more than ever • Gardening for Bumblebees shows you how you can provide a refuge for bumblebees to feed, breed and thrive. No matter how large or small your space is, Dave Goulson shows you how you can make a pollinator-friendly haven

Being a mum is often anything but mindful • Having suffered from anxiety for much of her life, Izzy Judd has brought together a brilliant and inspiring collection of simple activities and exercises to help parents find their own piece of calm • Included are exercises both for you to do alone and with your children of all ages, giving them their own tools to help remain happy and peaceful too • Inside you'll discover • · Ways of bringing mindfulness to your day • · Your own self-care routine • · Breathing exercises to do with children • · How to prepare for a good night's sleep • · One-minute mindfulness • Izzy Judd's beautiful and practical book will hold your hand through the challenging and exhausting days as well as the exciting and happy days • Most importantly, it will help you to create special memories for you to share with your children

Do gentlemen wear shorts? What are the rules regarding interior decor in a high-security prison? Is it ever acceptable to send Valentine's cards to one's pets? • The twenty-first century is an age of innumerable social conundrums. Around every corner lies a potential faux pas waiting to happen. But if you've ever struggled for the right response to an unwelcome gift or floundered for conversation at the dinner party from hell, fear not: help is at hand • In Rules for Modern Life, Sir David Tang, resident agony uncle at the Financial Times, delivers a satirical masterclass in navigating the social niceties of modern life. Whether you're unsure of the etiquette of doggy bags or wondering whether a massage room in your second home would be de trop, Sir David has the answer to all your social anxieties - and much more besides

The first of his peerless novels of Cold War espionage and international intrigue, Call for the Dead is also the debut of John le Carre's masterful creation George Smiley • After a routine security check by George Smiley, civil servant Samuel Fennan apparently kills himself. When Smiley finds Circus head Maston is trying to blame him for the man's death, he begins his own investigation, meeting with Fennan's widow to find out what could have led him to such desperation. But on the very day that Smiley is ordered off the enquiry he receives an urgent letter from the dead man. Do the East Germans - and their agents - know more about this man's death than the Circus previously imagined? Le Carre's first book, Call for the Dead, introduced the tenacious and retiring George Smiley in a gripping tale of espionage and deceit

Evie is disillusioned about love ever since her dad left her mum for another woman - she's even throwing out her beloved romance novel collection • When she's given a copy of a book called Instructions for Dancing, and follows a note inside to a dilapidated dance studio, she discovers she has a strange and unwelcome gift. When a couple kisses in front of her, she can see their whole relationship play out - from the moment they first catch each other's eye to the last bitter moments of their break-up • For Evie, it confirms everything she thinks she knows about love - that it doesn't last • But at the dance studio she meets X - tall, dreadlocked, fascinating - and they start to learn to dance, together. Can X help break the spell that Evie is under? Can he change Evie's mind about love?

An addictive romance about new media stardom and first-love, perfect for fans of Beth Reekles and Jenny Han • Connor Jackson. These two words make every girl go crazy, screaming and begging for a chance to meet him. He's the world's biggest pop star, but for seventeen-year-old Katelyn Jackson he's just her older brother • When Katelyn is forced to put her competitive soccer dreams on hold to go along on Connor's US summer tour, she's unimpressed. But when she meets Zach Matthews, the lead singer of his opening act, everything changes and life on the road takes a whole different turn

'Who would name a child Sunshine, then give her away?' • Chrissie has always wanted to be a mother. After months of trying to adopt, she and her husband Stuart finally get the news that a little girl named Sunshine is waiting for them • Abandoned at a young age, the child comes to them without a family history, and it feels like a fresh start for all of them. But when fragments from Sunshine's previous life start to intrude on her new one, the little girl's mysterious past quickly becomes Chrissie's greatest fear • Beautiful and compelling, this is a story of hope and love, about finding the perfect family and fighting to keep it, perfect for fans of Jodi Picoult and Ruth Jones

Manchester, 1942 • A new year brings new hope for the railway girls • Alison's romance with the charming Dr Maitland is blossoming, but then she is posted away from Manchester. Working in a canteen isn't part of her plan, nor is meeting her beau's old girlfriend - one who just happens to want him back • Margaret is supportive of her friend's new relationship until she realises exactly who he is. Torn between keeping her secret and warning Alison, she turns to Joan for help • Working in Lost Property wouldn't be Joan's first choice of job, but with a baby on the way she knows she can't continue being a station porter. As she looks to the future, can she put the troubles of her past behind her?

Water voles are small, brownish, bewhiskered and charming. Made famous by 'Ratty' in The Wind in the Willows, once they were a ubiquitous part of our waterways. They were a totem of our rivers. Now, however, they are nearly gone. This is their story, and the story of a conservationist with a wild hope: that he could bring them back • Tom Moorhouse spent eleven years beside rivers, fens, canals, lakes and streams, researching British wildlife. Quite a lot of it tried to bite him. He studied four main species - two native and endangered, two invasive and endangering - beginning with water voles. He wanted to solve their conservation problems. He wanted to put things right • This book is about whether it worked, and what he learnt - and about what those lessons mean, not just for water voles but for all the world's wildlife

A beautiful 60th anniversary special edition of the first George Smiley novel, now with a new introduction by John le Carre • After a routine security check by George Smiley, civil servant Samuel Fennan apparently kills himself. When Smiley finds Circus head Maston is trying to blame him for the man's death, he begins his own investigation, meeting with Fennan's widow to find out what could have led him to such desperation. But on the very day that Smiley is ordered off the enquiry he receives an urgent letter from the dead man. Do the East Germans - and their agents - know more about this man's death than the Circus previously imagined? • Le Carre's debut novel, Call for the Dead, introduced the tenacious and retiring George Smiley in a gripping tale of espionage and deceit