Rumer Godden

Tottie is a loving little wooden doll who lives with her family in a shoebox. The doll family is owned by two sisters, Emily and Charlotte, and they are very happy, except for one thing: they long for a proper home. To their delight, their wish comes true when Emily and Charlotte fix up a Victorian dolls' house - just for them. It's perfect. But then a new arrival starts to wreak havoc in the dolls' house. For Marchpane might be a wonderfully beautiful doll, but she is also terribly cruel. And she always gets her own way . . .First published in 1947, Rumer Godden's classic The Dolls' House has been delighting children for years, and this beautiful edition, illustrated by Jane Ray, will delight future generations for years to come.

Five nuns confront nature--physical and human--in a remote Himalayan convent in the bestselling novel that inspired the new FX miniseries. Under the guidance of Sister Clodagh, the youngest Mother Superior in the history of their order, five European Sisters of the Servants of Mary leave their monastery in Darjeeling, India, and make their way to remote Mopu in the foothills of the Himalayan Mountains. There, in the opulent, abandoned palace where an Indian general housed his harem, the holy sisters hope to establish a school and a health clinic. Their aim is to help combat superstition, ignorance, and disease among the mistrusting natives in the village below, and to silence the doubts of their royal benefactor's agent, the hard-drinking and somewhat disreputable Mr. Dean. But all too soon, the isolation, the ghosts and lurid history, and the literally breathtaking beauty of this high, lonely place in the Asian mountains begin to take a serious toll on Sister Clodagh and her fellow nuns. And their burdens may prove too heavy to bear, exposing a vulnerable humanity that threatens to undermine the best intentions of the purest hearts. The basis for the Golden Globe and Academy Award-winning motion picture starring Deborah Kerr, as well as the new miniseries on FX starring Gemma Arterton, Black Narcissus has been universally praised for its poignancy, passion, and rich evocation of a time and place. An intensely human story of devotion, faith, and madness, this beloved novel by the New York Times-bestselling author of In This House of Brede stands among the finest fiction written in the twentieth century. "Bears comparison with A Passage to India." --Arthur Koestler This ebook features an illustrated biography of the author including rare images from the Rumer Godden Literary Estate.

NOW A HAUNTING BBC DRAMA, STARRING GEMMA ARTERTON AND DIANA RIGG'A remarkable and beautiful book' DAILY TELEGRAPH'I envy anyone reading it for the first time' AMANDA COE'[Godden has] a genius for storytelling' EVENING STANDARDHigh in the Himalayas, the mountaintop palace shines like a jewel. Built for the General's harem, laughter and music once floated out over the gorge. Now it sits abandoned, windswept and haunting.The palace is bestowed to the Sisters of Mary, and what was once known as 'the House of Women' becomes the Convent of St Faith. Close to the heavens, the nuns feel inspired, working fervently to establish their school and hospital. But as the isolation and emptiness of the mountain become increasingly unsettling, passions long repressed emerge with tragic consequences . . .

The old woman is happy living in her old vinegar bottle house by a loch, until one day she saves a charming fish prince who grants her wishes in return.At first the old woman's wishes are humble -- a hot dinner and a little cottage -- but as she asks for more and more extravagant things she forgets how happy she used to be in her little vinegar bottle house with her cat, Malt. Can her wishes truly bring her happiness?This traditional tale is adapted with charm and humour by Rumer Godden, one of the twentieth-century's best-loved writers, while the beautiful artwork of best-selling illustrator Mairi Hedderwick, creator of Katie Morag, give the story a Scottish twist!Featuring beautiful Scottish landscapes and lively characters, The Old Woman Who Lived in a Vinegar Bottle is a wonderful traditional tale to share with young children.

A tense, evocative, portrait of love and deceit set during one long hot summer in France, The Greengage Summer is a hauntingly beautiful coming-of-age story by from Rumer Godden, the author of Black Narcissus, now a major BBC drama series.When their mother is suddenly taken ill on holiday, five siblings are left to fend for themselves at the elegant, faded hotel, Les Oeillets. Under the increasingly jealous gaze of the glamorous patronne, Mademoiselle Zizi, the children gravitate towards her mysterious and charming lover, Eliot, for comfort. And, amongst the gnarled trees of the old orchards, thirteen-year-old Cecil watches from the sidelines as her achingly beautiful sister, Joss, is drawn into the heart of a toxic affair.Designed to appeal to the booklover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.

It is Christmas Eve and, for the toys in Mr Blossom's shop, it is their last chance to be sold. Holly, a small doll dressed especially for Christmas, wishes hard for her own special child. But the day ends and Holly is left in the window. On Christmas morning a little lost orphan girl finds herself outside the toyshop. Ivy has never had a doll to love, but when she sees Holly, she knows at once that this doll is meant specially for her. But Ivy has no money, and the shop is closed . . .The Story of Holly and Ivy is a Christmas classic by Rumer Godden, beautifully illustrated by Christian Birmingham.

Elizabeth is enchanted by the beautiful fairy doll that sits at the top of the Christmas tree wearing a sparkly beaded dress and delicate silver shoes. Little Elizabeth could never be so perfect - she is always getting into trouble. Then Great-Grandma gives Fairy Doll to Elizabeth - and suddenly everything starts going right instead of wrong. Could Fairy Doll be magical?First published in 1956, The Fairy Doll is a Christmas story to treasure from classic writer Rumer Godden, beautifully illustrated throughout by Gary Blythe.

"Once upon a time there was a little mouse house. It was like a doll's house, but not for dolls, for mice." Not proper mice, but a flannel He-Mouse and She-Mouse with beady eyes and bristle whiskers who stand quite still, propped on their hind legs in the sitting room. Mary knows real mice run and scamper, and disappointed with her new gift, she puts the mouse house away in her room. Meanwhile, down in the basement, a real mouse named Bonnie has been jostled out of her woefully inadequate flowerpot home by her older brothers and sisters. Overlooked by her harried parents and desperate for shelter, Bonnie ventures upstairs and finds the mouse house. And before too long what was a miniature make-believe house becomes a marvelously messy home for proper mice who know how to play, much to everyone's delight.

An emergency meeting of the Mortimer Square Garden Committee has been convened to discuss a most alarming matter: Someone has been digging in the garden and making off with buckets of dirt. Miss Angela Chesney is sure that a gang of boys from run-down Catford Street is to blame. But Angela's sister, Olivia, isn't so sure. Olivia has always wondered why the neighborhood children--the "sparrows" she sometimes watches from the window of her house--are kept out of the private garden. Don't they have a right to enjoy the place, too? But neither Angela nor Olivia has any idea what sent the neighborhood waif Lovejoy Mason and her few friends in search of good, rich earth. Still less do they imagine where their investigation of the incident will lead them--to a struggling restaurant, a bombed-out church, and at the heart of it all, a hidden garden.

A beautifully illustrated cover edition of Rumer Godden's classic story about friendship and family, Miss Happiness and Miss Flower.When little Nona is sent from her sunny home in India to live with her relatives in chilly England, she is miserable. Then a box arrives for her in the post and inside, wrapped up in tissue paper, are two little Japanese dolls. A slip of paper says their names are Miss Happiness and Miss Flower. Nona thinks that they must feel lonely too, so far away from home. Then Nona has an idea – she will build her dolls the perfect house! It will be just like a Japanese home in every way. It will even have a tiny Japanese garden. And as she begins to make Miss Happiness and Miss Flower happy, Nona finds that she is happier too.

When Gem moves into The House Next Door, Nona and Belinda think she's stuck up and vow to have nothing to do with her. But the beautiful Japanese doll in her window soon attracts their attention. They name her Little Plum because of the plum blossom decorating her clothes - but unlike Nona's Japanese dolls, Miss Happiness and Miss Flower, Little Plum seems sad, unloved and uncared for. Will the three girls - and the three dolls - ever become friends?A beautiful illustrated cover edition of Little Plum, Rumer Godden's classic story about family and friendship.

Hailed 'a small masterpiece' by Spectator, an unforgettable evocation of India and of childhood, of innocence and experience by the New York Times bestselling author, Rumer Godden.

In The Lady and the Unicorn, Rumer Godden explores the cultural divide in colonial India through a young and forbidden romance.

From the author of Black Narcissus, this acclaimed coming-of-age novel examines the tensions of divorce from a child's perspective.

By the author of Black Narcissus and The Diddakoi comes the moving tale of Dark Invader, a powerful racehorse. '[Godden's] distinctive, poised and unsentimental books have never lost a shred of their almost hypnotic appeal' ROSIE THOMAS, GUARDIAN 'One of our best and most captivating novelists' PHILIP HENSHER '[Godden has] a genius for storytelling' EVENING STANDARD'All horses can walk - some badly, some well, but to a few is given a gift of movement feline in its grace, a slouching, flowing continuous movement that is a joy to watch. Dark Invader strode in glorious rhythm, his great shoulders rolling, muscles rippling along his flanks under the satin skin.'In Calcutta, India, John Quillan cares for racehorses belonging to wealthy owners, and Mother Morag, who lives just down the road and leads a group of nuns working with Calcutta's poor, loves to watch these beautiful animals in action.Dark Invader is a beautifully bred racehorse, but after a disappointing first season he is sold in disgrace and shipped from England to Calcutta. With love and gentle handling, 'Darkie' wins the hearts of the people and becomes the firm favourite for India's most famous race, the Viceroy Cup. But three days before the race Dark Invader disappears. Can he be found before it is too late?Follow Dark Invader's journey, now available as a Virago Modern Classic.

From the esteemed author of Black Narcissus and The River, comes another captivating classic novel about a poor girl striving to create beauty among the bombsites of postwar London.

Rumer Godden's The Diddakoi won the 1972 Whitbread Children's Book Award. Everyone in Kizzy's town hates her because she's half-gypsy – a diddakoi. But Kizzy doesn't care. All she needs is Gran and her horse, Joe. But when Gran dies and their wagon burns down, Kizzy is all alone. No one wants to look after her and her beloved Joe might get sent to the knacker's yard. Can Kizzy survive in a hostile world – and save Joe?

‘Dolls cannot tell you anything, but often their wish is as strong as telling. Have you ever felt a doll’s wish?’With a foreword by Jacqueline Wilson, The Fairy Doll and other Tales from the Dolls' House is a wonderful classic edition containing some of Rumer Godden’s best-loved stories, including:Miss Happiness and Miss Flower, Little Plum, The Story of Holly & Ivy, The Fairy Doll, Impunity Jane, Candy Floss and The Dolls' House.Rumer Godden's doll stories have been delighting children for years, and this collection will delight future generations for years to come.

By the New York Times bestselling author, Rumer Godden, comes an enchanting classic about a girl who overcomes the odds to become a ballet dancer will thrill young readers.