Classic fiction

This is a stunning action thriller from a real-life hero. Kevin Dodds leads a dull, uneventful life. He has a steady job at the bank, a nice house and car.

His wife goes to Bingo on a Saturday night, but he usually stays in to save money. But Kevin has spent enough quiet nights in watching TV and decides he'd like a night out himself. And he's not talking about a pint and a packet of peanuts down at the local.

He's going to attempt to pull off a daring bank robbery single handed. Kevin is about to take a heart-thumping step into the unknown. For once, he's going to stop being the grey man...

In this highly-accessible self-help book, Big Issue founder John Bird explains his seven simple rules that could help you change your life. Whether you want to get a new job, quit smoking, give up drinking or go back to college, 'How to Change Your Life in 7 Steps' explains how you can take what you've been given and turn it into something you'll be proud of, rather than spend your life wishing for everything you haven't got. For 99 per cent of us life doesn't come knocking on the door; you have to go out and get it.

But the trouble with aiming for the stars is that you're likely to end up in the gutter. John Bird has learnt through his work with the homeless that if you start by putting just 3 per cent of your energy towards your final goal rather than...

Art techniques & materials

'Jane Eyre' ranks as one of the greatest and most perennially popular works of English fiction. Although the poor but plucky heroine is outwardly of plain appearance, she possesses an indomitable spirit, a sharp wit and great courage. She is forced to battle against the exigencies of a cruel guardian, a harsh employer and a rigid social order.

All of which circumscribe her life and position when she becomes governess to the daughter of the mysterious, sardonic and attractive Mr Rochester. However, there is great kindness and warmth in this epic love story, which is set against the magnificent backdrop of the Yorkshire moors.

Teaching of a specific subject

Lawrence's uncompromisingly candid novel deals in poetic and sexually explicit language with the passionate relationship between Lady Constance Chatterly and her husband's forthright and powerfully masculine gamekeeper, Oliver Mellors. Trapped in a marriage which has become sterile and joyless since her husband's return from the trenches of the First World War, partially paralysed and confined to a wheelchair, Connie seizes the chance of sexual fulfilment she had thought lost to her forever.

'My name is Marie Cotter and I want you to believe me. Every word of this story is true. This is what happened to me.

I'm back home again now, and sometimes, when I think about Bowdon House, I feel as if I was someone else when I was there, taking care of Amy. I'm trying to get back to normal. But I miss her so much.

Also, I can't stop the dreams coming at night...' Seventeen-year-old Marie has had a lot to cope with in her young life. Now she is recovering, and gets a job working for the widower, Dr Slade, looking after his four-year-old daughter, Amy. At first, her new job seems perfect.

Marie loves Amy, and Amy seems to like Marie, too. But, not long after arriving at Bowdon House, things start to change. It seems that not everyone is happy with the new...

Character books

Modern fiction