Anthologies

What does it mean to be free? Top authors donate their talents to explore the question in a compelling collection to benefit Amnesty International. A boy who thinks that school is "slavery" learns the true meaning of the word when he stumbles on a secret child-labor factory. A Palestinian boy, mute from trauma, releases kites over a wall to a hilltop settlement, each bearing a message of peace. This inspiring, engaging anthology gathers an international roster of authors to explore such themes as asylum, law, education, and faith — from a riveting tale of an attempt to find drinking water after Hurricane Katrina; to a chilling look at a future where microchips track every citizen’s every move; to a hilarious police interrogation involving the London Tower, the Crown Jewels, and a Ghanaian boy with a passion for playing marbles. Features an introduction by British writer Jacqueline Wilson. With stories by: David Almond Ibtisam Barakat Malorie Blackman Theresa Breslin Eoin Colfer Roddy Doyle Ursula Dubosarsky Jamila Gavin Margaret Mahy Patricia McCormick Michael Morpurgo Sarah Mussi Meja Mwangi Rita Williams-Garcia

In a powerful collection, eleven internationally acclaimed writers draw on personal objects to bring the First World War to life for readers young and old. A toy soldier. A butter dish. A compass. Mundane objects, perhaps, but to the remarkable authors in this collection, artifacts such as these have inspired stories that go to the heart of the human experience of World War I. Each author was invited to choose an object that had a connection to the war—a writing kit for David Almond, a helmet for Michael Morpurgo—and use it as the inspiration for an original short story. What results is an extraordinary collection, illustrated throughout by award-winning Jim Kay and featuring photographs of the objects with accounts of their history and the authors’ reasons for selecting them. This unique anthology provides young readers with a personal window into the Great War and the people affected by it, and serves as an invaluable resource for families and teachers alike.