IS AND COLD SHOULDER ROAD by Joan Aiken
Is (short for Isabett) Twite is the younger sister of Dido, every bit as spunky and compelling as her older sibling and with the same habit of attracting bizarre adventures. The two unputdownable novels in which she is the heroine, "Is" and "Cold Shoulder Road", are published here in a wonderfully satisfying double volume. Is, travelling north to find a lost cousin, discovers an underground kingdom where children work as slaves in horrifying conditions, under the rule of the sinister Gold Kingy. A year or two on, with Simon Battersea now on the throne, her aunt Ruth Twite disappears from Cold Shoulder Road. Is needs all her courage and resourcefulness as she encounters the vicious gang of Merrie Gentry and other alarming forces that are at work across the country.
"A writer of wild humour and unrestrained imagination" Oxford Companion to Children's Literature "Joan Aiken is a marvel" -- Philip Pullman Guardian "Joan Aiken is such a spellbinder" Evening Standard
Joan Aiken was born in Sussex in 1924. She was the daughter of the American poet, Conrad Aiken; her sister, Jane Aiken Hodge, is also a novelist. Before joining the 'family business' herself, Joan had a variety of jobs, including working for the BBC, the United Nations Information Centre and then as features editor for a short story magazine. Her first children's novel, The Kingdom of the Cave, was published in 1960. Joan Aiken wrote over a hundred books for young readers and adults and is recognized as one of the classic authors of the twentieth century. Amanda Craig, writing in The Times, said, 'She was a consummate story-teller, one that each generation discovers anew.' Her best-known books are those in the James III saga, of which The Wolves of Willoughby Chase was the first title, published in l962 and awarded the Lewis Carroll prize. Both that and Black Hearts in Battersea have been filmed. Her books are internationally acclaimed and she received the Edgar Allan Poe Award in the United States as well as the Guardian Award for Fiction in this country for The Whispering Mountain. Joan Aiken was decorated with an MBE for her services to children's books. She died in 2004.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780099477389 |
| ISBN 10 | 0099477386 |
| Title | IS AND COLD SHOULDER ROAD |
| Author | Joan Aiken |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Penguin Random House Children's UK |
| Year published | 2005-01-06 |
| Number of pages | 528 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |