Showing titles in Music & Performing Arts

Rising to fame with her 1936 novel Ballet Shoes, Noel Streatfeild soon became one of the most popular authors of her day. She was one of the first winners of the Carnegie Medal and was awarded an OBE in 1983. She died in 1986, but her stories continue to captivate children today. Included here are three of her very best - Ballet Shoes, The Growing Summer and When the Siren Wailed.

King Neptune, ruler of the underwater kingdom, has accused King Tristan of taking his special sceptre and as a punishment he's cast a storm spell over Enchantia! Can Rosa and Nutmeg find out who really has the sceptre or will Enchantia be gloomy forever?

Every family has its secrets, but it was a huge surprise to the three young Forbeses, fresh from a country vicarage, to discover that their grandmother was a famous actress. Sent to live with her in bombed-out, wartime London, they soon discovered that they were expected to follow in the family footsteps - to the footlights! As an actress herself, Noel Streatfeild was familiar with all the details of the backstage world of the theatre. She has created an authentic, perceptive and vivid picture of theatrical life - from stage school to auditions and performances.

Taylor Swift went from singing karaoke in a roadhouse to being a best-selling country star. Her love for her fans and her family keeps her grounded in a world of Hollywood A-listers. Learn how this young singer has become a powerhouse in the music industry.

Join Miffy and her friends in the seventh volume of her delightful adventures - thoroughly modern and more adorable than ever. Follow Miffy as she embarks on more adventures, big and small - exploring the exciting world around her with her friends and family. The classic Miffy books by Dick Bruna have sold more than 85 million copies worldwide. These brand-new episodes feature a cast of children’s voices, fun songs and delightful stories. Recommended for children three years and over.

A collection of seven of Shakespeare's best-loved plays adapted for children in plain English with additional commentary. Performed in plain English by a full cast.

The Boxcar Children have a chance to be in a real play - The Wizard of Oz! Jessie is chosen for the Cowardly Lion. Benny will play a munchkin. Even Watch has a part and all the Aldens are helping with the show. Then mysterious things begin to happen. Someone makes a threatening phone call and a costume is destroyed. Maybe the show won’t go on - unless the Boxcar Children can solve the mystery before opening night!

Marcus is NOT happy to be stuck in after-school film class...until he realizes he can turn the story of the cartoon superhero he’s been drawing for years into an actual MOVIE! There’s just one problem: He has no idea what he’s doing. So he’ll need help, from his friends, his teachers, Sierra, the strong-willed classmate with creative dreams of her own, even Tyrell, the local bully who’d be a perfect movie villain if he weren’t too terrifying to talk to.

Award-winning Karma Wilson, author of Bear Snores On, has created the delightful Hilda Hippo - a hippo who loves to dance despite all the noise she makes while doing so. It’s just that the Ka-bump! Ka-bump! Crash! Crash! Crash! noises disturb her jungle friends. Maybe Hilda could take up knitting? But knitting doesn’t quite suit the would-be ballerina. Perhaps she and her friends can find some sort of compromise!

1870. It is opening night at the Royal Opera House in a freezing city by the sea, where a huge crystal chandelier in the shape of a galleon sparkles magically with the light of 750 candles. Celeste, a theatre rat, wakes up in a costume basket from what she hopes is a bad dream, to find out that everyone at the theatre where she works thinks she is someone else. When the chandelier falls, she is haunted by a strange girl who claims to know Celeste's past and why she must play a game called the Reckoning to try to save the people she loves.

The final instalment of Robert Muchamore's Rock War series. Jay, Summer and Dylan are fresh out of the biggest reality show there is. But they're about to discover what fame and fortune are really about. Jay's brother Theo is young, rich and famous: but is it making him happy? Summer's got to weather her one-star reviews and take her career back into her own hands. And Dylan might soon be seeing the world of show business from the four walls of a prison cell. They've got everything to play for.

Tempted by the promise of fame and fortune, the Singing Mermaid joins a circus. The crowds love her, but the poor mermaid is kept in a tank by the wicked circus owner Sam Sly, and she soon longs to return to the freedom of her ocean home. The Singing Mermaid is a delightful tale from the stellar picture book partnership of Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks, creators of What the Ladybird Heard. With brilliant rhyming verse read by Lauren Laverne, this story is loved by children and parents alike.

Ever since James's dad left, he can't seem to stop worrying about everything. Luckily his favourite hobby baking is a fun (and delicious!) distraction. But no matter how many amazing cheese scones James makes, he still feels like there's a missing ingredient in his life. When James hears someone rapping in the playground one breaktime, he's completely hooked and starts writing his own raps featuring all of his favourite things - maths, his giant pet rabbit Graham and of course - cake!

Louis Armstrong, also known as “Satchmo” and “Pops”, became an American jazz legend in the 1920s. His voice and skill with instruments helped him become a popular musician in a time where America was racially divided. Watch as this skilled musician learns to play, buys his first instrument, and becomes one of the best music makers of the era.

Aya is 11 years old and has just arrived in Britain with her mum and baby brother, seeking asylum from war in Syria. When Aya stumbles across a local ballet class, the formidable dance teacher spots her exceptional talent and believes that Aya has the potential to earn a prestigious ballet scholarship. But at the same time, Aya and her family must fight to be allowed to remain in the country, to make a home for themselves and to find Aya's father - separated from the rest of the family during the journey from Syria.

Delphie’s greatest dream is to become a ballerina, and she can't quite believe it when she is invited to join the new ballet school. But there's more to Madame Zarakova's than it at first seems, and with the help of some very special ballet shoes, Delphie finds herself spinning into a whole new world.

Meet Jay. Summer. And Dylan. Jay plays guitar, writes songs and dreams of being a rock star. But his ambitions are stifled by seven siblings and a terrible drummer. Summer works hard at school, looks after her nan and has a one-in-a-million singing voice. But can her talent triumph over her nerves? Dylan is happiest lying on his bunk smoking, but his school rugby coach has other ideas, and Dylan reluctantly joins a band to avoid crunching tackles and icy mud. They're about to enter the biggest battle of their lives.

Summer has always dreamed of dancing, and when a place at ballet school comes up, she wants it so badly it hurts. Middle school ends and the holidays begin, but unlike her sisters, Summer has no time for lazy days and sunny beach parties. The audition becomes her obsession, and things start spiralling out of control.... The more Summer tries to find perfection, the more lost she becomes. Will she realise - with the help of the boy who wants more than friendship - that dreams come in all shapes and sizes?

Join world-renowned investigative reporter Eleanor Amplified as she goes undercover to help a student reporter and fan, Miku Tangeroa, expose the corruption at her middle school. Together they discover that the new organic lunch program and tech-based learning systems are doing more harm than good and might actually be part of an evil plot that might put all of Union City in danger. Can Eleanor, Miku, and their friends get to the bottom of these suspicious events in time?

This friendly, fun biography series focuses on the traits that made our heroes great - the traits that kids can aspire to in order to live heroically themselves. Each book tells the story of an icon in a lively, conversational way that works well for the youngest nonfiction audiences and that always includes the hero's childhood influences. This book features critically acclaimed talk-show host Oprah Winfrey, who used her struggles in childhood as motivation to become "Queen of All Media".