All Graded Readers

Dominoes Three Conan the Barbarian: Red Nails

New

Robert E. Howard
Text adaptation by Bill Bowler

'Conan!' cried Valeria. 'What are you doing here?'

When Conan the Barbarian follows Valeria the Pirate south, he surprises her. Together they escape from a fierce dragon, and enter a strange city in the desert, looking for treasure. Two enemy clans live there, and Conan and Valeria are soon asked to join in the war between them. This adventure story - full of battles, magic, and terrible monsters - is about two friendly fighters. But who are their enemies? And what is the secret of the black pillar with the red nails in it?

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Oxford Bookworms Library Stage 3 The Kiss: Love Stories from America Pack

New

Retold by Jennifer Bassett

Love stories with a difference . . . There's a kiss by a fireside that was a mistake, there's a man-hating aunt by the seaside, and a gunman in Texas wanting a fight. There's a white heron flying over a forest, and a messenger running between two benches in a park. And of course, there's a girl who meets a boy . . .These love stories are by US writers Kate Chopin, Stephen Crane, Sarah Orne Jewett, O. Henry, and Canadian writer Lucy Maud Montgomery (author of the famous Anne of Green Gables).

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Oxford Bookworms Library Stage 3 The Kiss: Love Stories from North America

New

Retold by Jennifer Bassett

Love stories with a difference . . . There's a kiss by a fireside that was a mistake, there's a man-hating aunt by the seaside, and a gunman in Texas wanting a fight. There's a white heron flying over a forest, and a messenger running between two benches in a park. And of course, there's a girl who meets a boy . . .These love stories are by US writers Kate Chopin, Stephen Crane, Sarah Orne Jewett, O. Henry, and Canadian writer Lucy Maud Montgomery (author of the famous Anne of Green Gables).

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Oxford Bookworms Library Stage 3 On the Edge

Gillian Cross
Retold by Clare West

STAGE 3 - Thriller & Adventure

When Tug wakes up, he is not in his own bedroom at home. The door is locked and there are bars across the window. Loud music hammers through the house and through his head. Then a woman comes in and says that she is his mother, but Tug knows that she is not his mother . . .

Outside, Jinny stares through the trees at the lonely house on the hill. She hears strange noises, but she turns away. After all, it's none of her business . . .

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Oxford Bookworms Library Stage 4 We Didn't Mean to Go to Sea

Arthur Ransome
Retold by Ralph Mowat

STAGE 4 - Thriller & Adventure

The four Walker children never meant to go to sea. They had promised their mother to stay safely in the harbour, and to be home on Friday in time for tea.

But there they are in someone else's boat, drifting out to sea in a thick fog. When the fog lifts, they can turn round and sail back to the harbour. But then comes the wind and the storm, driving them out even further across the cold North Sea . . .

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Oxford Bookworms Library Stage 3 The Crown of Violet

Geoffrey Trease
Retold by John Escott

STAGE 3 - Thriller & Adventure

High up on a stone seat in the great open-air theatre of Athens, Alexis, son of Leon, watches the Festival of Plays - and dreams of seeing his own play on that famous stage.

So, as the summer passes, Alexis writes his play for the next year's Festival. But then, with his friend Corinna, he learns that Athens has enemies - enemies who do not like Athenian democracy, and who are planning a revolution to end it all . . .

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Oxford Bookworms Library Stage 4 Mr Midshipman Hornblower

C.S. Forester
Retold by Rosemary Border

STAGE 4 - Thriller & Adventure

'Hornblower fired. There was a small cloud of smoke, but no bang. This is death, he thought. My pistol was the unloaded one.'

But Horatio Hornblower does not die. He survives the duel with Simpson, learns to overcome his seasickness, and goes on to risk his life many times over. It is 1793, Britain is at war with France, and life on a sailing ship of war is hard and dangerous. But the hardest battles are fought by Hornblower within himself.

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Oxford Bookworms Library Stage 4 Reflex

Dick Francis
Retold by Rowena Akinyemi

STAGE 4 - Thriller & Adventure

People who ride racehorses love the speed, the excitement, the danger - and winning the race. Philip Nore has been riding for many years and he always wants to win - but sometimes he is told to lose. Why?

And what is the mystery about the photographer, George Millace, who has just died in a car crash?

Philip Nore knows the answer to the first question, and he wants to find out the answer to the second. But as he begins to learn George Millace's secrets, he realizes that his own life is in danger.

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Oxford Bookworms Library Stage 4 The Silver Sword

Ian Serraillier
Retold by John Escott

STAGE 4 - Thriller & Adventure

Jan opened his wooden box and took out the silver sword. 'This will bring me luck,' he said to Mr Balicki. 'And it will bring you luck because you gave it to me.'

The silver sword is only a paper knife, but it gives Jan and his friends hope. Hungry, cold, and afraid, the four children try to stay alive among the ruins of bombed cities in war-torn Europe. Soon they will begin the long and dangerous journey south, from Poland to Switzerland, where they hope to find their parents again.

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