The Chung-Li virus has devastated Asia, wiping out the rice crop and leaving riots and mass starvation in its wake. The rest of the world looks on with concern, though safe in the expectation that a counter-virus will be developed any day. Then Chung-Li mutates and spreads. Wheat, barley, oats, rye: no grass crop is safe, and global famine threatens.

In Britain, where green fields are fast turning brown, the Government lies to its citizens, devising secret plans to preserve the lives of a few at the expense of the many.

Getting wind of what's in store, John Custance and his family decide they must abandon their London home to head for the sanctuary of his brother's farm in a remote northern valley.

And so they begin the long trek across a country fast descending into barbarism, where the law of the gun prevails, and the civilized values they once took for granted become the price they must pay if they are to survive.

Experience the beginning of the Tripods' reign in this prequel to the classic alien trilogy ideal for fans of Rick Yancey's The 5th Wave and Margaret Peterson Haddix's Shadow Children series.

When it comes to alien invasions, bad things come in threes.

Three landings: one in England, one in Russia, and one in the United States.

Three long legs, crushing everything in their paths, with three metallic arms, snacking out to embrace--and then discard--their helpless victims.

Three evil beings, called Tripods, which will change life on Earth forever.

Monstrous machines rule the Earth, but a few humans are fighting for freedom in this repackaged start to a classic alien trilogy ideal for fans of Rick Yancey's The 5th Wave.Will Parker never dreamed he would be the one to rebel against the Tripods. With the approach of his thirteenth birthday, he expected to attend his Capping ceremony as planned and to become connected to the Tripods--huge three-legged machines--that now control all of Earth. But after an encounter with a strange homeless man called Beanpole, Will sets out for the White Mountains, where people are said to be free from the control of the Tripods. But even with the help of Beanpole and his friends, the journey is long and hard. And with the Tripods hunting for anyone who tries to break free, Will must reach the White Mountains fast. But the longer he's away from his home, the more the Tripods look for him...and no one can hide from the monstrous machines forever.

Monstrous machines rule the Earth, but a few humans are fighting for freedom in this repackaged start to a classic alien trilogy ideal for fans of Rick Yancey's The 5th Wave.

Will Parker never dreamed he would be the one to rebel against the Tripods. With the approach of his thirteenth birthday, he expected to attend his Capping ceremony as planned and to become connected to the Tripods--huge three-legged machines--that now control all of Earth. But after an encounter with a strange homeless man called Beanpole, Will sets out for the White Mountains, where people are said to be free from the control of the Tripods.

But even with the help of Beanpole and his friends, the journey is long and hard. And with the Tripods hunting for anyone who tries to break free, Will must reach the White Mountains fast. But the longer he's away from his home, the more the Tripods look for him...and no one can hide from the monstrous machines forever.

When Neil survives a deadly plague and plunges into solitude, he must question everything in this gripping adventure from critically acclaimed Tripods author John Christopher.

Neil's world is shattered when he and his family are involved in a horrible car accident that leaves him an orphan. He is sent to live in a small village with his grandparents, whom he loves but doesn't really know.

Soon, a devastating illness, the Calcutta Plague, begins making the headlines. After killing thousands of people in India in just a few months, the disease begins to spread much farther, quickly sweeping across the world and eventually settling in the same village where Neil resides. The sickness is a strange one, affecting only the adults and none of the children, and soon Neil finds himself an orphan once more.

Alone, Neil travels to London in search of other survivors of the plague. There he finds a strange world of fear and suspicion, where friends can be enemies and people will do anything to survive. In this time of strife, amid the excitement and loneliness of his solitude, can Neil find a way to focus on what matters most?

During the First World War the authorities emulated the simple slogans and strong graphic imagery of advertising posters to create a form of mass communication that was easily and instantly understood by the British public. They were aimed at the mostly illiterate working class who did more than their share to feed the machinery of war. This book looks at the art of these posters and explores the themes that emerged throughout the course of the conflict. For the most part the posters were calls to action, starting with the initial period of voluntary enlistment and leading on to conscription. Psychologically they worked on several levels, appealing to a sense of duty or tapping into feelings of guilt. Patriotic fervour was heightened by the appearance of the Union Jack, the king and, most enduringly perhaps, the iconic image of Lord Kitchener. In addition, propaganda posters heaped on the pressure with scenes of German atrocities, such as the sinking of the Lusitania and the spectre of Zeppelin raids on England. Those not directly involved in the fighting were also urged to do their part; the women in particular by sending their men to the front or working in the munitions factories or on the land. Even children had a part to play - 'Daddy, what did YOU do in the Great War?' Money is another recurring theme, with war savings and bonds financing the war effort and countless charities appealing for funds to care for the wounded and war orphans.

Will must defeat the Tripods once and for all in this third book of a classic alien trilogy ideal for fans of Rick Yancey's The 5th Wave and Margaret Peterson Haddix's Shadow Children series.

After being held captive in the City of Gold and Lead--the capital, where the creatures that control the mechanical, monstrous Tripods live--Will believes that he's learned everything he needs to know to destroy them. He has discovered the source of their power, and with this new knowledge, Will and his friends plan to return to the City of Gold and Lead to take down the Masters once and for all.

Although Will and his friends have planned everything down to the minute, the Masters still have surprises in store. And with the Masters' plan to destroy Earth completely, Will may have just started the war that will end it all.

Will and his friends return to the City of the Tripods--and risk their lives--in this second book of a classic alien trilogy ideal for fans of Rick Yancey's The 5th Wave and Margaret Peterson Haddix's Shadow Children series.

When Will and his friends arrived at the White Mountains, they thought everything would be okay. They'd found a safe haven where the mechanical monsters called Tripods could not find them. But once there, they wonder about the world around them and how they are faring against the machines.

In order to save everyone else, Will and his friends want to take down the Tripods once and for all. That means journeying to the Tripod capital: the City of Gold and Lead.

Although the journey will be difficult, the real danger comes once Will is inside the city, where Tripods roam freely and humans are even more enslaved than they are on the outside. Without anyone to help him, Will must learn the secrets of the Tripods--and how to take them down--before they figure out that he's a spy...and he can only pretend to be brainwashed for so long.

The Tripods' rule is complete: the classic alien trilogy and its prequel are now available in a collectible hardcover boxed set.

In Will's world, everything is controlled by the Tripods--huge, three-legged machines that descended upon Earth long ago.

Most people unquestioningly accept the Tripods' power, but Will is not most people. Journey with him in this collection of all four books in John Christopher's beloved classic sci-fi dystopian series, now available as a hardcover boxed set.

Includes:
The White Mountains
The City of Gold and Lead
The Pool of Fire
When the Tripods Came

Will and his friends return to the City of the Tripods--and risk their lives--in this second book of a classic alien trilogy ideal for fans of Rick Yancey's The 5th Wave and Margaret Peterson Haddix's Shadow Children series.

When Will and his friends arrived at the White Mountains, they thought everything would be okay. They'd found a safe haven where the mechanical monsters called Tripods could not find them. But once there, they wonder about the world around them and how they are faring against the machines.

In order to save everyone else, Will and his friends want to take down the Tripods once and for all. That means journeying to the Tripod capital: the City of Gold and Lead.

Although the journey will be difficult, the real danger comes once Will is inside the city, where Tripods roam freely and humans are even more enslaved than they are on the outside. Without anyone to help him, Will must learn the secrets of the Tripods--and how to take them down--before they figure out that he's a spy...and he can only pretend to be brainwashed for so long.

When the storm rages and the avalanche cuts off power and phone lines, no one in the chalet is particularly bothered. There are kerosene lamps, a well-stocked bar and food supplies more than adequate to last them till the road to Nidenhaut can be opened up. They're on holiday after all, and once the weather clears they can carry on skiing.

They do not know, then, that deep within the Swiss Alps, something alien has stirred: an invasion so sly it can only be detected by principled reasoning.

The Possessors had a long memory ... For aeons which were now uncountable their life had been bound up with the evanescent lives of the Possessed. Without them, they could not act or think, but through them they were the masters of this cold world.

Brunel and London. It might not seem an obvious association, but John Christopher puts the case that it was London, not Bristol, that was the most important centre of Brunel's activities. It was here that he lived, worked and died. The city is dotted with examples of his works, some obvious and some less so, from the subaquatic Thames Tunnel between Wapping to Rotherhithe where he cut his engineering teeth and was almost killed in a sudden deluge, to the Hungerford suspension bridge between Charing Cross and the South Bank - mostly forgotten but parts of it still exist - the two stations at Paddington with the Great Western Railway main line running to the west and, of course, his final steamship, the vast Great Eastern which was built at Millwall and marked the end of his career and his life. Less familiar are Brunel's connections with the Crystal Palace, designed by Joseph Paxton for the Great Exhibition of 1851, and the two towers he built when it was relocated to Sydenham in south London. John Christopher, an acknowledged expert on Brunel, takes us on a tour of London, examining the relationship between city and engineer. This is the latest in a series of books which are about rediscovering Brunel's works in your area.

Bradshaw's Guide of 1863 was the staple book to what's what and where's where for the mid-Victorians and it gives the modern reader a unique insight into the world of the nineteenth-century travellers. The railways themselves opened up Scotland properly to tourism for the first time, and many journeys that once took days to complete could now be undertaken in hours, bringing its many attractions within the reaches of the masses. This illustrated guide records the sights to be seen in the towns and cities encountered along the route. 'Bradshaw's Guides were invaluable in their time and they provide the modern-day reader with a fascinating insight into the nineteenth century rail traveller's experience.' Campbell McCutcheon takes us up the eastern side of Bradshaw's Scotland, using contemporary Victorian and Edwardian photographs and postcards to illustrate the scenes that the users of Bradshaw's Guide to Scotland's Railways would have experienced. This volume covers primarily the lines of the North British Railway and the Great North of Scotland Railway.

221B Baker Street was the fictional home of Sherlock Holmes, Arthur Conan Doyle's 'consulting detective'. He penned 56 short stories and four novels featuring the detective and his faithful assistant, Dr Watson, mostly set in and around London. From 1887 until 1927, each new story captivated readers. Within the stories, over 250 London landmarks and streets are mentioned and John Christopher has brought together archive and more recent images of the most famous of Holmes's London haunts. Discovering the London of Sherlock Holmes gives the reader an insight into the London of the master detective, with guides to the locations which feature in the stories. From Scotland Yard to Paddington Station, from Victoria to the Embankment, from the Houses of Parliament to Holmes' own residence in 221B Baker Street, John Christopher brings Holmes into the modern day and makes it easy for the fan to guide themselves around the venues from the stories.

1940 As the period of the 'Phoney War' came to an end, the Nazis unleashed their Blitzkrieg tactics, which saw the rapid mobility of the ground forces closely supported by superior air power. The Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark and Norway fell in the spring, and the British Expeditionary Force made a hasty retreat from the beaches of Dunkirk in Operation Dynamo. Winston Churchill, the new Prime Minister of the coalition government, described the evacuation of thousands of troops by an armada of little vessels as a miracle. But, following the fall of France in June, he issued a sombre warning that Britain now fought alone. The nation's fate was in the hands of the 'Few', the men of fighter command who fought to hold back Göring's Luftwaffe in its bid to gain superiority in the air as the prelude to a German invasion. This was the Battle of Britain, and as the Spitfires and Hurricanes jousted with enemy fighters and bombers in the late summer of 1940, the ordinary people of London and many other cities and towns came to know the terror of the air raids. John Christopher and Campbell McCutcheon tell the story of 1940 at war using many rare and often unpublished images, showing the rapidly changing nature of the conflict, as well as its impact on the everyday person.

Seventy-five years ago, on 1 September 1939, Germany invaded Poland. With political agreements in place to come to Poland's aid, Britain and France both declared war on Germany within two days. It was the start of a conflict that would erupt over every continent and see the deaths of tens of millions of people, with much of central Europe destroyed. It would also see the development of jets, intercontinental missiles, computers and the Atomic Bomb. 1939, in particular, saw the sinking of the passenger ship Athenia on the first day of the war, the evacuation of children from Britain's population centres, the daring attack by U-49 on the Royal Oak at Scapa Flow, air raids on Wilhelmshaven and on Shetland and the Forth Bridge. It also saw the development of the Blitzkrieg tactics that were to prove so successful in France, Belgium and the Netherlands in 1940.

Famed for his railway hand-books - recently rediscovered through Michael Portillo's television series on the great railway journeys - George Bradshaw also produced this Hand Book to London, which was originally published in 1862. Presented as a series of walks within central London, as well as a trip along the Thames by steamer and a visit to the Crystal Palace at Sydenham, it provides a unique perspective on the city as it was 150 years ago. This new edition presents Bradshaw's Hand Book to London in a highly readable form, accompanied by a wealth of contemporary images to bring the text to life. It is packed with fascinating information and armed with this guide, which includes contemporary maps, the modern explorer can retrace Bradshaw's steps to discover the Victorian world amid today's busy city.

1944 saw the largest seaborne invasion ever staged in Operation Overlord. The Allied landings on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day, 6 June 1944, opened the way for the thrust into the occupied countries of northern Europe, in particular France, with the Allies liberating Paris in August. This was the first major milestone in the eastwards drive into the heart of Germany. Other triumphs in the sixth year of the war included the Red Army regaining Leningrad on the Eastern Front, defeats for the Japanese in the Battle of the Philippine Sea as well as the British advances in Burma, and there were the American landings in Anzio, the taking of Rome, and further landings in Greece. Victory was almost within sight, but it couldn't be taken for granted as the war was entering a new phase and the Nazi war machine still had a sting in its tail. Infuriated by Allied gains, Hitler unleashed the long-promised Vengeance weapons, in particular the V1 flying bomb and the V2 ballistic missile, in the belief that they would turn the tide of the war in Germany's favour. There was also the question of whether Nazi scientists were developing an atomic bomb. John Christopher and Campbell McCutcheon tell the story of 1944 at war using many rare and often unpublished images, showing the rapidly changing nature of the conflict.