James Murphy

Double, double, toil and trouble, make your grades incredible! This handsome Text Guide is a smashing GCSE-level companion to Macbeth - and it's perfect for all major GCSE English exam boards.

It contains succinct summaries of the key elements of the play, plus in-depth notes on the characters, themes, language, historical background and more, with photographs from film and stage productions to help set the scene.

To make sure everything has sunk in, we've thrown in a heap of quick warm-up activities, in-depth exercises and realistic exam-style questions at the end of sections, alongside challenging questions for students aiming for Grades 8-9.

My name is Anthony Rideway. I am the author of the Wizzy books, which Calibre has in its library. In November, I had my 50th Birthday. Just like Calibre, for one of my presents, my mum published the book you are about to listen to. But without my mum putting all the poems together, there would not have been a book at all.

For this, I say a big thank you to my mum Grethe and to all at Calibre, especially Emma Scott.

To my listeners, I hope you enjoy reading or listening to this book.

Richard Maddison, a clerk in the City of London, struggles on a few shillings a week. He meets Hetty Turney, daughter of a prosperous city merchant and falls in love, but he is not the kind of man her father wants her to marry. Will he ever be able to win her hand?

The stabbed body of a well-dressed man is found slumped on a swing in a children's playground in the heart of Detective Inspector Bill Slider's patch. From the seedy pubs of Shepherd's Bush through the brothels of Notting Hill to the mansions of Holland Park, Slider and his team unearth the victims' sordid lifestyle of debts, drugs and dodgy deals. It soon becomes clear that their prime suspect is a crime baron who will stop at nothing to keep his identity hidden. However, Slider is not only up against a resourceful villain, but is also fighting to stop the case being taken off his hand. He's so busy he hasn't a spare moment. But when the case is all over, he'll finally have the time to hear what his on-off girlfriend has been trying to tell him... Book 9 of series.

With his son's return, Superintendent Lannes and his wife can, at last, have some joy amid the grim reality of Vichy France. But when the body of an elderly man without identity papers is found it seems a series of unexplained murders have started again.

At the heart of French gastronomy lies the famed black truffle of the Périgord. But France's truffles are being adulterated with cheaper ones from China, and it seems that Chinese organised crime is behind the fraud. When a vicious murder and illegal immigration are added to the mix, Bruno, Chief of Police, has his work cut out to keep St Denis from tearing itself apart.  Book 3 of series.

Tomaso Rainaldi, an elderly, unassuming violin maker in the quiet Italian city of Cremona is brutally murdered. His friend and fellow-violin maker, Gianni Castiglione, begins to investigate the death, discovering a link to the fabled Messiah violin. As Gianni probes deeper, he finds himself involved in a sequence of startling events that leads to another murder, a mysterious Englishman and an unscrupulous violin dealer. A train of events that careers across Italy and England as Gianni becomes a player in a game where musical instruments change hands for millions, where forgery is an art form and the preferred method of negotiation is murder. Book one in the series.

When school’s out, headteacher Catherine Leckie loves nothing more than pottering in her garden shed. This time, someone is there waiting…

They leave her body lying among the gardening tools. Strangled.

It’s up to Detective Markham to weed out the murderer from a long list of suspects. But the deeper he digs into Catherine’s secrets, the more dirt he finds.

Secret trysts and bitter grudges - the frosty ground of Beauclair Drive Allotments is a hotbed of intrigue.

When Markham’s prime suspect is found pushing up daisies - on the same allotments - he realises no one is safe from this brutal killer.

Can Markham crack the case before more green-fingered victims die?

Book 20 in the Detective Markham series.

The Artful Dodger is back! London's most skilled and charismatic thief is back to ply his trade on the capital's streets once more. From the rooftops to the sewers, Dodger leads us on a witty and thrilling adventure through Dickensian London.

Forensic expert Enzo Macleod takes a wager to solve seven notorious French murders, armed with modern technology and a total disregard for the justice system. Deep in the catacombs below Paris, he unearths dark clues, and as he draws closer to the killer, discovers that he is to be the next victim.  Book 1 of series

Boys United: the first book in the Football Academy series by Tom Palmer

Jake loves football and dreams of becoming a professional footballer. He's worried about his height though - what if he's too small for football? But on the day of his trial Jake is quick on the ball and scores - he's made it! Jake can't wait to pull on his shirt and join the team. But someone at the club wants to make his life difficult. Can Jake face up to the bullies and become man of the match again?

Stay on the ball this season with the first four stories following the boys in United's under-twelves.

As well as being a huge football fan, Tom Palmer has an international reputation in reader development. He is a coordinator of the Reading Partners consortium, works with The Reading Agency, Booktrust and the National Literacy Trust, and has been the official writer for the Premier League Reading Stars scheme for five years. He is the author of the Football Detective series, also for Puffin Books. Tom lives in West Yorkshire with his wife and daughter.

Striking Out: the second book in the Football Academy series by Tom Palmer

Yunis can't believe that he's United leading scorer. It should be the happiest time of his life, but his father wants him to give up football and work hard at school. Can Yunis convince his dad that he can do both, or will he have to hang up his boots forever?

Stay on the ball this season with all the action from Football Academy.

As well as being a huge football fan, Tom Palmer has an international reputation in reader development. He is a coordinator of the Reading Partners consortium, works with The Reading Agency, Booktrust and the National Literacy Trust, and has been the official writer for the Premier League Reading Stars scheme for five years. He is the author of the Football Detective series, also for Puffin Books. Tom lives in West Yorkshire with his wife and daughter.

United's under-twelves are in Poland for a tournament. Goal-keeper Tomasz is very excited to be playing in his home country, but team captain Ryan thinks Poland are rubbish - in fact, he thinks everything Polish is rubbish. Ryan's behaviour causes trouble both on and off the pitch. Can Ryan and Tomasz tackle their differences - or will Ryan's bullying foul United's chance of success?

Ben is at his happiest playing for United and is getting top marks from the coach. But every day at school is a trial for Ben, as he struggles to hide a huge secret from his teachers and classmates.

Ben's secret is starting to affect his game - can he swallow his pride and ask for help before he sidelines himself - for good?

October 1940. The London borough of West Ham is in the grip of yet another night of bombing, and undertaker Francis Hancock is in the grip of yet another night of temporary insanity.

A veteran of World War One, Francis is forced by the nightly air raids to relive the trauma of the trenches, and all he can do is try to outrun the horrific flashbacks. So when he sees a man lurching through the rubble, screaming about being stabbed but with no visible wound, Francis dismisses it at the ravings of another lost soul... until the man's body turns up at his funeral parlour, two days later. Suspecting foul play, Francis feels compelled to discover what really happened that night - but he finds himself pitted against violent thugs, an impenetrable network of lies and his own fragile sanity.

Book 1 in the Francis Hancock series.

Refreshed, renewed, reloaded!

Step back to an awesomely ancient time with the Awesome Egyptians, as featured on BBC Bitesize.

Discover . . .

• which king had the worst blackheads
• why some kings had to wear false beards
• and why the peasants were revolting.

Discover all the foul facts about the 'Great' War with history's most horrible headlines: Frightful First World War edition. 

The master of making history fun, Terry Deary gives us all the facts on the First World War including what the 'Fat King' did with food scraps and dead horses, how sniffing your own pee could save your life in a gas attack and why a pair of old socks gave away top German secrets. It's all in Horrible Histories: Frightful First World War.

• fully illustrated throughout and packed with toe-curling stories- with all the horribly hilarious bits included
• with a fresh take on the classic Horrible Histories style, perfect for fans old and new
• the perfect series for anyone looking for a fun and informative read 
• Horrible Histories has been entertaining children and families for generations with books, TV, stage show, magazines, games and 2019's brilliantly funny Horrible Histories: the Movie - Rotten Romans.

Get your history right here and collect the whole horrible lot. 

Read all about it!

With her murderous daughter, Medea, banished to the spirit world, Queen Thirrin's tiny kindom of Icemark has enjoyed a time of peace. But her consort, Oskan Witchfather, fears for their nation - and rightly so. Medea is out for revenge. Allied with the King of the Darkness and his terrifying Ice Demons, the power of evil grows stronger day by day. The dark is rising and the Icemark and its allies must stop it.

When his brother, the King, is killed in battle, Prince Redrought must rally his people and learn to defend the tiny country against supernatural invaders - werewolves, vampires and zombies. Redrought must take the fight to enemy territory, The-Land-of-the-Ghosts, and it's there he will fall or stand for ever in the legends of the Icemark as King Redrought Athelstan Strong-in-the-Arm Lindenshield, Bear of the North.

Book 4 in the Icemark Chronicles series.

The banks of the river Didder in the summertime appear idyllic: the sun is shining, the trout rising. But when the body of a local landowner is discovered, the peace of the countryside is shattered. It soon becomes apparent that quite a few local people disliked the deceased.

Inspector Mallett is brought in from Scotland Yard to find the killer; and, though quick to disentangle the complex relationships linking suspects and victim, Mallett must master the subtleties of fly-fishing in order to uncover the incriminating evidence he seeks. 

Jack Stannard has spent his whole life at sea, enduring savage beatings from his father and the furious aggression of whip-cracking storms. But a more cruel and dangerous foe is on the horizon.

When Henry VIII dissolves the monasteries and wages war against France and Scotland simultaneously, Jack must take up his family destiny at the head of the Dunwich fleet.

But enemy blades may be the least of his problems. Aging ships, treacherous rivals and ghosts from the past all threaten to interfere with the war effort. The only man he can trust is Thomas Ryman, a former warrior turned monk.

As the English fleet descends on Edinburgh, the dangerous game of politics and war reaches a shattering climax aboard the pride of Henry's navy - the Mary Rose.

Remshi is the oldest vampire in existence. He is searching for the werewolf named Talulla, whom he believes is the reincarnation of his long lost - and only - love. But he is not the only one seeking Talulla. Hunted by the Militi Christi, a religious order hell-bent on wiping out werewolves and vampires alike, Remshi and Talulla must join forces to protect their families, fulfil an ancient prophecy and save both of their lives. Book three in the series.

FBI agents pay a visit to a communist man and his wife in their New York apartment, and, after a trial that divides the country, the couple are sent to the electric chair for treason. Later, in 1967, their son Daniel struggles to understand the tragedy of their lives. But while he is tormented by his past, Daniel is also haunted, like millions of others, by the need to come to terms with a country destroying itself in the Vietnam War.

Colin Burrows, recently sent to prison for burglary, knows that his four year sentence means that he will miss the birth of his first child. His cell-mate Barry hatches a plan to get Colin out of jail for the birth. It's a plan so crazy that either it will fail and get both men in deeper trouble, or it might just work. Quick Reads.

The paternity of Theseus, the grandson of the King of Troizen is shrouded in mystery - can he really be the son of the god Poseidon? When he discovers his father's sword beneath a rock, his mother must reveal his true identity: Theseus is the son of Aegeus, King of Athens, and is his only heir. So begins Theseus's perilous journey to his father's palace to claim his birth right.

Having freed the city of Athens from the rule of Knossos, Theseus has returned home to find his father dead and himself the new king. But his adventures have only just begun: he still must confront the Amazons, capture their queen, Hippolyta, and face the tragic results of Phaedra's jealous rage.

Alexias, a young Athenian, grows up just as the Peloponnesian War is drawing to a close. The adult world he enters is one in which the power and influence of his class have been undermined by the war, and Alexias finds himself drawn to the controversial teachings of Sokrates. Among the followers, Alexias meets Lysis, and the two youths become inseparable. Their relationship captures vividly the intricacies of classical Greek culture.

A stunning collection of twenty-five short stories and poems exploring the relationship between humans and animals. From crocodile to frog; tiger to bee, this is a dark and surreal exploration of the perennial love and destruction we feel and inflict – of how animals can save us, and how we are entwined, for better or for worse.

After breaking up with his girlfriend, Alfie decides to spend the summer holidays with his dad in a tiny village in the North of England. In the local church graveyard, he chances upon a boulder with a strange inscription – and meets Mia, who then tells him about the local superstition surrounding the stone.

Alfie, in a reckless attempt to show his bravery, accepts the superstition as a challenge. He thinks the story is nonsense. But it soon becomes apparent that he’s just made the biggest mistake of his life…

England has been radically changed by a series of catastrophes – large cities have disappeared and London has been replaced by a lagoon. The surviving population exists in fortified towns where they cling to traditional ways, while strangely evolved beasts prowl the wilderness beyond. Conformity is rigidly enforced and those who fall foul of the rules are persecuted.

Only a few fight back – and two of these outlaws, Scarlett McCain and Albert Browne, display an audacity and talent that makes them legends.

Far out to sea and deep below the whispering waves lives a merman called Nen. Nen spends his days exploring his underwater kingdom, but something is missing: his heart is empty. So, Nen ventures to the forbidden world above and it is here that he meets Ernest, a lonely fisherman. But can two people from different worlds be together and what will happen when a terrifying storm gathers? A lyrical, beautiful celebration of love, acceptance and faith, with a gentle message about how we treat our oceans, and each other.

When Jay Reguero hears of his cousin Jun’s death, everything changes. Although years have passed since they were last in contact, the stories about Jun just don’t fit with the boy Jay knew. Hoping to uncover the truth, Jay travels to Jun’s home in the Philippines – but the shocking realities of life there lead to even more questions. Can Jay find the answers he seeks?

Welcome to America at the turn of the twentieth century, where the rhythms of ragtime set the beat. This dazzling literary mosaic brings to life an era of dire poverty, fabulous wealth, and incredible change.

James Rhodes' passion for music has been the thread that has held him together through a life that has encompassed pain, conflict and turmoil. The exquisite miracles of musical genius have helped him survive his demons, and, along with a chance encounter with a stranger, inspired him to become the renowned concert pianist he is today. X rated, contains offensive language.

1586. England is awash with traitors, plotting to assassinate the Queen and bring about a foreign invasion. The young physician Christoval Alvarez, a refugee from the horrors of the Portuguese Inquisition, is coerced into becoming a code-breaker in Sir Francis Walsingham’s secret service, but who will triumph – the ruthless conspirators or the equally ruthless State?

Occupied Berlin, 1945, American Sector. When the body of a beautiful young woman is dicovered trapped under a subway station, the victim is mistaken for an American and a local investigation becomes a matter for the US Military police. When the bodies of other young women are discovered it becomes clear that this is no isolated act of violence.