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Martin Brown Books

Terrible Traitors is a horrible compendium of the worst traitors in history.

Were they really all bad?

You decide.

The master of making history fun, Terry Deary, tells the tales of fifty brutal betrayals across history.

Did you know that the oldest story in the world is about the traitor Enkidu, who dared to rise up against King Gilgamesh?

You might already know about Caesar and his unfaithful senators, but have you heard about Walter Tirel, the Norman knight who went out hunting with King William the Conqueror?

Well, only one man returned.

Walter claimed it was an accident, but he had a pretty good track record with his aim…

There have always been people who are willing to switch sides, let down a friend, betray their country and turn traitor.

Sometimes they do it for love, often because of their beliefs, maybe out of pride… perhaps even greed.
(And sometimes just for fun.)
Nothing could ever make you become a traitor though… could it?

Fully illustrated throughout and packed with horrible 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 shows, magazines, games and the brilliantly funny Horrible Histories: the Movie – Rotten Romans.

Filled with all the festive facts every Horrible Histories reader wants to know! The complete horrible history of Christmas tells tales of:

the dark days when the Puritans tried to abolish Christmas

the Christmas in the trenches when the British and Germans traded bullets for footballs

plus dreadful jokes, rotten recipes and a Christmas quiz!

Packed with full-colour illustrations by Martin Brown, this 2024 edition of Horrible Christmas is the perfect festive gift.

Nell lives with her clan in the cave. Her best friend is a small cave bear, who will grow very large as he gets older. One day Nell overhears some of the adults talking about giving Cave Bear away as a gift for another clan. Nell is horrified and decides to run off with Cave Bear. They follow the stream from their village in search of somewhere they can be safe. On the way they meet mammoths and other less friendly clans and a fierce wildcat kitten. All the time Nell is searching for a way that she can remain with Cave Bear.

This is a very charming story, filled with gentle humour and a very mildly scary level of adventure. The pictures are drawn in much the same way in a blue wash and create a sense of the story and the jokes in the text. There are also allusions to other well-known stories like Bear Hunt and Winnie the Pooh.

The final pages have instructions for how to look after a cave bear and this was possibly my favourite bit of all. Martin Brown is the illustrator for the Horrid Histories series and some of that humour has definitely rubbed off on this book.

This is a heart-warming story about friendship and is going to be the first in a series about Nell and Cave Bear. I think it will prove a popular choice among children who are just starting to read independently as it is not too long or difficult.

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