Geoffrey Willans

School is 'wet and weedy', according to Nigel Molesworth, the 'goriller of 3B', 'curse of St Custard's' and superb chronicler of fifties English life. Nothing escapes his disaffected eye and he has little time for such things as botany walks and cissy poetry with an assortment of swots, snekes and oiks. Instead he is very good at missing lessons, charming masters and putting down little brothers, in fact he is exceptional at most things except spelling. Wildly funny and full of sharp observations on life, the ‘Molesworth tetralogy’ is magnificently complemented by the illustrations of Ronald Searle

Nigel Molesworth, the curse of St. Custard's school, is known to his huge army of fans through Geoffrey Willans' four books Down with Skool , How to be Topp, Whizz for Atomms and Back in the Jug Agane, first published between 1953 and 1958, and illustrated by Ronald Searle. Much less famous are the Molesworth diaries that appeared in the magazine Punch between August 1939 and December 1942. This volume is an opportunity to discover a slightly different Molesworth - less philosophical than the boy portrayed in the books, but equally as sardonic, knowing and cynical. The diaries are an introduction to the world and mind of Molesworth, and as such are essential reading for Molesworth fans - all of whom are, of course, "conoisuers of prose and luvers of literature".

In The Lobster's Birthday and Other Stories, discover what happens when you wake up thirsty in the middle of the night. How do you play a trick on the most insufferable boy in the village, while helping out Aunt Arabelle at the same time? What would you do on your birthday if you were a lobster? Find out when you join Harriet, Just William, and Harold and Gloria in this comical collection of short stories. Chucklers is a series of funny novels, short stories, anthologies and comics that make reading a pleasure for 7-11 year olds. There is something for everyone in this varied collection which is packed with fantastic illustrations. Books contain inside cover notes to support children in their reading. Help with children's reading development also available at www.oxfordowl.co.uk. The series is written by top children's authors and edited by award-winning author Jeremy Strong. The books are finely levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book.