Penguin Readers & Pearson English Readers (1700 headwords)

Alexander the Great has fascinated people since his death more than 2300 years ago. By the age of thirty he ruled the biggest Empire the world had ever known. This remarkable leader brought civilization to millions and shaped our world.

Katherine Mansfield is one of the most famous short story writers in the English language. These four stories take place about a hundred years ago in England and New Zealand. They are sometimes funny, sometimes sad and often cruel.

The famous Canterville Ghost haunts an old house, but the ghost becomes unhappy when the new owners play tricks on him! In the other stories, we meet Lord Arthur Savile, who has to murder someone before he can get married, and we discover the secret life of beautiful Lady Alroy.

It is the summer of 1900 and Leo is staying with his friend Marcus. Leo likes Marcus’s beautiful older sister very much. To make her happy, he becomes a secret messenger for her and a local farmer. But then he realises what their messages are about, and his whole life begins to change.

Sir Henry Curtis, Captain John Good and Allan Quatermain are travelling to the mysterious, unmapped heart of Africa. Sir Henry wants to find his missing brother. Quatermain wants to find King Solomon’s secret treasure. Is Sir Henry’s brother still alive? Will they find King Solomon’s treasure? Does the treasure even exist...?

Nuclear war has destroyed all life in thenorthern countries of the world. Now the deadly radiation is travelling south. In Australia, where people are still alive, Peter and Mary Holmes are trying to live their lives as normally as possible as the radiation comes closer and closer. What can they do? Is this the end of life on earth?

Alexander the Great has fascinated people since his death more than 2300 years ago. By the age of thirty he ruled the biggest Empire the world had ever known. This remarkable leader brought civilization to millions and shaped our world.

Inventors are special people. They see everyday objects and imagine something better. They solve old problems with new ideas. Their inventions can help people or destroy them, but only the greatest ideas will change the world. This book will tell you about many of the most interesting and important inventions, from 2,500 years ago to the present day.

Shakespeare’s plays are famous all over the world – in the theatre, in film and in the classroom. What do we know about the man? What kind of life did he have? Who were his friends? Why can we still laugh and suffer with his characters 400 years after his death?

A tree full of enormous spiders, a living thing with no face, a picture that comes alive, and a boy with no heart. These are some of the frightening things in these stories by M. R. James, one of the greatest horror writers of all time.

Katherine Mansfield is one of the most famous short story writers in the English language. These four stories take place about a hundred years ago in England and New Zealand. They are sometimes funny, sometimes sad and often cruel.

Emma Woodhouse is beautiful, clever and rich. She likes to arrange marriages between her friends and neighbours in the village of Highbury. But Emma makes a lot of mistakes and causes more problems than happy marriages. Then she almost loses her own chance of love.