Books by James Norcliffe

When Mallory and her sidekick Arthur kidnap the tooth fairy, they get more than they bargained for in this sparkling fantasy adventure novel for children. Mallory is a nasty piece of work. Her one friend is Arthur, who only puts up with her because he has no one else. When Mallor...y loses a tooth, she comes up with an evil idea to capture and blackmail the tooth fairy for an endless supply of money. But it's never a good idea to meddle with a magical creature, and Mallory and Arthur are about to find out just how bad it can get. With James Norcliffe's signature magic and humour, and Emily Walker's equally magical illustrations, The Revenge of the Tooth Fairy will delight fans of the Harry Potter series, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, the Wizard of Oz and top-quality fantasy adventures.
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The Loblolly boy wants his old life back and his plight is all the more poignant for his searching. In this stunning junior fiction fantasy sequel to The Loblolly Boy Michael convinces the unhappy boy at the Great Hall to Exchange with him once again, and Michael begins a magical... journey home. Complications, twists and stunts abound once the mischievous and perverse Sorcerer and the bumbling but well-meaning Gadget Man decide to assist in the bizarre turn of events. This is a disarmingly poignant yet magical and inventive tale written with the sure hand of a writer whose characters are as much grounded in the real world as the fantastic and whimsical whirl he creates around them. The rich narrative moves along at a good pace and is woven throughout with plenty of clues, leads and surprises, and much treacherous magic to keep young readers engaged.
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In this junior fiction novel, fantasy elements combined with realism. The 'present day' characters are grounded in contemporary life until they step into a parallel universe. When David's uncle comes to visit he sets off a bizarre series of events. Things become complicated when ...the pet rats turn bright red. David senses that somehow the red rats are connected to the story he is reading, and he becomes more convinced when the colour red becomes contagious. The parallel story sees Felix and his friend Bella inadvertently shifted into a strange land where they must solve a riddle. But this puts them into great danger. How will they escape and find their way home? Young readers will want to solve the confusing conundrum of the red rats; they'll delight in the word riddles; be absorbed by David's story as well as the fantastical adventures of Felix and Bella.
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A flute that will only play one mysterious song? A strange old man in a wheel chair somehow rejuvenated by this music? A leap from a window into a strange and often frightening world where nobody can be trusted and from which there seems to be no escape? The Enchanted Flute sweep...s Becky Pym and Johnny Cadman from the realities of modern day school and the suburbs into an ancient Arcadian world where an old battle is about to be reignited and where even older forces are preparing themselves. The flute Becky's mother bought at a pawn shop proves to be a catalyst, a prize all forces seek. Becky herself, as the one who plays its enchanted music, becomes the focus of their needs and animosities. Lost, pursued, separated at times, Becky and Johnny are swept along by events out of their control until the final confrontation between ancient enemies. A wonderfully inventive story resounding with familiar myths and old stories, but typically grounded in a contemporary sense. It's a delightfully, believable fantasy charged with musical language and a dangerous, menacing edge.
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Liminal: from the Latin word limen, meaning threshold - any point or place of entering or beginning. A liminal space is the time between the 'what was' and the 'next.' It is a place of transition, waiting, and not knowing. The 18th in the celebrated Re-Draft series presents 70... great young writers of Aotearoa New Zealand on the threshold of becoming greater. This dynamic collection of stories, poems and other pieces dares to explore all manner of possible and impossible spaces. Often moving and painfully honest, often laugh-aloud funny, often mysterious but always compellingly original, these stories and poems will linger and reward re-reading. More than a snapshot of the ideas and issues exercising our next generation of writers, SERVICE STATIONS AND OTHER LIMINAL SPACES is a grand tour. Enter its threshold. It will take you to places you've never been before.
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