Showing results by author "Jacqueline Wilson" in All Categories

Tess loves to dance – even when her tummy is empty and her boots are pinching. She and her brothers and sisters are all alone in the world after their mum dies and their pa abandons them. They have to eat bread and dripping, and take in washing to earn a few pennies. How will they afford food – and milk for baby Ada? Tess’s big brother and sister go out to look for work, but Tess has to stay in class at The Ragged School and look after Ada too. But Tess is determined that even though she is poor, she will still get to go to the ball . . .

You look as if you've seen a ghost!' Jade is so used to living in the shadow of Vicky, her loud, confident best friend, that when a tragic accident occurs, she can hardly believe that Vicky's no longer around. But Vicky's a sparky girl who's not going to let a small thing like being dead stop her from living life to the full! Whether Jade is in lessons, out running or tentatively trying to make new friends, Vicky is determined to make her presence felt ...

Ella's mum is in a deep coma, having just had a new baby. That means Ella has to live with Jack, her hopeless stepfather, and cope with her tiny newborn brother, as well as worrying about Mum. The only thing that's going right is her school project. It's all about whales and how they sing out to each other to attract a mate – sometimes for hours. Maybe a whale song could reach Mum, wherever she is, and bring her back to Ella and baby Samson. Surely it's worth a try?

Ten-year-old Tracy was taken into care a while ago, and now she lives in a Children's Home. She doesn't know exactly where her mum lives, but she used to have long, pretend phone calls with her. Tracy's had two foster families, but things just didn't work. She allows us to share her hopes for the future in this touching and often very funny tale.

Hetty Feather was given her name when she was left at the Foundling Hospital as a baby. But she always longed to be named after her incredible sapphire-blue eyes. When she is reunited with her mother, she hopes her new name, Sapphire Battersea, will also mean a new life. But things don’t always go as planned.... Follow the twists and turns of Hetty’s adventures as she begins work. She longs to be reunited with her dear Jem, but also finds a new friend, Bertie the butcher’s boy.

Dolphin adores her mother, Marigold. She's got wonderful clothes, bright hair and vivid tattoos all over her body – a colourful lady, to match her colourful life. But Dolphin's older sister, Star, is beginning to wonder if living with Marigold's fiery, unpredictable moods is the best thing for the girls.

Is anything bothering you? Problems in class or at home? Don't know where to turn for help? Log on to the Worry Website! Type in your worry and wait for the good advice to flow in. At least that's the plan when Mr Speed sets up his super-cool new Worry Website for the class. Holly, Greg, Natasha and the rest feel that they've got shed loads of worries but, as they find out, sometimes the best advice comes from the most unexpected place.

Diamond wasn’t always a star. Born to penniless parents who longed for a son, she was a dainty, delicate daughter – and a bitter disappointment. Discovering she has an extraordinary natural gift for acrobatics, Diamond tries to use her talent to earn a few pennies. A mysterious stranger spots her performing on the street, and makes a deal with her father. Diamond is sold and is taken to become an acrobat at Tanglefield’s Travelling Circus.

Beauty Cookson is no beauty. She's a plain, timid girl who constantly feels inferior to the super-confident, snooty girls at school. Worse than the teasing in the playground, though, is the unpredictable, hurtful criticism from her father. Beauty and her meek, sweet mother live in uneasy fear of his fierce rages, sparked whenever they break one of his fussy house rules.

A werewolf video leaves Micky terrified of dogs. Mum decides the only answer is to get Mickey a pet of his own. To everyone's surprise -including Micky's - she chooses a werepuppy. But Wolfie turns out to be a very special pet - and a real joker!

"Where do baby apes sleep? In apricots! I'm Elsa, and that's one of my jokes (I tell LOTS of jokes and I'm going to be a big star one day). I do my best to cheer my family up - but no one seems to laugh much any more. Not since we lost our lovely house and had to move into a bed and breakfast hotel."

Em adores her funny, glamorous dad – who cares if he's not her real father? He's wonderful to her, and to her little brother Maxie and sister Vita. True to form at Christmas, Dad gives them fantastic presents, including a real emerald ring for his little Princess Em.Unfortunately he's got another surprise in store – he's leaving them. Will Dad's well-meaning but chaotic attempts to keep seeing Em and the other children help the family come to terms with this new crisis?

When life with Jayni's violent-tempered father becomes too frightening to cope with, Jayni, her mum and her little brother Kenny are forced to escape in the middle of the night. Slipping out of the house unseen, travelling up to London by train and checking into a hotel – it's almost like playing an elaborate game. They even make up false identities to protect their secret, and Jayni becomes the glamorous-sounding Lola Rose.

I'm Tracy Beaker, the Great Inventor of Extremely Outrageous Dares – and I dare YOU not to say this is the most brilliant story ever! I've bought a big fat purple notebook for writing down all my mega-manic ultra-scary stories in. But especially for my own story. Of how my foster-mum, Cam, has turned out to be a real meanie. No designer clothes, when I really need them. A pokey flat, and a horrible new school. No wonder I keep bunking off ... Still, it will have to do until my real mum comes and gets me. And until then, no-one is going to be better at the Dare Game than me!

When Laura meets a French exchange student, Leon, she is flattered by his interest in her. She's never had any sort of boyfriend before. One night, Leon walks Laura home and her life will never be the same again. Things start to change for Laura and she doesn't even know how it could have happened. When her family learns her secret, they are horrified. Sent away to save them from shame, Laura meets girls just like herself, whose families have given up on them - and they become a family for each other at the most difficult time in all their lives.

On the face of it, Beauty is lucky. She has a mum and dad who love her, lives in a lovely house and goes to a posh girls' school. But for shy, awkward Beauty, the reality is miserable.

She isn't a beauty, and the snobby girls at school have nicknamed her Ugly. Her mum is completely downtrodden by Beauty's fierce-tempered bully of a father. Beauty would give anything for a pet, but her dad won't hear of it in case it messes up their pristine house.

Lots of Jacqueline Wilson's characters are well-known and well-loved by thousands of listeners: Hetty Feather, Ruby and Garnet, Pearl and Jodie, Elsa, Lily and, of course, the brilliant Tracy Beaker! But how much do you know about Jacqueline herself? Jacqueline takes a look back at her own childhood and teenage years in this captivating story of friendships, loneliness, books, family life and much more. She explores her past with the same warmth and lightness of touch that make her novels so special.

Ellie is nearly 13, in Year Nine, and desperate to have a boyfriend. Her best friends Magda and Nadine (both prettier and thinner) have boyfriends, but the closest she can get is Dopey Dan, who is younger and a real swot. Find out all her secrets, squirm at her most embarrassing moment, have a laugh, and discover more about boys!

I'm Sadie and I'm nearly nine. Mum's a childminder, but she doesn't have to mind me. I can mind myself, easy-peasy. Lucky for Mum, because now she's got the flu, so I've got to mind her – and help with all the babies!

Cosy up for Christmas with this festive story, starring everyone's favourite Victorian foundling, Hetty Feather!An unexpected gift leads to trouble for Hetty on Christmas Day at the Foundling Hospital, and the dreaded Matron Bottomly is delighted to have an excuse to exclude Hetty from the festive celebrations. Poor Hetty is distraught - but just when it seems that all is lost, a dear friend arrives to whisk her away for a Christmas unlike any other....