"Well, I didn't ask to be a pigeon! . . . I wanted to be an eagle, didn't I? . . . Why couldn't we have been eagles instead of pigeons? What a life! Nothing but cooo, cooo and peck, peck, all the time." ". . . This is the High Street not the Highlands! We're no here to cause a sensation, and . . . if it weren't for your stupidity, we wouldn't be here in the first place!" Stroppy pigeons in Edinburgh's Old Town. It's not a normal part of daily life -- but things are never going to be the same again. Clara and Neil have always known the MacArthurs, the little people who live under Arthur's Seat, in Holyrood Park, but they are not quite prepared for what else is living under the hill. Feuding faery lords, missing whisky, magic carpets, firestones and ancient spells . . . where will it end? And how did it all start? Set against the backdrop of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and Military Tattoo this is a fast-paced comic adventure, full of magic, mayhem and mystery -- and a dragon.

Dragonfire (Kelpies)

Children's Books

Forbes, Anne

Animals

Kelpies

Tom Stokes is an orphan. His sister is going to America to get married―but where can he go? They remember an uncle and aunt they scarcely know living in the borders of Scotland. After the city bustle of London, Tom finds his uncle's farm barren and lonely. How can he adjust to such a life? Help comes in the form of a sheepdog puppy, and his loneliness is quickly forgotten as Tom realizes the dog is his to love and train―maybe to be a champion!  And so begins his adventurous and challenging life on the hill farm with his new friend Elspeth and sheepdog Flash. Then his sister writes that Tom can come and live with her in America, and he is faced with the most difficult decision of his life...  (Ages 6-9)

Flash the Sheepdog

kathleen-fidler

Teen & Young Adult

When Corrie’s family returns to Uig Bay on the Isle of Lewis for yet another miserable summer holiday, he has no idea of the incredible adventure that lies ahead. He finds a strange figurine on a windswept beach, which looks very like the ancient chess pieces found there centuries ago ... but this one has a magician’s staff.  Corrie makes friends with local girl, Kat, who tells him the island’s legends―of a terrible sea serpent who summoned up never-ending winter, and of a powerful magician who finally banished him. When Corrie hears a voice in the night and the strange little figure starts to glow, he finds himself drawn into an incredible battle between good and evil.  Douglas Bruton’s gripping first novel tells a fictional fantasy story behind the famed Lewis chessmen, which date from the twelfth century and were found in Uig Bay in the 1830s.  (Ages 8–12)

The Chess Piece Magician

Douglas Bruton

There has always been something unusual about Magnus Fin, a school misfit. On his eleventh birthday Magnus throws a message in a bottle out to sea, wishing for a best friend and to be more brave -- and he gets a lot more than he bargained for. Magnus discovers that he is half selkie -- part seal, part human -- and his selkie family urgently need his help. Can Magnus save his new-found family from the evil force threatening all the ocean's creatures? And will he find the friend he has always dreamed of?

Magnus Fin and the Ocean Quest

Mackay, Janis

Literature & Fiction

One sunny morning, the triplets disappear, leaving only a few mysterious clues behind: an open upstairs window, three missing rocking horses, and strangely shaped marks on the lawn. Could they be hoof prints? Used to their silly pranks, older sister Pearl sets out to find them. At the garden gate, she encounters Thomas, the snooty grandson of a local earl, who warns her that the moors are not safe today. But who is he to boss Pearl around?   As she searches for the triplets and tries to outwit Thomas, Pearl’s journey through the rugged Scottish hills develops into an amazing and perilous adventure. Pearl tries to outwit living, breathing rocking horses and several powerful land magicians, who turn the very rocks of the mountains against her. But can she trust the mysterious Thomas? And can she save her brother and sisters from the unknown fate that lies ahead?   This is a tale of dark magic and destiny set in the 1920s Scottish Highlands.   (Ages 8–12)

Rocking Horse War (Kelpies)

Don, Lari.

Mysteries & Detectives

A terrible virus has wiped out much of the human population and Scotland is now a wasteland, overrun by wild dogs. Toby's little sister Sylvie is dangerously ill and his family set out in a boat along the Aberdeenshire coast in desperate search of medicine. On their journey they battle for food and fuel, try to outwit lawless pirates and struggle to stay one step ahead of the ever-more powerful dogs and their mighty leader Cerberus. But will they find a cure for Sylvie before it's too late?

Red Fever (Kelpies)

Clough, Caroline

On a remote Scottish island, two children find an abandoned lamb and take her home. They call her 'Uan', which means 'lamb' in Gaelic. Slowly the lamb grows up and they love playing with her and taking her everywhere. What will happen when she becomes a sheep? Sandra Klaassen depicts the Outer Hebrides in drawings brimming with life and her love of the landscape and people. This is a charming story told through the eyes of two young children.

Uan the Little Lamb (Picture Kelpies)

Klaassen, Sandra

It's time for Fergus the young otter to leave home. During his journey along the riverbank he meets all sorts of new creatures, both friend and foe -- a robin, a butterfly, some dogs who chase him and, strangest of all, a prickly hedgehog. But will he find a new, safe place to make a home and friends of his own kind? This is a sweet story which will delight any animal-loving child.

Fergus Finds a Friend (Picture Kelpies)

Steven, Kenneth

Hettie the Highland cow is always hungry. She eats grass, thistles, hedges and even Granny Macleod's washing! When Callum and Kirsty visit her, they give her treats to eat -- porridge, sandwiches, shortbread and ice cream! When the children arrive with a huge cake, Hettie starts to look worried. She's not feeling so hungry any more... Watch Hettie grow as she eats her way through many Scottish favorites, until she and the children finally learn their lesson. This sweet, funny story is brought to life by Jo Allan's vivacious illustrations.

Hungry Hettie: The Highland Cow Who Won't Stop Eating! (Picture Kelpies)

On his eleventh birthday, schoolboy Magnus Fin found out that he was half selkie -- part human, part seal. Although he looks like a boy and lives on land, he can breathe underwater. When Magnus Fin discovers his initials scratched into the rocks by the shore and finds dead seals washed up on the beach, he knows his selkie family needs his help, and he dives down beneath the waves to find out more. The great seal sickness has struck and his grandmother Miranda is dangerously ill. But Magnus Fin is sure there's another reason for their affliction. He sets out to reveal the truth, with just his moonstone, his last baby tooth and some seaweed from Neptune's garden for luck. Little does he know that his best friend Tarkin, who can't swim, is determined to join him on this perilous mission. This is the exciting sequel to Kelpie Prize-winning Magnus Fin and the Ocean Quest.

Magnus Fin and the Moonlight Mission

See the best price to sell, buy or rent books by the Kelpies publisher. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Kelpies