Channel children's excitement with a festive activity for every day in December. Packed with simple craft and cooking activities with a Christmassy theme, using things you'll easily find to hand about the house. Make everything from garlands and gift tags to reindeer snacks and wrapping paper. Bright, festive illustrations and straightforward step-by-step instructions make this the perfect companion for the Christmas holidays.

A new strand in the bestselling Usborne Magic Painting range, specially designed for little children to bring garden bugs, animals and plants to life with a sweep of a brush. Filled with simple yet stylish pictures designed to appeal to little children, featuring garden plants and wildlife from bumble bees to tulips to squirrels. Use the brush provided to sweep water over the designs and bring the colours to life; a laminated flap prevents water seeping through to the pages beneath. The 15 beautifully simple designs help to teach brush control.

Simply brush on water to reveal the glorious colours. Packed with vivid scenes showing garden favourites from a pumpkin patch to busy butterflies and frolicking foxes. Simply brush water over the black and white designs to reveal an array of sumptuous colours.

Simply add water to bring scenes from the Christmas story magically to life. Filled with charming scenes telling the story of the birth of Jesus, complete with angels, wise men, camels, shepherds and, of course, the manger. Just brush water over the black and white designs to reveal rich, vibrant hues. A mess-free way to keep children busy during the festive period. Simply tuck the waterproof back flap under each page as it's painted, to stop water from seeping through to the rest of the book.

The latest in the bestselling series, simply brush water over the pages and watch all manner of familiar and exotic butterflies burst into colour. Beautiful illustrationswill engage budding butterfly spotters and the compact format makes it ideal for children to carry around.

Explore the wonders of an aquarium, a home to lots of beautiful sealife, with this lovely, entertaining card game for young children. There are 52 snap cards (13 matching sets of 4), with labelled pictures. The game can be played with fewer cards to make it easier for younger players to join in. This sort of participation not only helps children's concentration and identification skills but also helps them understand taking turns, winning and losing and other aspects of social interaction!

Medieval castles have traditionally been explained as feats of military engineering and tools of feudal control, but Abigail Wheatley takes a different approach, looking at a range of sources usually neglected in castle studies. Evidence from contemporary literature and art reveals the castle's place at the heart of medieval culture, as an architecture of ideas every bit as sophisticated as the church architecture of the period. This study offers a genuinely fresh perspective. Most castle scholars confine themselves to historical documents, but Wheatley examines literary and artistic evidence for its influence on and response to contemporary castle architecture. Sermons, seals and ivory caskets, local legends and Roman ruins all have their part to play. What emerges is a fascinating web of cultural resonances: the castle is implicated in every aspect of medieval consciousness, from private religious contemplation to the creation of national mythologies. This book makes a compelling case for a new, interdisciplinary approach to castle studies. ABIGAIL WHEATLEY studied for her PhD at York University's Centre for Medieval Studies.

'The Story of Painting' features a history of Western art, from cave paintings to modern times. Chapters show the main areas of art in sequence, including the Renaissance and Impressionism, and also cover the materials, techniques and artistic innovations of the periods.

Put your cares aside as you paint restful images and watch the colours appear. Relax - take a moment to breathe. This delightful painting book will help make space for your mind to calm down. It's filled with exquisite scenes from the natural world that will help children - and adults - focus on the here and now and let go of worries. Simply brush water over the tranquil black and white designs to reveal an inspiring array of beautiful colours. Includes an introductory page with tips on mindfulness.

Enjoy all the fun of a trip to the shops in this charming sticker book. Fill a bakery with delicious treats, decorate a florists with beautiful flowers, fill a department store with clothes and lots more. There are over 300 stickers to complete the delightful scenes.