Fine, Anne – The Bell Bookshop

Bill’s New Frock

Emma — Thu, 28 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000

A classic children’s story from one of our best-loved authors, former Children’s Laureate Anne Fine. This edition is illustrated throughout by Mark Beech and features special bonus material.

Bill Simpson wakes up to find he’s a girl – and his mother makes him wear a frilly pink dress to school. How on earth is he going to survive a whole day like this? Everything just seems to be different for girls ?

Perfect for readers aged 7 years and up and fans of The Boy in the Dress by David Walliams.

Anne Fine‘s fun school stories have been delighting children for more than 20 years, winning her awards such as the Smarties Book Award and Carnegie Medal along the way.

Aftershocks

Emma — Thu, 15 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

A family mix-up means Louie has to tag along with his engineer father and his team as they head for a routine job in the farthest flung and most neglected province of the Federation. A massive earthquake, with ensuing tsunami, devastates the entire isolated coastal region, laying bare the other-worldly manner in which the silent and strange Endlanders deal with life, death and the hinterlands of memory and loss. Their curious and unsettling ways raise ghosts for Louie, who has recently lost his own brother. This modern fable – part ghost-story, part coming-of-age novel and part astute social and family observation – explores the ways in which grief can affect not only individuals, but communities at large.

Aftershocks

Emma — Thu, 10 Feb 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Shades of Scarlet

Emma — Thu, 03 Feb 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Every teenager remembers when they realised how disappointing their parents actually are. Scarlet's feeling that in spades. Her mum has left for a new life with a new love, and her dad's just hopeless. She's feeling stuck in the middle. So when her mum gives her the notebook, Scarlet decides there's only one thing she can write in it - the truth, about everything!

A Remarkable Ear

Emma — Thu, 01 Oct 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Everyone’s always telling Will to stop making so much noise. That is, until he meets music teacher Mr Brand. He thinks Will’s not just noisy but that he has a gift and must learn to play the violin. But Will doesn’t feel special . He can never find peace to practice at home and carrying a violin around school is too embarrassing. There’s also the small matter of his stage fright … Can he really become the star Mr Brand believes in? Beloved and award-winning author Anne Fine returns with a touching, musical story of patience, practice and courage. Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant or dyslexic readers aged 8+

Madame Doubtfire

Emma — Thu, 02 Jul 2015 00:00:00 +0000

Madame Doubtfire by bestselling author Anne Fine is a wonderfully funny, punchy story about family life. Lydia, Christopher and Natalie are used to domestic turmoil. Their parents’ divorce has not made family life any easier in either home. The children bounce to and from their volatile mother, Miranda, and their out-of-work actor father, Daniel. Then Miranda advertises for a cleaning lady who will look mind the children after work – and Daniel gets the job, disguised as Madame Doubtfire.

This bittersweet, touching and extremely funny book inspired the highly successful film Mrs Doubtfire, starring the late Robin Williams.

Madame Doubtfire is reissued in ‘A Puffin Book’ series of Puffin modern classics.

The Killer Cat’s Christmas

Emma — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

So go on, ask me. ‘Dear, dear Tuffy. Why was your Christmas so horrible?’

Well. I couldn’t climb the tree.
I couldn’t touch the dangly decorations.

And Ellie made me part of her sing-along Christmas performance.
Horrible, horrible, horrible!

But I showed them. I was Tuffy the Acting Cat, superstar. How was I supposed to know things would get so . . . messy?