Craftily plotted

A fearless novelist

A children's writer of rare gifts

The adventure, though engrossing, is only part of a book in which the cry and flight of birds, the small of water and tarry ropes, and the jargon of men and boys brought up to use their hands and senses are all delightfully plain to us

A lovely, forgotten classic that deserves to be reprinted

A charming tale for readers old and new

I read it a dozen-odd times as a child – and nowadays it’s my flu book. If I’m ever under the weather, I read it and cheer myself up