A School Bewitched ¦ The King's Flower ¦ Hugh and the Ministry of Holidays

I group these three together just to applaud the diversity of this pleasing paperback imprint from Macmillan. It's good to see the lack of uniformity both in form (they're all shapes and sizes) and content. They're reasonably sturdy and will cope with the handling and re-reading they'll all get.

Ms Lewis' adaptation is characteristically literate and sensitive, telling the story of a magician who takes over a special girls' school. the text improves on the original in that the adaptor has the advantage of hindsight, and deep knowledge, of the particularly Edwardian blend of arch manners and fairy tale possibility that pervaded Nesbit's stories. It's rich collaboration of writer and artist, too: Lee Cain's pictures are integral when the topsy-turvy has to be conveyed by the clever use of perspective. Moreover, codes and maps have to be deciphered if the tale's to be fully enjoyed. One to be introduced to eight-ups as the appeal may not be immediate, but worth the effort.

Anno's tale of the King who wanted everything he had to be bigger than everyone else's is beautifully reproduced. Wide, generous, double-page spreads are essential and I value the keeping of the rich borders from the original hardback. No corners cut. Don't let the readers (fives up?) miss the artist's afterword.

I've longed for Ross's smashing fable about the mouse who made big wishes to reach a wider audience. This paperback, in particularly strong binding, should do that. It's lovely one for those just beginning to have doubts about Father Christmas, as it's about wishing and wanting -  and still believing that you could get what you wanted on certain big days. The episode when Santa decides that it's better to let parents fill the stockings is a triumph of tact and artistic insight. Not to be missed.