Skellig: the 25th anniversary illustrated edition

The bestselling story about love, loss and hope that launched David Almond as one of the best children's writers of today. Winner of the Carnegie Medal and the Whitbread children's book of the Year Award, this unforgettable book now has captivating illustrations by Tom de Freston to celebrate its twenty-fifth anniversary. When a move to a new house coincides with his baby sister's illness, Michael's world seems suddenly lonely and uncertain.

One Sunday afternoon, he stumbles into the ramshackle garage of his new home and finds something magical. A strange creature - human? beast? bird? angel? - a being who needs Michael's help if he is to survive. With his new friend Mina, Michael nourishes Skellig back to health.

But Skellig is far more than he at first appears, and as he helps Michael breathe life into his tiny sister, Michael's world changes for ever ... Skellig won the Carnegie Medal and the Whitbread Children's Book Award. David Almond is also winner of the Hans Christian Andersen award, the Nonino International Prize, and has received an OBE for services to literature.

He is celebrated as - in the words of the Independent - 'a master storyteller'. 'This strange, hugely readable and life-affirming tale exercises every muscle of the imagination' Guardian