A hive of industry

OPEN wide!” my little sister Mia cried, as she clambered up beside Dad on the sofa. “OK, but you’re just having a look,” Dad answered, lowering his newspaper to his lap. “No poking about in there.” He

MY mum and dad don’t live together. They split up two years ago, when I was eight. I mostly live with Mum, in our cosy semi-detached house where I have my own bedroom. But I also have my own room in D

WOULD you look at the man!” Maggie said. She wasn’t much to look at herself, being as black as sin from the coal dust. She’d just finished a shift at the colliery screens, picking lumps of coal out of

The house next door had stood empty for many months and the weeds in the overgrown garden were spreading into my flower borders, becoming a nuisance. I’d taken early retirement when Jack became too il

PIPPA woke early and went down to the shop as soon as she was dressed. She had big plans for today. Along with her usual duties, she was going to make a start on clearing the back room, and she wanted

JILL tries to avoid talking to herself but always allows private laugh-out-loud moments when there’s no one around. This morning, standing alone in her spare bedroom, arms heavily loaded with a huge p