Providing a balanced approach to the teaching of reading skills and strategies, this series consists of a range of materials in each of eight stages, numbered 0 to 7, and provides coverage of the National Curriculum and Scottish 5-14 Guidelines. This is one of five sets of core books for Stage 5, at which the range of themes is broadened further, to increase the young reader's sense of what books have to offer. Increasingly sophisticated language structures and figurative devices are introduced, and the non-fiction books make extensive use of the language forms characteristic of information texts. Also, longer drama texts, detective stories, historical fiction and instructional texts are provided.