From the author of the bestsellingThe Bag Making Bible(over 70,000 copies sold) come an outstanding collection of 12 inspiring bags for you to make at home.

• 12 bags and purses for every occasion
• Full-size pull-out patterns to use right away
• Fully photographed step-by-step instructions

Flavia de Luce walked into my life one winter day, parked herself on a campstool, and refused to be budged.

It took me quite a while to realize that she wasn’t even faintly interested in the mystery novel I was attempting to write at the time: the one into which she had wandered. I found out quickly enough that Flavia wanted her own book--and that was that.

And it was just the beginning. There were still more problems to come.

The first was this: Flavia lived in 1950, while I was writing about her in 2006 and 2007.

As an author, it’s not as easy as you might think projecting--and keeping--your mind in a different century from your body--not without forever being yanked back into the present by everyday annoyances such as frozen water pipes, expiring license plates, incessantly barking dogs, and the need to shop for food.

Another problem was this: I lived on Canada’s west coast, where the clocks are set to Pacific Time, while Flavia lived in Bishop’s Lacey, England, which is on Greenwich Mean Time--a difference of nine hours. In practical terms, this meant that Flavia was raring to go every day just as I was getting ready for bed. Because there was no point in either of us being tired and cranky, we finally managed to work out a compromise in which I began awakening at 4:00 a.m. to write, while Flavia (rather impatiently) hung around until after lunch, waiting for me to show up.

AsThe Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pieprogressed, I soon learned that Flavia wouldn’t be pushed around--especially by me. Because she had so many of her own ideas, she had little patience with mine. Occasionally, if I were tired, I’d find myself trying to put words in her mouth: to push her, as it were. But Flavia would have none of it.

"Blot that," she seemed to be saying. "Let’s back up and start again."

And of course we did.

Then there was the problem of the chemistry. While Flavia knew everything about chemistry that could be known, my own knowledge of the subject could be put into a thimble with room left over for a finger. If I protested that I was in doubt about the precise details of one of her more bizarre chemical experiments, Flavia would snap her metaphorical fingers and say, "Well, you can look it up in your spare time."

Almost from the outset I realized that the tale Flavia had to tell could never be contained in a single book. And that’s how the series was born. Fortunately, my editors were in total agreement!

We liked the idea of each book revolving around some now-vanished English custom, or way of life, and of being able, gradually, to get to know the de Luce family, giving each of them the time and the space to--eventually--tell his or her own story.

Of course, to convey authentic 1950s voices, the pacing would have to be slower than we are used to in the 21st century. On the other hand, a more relaxed narrative would allow for an additional overall richness of description that might not be found in a more breakneck series of thrillers.

But I needn’t have worried: Flavia had her own voice and insisted on being listened to.

It was I who had to do the learning.--Alan Bradley

(Photo© Shirley Bradley)

Kay Whitt loves designing bags, and you?re going to love sewing them!

Take Your Pick of Styles:

With full instructions for twelve bags—and with a few clever variations thrown in—there are plenty of designs to choose from! Pick a handbag that is sweet, sleek or funky. Or check out some of the other great designs: a flirty little backpack, the perfect lunch bag, convenient shopping bags and handy task-oriented bags (whether thattask involves a laptop, gym clothes or diapers). Each design is easy to adapt to your style.

Hone Your Skills:

Check out the technique section, which includes step-by-step photos, to freshen up your skills and learn about a few new notions, too. Next, move on to the projects to put your know-how in motion.

• Flip to the Simple Bags for something quick and fun to sew. And even though these bags are easy to make, the end results are clever and cute.
• Step it up in the Intermediate Bags section, with bags that play up your style. Learn a few new skills, try out a few new tools and make yourself a bag you can really show off.
• The Challenging Bags section takes you to the level of bag maven. The bags' construction may be complex, but the instructions are not. Sew it together step by step, and find yourself with a truly professional, beautifully constructed bag.

A European vacation. A luggage mix-up. A note from a secret admirer.

Meet two single parents who think they're too busy to date.
And two teenagers who can't stop writing flirty emails.
This is a tale of connections—missed and made—in a universe that seems to have its heart set on reuniting Ms. 6B and Mr. 13C.

Webb
I can't believe I picked up the wrong bag at the airport. My dad is never going to let me hear the end of it.

Coco
I don't understand why Mom told me to pack my worst underwear. And now I've lost my bag? Ack!

Andrew
I cannot stop thinking about that woman in seat 6B on the flight to Paris.

Daisy
I don't have time to worry about the creep sitting in 13C who slipped a note in my purse. I have to find my daughter's missing bag before this ruins our vacation.

In the Bagis a smart and stylish story that explores the old-fashioned art of romance in a modern world, where falling in love can be as risky as checking a bag on an international flight. Buckle your seat belt—it's going to be a bumpy vacation!