Charles and Unity live a simple, happy life with their large family on Merripit Farm, until the evil flint rock talisman—fashioned for a power-hungry tribesman in the Stone Age—resurfaces after thousands of years to spread its dark influence over the land's people, animals and pixies. The children, along with their outlandish friends, must figure out how to destroy the flint heart once and for all. This adventure-rich fantasy, truncated from Eden Philpott's 1910 classic, is an essential addition to any home library.(Candlewick, $12.37)