What kind of a name is Beauty? Well it's my name for a start, but that doesn't mean I love it.

Beauty Cookson is no beauty. She's a plain, timid girl who constantly gets teased by the super-confident, snooty girls at school. Worse than the teasing in the playground, though, is the unpredictable, hurtful criticism from her father. Beauty and her meek, sweet mother live in uneasy fear of his fierce rages, sparked whenever they break one of his fussy house rules.

After an unbearable birthday party and the very real threat of Dad's out-of-control temper, Mum and Beauty run away. Now in a quiet, idyllic seaside village, their new-found freedom and a moment of culinary inspiration give them a hobby, an income and even a new nickname for Beauty.

Can they begin a happier, sweeter life - without Dad?

A charming, page-turning and heart-warming story from the beloved Jacqueline Wilson.