Best Selling Books by Jackie French

A delightful picture book about a world of hidden animals that only a child can see. Giraffes can''t resist the trees, I like milk and sandwiches ... But who stole the cheese? From the co-creators of GOOD DOG HANK comes a picture for all those children who love dinosaurs ... and cheese. Ages: 3+

NEW REVISED EDITION TO CELEBRATE THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST MOON LANDING Who were the Honeysuckle Creek mob? And how did they assist the first moon landing? When man took the first step on the moon it was a bunch of Australian technicians who tracked the spacecraft and sent the first television pictures to the world. No, not at Parkes - the movie ''The Dish'' got it wrong. They were from Honeysuckle Creek in the ACT. This is their story, told by Bryan Sullivan, one of the technicians on duty at the time, and his wife, children''s author Jackie French. And to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first manned Moon landing, Bryan and Jackie have revisited this book to reflect on the enormous strides that technology has made since this book was first published in 2004. Winner of the 2005 CBC Eve Pownall Award for Information Books in 2005, To the Moon and Back includes information about the space program and the birth of the internet, as well as supplying the answers to questions such as: How do you go to the toilet in a spacecraft? Have the astronauts ever seen an alien? What made the moon? Can I have a holiday in space? PRAISE ''... fascinating insights into the part that the Australians played in getting the astronauts to the moon and back.'' -- Bestselling author, Dr Karl Kruszelnicki

Encouraging young children to read - Encouraging older children to read - How to teach children to read - How to spot reading problems and how to help - All children learn differently - Encouraging a reading culture.

She has been banished from the city to a remote area and a murdered girl lands on her doorstep ... Danielle has always been ''linked'' to others so when her links were cut and she was banished from the city it was a shock in more ways than one. She no longer had fast access to information, food, friends - anything. Now she will fend for herself and she is notorious for having been part of an experimental type of linking with 3 others. They are either dead or dead to Danielle anyway. Then, soon after moving in, an injured young girl turns up on her doorstep - the girl soon dies and Danielle cannot let go of the mystery of her death. With Neil, who lives in a neighbouring commune, she begins to make enquiries at places all over the countryside and starts suspecting that someone is making illegal modifications to humans - could it be that vampirism is becoming a trait in some humans from this illegal activity And, if so, how far has it gone - can Danielle find the source before they are all dead An exciting, fast-paced read from one of Australia''s premier storytellers for young adults. Ages 16+ She has been banished from the city to a remote area and a murdered girl lands on her doorstep ... Danielle has always been ''linked'' to others so when her links were cut and she was banished from the city it was a shock in more ways than one. She no longer had fast access to information, food, friends - anything. Now she will fend for herself and she is notorious for having been part of an experimental type of linking with 3 others. they are either dead or dead to Danielle anyway. then, soon after moving in, an injured young girl turns up on her doorstep - the girl soon dies and Danielle cannot let go of the mystery of her death. With Neil, who lives in a neighbouring commune, she begins to make enquiries at places all over the countryside and starts suspecting that someone is making illegal modifications to humans - could it be that vampirism is becoming a trait in some humans from this illegal activity? And, if so, how far has it gone - can Danielle find the source before they are all dead? An exciting, fast-paced read from one of Australia''s premier storytellers for young adults. Ages 16+

there are hundreds and thousands of Missing Persons ... whether they have changed identity to remain hidden from those who love them, whether they have been abducted or some other reason is not always known. Missing You, Love Sara is a story of such a person and the effect on those left behind. At 11.35am, thursday May 4th, Sara''s sister Reenie disappears. Was she kidnapped Did she kill herself Did she simply decide to vanish Or is her body lying somewhere waiting to be found this is Sara''s story as she tries to work it out. How can someone like Reenie just disappear And are the police really doing everything they can to find her ... Ages 12+ there are hundreds and thousands of Missing Persons ... whether they have changed identity to remain hidden from those who love them, whether they have been abducted or some other reason is not always known. Missing You, Love Sara is a story of such a person and the effect on those left behind. At 11.35am, thursday May 4th, Sara''s sister Reenie disappears. Was she kidnapped? Did she kill herself? Did she simply decide to vanish? Or is her body lying somewhere waiting to be found? this is Sara''s story as she tries to work it out. How can someone like Reenie just disappear? And are the police really doing everything they can to find her ... Ages 12+

An exciting new tale of a brumby, a boy and a bushranger in the Animal Stars series. A story of survival, second chances ... and a dance with danger. Young Billy Marks is a pickpocket, transported to the penal colony of New South Wales. He reckons he''ll become a bushranger - but that''s before he''s had a chance to see the bush up close. And when he buys the big white brumby stallion, covered with scars but refusing to bend to any man''s will, he knows he made the right choice. Billy''s daughter Mattie Jane thinks her father can ride any horse who ever lived ... and so can she! But when tragedy strikes, the Marks clan, including Mattie''s beloved horse, Rebel Yell, will need all their courage to keep the family together. The deeds and disputed stories of Jackie French''s own ancestors inspire another novel - a tale of proud horses, trailblazing farmers and their resilient wives, and desperate men forced to break the law to survive. PRAISE FOR ANIMAL STARS SERIES: ''beautifully written ... a significant addition to the books about Gallipoli'' - ReadPlus.com.au ''marvel at Jackie French''s versatility and her skill in making the past live for young readers'' - Magpies

''The story is equal parts Downton Abbey and wartime action, with enough romance and intrigue to make it 100% not-put-down-able.'' -- Australian Women''s Weekly on Miss Lily''s Lovely Ladies Australian heiress Sophie Higgs was ''a rose of no-man''s land'', founding hospitals across war-torn Europe during the horror that was WW1. Now, in the 1920s, Sophie''s wartime work must be erased so that the men who returned can find some kind of ''normality''. Sophie is, however, a graduate of the mysterious Miss Lily''s school of charm and intrigue, and once more she risks her own life as she attempts to save others still trapped in the turmoil and aftermath of war. But in this new world, nothing is clear, in politics or in love. For the role of men has changed too. Torn between the love of three very different men, Sophie will face her greatest danger yet as she attempts an impossible journey across the world to save Nigel, Earl of Shillings - and her beloved Miss Lily. In this sequel to the bestselling Miss Lily''s Lovely Ladies, Jackie French draws us further into a compelling story that celebrates the passion and adventure of an unstoppable army of women who changed the world.

Just shut your eyes and picture yourself walking around the corner. that''s what my friend told me. Somewhere around the corner and you''ll be safe. the demonstration was wild, out of control. Barbara was scared. She saw the policeman running towards her. She needed to escape. She closed her eyes and did precisely that: she walked somewhere around the corner - to another demonstration - to another time. Barbara was lucky she meet young Jim who took her out of this strange, frightening city to his home. It was 1932, when Australia was in the grip of the depression, and Jim lived in a shantytown. But Barbara found a true friend and a true home - somewhere safe around the corner. Ages 12+

A collection of four favourites from the Wacky Families series. there''s no such thing as a normal family! But some are wackier than others... Cecil''s Mum wears long black boots and carries a sword; Gunk''s dog Spot loves lettuce and seems to be growing awfully big, awfully fast; Horace''s Dad has silver wings and a green and orange tail; and tom''s family circle includes a Senior Bogeyman, a tooth Fairy''s assistant and a large and hairy best friend called Mog. Fortunately for tom, his Uncle Gus is great at proving the old saying that small people can make a big difference. With drawings by award-winning illustrator Stephen Michael King, this collection of four hilarious Wacky Family stories is guaranteed to delight younger readers. Containing: My Mum the Pirate My Dog the Dinosaur My Dad the Dragon My Uncle Gus the Garden Gnome Ages: 7 - 10

A powerful novel from master storyteller Jackie French The soldiers she saved called her the Angel of Waterloo. The husband she loved and lost called her Hen. The patients she treated in secret called her Auntie Love. She was Henrietta Bartlett, a surgeon''s daughter, a survivor of the Napoleonic Wars. But now the battlefield is just a blood-soaked memory, and Hen dreams of peace, a home, and a society that allows women to practise medicine. On the other side of the world, the newly founded colony of New South Wales seems a paradise. But Europe''s wars cast long shadows ... From bestselling author Jackie French comes the story of one woman''s journey from the hell of Waterloo to colonial Australia, where she can forge her own dreams in a land of many nations. PRAISE FOR JACKIE FRENCH ''a master storyteller ... [she] gives women a rich, strong, and brutally honest voice'' - Better Reading ''Heartwarming, heartbreaking and hard to put down'' - Australian Women''s Weekly on If Blood Should Stain the Wattle

What do you do when your school librarian starts dressing in leopard-skin and goes off chasing dinosaurs? A school excursion to the Big Koala goes horribly wrong when Phredde, Pru and Bruce - and their vampire teacher Mrs Olsen, and Miss Richards, librarian and martial arts expert - head back into the time of the dinosaurs, not to mention giant marsupial lions, a dinosaur with diarrhoea and an exploding volcano. Who will save them? Can one kid, two phaeries, a vampire and a librarian dressed in leopard-skin survive in the past with just a laptop computer, a flying carpet and a plastic spoon? Ages 7-12

Australian Children''s Laureate, book lover and dyslexia sufferer Jackie French gives a wonderful insight into how you can help your child discover a world of books. Does your child love books, but can''t stay still long enough to focus on reading one? Would you like to improve your child''s reading ability? Don''t know where to begin to stimulate a greater love of reading in your child? Award-winning author Jackie French knows what it is to struggle with reading and literacy. Drawing on her own experience with dyslexia, Jackie has written this book to help parents identify the possible reading difficulties their children may have. All children learn differently, and Jackie offers many fun and rewarding way s to help launch your child into literacy. these include games for coordination, concentration and focus as well as helpful steps to kickstart your child into reading and to foster a life-long love of books. I SPY A GREAt READER is filled with a wealth of advice, anecdotes and activities - it''s a book every parent should own.

It''s 1939, and for Georg, son of an English academic living in Germany, life is full of cream cakes and loving parents. It is also a time when his teacher measures the pupils'' heads to see which of them have the most ''Aryan''- shaped heads. But when a university graduation ceremony turns into a pro-Nazi demonstration, Georg is smuggled out of Germany to war-torn London and then across enemy seas to Australia where he must forget his past and who he is in order to survive.

A story about dreams, beliving in yourself ... and a dancing kangaroo. From the award-winning duo of Diary of a Wombat comes another hilarious tale of a bush animal you''ll never forget.Josephine is a kangaroo - who loves to dance. Her little brother, Joey, tells her that kangaroos don''t dance, they hop - but Josephine continues to point her toes and leap through the air.When a ballet troupe comes to town and both the lead ballerina and understudy are injured, Josephine''s talents are called upon to help save the day. Can she do it and, more importantly, does it matter that she''s a kangaroo?A very funny picture book that looks at the importance of believing in yourself and realising your dreams.Ages 4- 9

Renowned author and historian Jackie French takes us back in time to Greece and Rome and explores young heroes in ancient myths and legends whose stories will now be told. Forget what you know about Cleopatra, the Egyptian queen with a fantastic hairstyle. That''s only part of the story. Before she was a ruler, Cleopatra was a girl with a fierce ambition: to become pharaoh. When twelve-year-old Cleopatra and her father, Pharaoh Ptolemy XII, flee to ancient Rome in 59 BCE after Cleopatra''s sister seizes the throne, they are in serious trouble. It''s up to Cleopatra to raise enough gold to hire an army, gain the support of powerful allies, and take back her country''s land. Three years later she had become the most famous pharaoh in history. This is the story of how that year in ancient Rome might have changed Cleopatra''s life, with daring escapes, crocodiles, pirates, shipwreck and encountering the intrepid Captain Fileas and Myra, the slave determined to be free. From one of Australia''s best-loved authors comes the first title in an exciting new series that explores the Ancient World. PRAISE ''... delightful romp through antiquity'' - Books+Publishing

We’ve all got wacky families, it’s just that some are wackier than others – find out just how wacky some families can be in the sixth book of this hilarious series. We''ve all got wacky families, it''s just that some are wackier than others - find out just how wacky some families can be in the sixth book of this hilarious series. Drackie is no ordinary kid. He lives on Vampire Island, where every night is dark and stormy. Soon he''ll be old enough to turn into a bat and live in his own castle. Drackie has just had the best birthday ever. His parents have given him what he''s always secretly wished for - a toad. And not just any toad, a vampire toad, he''s called Fang. then the unthinkable happens, Fang is toad-napped and a ransom of $100,000 is asked for by the International Society of toad thieves. the only clue is a bright pink feather. A clue that leads to Auntie Chook. But who is Auntie Chook? And why doesn''t anyone in Drackie''s family wish to talk about her?

Captain Cook''s goat is the first of many historical animals to bring the past to life. the HM Bark Endeavour is sailing to tahiti to map the transit of Venus, but there are rumours that once the task is completed, Lieutenant James Cook has a set of secret orders - orders that command him to search for the Great South Land. Isaac is twelve and has joined the crew of the Endeavour as a master''s servant, good for scrubbing decks and not much else. He''s certainly not considered good enough to fetch hay for the Goat who will provide fresh milk for Cook and his officers. And this goat even has more experience at sea than Isaac - she has already sailed around the world once, watching the ocean and lands slip by from her spot on the quarterdeck. Over the months on board the Endeavour, a friendship grows between the Goat and Isaac, one that will last through shipwreck, bushfire and illness. A friendship that helps in the discovery of exotic new lands ... Ages 9 - 13

THE DIARY OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, GENTLEMAN is part comedy, part love story, the threads of Shakespeare''s life drawn from his plays. Could the world''s greatest writer truly put down his pen forever to become a gentleman? He was a boy who escaped small town life to be the most acclaimed playwright of the land. A lover whose sonnets still sing 400 years later; a glover''s apprentice who became a gentleman. But was he happy with his new riches? Who was the woman he truly loved? The world knows the name of William Shakespeare. This book reveals the man - lover, son and poet. Based on new documentary evidence, as well as textual examination of his plays, this fascinating book gives a tantalising glimpse at what might have been: the other hands that helped craft those plays, the secrets that must ever be hidden but - just possibly - may now be told. Ages 12+

Jackie French explores a distant and fascinating world, where the future is not always as it seems, and the king''s displeasure means death.Ages 10 - 14 After Nikko and thetis are taken from their village, their amazing acrobatic skills save them from slavery and make them the focus of the Mycenaean court. the courtiers are in awe of them; the King is enchanted.But thetis may destroy them both when she tells the King a truth about his future that he doesn''t want to hear. Nikko and the daring horse dancer Euridce must travel across Greece to find his sister again - and the extraordinary future that awaits them all - in Delphi.Can one young girl change history?Jackie French waves history, myth and fantasy together into one enthralling tale of horse dancers, earthquakes and tsunamis, as well as love and courage, from beyond recorded time.Ages 10-14