Tag: jackie french

One Perfect Day, by Jackie French

May 9, 1927 didn’t start as a perfect day. Not for Billy.
‘Rise and shine!’ yelled Mr Cuddy. ‘Blast the boy, he’d sleep through a mob of emus galloping through the butter! Billy!’
‘Coming Mr Cuddy!’ Billy rolled over on the potato sacks in the sleep-out, waking Dusty beside him.

Life is hard for Billy, an orphan who has been sent to work on a farm near Canberra. He works long hours, doesn’t get enough to eat, and can’t keep warm. But when he hears that Mr Cuddy, the farmer, is going to shoot Dusty, the dog who is Billy’s only friend, Billy knows life could get much worse. He has until sun-down to find a new home for Dusty.

It is the opening day of the new Parliament House, and there is plenty of traffic heading for Canberra. Perhaps Billy can find someone to take Dusty home. When he finds a car broken down at the side of the road, he ends up with more than that.

One Perfect Day is a junior novel about friendship and loyalty, set amidst the events of the commissioning of the original Parliament House in Canberra. Part of the Making Tracks series, published by The National Museum of Australia Press, One Perfect Day is an easy to read offering, with plenty of interest for young readers. Kids will love the surprise ending and be fascinated by the old motor cars which feature heavily in the story.

One Perfect Day, by Jackie French
National Museum of Australia Press, 2006

Shipwrecks, Sailors & 60,000 Years, by Jackie French

How can we know what happened sixty thousand years ago?This is a question asked by Jackie French in an author note at the beginning of this book. She points out that we don’t know much of the past for certain, although we are helped by stories passed down through generations and by scientific work. She goes on to say that this book is as accurate as the team which put it together could make it. What is important about this author’s note, and its prominent placement at the beginning of the book, is that it does what so many other history books have failed to do, by admitting that history is both fallible and changeable.

After this note, the book provides an outline of the history of Australia from the arrival of Aboriginal people roughly sixty thousand years ago, until Captain James Cook claimed the land for England in 1770. There are chapters detailing how the many Aboriginal people explored and settled the continent, and how they lived, hunted and traded. This is followed by a detailed discussion of how Australia was ‘discovered’ and mapped by Dutch, French, Portuguese and British sailors, and how these people’s visits to a land they regarded as occupied by savages impacted on the Aboriginal people.

French provides a no holds barred version of events, but does so without being preachy. For example, she points out that Cook declared New South Wales to be terra nullius, despite knowing that the land was inhabited by people who didn’t want Europeans there, but rather than offering an opinion of Cook’s actions, she leaves readers to draw their own conclusions.

The other highly appealing element of this book is its humour, which makes it accessible to even reluctant readers. On every spread, cartoons and illustrations by Peter Sheehan provide humorous interpretations of the text, and French also makes sure she puts plenty of high-interest and often humorous facts, knowing intuitively which gross or gruesome facts will appeal to young readers.

This is history as kids and schools have not previously seen it.

Fair Dinkum Histories: Shipwreck, Sailors & 60,000 Years, by Jackie French
Scholastic, 2006

Grim Crims & Convicts, by Jackie French

It was the craziest, wildest and most daring expedition the world had seen.
Eleven ships with nearly 1500 people travelled 25 000 kilometres to the other side of the world. But what did they find when they arrived?

Grim Crims and Convicts is an intriguing look at the early days of European settlement in Australia. It details the early time of the colony from the arrival of the first fleet in 1788 through to 1820, charting the hardships and difficulties faced by the settlers, the impact their arrival had on the Aboriginal population and way of life, and the development of the colony.

Whilst this is not the first book written on the subject, for children it is certainly the most accessible. French has a humorous yet honest style, which doesn’t gloss over serious events. The text is complemented by the cartoon style illustrations of Peter Sheehan, putting his own funny spin on events.

This is history which kids can enjoy, even while they are learning plenty about this important part of Australian history. It is the first instalment in an eight-part series covering Australian history from prehistoric times to the Centenary of Federation.

Good stuff.

Grim Crims and Convicts, by Jackie French, illustrated by Peter Sheehan
Scholastic Press, 2005

My Uncle Wal the Werewolf, by Jackie French

Buster loves being a werewolf, but when his parents vanish and his uncle starts acting suspiciously, his whole way of life is threatened. Uncle Wal has become leader of the pack and is telling Wal and the other werewolves that they must become more human. Buster is appalled. He doesn’t want to be more human – and besides, how will that help him find his missing parents?

When Buster decides to take things into his own hands (or paws) he meets Prunella, a girl his own age, who says she is a detective. Even though Buster is her first client, she is determined to help him solve the case and find his parents.

My Uncle Wal the Werewolf is a cleverly crafted, humorous title from much-loved author Jackie French. French continues to delight children with her ability to create funny stories, each different but all entertaining.

My Uncle Wal the Werewolf will appeal to readers aged nine to twelve.

My Uncle Wal the Werewolf, by Jackie French
Harper Collins, 2005

Too Many Pears! by Jackie French

Pamela the cow loves pears. She loves them so much she will stop at nothing to get to them – even if it means crawling through a wombat hole or towing a tree behind her.

Unfortunately, Pamela’s pear obsession means there are no pears left for the people. Something has to be done to stop Pamela eating all the pears.

Too Many Pears is the latest humorous offering from renowned author-illustrator team, Jackie French and Bruce Whatley. Like so many of French’s books, the story revolves around food and animals, yet, as always, this story is unique. Whatley’s illustrations bring the tale to life, with the cow’s facial expressions a true delight.

Excellent.

Too Many Pears, by Jackie French and Bruce Whatley
Koala Books, 2003

Phredde and the Purple Pyramid, by Jackie French

Prudence has a friend called Phredde who just happens to be a phaery. But that isn’t that strange – not compared with a teacher who is a vampire, a brother who is a werewolf and a boyfriend who prefers to be a frog most of the time.

When Phredde, Pru and Bruce (the boyfriend) head down a black tunnel that’s opened up in the school grounds, they know that anything could happen (it usually does on their adventures). So they are only moderately surprised to end up in Ancient Egypt. Pru is pretty excited to find that the Egyptians think she is the Wondrous One, come to choose the next ruler of Egypt. But who will Pru choose, and will they all survive until they can get back home?

Phredde and the Purple Pyramid is the sixth book about Pru and her friends by the funny Jackie French. Unlike some of the earlier books, this book contains one long story divided into chapters, rather than several shorter stories. This will be an added bonus to those whose reading skills have developed since reading the first books.

A good, fun read with Jackie French’s zany stamp.

Phredde and the Purple Pyramid, by Jackie French
Harper Collins, 2004

A Box Full of Phaeries, Phreddes and Fruit, by Jackie French

In her introduction to each of these three books Jackie French avows that stories can be eaten in much the same way one would eat a banana or a plum. And she’s right. The stories she shares in this delightful trilogy are ones which kids are likely to devour.

In the first book, A Phaery Named Phredde, Pru meets a phaery (NOT fairy), called Phredde, who soon becomes her best friend. If you think that’s strange, then what about the pair having a teacher who is a vampire, and Pru’s brother becoming a werewolf? Anything is possible in the Australia created by French. In each of the five stories in the book, Pru and Phredde have wild and wonderful adventures which will amuse and delight eight to tweve year olds.

In the following two volumes, Phredde and a Frog Named Bruce and Phredde and the Zombie Librarian, Pru and Phredde have even more adventures, including meeting a talking frog who is really a phaery prince (and does NOT want to be kissed by a princess), and escaping the clutches of a zombie librarian intent on feeding them to her blood-starved books.

With the three books packaged together in a slipcase, this set would make a great gift for a hungry young reader.

A Box Full of Phaeries, Phreddes and Fruit, by Jackie French
Angus & Robertson, 2003

Vampire Slugs On Callisto, by Jackie French

Sam loves living on Callisto. She and her Dad have been there almost a year, leaving behind the discomforts of Earth, where lots of nasty things can happen. On Callisto everyone gets along, there is no crime and there is always plenty of wonderful food to eat.

Then with the annual Harvest Festival approaching, something strange happens. Little slugs appear on the fruit trees. One day they’re tiny, the next they’ve doubled in size. What’s worse, they’re eating everything in sight – all the trees, all the fruit, even Dad’s pineapple pizza.

What worries Sam the most is that no one is doing anything about them. The adults are too busy preparing for the Harvest Festival to do anything about the slugs. It’s up to Sam and her pingleflug step-cousin Broc to do something about them and save Callisto from destruction.

Vampire Slugs on Callisto is the third book about this delightful planet from award-winning author Jackie French. Although they form a series, each book stands alone and is filled with humour, adventure, and yummy food.

The first Callisto title, Cafe on Callisto, won the Aurealis Award in 2001

Vampire Slugs on Callisto, by Jackie French
Koala Books, 2003

Valley of Gold, by Jackie French

From the time the Earth was formed four billion years ago, until the present day, Valley of Goldtraces the story of one valley – the Araluen Valley, where author Jackie French has lived for most of her life.

Although the valley is real, the stories in Valley of Gold are fictional, because, as French says, if the neighbours recognise themselves they might throw stones at my windows. Although they aren’t true, the stories could have happened and the characters could have existed, because each story is set in a different period of the valley’s history.

From the hunting of the last ‘tiger’ in 35 000 BC, to the discovery of gold in 1853 and on to French’s own golden discoveries in more recent times, each story gives the young reader some insight into life in the valley in the time period in question, as well as a more general awareness of Australian life in those times.

Valley of Gold is great for personal reading, but would also make an excellent classroom resource, especially for classes learning about Gold mining, Australian history, conservation and other topics.

Valley of Gold, by Jackie French
Angus & Robertson (an imprint of Harper Collins), 2003

The Black House, by Jackie French

When Barney’s Dad gets funding to conduct his special research, it means a move to the country. The house they move to is huge – and comes complete with a high-grade secruity system and a strange caretaker with a propensity to seem like a prison warder.

The new town might be pretty small, but the people are friendly and Barney quickly makes friends. Dad’s pretty happy with the set up for his research project too. So Barney figures he’d better keep quiet about his reservations. He doesn’t know what is going on, but the house is definitely concealing a secret. There are strange shudders at night, slime seeping through the walls, and other goings-on. Barney’s dreams are filled with wild images that seem real. Still, Barney is totally unprepared for what he finds out – and its ramifications for him. He will soon be the boy who talks to the alien.

The Black House, a new title for bestselling author Jackie French, is a lively combination of mystery, adventure and light humour. A Blue level title in Koala’s Tadpoles series, it is suitable for 9 to 12 year old readers.

The Black House, by Jackie French
Koala Books, 2003