Books with author Jackie French Koller

A searing story of passion, betrayal, battles and love, this is Shakespeare's 'Macbeth' stripped of superstition, and its power and beauty refined into fewer words where good balances the evil and there is a happy ending - for some. Following on from OPHELIA, QUEEN OF DENMARK and I AM JULIET, this is the third title in the series for young people that focuses on the reinterpretation of Shakespeare's classic and enduring plays.'I didn't mean to do it'.Annie is not a witch, but when her mistress Lady Macbeth calls for a potion to 'stiffen Macbeth's sinews', Annie is caught up in plots that lead to murder, kingship and betrayal. Annie must also not only choose between Rab the Blacksmith and Murdoch, Thane of Greymouth, but discover where her loyalty lies. Ages: 10+

Following on from I AM JULIET (August 2014), this is the second title in a new series for young people that focuses on the reinterpretation of Shakespeare's classic and enduring plays. Ages: 10+ She is the girl who will be queen: Ophelia, daughter of Denmarks lord chancellor and loved by Prince Hamlet. But while Hamlets family stab, poison or haunt one another, Ophelia plans a sensible rule, one filled with justice and the making of delicious cheeses. Even if she has to pretend to be mad to make it happen, Ophelia will let nothing, not even howling ghosts, stand in her way. This is Shakespeares play, but with what might also have happened behind the scenes. And this story has a happy ending. From Jackie French, one of Australias most respected and awarded authors and the Australian Childrens Laureate and 2015 Senior Australian of the Year, comes a book that reimagines the life of one of Shakespeares most intriguing female characters. Praise for I am Juliet: The captivating storyline and well-developed characters will make it popular with high school-aged readers.Magpies

Irresistible summer fun! Just then we heard a fella yellin?? He was sellin? watermelon! . . . We chomped and slurped And gulped and burped, Then Peter spit a seed at Sue. . . . Four friends turn a boring summer day into a rollicking, watermelon-seed?spitting adventure that takes them all the way into the town square, where everyone can?t help joining in on the fun. But when the mayor arrives, will she put a stop to it all? Energetic, begging-to-be-read-aloud text and boisterous, hilarious illustrations combine to form a picture book that celebrates simple, good-natured mischief.

The 'War to end all Wars', as seen through the eyes of three young women War is being fought on a horrific scale in the trenches of France, but it might as well be a world away from sixteen-year-old New Zealander Midge Macpherson, at school in England learning to be a young lady. But the war is coming closer: Midge's brothers are in the army, and her twin, Tim, is listed as 'missing' in the devastating defeat of the Anzac forces at Gallipoli . Desperate to do their bit - and avoid the boredom of school and the restrictions of Society - Midge and her friends Ethel and Anne start a canteen in France, caring for the endless flow of wounded soldiers returning from the front. Midge, recruited by the over-stretched ambulance service, is thrust into carnage and scenes of courage she could never have imagined. And when the war is over, all three girls - and their Anzac boys - discover that even going 'home' can be both strange and wonderful. Exhaustively researched but written with the lightest of touches, this is Jackie French at her very best.AWARDSShortlisted - 2009 ABIA AwardsHonour Book - 2009 CBCA Book of the Year Awards (Younger Readers)PRAISE'Highly recommended for teenage to adult readers' - Readings'A book of many voices. Poignant, graphic and compulsive fiction about women who volunteered during WWI' - Sunday Age'Beautifully written. An important story. The use of a sixteen year old protagonist will make the story more real and more confronting for teen readers' - Aussie Reviews'A well-researched story about the invaluable support women provided during the war. Recommended for secondary school-aged children' - Australian Bookseller and Publisher'... rousing stuff, and it hasn't been watered down. French doesn't shy away from the nightmarish conditions of trench warfare. Highly readable, scrupulous in its history ... an ideal text for schools' - Sydney Morning Herald '... entertaining and uplifting' - Sun-Guardian Blacktown 'This is a moving story about the love, kindness and humanity of the people involved in the bloodshed and carnage of World War I' - Launceston Examiner'Jackie has woven her usual magic with her deft light touch and humour in this gripping story' - Toowoomba Chronicle 'A warm tribute to extraordinary women in extraordinary times. We must remember them' - Woman's Day'Younger readers will enjoy this story about the soldiers of World War I and the volunteers who supported them' - Brisbane News 'Comprehensively researched and beautifully written' - South Coast Register

The bombs were falling and the smoke rising from the concentration camps, but all Hitler's daughter knew was the world of lessons with Fraulein Gelber and the hedgehogs she rescued from the cold. Was it just a story or did Hitler's daughter really exist? And if you were Hitler's daughter, would all the horror that occurred be your fault, too? Do things that happened a long time ago still matter? First published in 1999, Hitler's Daughter has sold over 100,000 copies in Australia alone and has received great critical acclaim, both in Australia and the twelve countries where it has been published. Hitler's Daughter has also won or been shortlisted for 23 awards, both in Australia and internationally, including winner of the 2000 Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year for Younger Readers.

A boy and a baby dragon forge an unlikely friendship in this first book in the fantastical Dragonling chapter book series!Darek can’t wait for his first Dragonquest. Then he can be just like his older brother, Clep, the hero who brought down a Great Blue, the largest and fiercest dragon of all. Darek goes to admire the kill—and finds a dragonling peeking out of the giant dragon’s pouch. Scared but curious, he feeds the hungry baby and makes an unlikely friend. But to save the helpless Dragonling he must now venture into the fearsome Valley of the Dragons, risking his life to return his friend to his own fire-breathing kind.

“A briskly moving, satisfying story, and the dragons are nicely endearing.” Kirkus on The Dragonling “The characters are believable, and their adventures, fears, and suspicions make for exciting reading for children moving into chapter books.” School Library Journal on The Dragonling “The Marvelous cycle of books about the bond between a boy and his dragon fits snugly between early chapter books and traditional fantasy for children. Wonderfully well written, and with the deepest respect for its characters epic and adventurous in scope ” Walter the Storyteller

Darek and Zantor work together to stop the kidnapping of another baby dragon in this third book in the fantastical Dragonling chapter book series!Now that the villagers have finally accepted Darek’s dragonling, Zantor, they’ve all fallen in love with him. Especially Rowena, the spoiled daughter of the Chief Elder—so much so that she wants the dragonling for her very own. But Darek can’t give him up! He and Zantor are so close that he can almost get inside the little dragon’s mind. So the Chief Elder orders Darek’s father to find another dragonling. Even though a dragon mother will have to die—along with some villagers, too. Darek can’t let that happen. But how can he stop them…unless he joins the dragon quest?

It’s 1972, and across Australia the catchcry is ‘It’s time’. Time for old folk, time for young folk, time for a new, idealistic Labor government.In Gibber's Creek, it's time for Jed Kelly to choose between past love, Nicholas, the local Labor member, and Sam from the Halfway to Eternity commune. And for Scarlett O'Hara, it's time to dream that one day she becomes a doctor - despite being in a wheelchair. It's also time for matriarch Matilda Thompson to reflect on the life that took her from the slums of Grinder's Alley to the events that began a nation at a billabong in 1894. The 1970s was a time of extraordinary ideals of a better world, but as the ideals drifted from disaster to the Dismissal there were deep conflicts about what that better world might be.Jackie French, author of the bestselling To Love a Sunburnt Country, has woven her own experience of that period into an unforgettable story of a small rural community and a nation swept into the social and political tumult of the early 1970s.

'GRIPPING, EMOTIONAL AND MOVING'-- New Idea There have been fires before, but not like this. In 1978, as the hot wind howls and the grass dries, all who live at Gibber's Creek know their land can burn. But when you love your land, you fight for it. For Jed Kelly, an even more menacing danger looms: a man from her past determined to destroy her. Finding herself alone, trapped and desperate to save her unborn child, Jed's only choice is to flee -- into the flames. Heartbreaking and powerful, Facing the Flame celebrates the triumph of courage and community, and a love for the land so deep that not even bushfire can erode it. PRAISE'The perfect read for anyone who loves immersing themselves in Australian fiction. Gripping, emotional and moving, Facing the Flame is a great book to curl up with on a warm spring night.' -- New Idea