Books with author Kathllen Thompson

The "Alchemist's Apprentice" tells the rags to riches story of Jack, the blacksmith's boy. Jack's quest leads him on a quixotic set of travels which have a rollicking Tom Jones feel to them. Eventually, after both hardship and luxury, Jack finds himself with the alchemist himself dabbling in alchemy, until finally, he holds in his hand the precious and long awaited nugget but by that time, of course, it is too late. For, the marvels of life cannot be bought.

Eloise lives with her nanny at The Plaza Hotel in New York. The daughter of extremely rich parents, she is left daily to her own devices. She knows everything about The Plaza and everyone in it. Henry James would want to study her. Queen Victoria would recognise her as an Equal. The New York Jets would want to have her on their side. Lewis Carroll would love her (once he got over the initial shock). Her antics are hilarious, her characterisation of those around her, perfect and whether you are about to fall in love with Eloise or you already adore her, you ought to have this book.

Acclaimed author Kate Thompson won both the Guardian Children’s Book Prize and the Whitbread Children’s Book of the Year Award for this enchanting novel. Irish teenager J.J. Liddy wishes he could provide his mother with her true birthday desire—the gift of more time. Everything seems to happen so fast in the modern world. Before long, J.J. finds himself in the land of the ever young, where the faeries teach him some amazing truths.

Jack is about to discover how to make gold—but the secret art will come at a priceThe year is 1720, and Jack, a London blacksmith’s apprentice, is fleeing the punishment of his master. Now a runaway, Jack’s wanderings take him to the Thames River, where he plucks a curious little pot out of the water. Hoping that his find will prove valuable, Jack discovers that it belongs to a practitioner of the forbidden art of alchemy. The alchemist agrees to take Jack on as an apprentice and teach him his secret craft, which will lead not to shelter or security, but to something far more wonderful and perilous. Jack’s quest will take him to unexpected places where he’ll learn that there’s more to alchemy than he bargained for. But will learning the secrets of making gold come at too great a cost?

Who knows where the time goes?There never seems to be enough time in Kinvara, or anywhere else in Ireland for that matter. When J.J.'s mother says time's what she really wants for her birthday, J.J. decides to find her some. He's set himself up for an impossible task . . . until a neighbor reveals a secret. There's a place where time stands still—at least, it's supposed to. J.J. can make the journey there, but he'll have to vanish from his own life to do so. Can J.J. find the leak between the two worlds? Will a shocking rumor about his family's past come back to haunt him? And what does it all have to do with the village's new policeman . . . ?

Tess is a Switcher, able to change shape at will—and it’s time for her to choose her final formTess can morph into any creature, including ones thought to be imaginary. Within days, she will turn fifteen and lose her power, remaining locked into a single shape. But what shape should she choose? As she tries to decide, Tess travels to her uncle Maurice’s farm in County Clare. She’s distracted from her weighty decision by the feeling that there’s something strange about the woods near the farm. Why is Uncle Maurice so eager to sell the land? And what does the secret in the woods have to do with Tess’s choice? Her journey will take her to places she never could have imagined as she approaches once and for all her final Switch.

A HOUSE WITH A SECRET An unanswered question: Who is the Creature in the Night? Bobby lives a reckless life smoking, drinking, and stealing cars in Dublin. So his mother moves thefamily to the country. But Bobby suspects their cottage might not be as quaint as it seems. Teens will be captivated by this spooky novel about the darkness that lurks in forgotten corners and tough teenagers.

"Hello," said Alice, trying her best to sound friendly."What are you doing up here?" "I'm talking to the ghost," said Jenny.Jenny has been making some strange friends lately. She's been walking barefoot through the wilds, talking to a huge white goat that wanders the Irish countryside. She's been chatting with the ghost of a young boy that guards the stone beacon at the top of the mountain. Her father, J.J. Liddy, knows these beings are connected somehow to the forces that are gathering around his homeland, plotting to destroy mankind. But will he be able to unravel the puzzles in time? Will he be able to secure the future of the last of the high kings? And is J.J. guarding some dark secrets of his own?