Books with author Stephen Marche

From slaughter to sanctuary, The Whales' Journey describes the experiences of the humpback whales as they travel between the cold Antarctic and the warm tropical seas off northern Australia in what is one of the longest migrations in the animal world. It is also the story of human impact on humpback whale populations, which were decimated almost to extinction during the first sixty years of the twentieth century. Humpback whales are now protected by a fabric of regulations, sanctuaries, treaties and ultimately by human concern for them and their environment. This passionate, carefully researched and richly illustrated book brings to life the story of whaling in Australia, along with the associated tale of the long, sometimes fruitful and sometimes vexed relationship between scientists and whalers. The Whales' Journey is a message of hope and warning. As the fight to protect the earth's environments and species continues, the sparing of the humpback whale is an engaging tale of success and possibilities. As we constantly search for new resources to exploit, we need look no further than the humpback whale to see how simple it is to avoid the destruction of a whole species.

Down in the hollows, deep in the woods, far far away from the noisy outside world, lay the sleepy little hamlet of Wriggly Bottom. How “Wriggly Bottom” ever got its name no one seems to know. Perhaps lots and lots of wriggly worms lived there once upon a time, or maybe mole families churned wriggly paths through the earth? Your guess is as good as mine, but nowadays this peaceful community was home to a whole host of busy countryside animals. Let’s take a closer look…”So begins my series of entertaining and often humorous adventures of the “Wrigglyites”, a community of loveable characters who spring to life from the pages of this colourful collection of stories. Sir Fortescue Fox, Lord of the Manor at “Wriggly Heights”; Oliver Owl, the Primary School Headmaster; Harriet Hare, the Herbal Chemist, and her husband, Henry, the Village Doctor; Millicent Mouse, postmistress, clothes maker and food store manageress of “Millie’s Corner Shop”; Olwyn Otter, the incumbent Mayoress; and Bertie Badger, Wriggly Bottom’s local bobby – just some of the host of endearing characters appearing in ten very different tales. We follow the remarkable flight of Maddie Mouse, high above the treetops and over pastures below, resulting in her surprise appearance in the farmer’s frying pan, before being rescued by Bertie Badger.(Madeleine Mouse Takes To The Skies) Then it’s the turn of Harry Hare to propose a fun filled variety event showcasing, amongst others, “The Mice Girls”, “The Mighty Herbert Hamster Troupe” of acrobats, Freddie Fox, the incompetent ventriloquist, and the grace and beauty of Olivia Otter, ballerina. (Wriggly’s Got Talent) Sally Stoat’s Christmas hits the highs and lows as her dazzling yuletide present is stolen by a mischievous magpie, calling for a clever rescue plan to be carried out by Robbie Robin. (Sally Stoat’s Best Ever Christmas) Then it’s drama all the way as Molly Mole, out sunbathing on a pontoon, suddenly finds herself floating down river and heading for disaster till Olivia Otter pops up to save the day. (Olivia Otter To The Rescue) The School Treasure Hunt turns into a game of “cops and robbers” for Sebastian Squirrel, (Sebastian Squirrel And The Treasure Hunt) whilst fun at the seaside awaits the hamster family in Burrow-On-Sea, particularly for young Huey Hamster, who bites off more than he can chew when tempted into the funfair. (Off To The Seaside) Disaster next for the village, and specifically for the Reverend Humphrey Hedgehog, as “The Great Storm” demolishes the Parish Church, though salvation does spring up from unexpected quarters. (The Great Storm) Next on to the annual May Fair and the election of “Miss Wriggly Bottom”, a title the cunning Fenella Fox has set her eyes on, though despite her best mischievous efforts, aided by her lazy brother, Freddie, she has to play second fiddle to lovely Rachel Rabbit. (Fenella Fox Eats Humble Pie) The pantomime season sees the youngsters taking on the roles of “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”, though the performance is interrupted by the unexpected and unwanted arrival in the village of “The Frog Gang”, but Bertie Badger and the dwarfs prove more than a match for these rogues. (They’re Behind You…Oh No They’re Not… Oh Yes They Are..!) And finally Maisy Mouse, on a foggy day out in the woods with her family, meets and makes friends with a young runaway circus elephant, much to the terror and amazement of both sets of parents, feelings shared by all at Wriggly Bottom when the three large creatures pay the village a visit. (Maisy Mouse Makes A New Jumbo Friend)Stephen Markham

The debut of a major talent; a lyrical and emotional novel set in an archetypal small town in northeastern Ohio--a region ravaged by the Great Recession, an opioid crisis, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan--depicting one feverish, fateful summer night in 2013 when four former classmates converge on their hometown, each with a mission, all haunted by the ghosts of their shared histories. Since the turn of the century, a generation has come of age knowing only war, recession, political gridlock, racial hostility, and a simmering fear of environmental calamity. In the country's forgotten pockets, where industry long ago fled, where foreclosures, Walmarts, and opiates riddle the land, death rates for rural whites have skyrocketed, fueled by suicide, addiction and a rampant sense of marginalization and disillusionment. This is the world the characters in Stephen Markley's brilliant debut novel, Ohio, inherit. This is New Canaan. On one fateful summer night in 2013, four former classmates converge on the rust belt town where they grew up, each of them with a mission, all of them haunted by regrets, secrets, lost loves. There's Bill Ashcraft, an alcoholic, drug-abusing activist, whose fruitless ambitions have taken him from Cambodia to Zuccotti Park to New Orleans, and now back to "The Cane" with a mysterious package strapped to the underside of his truck; Stacey Moore, a doctoral candidate reluctantly confronting the mother of her former lover; Dan Eaton, a shy veteran of three tours in Iraq, home for a dinner date with the high school sweetheart he's tried to forget; and the beautiful, fragile Tina Ross, whose rendezvous with the captain of the football team triggers the novel's shocking climax. At once a murder mystery and a social critique, Ohio ingeniously captures the fractured zeitgeist of a nation through the viewfinder of an embattled Midwestern town and offers a prescient vision for America at the dawn of a turbulent new age.

Honour - Loyalty - RevengeBilly Bowman has just become a citizen of the British Empire, stepping up to meet his new obligations of service, honour, and allegiance to his King.It’s also his first day of secondary school.Like any 12-year-old, he needs to make new friends, to pass his exams and to learn how to fight for the Empire. An Empire that never stopped growing. An Empire whose colonies cover almost the entire world.But the British Empire has powerful, secretive enemies, who only attack from the shadows to bring dissent into the Colonies.Now, one of the most dangerous of those enemy agents has set his sights on Billy’s family, and he’ll stop at nothing to exact his revenge. Starting with Billy’s friends.As friendships are tested and secrets are revealed, the price of loyalty must be paid.

It is 2138. Jake lives on planet Dios with his father, a Planetary Environment Controller (PEC), and Squawker his holographic pet. Jake's dad accepts a new assignment: to clean up Planet Terra - a cesspit, exo- planet in the habitable zone of their Solar System.Jake is forced to leave his Dios life behind and move to planet Terra and a new school. Planet Terra is nowhere near as nice as Dios and the litterbug, lay-about classes of Terra treat their environment appallingly. Powerful energy companies, supported by corrupt politicians, have polluted and disfigured the Terran landscape and destroyed whole ecologies.Global climate change is turning half the planet to desert.When teachers and students at his new school find out that Jake's dad is there to get strict new environment laws enforced, Jake is bullied. Things spiral downwards and Jake runs away to a camp of eco-warriors living outside the city, In time the tribe accept him. Jake meets and falls in love with Moon Water and, after a showdown with Tumbril, becomes leader of the tribe. Their home threatened by drilling for Terrafirmium, an energy-rich crystal, Jake takes up the fight. Primitive acts of sabotage do little to deter the miners. Jakes’ last, desperate ploy is to hack into the Terran governments communication system . He makes an impassioned plea to the young Terrans. to stop big businesse and government destroying the planet.The message goes viral.Terra-wide ,youth takes to the streets in protest. The Supreme Council finally hears the case of Jake v. Resources Inc. and the legacy of generations to come is decided in a landmark legal case.