Jeannie Meekins: 172 books

Simon was looking out his bedroom window. A full moon was just clearing the horizon. Huge and glowing in the night sky, it lit up the ground. It cast long, dark shadows of houses, trees and lamp posts into the night. Simon smiled. Another cemetery tour would be on. He wanted to go back and see Lisa...

Sir Edmund Barton was an Australian politician and judge.One of the "Fathers of Federation", he drafted many versions of Australia’s Constitution, inspired the people’s support, and travelled to England to petition Queen Victoria for Australia’s Federation.On January 1, 1901, Australia became...

Simon usually loved going on school outings. He loved seeing all the new places. He loved learning about new things – or old things. But this one was different.The Penny Woodley was an old sailing ship. Over two hundred years ago, she sailed the seas. She brought supplies and settlers to a new world....

Our sun is an average star in our galaxy. It is a sphere of burning gas that provides light and heat. It makes our plants grow and allows them to turn carbon dioxide into breathable oxygen. If our sun were to shine a little less or a little more brightly, life as we knew it would not exist. A drop...

Mary MacKillop devoted her life to educating poor children. With the help of Father Julian Woods, she established her own religious Order, the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart. She set up over 100 schools, educated 12,000 children, and received approval from the Pope for her Order. Mary constantly...

Machu Picchu is one of the few surviving ruins of the Inca Empire. It is situated in tropical forests on the eastern side of the Andes Mountains. It stretches five miles across a ridge and sits on top of two earthquake fault lines.The Spanish invaded South America looking for gold. They killed the...

St George, defender of the helpless and slayer of dragons is a saint honored by many countries and many religions. He is as popular with Muslims and Jews as he is with Christians. How could this happen? We know dragons never existed. How could someone be so well known and honored worldwide for something...

St Patrick, Apostle of Ireland, is one of the best known saints of the Western World. Legends claim he converted the country of Ireland to Christianity and drove all the snakes into the sea.Most of what we know about Patrick comes from his own writings.Patrick wrote about his thoughts, dreams and...

Mary MacKillop devoted her life to educating poor children. With the help of Father Julian Woods, she established her own religious Order, the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart.She set up over 100 schools, educated 12,000 children, and received approval from the Pope for her Order.Mary constantly...

Throughout history men and women have done incredible things. Some of these people have been recognized by the catholic church, and made into saints. But in the beginning these were just ordinary people going about their ordinary lives.This compilation of 15-minute biographies tells the stories of...

Noses are wonderful things. They help us breathe. They are lined with mucous and hairs called cilia, which trap germs and tiny particles that can make us sick. They generate quarts (litres) of snot. They let us smell flowers and freshly baked foods. They also warn us of dangers from fires, rotten...

For millions of years, volcanic activity beneath the Earth’s crust has been turning rocks into granite. The rocks were uplifted, forming a small mountain range with small streams and creeks weaving their way through the valleys. Surface volcanoes erupted, covering the area in lava. The streams cut...

We see stars in the night sky as pretty, twinkling objects, but what exactly are they? A lot of the information we find out about stars, helps us understand other objects; pulsars, quasars, galaxies – even the origin of our universe. Here are some fun facts about stars. Do stars twinkle? What...

Thomas Edison was an inventor.He invented the electric lighting system, the phonograph and alkaline batteries. He invented a camera to record moving pictures and a device for watching them. He added sound to create a motion picture.He worked on and improved many of the machines we use today. He even...