Pirates, Plants And Plunder!

Twelve true-life tales which reveal how the history of some of the 'everyday' plants we take for granted have been shaped by some of the great adventurers of the past.

Biography for Stewart Ross 
 
Stewart Ross is an established children's non-fiction author. His titles include: The Home Front in WWII (Hodder Wayland, 2002); The Great Fire of London (Evans Bros, 2002); The Story of Ireland (Orion Children's Books, 2001) and the Oxford Children's Book of the 20th Century (OUP, 1998). 
 
Biography for David Roberts 
 
David Roberts is an accomplished children's book illustrator, best known for his work on the Philip Ardargh Terrible Times series.

Twelve fascinating tales about the adventurers who travelled all over the globe, finding new plants and the amazing things they produce. Join Joseph Banks as he gets stranded on the Australian Great Barrier Reef whilst searching for new botanical specimens. Battle with the Mexican Emperor Montezuma against the invading Hernando Cortes - and watch as Cortes introduces chocolate to the rest of the world! Struggle with other travellers as they fight starvation, bears, strange diseases and tropical storms. 
 
Exciting, witty and wacky, these true-life tales span centuries and the globe, feature famous historical figures such as Captain Bligh, Darwin and Columbus and put the origins of 'everyday' plants into perspective.

Greed, Seeds and Slavery

A fascinating journey through the true-life tales of slaves around the world and throughout the ages.

Stewart Ross is an established children's non-fiction author. His titles include: The Home Front in WWII (Hodder Wayland, 2002); The Great Fire of London (Evans Bros, 2002); The Story of Ireland (Orion Children's Books, 2001) and the Oxford Children's Book of the 20th Century (OUP, 1998).

Commemorating the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the Slave Trade Act, this collection of eleven stories follows the lives of slaves of every kind around the world. Join African Queen Jinga as she unites the tribes of Ndongo against the invading Portuguese. Watch John Blanke as he becomes the first black trumpeter to play for the King Henry VIII. Meet Harriet Tubman as she helps escaped slaves flee along the Underground Railroad to freedom. 
 
Moving, exciting and often funny, these true stories span centuries and the globe, feature famous historical figures such as William Wilberforce and Catherine of Aragon and remind us all of the true horrors of slavery in all its forms.

David Roberts

A distinguished, responsible, and, almost inevitably, exciting retelling of a sordid tale

Roberts has fashioned a clear and engaging narrative of Apache survival... Well-researched, well-written... Compelling reading

Roberts has achieved near perfect focus upon a people and their times... [A] brilliant, poignant history

Cochise, Geronimo and the Apache Wars

At the end, in the summer of 1886, they numbered thirty-four men, women, and children under the leadership of Geronimo. This small group of Chiricahua Apaches became the last band of free Indians to wage war against the United States Government. The 'renegades', as white men called them, were mercilessly pursued by five thousand American troops (one quarter of the US Army) and by three thousand Mexican soldiers. For more than five months Geronimo's band ran the soldiers ragged. The combined military might of two great mations succeeded in capturing not a single Chiricagua, not even a child.' From the Preface. 
 
Of the many tales of conflict and warfare between the US Government and the Indian tribes, perhaps none is more dramatic or revealing than the story of the Apache wars. Those wars were the final episode of the US Government's subjugation of the indigenous peoples; the surrender of Geronimo in 1886 effectively ended the Indian wars. 
 
Once They Moved Like the Wind is the epic story of the Apache campagin, told with sympathy and understanding. Using historical archives and contemporary accounts, David Roberts has writeen an original, stirring account of the last years of the free Apaches.

David Roberts

Praise for Once They Moved Like The Wind 49

A distinguished, responsible, and, almost inevitably, exciting retelling of a sordid tale

Roberts has fashioned a clear and engaging narrative of Apache survival... Well-researched, well-written... Compelling reading

Roberts has achieved near perfect focus upon a people and their times... [A] brilliant, poignant history

A distinguished, responsible, and, almost inevitably, exciting retelling of a sordid tale

Roberts has fashioned a clear and engaging narrative of Apache survival... Well-researched, well-written... Compelling reading

Roberts has achieved near perfect focus upon a people and their times... [A] brilliant, poignant history

A distinguished, responsible, and, almost inevitably, exciting retelling of a sordid tale

Roberts has fashioned a clear and engaging narrative of Apache survival... Well-researched, well-written... Compelling reading

Roberts has achieved near perfect focus upon a people and their times... [A] brilliant, poignant history

Books by David Roberts

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter