Books by Jane Dawson

This Collection of Poetic Gems is centred on places, sporting events, people and animals that are important to this patriotic poet/songwriter. Written in an ‘imagery’ style, many of these odes started life as a song.  These treasures denote a vast respect for Australia, our military, our sports, and Australian cultural icons, like Winx and the Sydney Olympics. Songs such as The America's Cup Waltz (and its poem) now reside in Australia's Maritime Museum, having also been received with gratitude by Prince Philip and the Queen. 

Jane Dawson has written the definitive life of John Knox, a leader of the Protestant Reformation in sixteenth-century Scotland. Based in large part on previously unavailable sources, including the recently discovered papers of Knox's close friend and colleague Christopher Goodman, Dawson's biography challenges the traditionally held stereotype of this founder of the Presbyterian denomination as a strident and misogynist religious reformer whose influence rarely extended beyond Scotland. She maintains instead that John Knox relied heavily on the support of his "e;godly sisters"e; and conferred as well as argued with Mary, Queen of Scots. He was a proud member of the European community of Reformed Churches and deeply involved in the religious Reformations within England, Ireland, France, Switzerland, and the Holy Roman Empire. Casting a surprising new light on the public and private personas of a highly complex, difficult, and hugely compelling individual, Dawson's fascinating study offers a vivid, fully rounded portrait of this renowned Scottish preacher and prophet who had a seismic impact on religion and society.

This book encompasses the long sixteenth century, starting with James IV's accession and concluding with Mary, Queen of Scots' execution. At its heart is Scottish political life viewed from local and regional perspectives as well as the centre.