author
Florence Coombe
Best known for lively children's stories set in schools and adventurous corners of the British world, this early 20th-century writer had a gift for brisk plots and warm-hearted character sketches. Her books often mix mischief, friendship, and moral courage in a way that still feels inviting.
1 Audiobook
Jack of Both Sides: The Story of a School War
by Florence Coombe
About the author
Florence Edith Coombe was an English author of children's fiction, born in Beckenham in 1870 or 1871 and remembered for books including A Chum Worth Having, That Merry Crew, Her Friend and Mine, and Jack of Both Sides. Reliable sources available here agree that she wrote a substantial number of stories for young readers, many of them published around the turn of the 20th century.
Her background was closely tied to the church: her father was a clergyman, and sources place part of her early life in Sheffield before the family later settled in Worthing. Some biographical records also connect her with missionary work in the South Pacific, which helps explain the wider imperial and overseas settings that appear in parts of her writing.
Coombe's fiction is best known for its energetic school stories and tales of friendship, loyalty, and resilience. Although she is not as widely read today as some of her contemporaries, many of her books have survived through digital archives such as Project Gutenberg, where modern readers can still discover her straightforward storytelling and strong sense of youthful adventure.