New Releases by Marcus Sedgwick

Super-Readable Rollercoasters: Super authors, super accessible, simply super-readable fiction One long, hot summer, two children disappear on a school trip. One child is eventually found, but Porter is worried that no one is even looking for the other, Stephen, anymore. Why can no one remember who Stephen is? What happened on the school trip? And why does Porter get the feeling that supernatural forces from deep in the past are at play?

A grim discovery brings disturbing revelations in this chilling ghost story from the late Marcus Sedgwick.

An interactive activity book for 9–12-year-olds on overcoming anxiety You can conquer your worries. The power is within you! We all experience anxiety from time to time. It can feel overwhelming and uncomfortable, and stops us from doing the things we enjoy – so what on earth can we do about it? Be the Change: Be Calm will show you how to shut down anxiety with fun and simple ways to calm your mind by listening to what your body is telling you. Ever tried the half-salamander exercise? You should! And have you ever performed a body scan? Thought not. These amazing activities along with many others will become your toolkit to a calmer and happier life. Award-winning author Marcus Sedgwick takes us on a fascinating journey to find out where anxiety comes from, looking at the power of storytelling in terms of training our brain to overcome worries. He also shows us what animals can teach us about dealing with stress AND introduces us to our second brain! Hello! It''s time to make CALM your superpower. ARE YOU READY TO BE KIND TO YOUR MIND?

An interactive activity title for 9-12-year-olds on the power of kindness You can choose to make the world a better place. The power is within you! Every one of us experiences the world differently – we have different worries and problems, and we all have unique hopes and dreams – but there’s one thing that can unite us and make the world a better place, and that’s KINDNESS! Kindness is cool! No, really! Kindness can create positive change in all our lives. Whether it’s being a friend to someone who seems lonely, or simply smiling or giving somebody a thumbs up. When we support each other, we can be our best selves. Be the Change: Be Kind is your handbook on how to use your own voice to empower yourself and others to spread kindness. Award-winning children’s author Marcus Sedgwick tells the story of kindness – where it comes from, what it feels like and perhaps most importantly why it matters – and asks YOU what you would do in different everyday scenarios. ARE YOU READY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

Marcus Sedgwick crafts a characteristically unsettling mystery exploring teen relationships and our connection to the world around us in his gripping Barrington Stoke debut.

All In Your Head is about what happens when your doctor doesn''t believe that you''re ill. When they think you are imagining a serious ailment, or worse, faking it.It''s the story of the stigma that goes with invisible illness, and of the strange places that chronic illness takes you. It''s the tale of bizarre treatments, and above all, the damage that''s created through other peoples'' doubts and indifference.Yet, there is an epidemic of undiagnosed, hard-to-explain, and misunderstood illnesses in today''s world, with new illnesses such as long-COVID steadily emerging. It is often up to individuals to drive their own search for recognition and a diagnosis, a task that can prove challenging due to establishment scepticism and disinterest.With honesty, and at times, dark humour, All In Your Head - from multiple award-winning author Marcus Sedgwick - explores how four simple words can make you question your sense of reality.''Poignant. Gripping. Provocative. A must read ...'' Dr Veronique Mead''Everybody needs to read this book.'' Dr Nina MuirheadAbout The Author. Marcus Sedgwick is an award-winning author of over forty books for adults and young people. After careers in bookselling and the publishing industry, Sedgwick produced his first novel, Floodland, in 2000, winning the Branford Boase Award.

You can choose to make the world a better place. The power is within you! Every one of us experiences the world differently we have different worries and problems, and we all have unique hopes and dreams but there''s one thing that can unite us and make the world a better place, and that''s KINDNESS! Kindness is cool! No, really! Kindness can create positive change in all our lives. Whether it s being a friend to someone who seems lonely, or simply smiling or giving somebody a thumbs up. When we support each other, we can be our best selves. Be the Change: Be Kind is your handbook on how to use your own voice to empower yourself and others to spread kindness. Award-winning children''s author Marcus Sedgwick tells the story of kindness where it comes from, what it feels like and perhaps most importantly why it matters and asks YOU what would you do in different everyday scenarios. ARE YOU READY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

From Printz medalist Marcus Sedgwick, a gripping novel about health—our own and our planet’s—and the stigma of illness. Ash boards a Greyhound bus heading to the place where Bly was last seen: Snowflake, Arizona. Six thousand feet up in the wide red desert, Ash meets Mona, her dog, her goat, and her neighbors, and finds stepbrother Bly, too. In their ramshackle homes, the walls lined with tinfoil, almost all the residents of Snowflake are sick. But this isn’t any ordinary sickness: the chemicals and technologies of modern life are poisoning them. They call themselves canaries, living warning signs that humans have pushed the environment too far, except no one seems to be taking their warnings seriously. The healthy “normies” of Snowflake have written them off as a bunch of eccentrics, and when Ash too falls ill, the doctor’s response is “It’s all in your mind.” Snowflake, AZ contemplates illness and health—both our own and our planet’s. As Ash lives through a cycle of illness and recovery and loss, the world beyond is succumbing to its own affliction: a breakdown of civilization only distantly perceived by Ash and the isolated residents of Snowflake, from which there may or may not be a chance for recovery. This provocative novel by one of our most admired storytellers explores the resilience of love and community in the face of crisis.

Harry Black is lost between the world of war and the land of myth in this illustrated novel that transports the tale of Orpheus to World War II–era London. Brothers Marcus and Julian Sedgwick team up to pen this haunting tale of another pair of brothers, caught between life and death in World War II. Harry Black, a conscientious objector, artist, and firefighter battling the blazes of German bombing in London in 1944, wakes in the hospital to news that his soldier brother, Ellis, has been killed. In the delirium of his wounded state, Harry’s mind begins to blur the distinctions between the reality of war-torn London, the fiction of his unpublished sci-fi novel, and the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. Driven by visions of Ellis still alive and a sense of poetic inevitability, Harry sets off on a search for his brother that will lead him deep into the city’s Underworld. With otherworldly paintings by Alexis Deacon depicting Harry’s surreal descent further into the depths of hell, this eerily beautiful blend of prose, verse, and illustration delves into love, loyalty, and the unbreakable bonds of brotherhood as it builds to a fierce indictment of mechanized warfare.

''Do monsters always stay in the book where they were born? Are they content to live out their lives on paper, and never step foot into the real world?'' The Villa Diodati, on the shore of Lake Geneva, 1816: the Year without Summer. As Byron, Polidori, and Mr and Mrs Shelley shelter from the unexpected weather, old ghost stories are read and new ghost stories imagined. Born by the twin brains of the Shelleys is Frankenstein, one of the most influential tales of horror of all time. In a remote mountain house, high in the French Alps, an author broods on Shelley''s creation. Reality and perception merge, fuelled by poisoned thoughts. Humankind makes monsters; but who really creates who? This is a book about reason, the imagination, and the creative act of reading and writing. Marcus Sedgwick''s ghostly, menacing novel celebrates the legacy of Mary Shelley''s literary debut in its bicentenary year.

Scarlett Hart is the orphaned daughter of two legendary monster hunters--and she''s determined to follow in their footsteps.

In the idyllic early summer of 1914, life is good for the de Witt family. Rudolf and Verena are planning the wedding of their daughter Emmeline, while their eldest son, Arthur, is studying in Paris, and Michael is just back from his first term at Cambridge. Celia, the youngest of the de Witt children, is on the brink of adulthood and secretly dreams of escaping her carefully mapped-out future and exploring the world.But the onslaught of war changes everything and soon the de Witts find themselves sidelined and in danger of losing everything they hold dear. As Celia struggles to make sense of the changing world around her, she lies about her age to join the war effort and finds herself embroiled in a complex plot that puts not only herself but those she loves in danger.With gripping detail and brilliant empathy, Kate Williams tells the story of Celia and her family as they are shunned by a society that previously embraced them, torn apart by sorrow, and buffeted and changed by the storms of war.

First published in Great Britain in 2007.

A potent, powerful and timely thriller about migrants, drug lords and gang warfare set on the US/Mexican border by PRINTZ MEDAL winning and CARNEGIE MEDAL, COSTA BOOK AWARD and GUARDIAN CHILDREN''S FICTION PRIZE shortlisted novelist, Marcus Sedgwick. Anapra is one of the poorest neighbourhoods in the Mexican city of Juarez - twenty metres outside town lies a fence, and beyond it, America - the dangerous goal of many a migrant. Faustino is one such trying to escape from the gang he''s been working for. He''s dipped into a pile of dollars he was supposed to be hiding and now he''s on the run. He and his friend, Arturo, have only 36 hours to replace the missing money, or they''re as good as dead. Watching over them is Saint Death. Saint Death (or Santissima Muerte) - she of pure bone and charcoal-black eye, she of absolute loyalty and neutral morality, holy patron to rich and poor, to prostitute and narco-lord, criminal and police-chief. A folk saint, a rebel angel, a sinister guardian.

Like the six sides of a snowflake, the book''s six chapters explore the art, literature and science of snow.

Twelve bestselling authors, twelve Doctors, twelve brilliant adventures in time and space for all Doctor Who fans! This collection features all twelve original Doctor Who eshort stories, covering each of the twelve Doctors and written by a selection of wonderful children''s authors.

Set in a girls'' boarding school in Massachusetts a haunting and sinister story YA story for World Book Day from prize-winning author Marcus Sedgwick. 1963. Foxgrove School near Stockbridge, Massachusetts. One of the oldest and finest academies in the country - but what really goes on behind closed doors? Nathaniel Drake, the new young English teacher, Isobel Milewski, the quiet girl who loved to draw spirals, her fingers stained with green ink, Jack Lewis, who lent Isobel books - just words, just ink on paper, Margot Leya, the girl with those eyes - who are they, what part have they played in killing the dead? Follow the dark, dark path Into the dark, dark woods To the dark, dark bridge By the dark, dark water. Linger. Let the ghosts of heaven tell their story. A stylish and creepy story for World Book Day from prize-winning author Marcus Sedgwick.

-First published in the United Kingdom in 2014 by Orion Children''s Books, London.-

Download the first 15 chapters of THE GHOSTS OF HEAVEN by award winning author, Marcus Sedgwick for FREE! Timeless, beautiful, and haunting, spirals connect the four episodes of this mesmerizing novel from Printz Award winner Marcus Sedgwick. They are there in prehistory, when a girl picks up a charred stick and makes the first written signs; there tens of centuries later, hiding in the treacherous waters of Golden Beck that take Anna, who people call a witch; there in the halls of a Long Island hospital at the beginning of the 20th century, where a mad poet watches the oceans and knows the horrors it hides; and there in the far future, as an astronaut faces his destiny on the first spaceship sent from earth to colonize another world. Each of the characters in these mysterious linked stories embarks on a journey of discovery and survival; carried forward through the spiral of time, none will return to the same place.

From the author of The Jungle Book comes a magical fantasy story, rich in historical detail and filled with intrigue and excitement Una and Dan, reciting Shakespeare on a summer''s evening in rural Sussex, unwittingly summon the elf Puck. They are taken on a fantastic journey through Britain''s past, their magical companion plucking from history an array of fascinating characters for them to meet: Parnesius, a Roman centurion who manned Hadrian''s wall; Wayland, a Saxon warrior and blacksmith; Sir Richard, a Norman knight who made an extraordinary journey to Africa; and many others. Each offers a story from his own life, mixing war and politics with adventure and intrigue. Each is rich with historical detail. One of the great classics of children''s literature, Puck of Pook''s Hill is by turns a fantastical story of magical otherness and a compelling exploration of history. A runaway success on first publication, it still has the power to excite children and their parents alike.

A moving collection of short stories by bestselling authors, each inspired by a different object from the First World War. The objects include a writing case belonging to a young soldier who was killed on the first day of the Somme, a butter dish featuring a message from Lloyd George, urging people to be economical with food, and a toy soldier dressed in the uniform of the French Army.

Terror Town is Trouble with a capital T. What will happen to our intrepid trio (that includes Rat) when the Tears of the Moon are taken, and Terrible Tim and the Trolls are on their trail? There are tempers (Elf Girl''s), tests (for Raven Boy), tunes (the Singing Sword''s), oh and Zombies, with a capital Z, too. If you love Lemony Snicket, Araminta Spook or the Spiderwick Chronicles, you''ll love Elf Girl and Raven Boy''s hilarious adventures.

Laureth Peak''s father has taught her to look for recurring events, patterns, and numbers--a skill at which she''s remarkably talented. Her secret: She is blind. But when her father goes missing, Laureth and her 7-year-old brother Benjamin are thrust into a mystery that takes them to New York City where surviving will take all her skill at spotting the amazing, shocking, and sometimes dangerous connections in a world full of darkness. Marcus Sedgwick''s She Is Not Invisible is an intricate puzzle of a novel that sheds a light on the delicate ties that bind people to each other. This title has Common Core connections.

The Marcus Sedgwick Chapter Sampler includes chapter excerpts from Revolver, White Crow, Midwinterblood, and She Is Not Invisible—available for free—check out Marcus Sedgwick''s website for more information about these YA reads.

Download the chapter sampler of Midwinterblood, the Printz Award–winning novel by Marcus Sedgwick. An archaeologist who unearths a mysterious artifact, an airman who finds himself far from home, a painter, a ghost, a vampire, and a Viking: the seven stories in this compelling novel all take place on the remote Scandinavian island of Blessed where a curiously powerful plant that resembles a dragon grows. What binds these stories together? What secrets lurk beneath the surface of this idyllic countryside? And what might be powerful enough to break the cycle of midwinterblood? This is a book about passion and preservation and ultimately an exploration of the bounds of love.

If life has taught me one thing, it is this: that the worst monsters are entirely human. It began in a hole in the ground, in Paris, in the days after the liberation. What I saw there I saw only for the time it takes a match to burn down, and yet it decided the rest of my life. I tried to forget it at first, to ignore it, but I could not. It came back to me; he came back to me. He hurt people I loved... And so I took the first step on a journey from which there would be no return; a path that led me to fear, to hatred and to revenge - but, above all else, to blood.

The days between 27 December and New Year''s Eve are dead days, when spirits roam and magic shifts restlessly just beneath the surface of our everyday lives. There is a man, Valerian, whose time is running out, who must pay the price for the pact he made with evil so many years ago. His servant is Boy, a child with no name and no past; a child he treats with contempt, but who serves his master well and finds solace in the company of his only friend, Willow. Unknown to any of them it is Boy who holds the key to their destiny. But before that is revealed, Boy and Willow are held captive in the palace of the Emperor Frederick. Here they are plunged into a world of gilded finery and splendour. Beneath the golden veneer lies cruelty and madness. They are in terrible danger as they confront the whirlwind furies of the Emperor, the calculating ambitions of his confidante, Maxim, and follow a trail which will lead them to the murderous Phantom. THE BOOK OF DEAD DAYS and THE DARK FLIGHT DOWN are mesmerising stories of sorcery and desperate magic spanning dark cities, deadly courtrooms, and the threatening, frozen countryside. The truth about Valerian¿s past, Boy''s identity and many other shattering secrets are laid bare as the Book of Dead Days is opened for the final time¿