New Releases by Melvin Burgess

With the trickster, Loki, as your guide, journey to the ancient forests of Scandinavia and bear witness to the legends of Norse mythology. Starting with the Norse creation myths, the trickster god Loki takes the reader on a wild ride through Norse mythology, from the era when the gods—the founders of Asgard—defeated a race of monsters, and then hurtles through legendary stories, including Odin hanging himself on the World Tree, the theft of the corrupting gold ring, and the murder of Baldr, the god of love and the sun. Born within the heart of a fire in the hollow of a tree-trunk, Loki arrives in Asgard as an outsider. He is a trickster, an unreliable narrator, the god of intelligence and politics. In spite of his cleverness and sparkling wit (or, perhaps, because of this), Loki struggles to find his place among the old patriarchal gods of supernatural power and is constantly at odds with the god of thunder—Thor. Alongside the politics of Asgard, the novel charts the course of Loki''s many loves and families, from his mothering of Odin''s famous horse to his intense, turbulent, and, eventually fatal relationship with Baldr the Beautiful—a tender and moving story of a love that goes wrong. This is a retelling that is contemporary in tone, at once amusing and relatable. It is a heartfelt plea to overthrow the old gods of power and authority and instigate a new era ruled by love and intelligence.

Brandon is a boaster – he says he is brilliant at lots of things. Then he is challenged to count up to ten million. So Brandon starts: one, two, three . . . and before long he is up to one thousand. Everyone around him is bewildered and annoyed: his friend Waris, his teachers and Miss Hexx, the head. But Brandon can’t stop counting. And the higher he counts, the more everyone takes an interest, when Brandon reaches 30,000 he goes viral, by the time he gets to one million, he has a manager and a stadium full of fans counting with him. And then strange, impossible things start happening. The numbers are taking over everything . . . A fun and contemporary story about rise and fall of celebrity, and ultimately staying true to yourself.

Bea has started to hear and see things that no one else can – creatures, voices, visions. Then strangers visit Bea and tell her she is different: she has the rare powers of a witch. They warn her she is being hunted. Her parents think she is hallucinating and needs help. All Bea wants to do is get on with her life, and to get closer to Lars, the mysterious young man she has met at the skate park. But her life is in danger, and she must break free. The question is – who can she trust? Carnegie Medal-winner Melvin Burgess returns with a powerful, thrilling fantasy for young adults about magic, myth and following your instincts.

A girl in a coma. A desperate mother. Marianne has been absent from her own life for so long that even her mother''s unwavering faith is starting to tremble. But Marianne, floating in her own world, is starting to remember who she is - and the sad woman that visits every day. Can they both persist long enough to find a way back to one another?

Un tenso thriller psicológico, pulido y afilado como un bisturí. Jonathon Heat es la estrella de rock más grande del planeta. Como parte de su espectáculo, altera su rostro mediante intervenciones quirúrgicas con resultados impresionantes: lobo, demonio, ángel... Pero tantas operaciones no vienen sin su precio, y corre el de que Jonathon necesita un trasplante de rostro. Y sólo quiere el de Sara... En un mundo de fama, de riqueza y corrupción, donde la juventud y la belleza son sagradas, ¿qué precio tiene la cara de una hermosa joven? ¿Cuánto está dispuesto a pagar una estrella de rock, que ha destruido su propia cara, por el rostro de Sara?

Issy è una ragazzina adottata che non sa nulla delle proprie origini. C''è però un incubo ricorrente che terrorizza le sue notti: si trova tra le fiamme di un rogo, e accanto a lei c''è un volto che non ha il coraggio di guardare. Lottando contro crudeli pregiudizi, cacciatori di streghe, intrighi e superstizioni, Issy deve scoprire la verità prima che sia troppo tardi.

A new drug is out. Everyone is talking about it. The Hit. Take it, and you have one week to live. It''s the ultimate high. At the ultimate price .

When Beth wakes up one morning covered in dirt, she puts it down to an extreme case of sleep-walking. But when reports of a desecrated grave, strange sightings and sudden disappearances start to circulate, her night-time wanderings take on a sinister air. Beth knows that something is changing within her. Something with an urgent, desperate hunger that demands to be satisfied - at any cost...

Retrouvez dans ce dossier les premiers chapitres de huit romans incontournables des éditions Gallimard Jeunesse : K.A. Applegate (Animorphs T.1 - L''invasion), Ann Brashares (Quatre filles et un jean T.1 - Le premier été), Melvin Burgess (Kill all enemies), Michael Grant (BZRK T.1), Derek Landy (Skully Fourbery T.1), Erik L''Homme (A comme Association T.1 - La pale lumière des ténèbres), Louise Rennison (Le journal de Georgia Nicolson T.1 - Mon nez, mon chat, l''amour et moi) et L.A. Weatherly (Angel T.1). Vous pouvez accéder directement à chaque extrait par la table des matières de ce dossier ou lire les extraits à la suite. Tous ces livres numériques sont en vente chez votre libraire.

Non è mai facile avere quattordici anni. Le difficoltà della vita sembrano insormontabili, il futuro così lontano e incerto... A volte per lasciarsi alle spalle una realtà dolorosa e insostenibile la fuga sembra l''unica soluzione. È il caso di Tar, che con Gemma decide di scappare da una casa di genitori violenti e alcolizzati, e di adattarsi a vivere per strada e in case occupate. Ma c''è anche un altro tipo di fuga, che promette ancor più di allontanare problemi e sofferenze, sollevare corpi troppo pesanti per giovani anime che aspirano alla leggerezza: l''eroina. E Tar e Gemma, insieme, scopriranno l''altra faccia di una droga che, impietosa, annulla e cancella personalità, dignità ed emozioni. Un romanzo di formazione crudo, vero e profondo, ma anche una storia di rinascita e riscatto, di scelte coraggiose per liberarsi della dipendenza e di un nuovo, seppur difficile, inizio. Un diario a più mani intenso e commovente, un grido di amore e di forza lanciato a lacerare il silenzio che circonda il mondo dell''adolescenza interrotta.

Dino, Jonathan, and Ben have got some problems, mostly with Jackie, Deborah, and Alison. Dino''s finally convinced Jackie, the most beautiful girl in school, to go out with him. She drives him mad with lust, but she won''t go all the way and relieve Dino of his desperately unwanted virginity. Jonathan likes Deborah. She''s smart and funny and she makes him feel very sexy, but she''s kind of plump and his mates won''t let him hear the end of it. Also, a certain swelling has him convinced that he may have cancer of the penis. Ben''s problem is in a different category altogether-- he''s been seduced by Alison, the pretty young drama teacher at school. And what seems like a dream come true is actually making him miserable. Award-winning author Melvin Burgess has written a daringly honest and often hilarious account of contemporary teenage life, and the ups and downs that surround DOING IT.

When fourteen-year-old Nicholas Dane''s mother dies, social services sends him to a home for boys where intimidation and violence keep order. After a number of fights and brutal punishments, Nick thinks that life can''t possibly get any worse . . . until he realizes that the home''s respected deputy head, who has been grooming him with sweets and solace, has something more frightening in mind. Acclaimed writer and truth-teller Melvin Burgess brings us, with Dickensian scope and compelling narrative drive, his most ambitious book yet.

Fame, beauty, and face transplants Sara wants to be famous, and when legendary rock star Jonathon Heat offers to take her under his wing and pay for her cosmetic surgery, it''s like a dream come true. But beauty comes with a hidden price tag. Is Sara willing to pay?

The new hope of the Volson clan, Sigurd, battles a highly advanced, gold-hoarding dragon, resulting in his fall into the underworld. But hope remains as Sigurd encounters his true love, Bryony, and accepts his destiny to reunite England.

Melvin Burgess se adentra sin concesiones en el turbulento mundo de la adolescencia, a través del humor, de la precisa observación de la conducta juvenil y de un lenguaje directo, descarnado, para desvelar, desde el peculiar punto de vista de los personajes, los problemas y los desasosiegos de tres jóvenes, en su irremisible camino hacia la edad adulta. Dino, Jonathan y Ben son tres adolescentes comunes, se pasan el día hablando de chicas, soñando hasta el último detalle con «su primera vez», y no creen que sus padres mantengan relaciones sexuales (¡resultaría inimaginable!). Dino sólo piensa en hacérselo con Jackie, una de las jovencitas más deseadas del grupo pero ella siempre acaba rechazándolo. Jonathan se muere por Deborah, sensible y sexy, pero le da vergüenza reconocerlo a sus amigos porque ella...está gorda. Y Ben, aunque vive el sueño de todo adolescente ―un tórrido idilio con la profesora de dibujo―, no sabe cómo poner punto y final a tan complicada relación. Melvin Burgess (Inglaterra, 1954), es sin lugar a dudas una de las voces más personales y controvertidas del actual panorama internacional de la narrativa juvenil. Tras su paso por distintos colegios británicos, a los dieciocho años abandona los estudios para comenzar a ejercer el periodismo y a escribir narraciones, pero tardará quince años en publicar su primera obra, durante los cuales trabajará en distintos oficios ocasionales. Sus obras nunca son fáciles; tratan de temas complejos como la mendicidad, el abuso sexual a menores o la adicción a las drogas. Su escritura es sólida y sus personajes están creados con tal sensibilidad y realismo que parecen saltar de la página a la vida real. Entre sus dieciocho novelas publicadas hasta la fecha destacan Yonqui (galardonada con el Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize y la Carnegie Medal), Billy Elliot, El aullido del lobo y Enamorarse de April.