By Sarah Crossan, Brian Conaghan (author)
"Unputdownable story, beautifully told"
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January 2018 Book of the Month | Sarah Crossan and Brian Conaghan are two of our most garlanded YA authors: she won the 2016 Carnegie Medal , the UK’s top children’s book award; he has just been awarded the 2016 Costa Children’s Book Award . In this fine and extremely moving novel, they share the writing honours.
The narrative is split between two young protagonists, English Jess, whose lines are written by Crossan, and Nicu, newly arrived from Romania, voiced by Conaghan. The two meet on a programme for young offenders and secretly, necessarily without the knowledge of friends and family, become close. We suspect it’s unlikely things will end well for these star-cross’d lovers but the authors keep us hoping for the happy ending we want for them and to the very last page.
Nicu’s narrative in particular lightens the tone, sharp and often funny, his interior monologues disarmingly honest. The authors have chosen to write in blank verse, and it strips setting and emotions to the absolute essence, succinctly creating the dull North London streets, and distilling the characters’ experiences and emotions into spare, shining lines. Highly recommended.
YA stars Sarah Crossan and Brian Conaghan join forces to break readers' hearts in this contemporary story of star-cross'd lovers.
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Jess would never have looked twice at Nicu if her friends hadn't left her in the lurch. Nicu is all big eyes and ill-fitting clothes, eager as a puppy, even when they're picking up litter in the park for community service. He's so not her type. Appearances matter to Jess. She's got a lot to hide. Nicu thinks Jess is beautiful.
His dad brought Nicu and his mum here for a better life, but now all they talk about is going back home to find Nicu a wife. The last thing Nicu wants is to get married. He wants to get educated, do better, stay here in England. But his dad's fists are the most powerful force in Nicu's life, and in the end, he'll have to do what his dad wants.
As Nicu and Jess get closer, their secrets come to the surface like bruises. The only safe place they have is with each other. But they can't be together, forever, and stay safe - can they?
An extraordinary, high-impact, high-emotion collaboration between two stars of YA. Perfect for fans of Patrick Ness, Malorie Blackman, Rainbow Rowell and John Green.
This is a strikingly brave, sensitive and unusual book that pack such a powerful emotional punch, I defy anyone not to weep at the end Daily Mail
One of the most powerful as well as the most unusual novels of the year Independent on Sunday
Read, think, enjoy and weep, because the novel is quite simply an achingly sad and beautiful story about what makes any of us human Telegraph
Praise for When Mr Dog Bites:
Beautifully observed and hilariously uncomfortable Guardian
This is a portrayal of young male bonding, complete with all the lively banter of true camaraderies, at its most tender and affectionate Irish Times
An outstanding debut, packed with energy and a brilliant distinctive voice Bookseller
Surprising and charming Observer
Sarah Crossan has lived in Dublin, London and New York, and now lives in Hertfordshire. She graduated with a degree in philosophy and literature before training as an English and drama teacher at Cambridge University. She received the 2016 CILIP Carnegie Medal for her astonishing novel One , which also won the YA Book Prize,CBI Book of the Year Award and the CliPPA Poetry Award. Since completing a masters in creative writing, she has been working to promote creative writing in schools.
Brian Conaghan was born and raised in the Scottish town of Coatbridge but now lives in Dublin. He has a Master of Letters in Creative Writing from the University of Glasgow. For many years Brian worked as a teacher and taught in Scotland, Italy and Ireland. His novels include The Boy Who Made it Rain , published in 2011, When Mr Dog Bites which was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal in 2015, attracted both praise and controversy for its honest, moving and humorous depiction of a teenage boy with Tourette's syndrome and The Bombs That Brought Us Together , published in 2016 to critical acclaim. View Brian Conaghan on Twitter
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YA stars Sarah Crossan and Brian Conaghan join forces to break readers' hearts in this contemporary story of star-cross'd lovers. Jess would never have looked twice at Nicu if her friends hadn't left her in the lurch. Nicu is all big eyes and ill-fitting clothes, eager as a puppy, even when they're picking up litter in the park for community service.
The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed We Come Apart and determined it is suitable for children aged 13-18 years old
We Come Apart features in the following genres: Featured Books for 13+ readers, Featured Books for Young Adults, Books of the Month, Books Reviewed by our Reader Review Panels, Recommendations, Recommended Children's eBooks, Romance / Relationship Stories, Stories in Verse, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, Gritty Reads
Paperback, Hardback. £8.99, down from the £9.99 cover price. In Stock.
We Come Apart was written by Sarah Crossan, Brian Conaghan and published by Bloomsbury Childrens Books an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
We Come Apart has 325 pages
£8.99, reduced from £9.99. In Stock.
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