Finding Violet Park - Jenny Valentine

Dug out by... Dave

In a mini-cab office at 5 o'clock in the morning, Lucas Swain meets the intriguing Violet Park. He just has to get to know her, find out more about her.

A perfectly ordinary desire for a 15-year-old boy - to want to get to know a member of the opposite sex - surely?

But she's not a young woman, she's old. And she's not a living woman either, she's dead. In fact, all that remains of her is her ashes in a pot on the cab office shelf.

It's a voyage of discovery for Lucas. He has to know more about Violet. As he digs deeper, Lucas uncovers a trail that leads him to face ghosts from the past as well as the present.

Winner of the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize
Longlisted for Carnegie 08

If you like it, try...

Just In Case - Meg Rosoff
Beast - Ally Kennen

Postbag - Empty

Being - Kevin Brooks

Dug out by... Dave

An excellent book. 16-year-old Robert wakes up on an operating table, but the operation isn't over. He can hear doctors' voices and feel his own pain, but he can't communicate.

There's something inside him, something unexpected, something horrifying. And it soon dawns on Robert that he is not safe. He has to escape, he has to survive and 'they' are out to get him.

Violence and fear abound as Robert flees for his life, but it's a voyage of discovery as well as a fight for survival. What is like to be human? What is like to have feelings? Who is he? What is he?

It's a compelling read and has been longlisted for Carnegie 08. It'd certainly get a shortlist vote from me if I was one of the judges.

If you like it, try...

The Road of the Dead - Kevin Brooks
1984 - George Orwell
Beast - Ally Kennen
Finding Violet Park - Jenny Valentine

Postbag - Empty

The Penalty - Mal Peet

Dug out by... Dave

This is the second Paul Faustino novel, Faustino being a South American sports journalist. He's supposed to be resting, but he gets drawn into the mystery surrounding the disappearance of a teenage football star, El Brujito.

The story takes us into a world of slavery and the occult, showing how the past can influence the present.

It has been long-listed for Carnegie 08.

Postbag - may contain spoilers

Dave ~ Having read the book, my feeling is that it won't make the short list this time. Like Tamar it deals with the undeniable link between us and our history, but there are no significant young characters in the story - El Brujito appears at the beginning and end, but in between it's mostly an adult story.

Crusade - Elizabeth Laird

Dug out by... Dave


A historical novel with a thoroughly modern clash of civilisation going on. The viewpoint writing in this book is excellent with the two protagonists, Salim and Adam, showing themselves to be supremely likable whilst flawed by prejudice and misinformation.

There are great descriptions of people and places, thanks to excellent historical research. The camp at Marseilles and the city of Acre are vibrantly brought to life. This book has a timeless theme. It made the long list for the Doncaster Book Award 08 and has also been long-listed for Carnegie 08.

If you like it, try...

Oranges in No-Man's Land - Elizabeth Laird
Nathan Fox: Dangerous Times - L. Brittney

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