The Crossing

Product Information

a b "UKLA BOOK AWARDS 2023". United Kingdom Literacy Association. 9 May 2023 . Retrieved 8 June 2023. Both characters have huge issues to face. Sammy’s seem more obviously dangerous and overwhelming, though Natalie’s are equally as difficult - without the imminent danger. Told through a narrative poem using both voices to alternately express their fears, dilemmas and friendships this is a book you really can’t put down. You have to know if Sammy and Natalie do get to meet.

Waterstones Children's Book Prize shortlists announced". Books+Publishing. 11 February 2022. Archived from the original on 12 February 2022 . Retrieved 12 February 2022. I am always wanting to read more diversely and more about the refugee crisis; this was a great compassionate read. I enjoyed this more than Mann's previous novel, so am looking forward to what she writes next. Hope is the strongest element bringing their two lives together and the beautiful motif of the stars is littered throughout both Nat and Sammy’s journeys providing not only a physical form of hope but also a connection between them both.

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It taught me a great deal about the suffering of refugees and the brutality of oppressive regimes. It also taught me to realise how many young people are reaching out, on their own, for help from the rest of the world. Sammy has fled his home and family in Eritrea for the chance of a new life in Europe. Every step he takes on his journey is a step into an unknown and unwelcoming future. Once I had worked out how the story worked I was enraptured. I adore stories told in poetic prose and I also love stories told from more than one point of view... and this is both.

Does a play count? I knew I wanted to be an actress from about age five but as a teenager it consumed my every thought. I don’t remember reading many novels but I did read lots of plays. My first time in a theatre was age 13. I saw "Pygmalion" at the Birmingham REP. I read that play again and again and again. I understood Eliza. I was Eliza. I wanted to play Eliza. I think that play ignited my passion for reading like nothing else. What is your top writing tip?As the plot carries you along you also want to know more about the plight of refugees and the horrific characters that exploit them in many many ways. Natalie’s decision to swim the channel to raise funds for the refugee charities creates a counterpoint in the narrative. The detail of her struggles and training plan seem an unlikely text for poetry - but it works! I feel the seeds of the idea were sown in 2015 when I moved to the seaside town of Folkestone. A small town with growing tensions around refugees, unemployment and DFLs (Down From London people) causing gentrification. The unease was tangible and easily taken advantage off by right-wing political parties. This reached a crisis point in 2018 when the number of refugees seeking safety coincided with a spate of far-right protests around the UK. Boats arriving on the shores of Folkestone and Dover were a daily occurrence and the protests in Dover turned violent and brought the town to a standstill.

rounding up to 5 stars. (If there was a genre for "important books", this book would feature on that list)

Published

Knight, Lucy (16 March 2022). "Carnegie medal shortlist spotlights real-life stories of friendship in challenging times". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 29 March 2023 . Retrieved 6 June 2023. The dust in question is Stardust. Stars are one of the few connections between Nat and Sammy - they both look up to the star-filled sky for inspiration and hope. The other more earthly connection is formed when they see each other on the news (Nat, who sees stories of refugees on the TV and Sammy sees an newspaper article about Nat's charity swim for Care4Calais in memory of her mother who was a refugee support worker). This connection, although more tangible, felt far more tenous for me. I would have preferred the two stories to stories to only ever intersect in anonymity, but that is just me. I have also worked with refugee groups running drama projects for about five years and was running two such community groups around this time. The focus was on storytelling and I would try to purposefully steer clear of talking about upsetting things but soon found out that the group wanted to share their stories. After the protests in Dover and Birmingham the sombre atmosphere within the groups was palpable. There is Natalie, who lives in the UK and is part of a low-class family. She struggles with housing issues, the loss of her mother and the distance she begins to feel toward her brother, Ryan, who joins far-right marches and is full of hatred for immigrants. Natalie decides to raise money for refugees by swimming the English channel and this purpose gives her (and her dad who trains her) hope for the future. The Crossing is where you meet Natalie and Sammy. Natalie has just lost her mother and her family are struggling financially her brother is apart of a far-right gang whilst hearing of the refugees desperation in the news. Her only escape is swimming. While Sammy was forced to to flee his home and family in Eritrea for the chance of a new life in Europe. Every step is into unknown and unwelcoming territory.