Bøker av David Almond

The dream team of David Almond and Dave McKean bring us a complete story set in an incomplete world.

A uniquely presented, touching tale of grief, solace and hope from a master of contemporary storytelling and a visionary artist.

“There was a wild kid living in Burgess Woods. He had no famly and he had no pals and he didn’t know where he come from and he couldn’t talk. His wepons wer old kitchen nives and forks and an ax. He was savage. He was truly wild.”Blue Bake’s at home with his mum and his little sister, Jess. He’s writing a story. Not all that stuff about wizards and happy ever after – a real story about blood and guts and trouble, because that’s what life’s really like. At least it is for Blue, since his Dad died, and Hopper the bully started knocking him about. But Blue’s story takes on a life of its own, weird and dangerous and wild. The savage that he creates on the page and in his dreams comes to life in the real world, and seems set on bringing chaos and revenge. Can Blue keep his creation under control? Can the savage even bring Blue and his family a kind of peace?David Almond’s own adaptation of his acclaimed graphic novel created with Dave McKean and published in translation around the world.

A heartfelt retelling of an ancient Irish tale by a master storyteller, paired with the extraordinary style of an award-winning illustrator. When young Kevin is sent to a monastery to be cared for, he yearns for the freedom of the woods and fields and misses his parents. One day he reaches out through the cell window towards the light and a blackbird lands in his hands and begins to build a nest there. Kevin waits patiently as the eggs are laid and the baby birds hatch. When they spread their tiny wings and fly off, three new wild things gone out into the world, at last Kevin can rest. PJ Lynch's atmospheric illustrations perfectly capture David Almond's moving retelling of this ancient Irish tale about the love of nature and a willingness to let go.

A powerful and uplifting tale about freeing the imagination from master storyteller David Almond.She made her marks.She whispered her words.Then she said,"Go on. Be happy. Up you go."When Nanty Solo comes to town, she says she can turn children into birds. The parents are sceptical, but the children want to fly. And before very long, everyone does. A celebratory, lyrical story that will make your heart and imagination soar. Written by internationally acclaimed author David Almond and brought to life in glorious uplifting paintings by award-winning illustrator Laura Carlin.

Ella Grey and her friends are ordinary kids from ordinary families in an ordinary world. They fall in and out of love, play music, stare at the stars, yearn for excitement, and have parties on the beautiful beaches of Northumberland. One day a stranger - a musician called Orpheus - appears on the beach, entrancing them all, but particularly Ella. Where have they come from and what path will Ella follow?A Song for Ella Grey is a version of the myth of Orpheus that sings of the madness of youth, the ache of love, and the near-impossibility of grasping death. Zoe Cooper's stage adaptation of David Almond's award-winning novel was first produced in 2024 by Pilot Theatre, in association with Northern Stage and York Theatre Royal.This edition includes the full text of the play along with a range of teaching materials and resources designed to help educators bring the play to life for their students.

From Hans Christian Andersen Medal-winning author David Almond comes a heartwarming story that shows anything is possible with imagination and trust. What should a puppet master do when he's old and alone, and all his puppets are gone? Sylvester makes one last puppet. But this one is different. When the old man speaks to him, Puppet speaks back. And then he walks...While Sylvester shows Puppet the town, the playground and the wonders the world holds, Puppet in turn helps Sylvester to make a new friend, and share his puppet-making skills with the next generation in this wonder-filled story of creation and the circle of life. Illustrated with sequences of wordless spreads by award-winning artist Lizzy Stewart, this is a modern-day classic.

The bestselling story about love, loss and hope that launched David Almond as one of the best children's writers of today. Winner of the Carnegie Medal and the Whitbread children's book of the Year Award, this unforgettable book now has captivating illustrations by Tom de Freston to celebrate its twenty-fifth anniversary. When a move to a new house coincides with his baby sister's illness, Michael's world seems suddenly lonely and uncertain.One Sunday afternoon, he stumbles into the ramshackle garage of his new home and finds something magical. A strange creature - human? beast? bird? angel? - a being who needs Michael's help if he is to survive. With his new friend Mina, Michael nourishes Skellig back to health. But Skellig is far more than he at first appears, and as he helps Michael breathe life into his tiny sister, Michael's world changes for ever ...Skellig won the Carnegie Medal and the Whitbread Children's Book Award. David Almond is also winner of the Hans Christian Andersen award, the Nonino International Prize, and has received an OBE for services to literature. He is celebrated as - in the words of the Independent - 'a master storyteller'. 'This strange, hugely readable and life-affirming tale exercises every muscle of the imagination' Guardian

She made her marks.She whispered her words.Then she said,¿Go on. Be happy. Up you go."When Nanty Solo comes to town, she says she can turn children into birds. The parents are skeptical, but the children want to fly. And before very long, everyone does. A celebratory, lyrical story that will make your heart and imagination soar. Written by internationally acclaimed author David Almond and brought to life in glorious uplifting paintings by award-winning illustrator Laura Carlin.

In this dark and powerful collection, David Almond presents a series of 'living' stories inspired by his childhood that capture the imagination.

The new stand-alone novel from David Almond - Bone Music is a timely masterpiece that explores the connections between the past and the present, between civilisation and wilderness. At its heart is the unforgettable Sylvia Carr, who moves from city to the forest and is 'rewilded'.

“Are me feet off the floor yet? Are me feet off the floor?” In a rainy town in the north of England, there are strange goings-on. Dad is building a pair of wings, eating flies, and feathering his nest. Auntie Doreen is getting cross and making dumplings. Mr Poop is parading the streets, shouting louder and louder, and even Mr Mint, the head teacher, is getting in a flap. And watching it all is Lizzie, missing her mam and looking after her dad and thinking how beautiful the birds are. What’s behind it all? It’s the Great Human Bird Competition, of course. Who will be the first to fly across the River Tyne?David Almond’s barmy, tender and funny tale about wings and faith, written for the Young Vic to accompany their production of Skellig. It has since been performed many times around the world, and also adapted by Almond into a much-loved, much-translated novel, with illustrations by Polly Dunbar.

Man, bird or angel? Who, or what, is Skellig?Michael was looking forward to moving house. It was all going to be wonderful. But now his baby sister’s ill, his parents are frantic, and Doctor Death has come to call. Michael feels helpless. Then he steps into the crumbling garage. What is this thing beneath the spider webs and dead flies? A human being, or a strange kind of beast never seen before? The only person Michael can confide in is Mina. Together they carry the creature into the light, and Michael’s world changes for ever.David Almond’s own adaptation of his renowned novel, winner of The Carnegie Medal, The Whitbread Children’s Book Award, and a string of prizes around the world. A timeless classic, published in over 40 languages, it touches the minds, hearts and souls of people of all ages. The story has become a movie, an opera, a radio play and this stage play, first produced at the Young Vic, and directed by Trevor Nunn.

“We come into the world out of the dark. We haven’t got a clue where we’ve come from. We’ve got no idea where we’re going. But while we’re here in the world, if we’re brave enough, we’ll flap our wings and fly.” It’s easy. Running away from the children’s home, Whitegates. Erin and January do it all the time. But this time they’re going away downriver on a raft. They have their friend, Mouse, with them. Now they’re stranded in the night on the lethal Black Middens. They climb up onto an ancient quay. How could they imagine that they’d discover a girl called Heaven Eyes? Heaven Eyes, a girl who should have drowned at sea, a girl living her with her strange and dangerous Grampa. A girl with a secret history that only Grampa knows, and he isn’t telling. A tale of courage and adventure, and of the search for happiness and family.David Almond’s own adaptation of his acclaimed novel, shortlisted for The Carnegie Medal, and published in translation around the world.

This is a moving, funny and inspirational novel from the bestselling author of Skellig. *Shortlisted for the 2018 Costa Book Awards.*

From the bestselling, award-winning author of SKELLIG comes a vivid and moving story, beautifully illustrated, which commemorates the hundred-year anniversary of the end of the First World War.

A warm and witty tale from a master storyteller, author of Carnegie Medal-winning Skellig and internationally bestseller The Boy Who Swam with Piranhas

"That's reet, lad! Run! There's a wolf at your tail! Run for your lovely life!" A joyful, uplifting story of times gone by, from the internationally acclaimed author of Skellig.

An anthology of dark, powerful and moving short stories from master storyteller David Almond, inspired by his childhood in the north-east of England.

Winner of the Guardian children's book prize 2015I'm the one who's left behind. I'm the one to tell the tale. I knew them both... knew how they lived and how they died. Claire is Ella Grey's best friend. She's there when the whirlwind arrives on the scene: catapulted into a North East landscape of gutted shipyards; of high arched bridges and ancient collapsed mines. She witnesses a love so dramatic it is as if her best friend has been captured and taken from her. But the loss of her friend to the arms of Orpheus is nothing compared to the loss she feels when Ella is taken from the world. This is her story - as she bears witness to a love so complete; so sure, that not even death can prove final.

The Tightrope Walkers by David Almond - a novel of young love and tragedy from the prizewinning author of Skellig'I was born in a hovel on the banks of the Tyne...'Dominic Hall grows up in the sixties on a brand-new estate, along with the other families who escaped the river. But the Tyne is still an overwhelming presence, and most of the fathers work in the shipyards. Dom is torn between his new mates: Holly Stroud, his enchanting neighbour, and Vincent McAlinden, who's something else altogether - a wild, dangerous boy with murderous instincts. After his mother's death, Dom has to decide who he is, what he wants to be - and then face up to the consequences.Deeply moving with a unique narrative voice, The Tightrope Walkers will be loved by fans of Roddy Doyle, Irvine Welsh and Ross Raisin, as well as readers familiar with David Almond's masterful novel The True Tale of the Monster Billy Dean, and the hugely popular Skellig. 'Almond is a master storyteller' Independent'Not only dramatically and emotionally suspenseful, it is also vividly drawn and wonderfully well-paced, as we might expect from a master storyteller' John Burnside on THE TRUE TALE OF THE MONSTER BILLY DEAN, GuardianDavid Almond is the author of Skellig and other novels and plays for adults and children. He has won many prestigious awards including the Hans Christian Andersen Award in 2010, the Carnegie Medal and two Whitbreads. His first novel for adults, The True Tale of the Monster Billy Dean was published in 2011.He was born in Newcastle, grew up on Tyneside and now lives with his family in Northumberland.