Hugely entertaining, this is a fully envisaged fantasy adventure, which makes serious points about the importance of the past from the master storyteller and author of the hugely popular Discworld series. Survival! Mau’s world is bowled over and swept away by a towering Tsunami. His past life has vanished and he must build a new life with the scraps he has left. Luckily, someone else has survived too and soon Daphne, or Trouser-Man as Mau calls her, are creating a new Nation building on the bits of knowledge from the past which won’t die away.
The novel has been adapted for the stage – Olivier Theatre at The National Theatre in London - by the controversial playwright Mark Ravenhill. Nation will be the National’s family show opening in November 2009, following the success of previous family-friendly productions, His Dark Materials, Coram Boy and War Horse.
Described by National Theatre Artistic Director Nicholas Hytner as “a wonderful book and, I suspect, perfect for an Olivier adaptation”, Nation is set on a desert island following a tsunami which wiped out most of the population.
| Suitable For: | |
| Other Genres: | |
| Recommendations: |
CILIP CARNEGIE Medal SHORTLIST 2010: Judges’ comments
A witty and wise story about Darwinism, the nature of nationhood, what it means to be a man, and much else. Rich in ideas and detail; terrific, believable characters, and some wonderful turns of phrase, it entertains whilst saying much that is important.
A parallel world, 1860. Two teenagers thrown together by a tsunami that has destroyed Mau’s village and left Daphne shipwrecked on his South Pacific island, thousands of miles from home. One wears next to nothing, the other a long white dress; neither speaks the other’s language; somehow they must learn to survive. As starving refugees gather, Daphne delivers a baby, milks a pig, brews beer and does battle with a mutineer. Mau fights cannibal Raiders, discovers the world is round and questions the reality of his tribe’s fiercely patriarchal gods. Together they come of age, overseen by a foul-mouthed parrot, as they discard old doctrine to forge a new Nation.
The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed Nation and determined it is suitable for children aged 11-14 years old
Nation features in the following genres: Featured Books for 11+ readers, Recommendations, Fantasy / Magical, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, Recommended Children's eBooks, Featured Books for 13+ readers
Nation is available in Hardback, Paperback
Nation was written by Terry Pratchett and published by Corgi Childrens an imprint of Random House Children's Books
Nation has 409 pages
