The Crossing

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The Crossing of the title very powerfully links Sammy and Nat – each is aiming to cross the English Channel. If they succeed, it will change their lives. Best moment I’d recommend "North Star Rising" an animated documentary short told in verse inspired by the true testimonies of four Eritrean refugees who fled their homes to make the dangerous journey across Ethiopia, Sudan and Libya to Europe. Waterstones Children's Book Prize shortlists announced". Books+Publishing. 11 February 2022. Archived from the original on 12 February 2022 . Retrieved 12 February 2022. Her second novel, The Crossing, was published in 2021. It won the 2021 Costa Book Award for Children's Book [2] [5] and was shortlisted for numerous awards. The author says “I wanted to make sense of what I was seeing, I wanted to do something that would help build empathy and understanding.” She has most emphatically succeeded in this aim. This is such a profound story of hope, grief, and strength - I do recommend it to all. Be aware you will weep, too.

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.

Greenaway, Carnegie Medal shortlists announced". Books+Publishing. 19 March 2021. Archived from the original on 19 March 2021 . Retrieved 6 June 2023. Mel in particular, is another example of Mann's clever writing. While Ryan rages about a presumably non-white family moving into a house in the estate (he mentions "people born in this country should take priority" and gets chastised by his sister) he doesn't bat an eyelid at "Mel's sea-view mansion". Even Nat's father is happy to work "renovating a mansion in the middle of Kent", while losing their community and home to the new, ironically named "Prospect Homes", a wealthy housing development.

A remarkably ambitious book, which expertly uses the form of a verse novel to tell an incredibly powerful story. Mann’s characters are complex and carefully crafted, allowing the reader to empathise with any of them despite – or due to – their complexities. Told from the perspective of two teenagers – one from Dover, one a refugee from Eritrea – the novel’s construction and the echoes between the protagonists’ stories is a deeply empathetic way of approaching this narrative, and to a young reader, lends a face, a voice and a heart to the global refugee crisis. a b "Awards: Costa Book Category, Aussie Prime Minister's Literary Winners". Shelf Awareness. 5 January 2022. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022 . Retrieved 8 June 2023.I fell in love with Manjeet’s writing when I read her debut YA novel Run Rebel. Some authors and writing touch your heart, and I couldn’t wait to be transported into another world with her writing again. 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. 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.