Robert Westall – författare

Relaunch of spectacular Robert Westall fantasy novel that was way ahead of its time.A fantasy of the near future in which Britain is divided into Zones and castes to which men and women are pitilessly allocated at the end of their schooling. Whether crazed proles in the Unnem zones, smug pampered bourgeois Ests or arrogant Techs, all are ultimately pawns of the computer that governs it all. One boy penetrates the conspiracy by which the nation is governed and has the knowhow to strike at the heart of evil.This novel was originally published in 1983 and was runner up for the Carnegie Medal. It's a fantastic, if bleak, vision of the future – all the more scary because many of its 'Big Brother' elements are so evident in our society today.

A mysterious air-raid shelter…A plane crash under fire…A secret operation…A noise in the attic…The four stories featured in Blitz share a common theme – World War II and its effect on the lives of ordinary people, especially children.Robert Westall’s powerful writing focuses not only on the drama and danger of living in a country at war, but also captures the heady excitement and almost farcical humour of exceptional circumstances.

The Guardian award-winning novel about courage, friendship and war.When a bomb during an air raid destroys Harry's home and kills his family, he knows that he is all alone in the world and has only himself to rely on. Anxious that he will be sent to live with his fussy Cousin Elsie he goes on the run across the war-battered land of North East England, his only friend in his journey a stray dog that he meets on the beach. Will Harry ever find a place to call home again, or will he be on the run forever?

Carnegie Medal Winner.

Known to those who grew up in the UK in the 1970s and 1980s for his unsettling children’s novels such as The Scarecrow, The Creature in the Dark and The Machine Gunners (which was adapted for a BBC series in 1983), Robert Westall looms large over many a British childhood. But he was just as proficient and prolific when it came to short fiction for both young readers and adults – and sometimes a lot more terrifying.The new collection brings together several of his most chilling stories from long-forgotten collections such as The Haunting of Chas McGill, Ghosts and Journeys, and Demons and Shadows, ready to induce nightmares in a whole new generation of readers.

Blitzcat by Robert Westall is the Smarties Prize-winning book about one brave cat's experiences during World War Two. Now with a brilliant refreshed cover look.She made her way down the cliff, and on to the beach. At the edge of the waves, she stopped, shaking her wet paws. She knew that somewhere ahead was her person, but far, far away. She miaowed plaintively; stood staring at the moving blur of uncrossable sea.She led the way to safety, out of the blazing hell of blitzed Coventry. People touched her for luck; feared her as an omen of disaster. Wherever she went, she changed lives . . .From her beginning to her end she never wavered.She was the Blitzcat.

Celebrate 50 years of adventure in Carnegie Medal-winner Robert Westall's compelling first novel for children set during World War Two, with a powerful introduction by Michael Morpurgo.'Fifty Years on this remains the greatest WW2 novel ever penned.' Phil EarleChas McGill has the second-best collection of war souvenirs in Garmouth but wants it to be the best. When he stumbles across the wreckage of a downed German bomber, he finds the ultimate trophy – a working machine gun.Hiding his discovery from the local police, Chas recruits his friends and together they build a fortress for their prize. But war is not a game and soon both friendships and loyalties are tested when the gang's actions have dangerous consequences.Robert Westall wrote The Machine Gunners for his son, Christopher, based on his own experiences during the Second World War. A modern classic of children's fiction, it went on to win the CILIP Carnegie Medal in 1975 and has been in print ever since.

There's a legend about the Watch House... Scrape beneath the whitewash and you'll find terror. You'll find him.Tynemouth, late 1970s. Christmas is coming and Front Street's swinging. But Anne, dumped here while her parents sort their divorce, isn't in the mood. She escapes to the castle, the Priory, and the beaches. Best of all, the Watch House. The old coastguard's place is packed with weird treasures and no one bothers her. Until lights start to flicker and something stirs in the dark nights...Buried deep in the past is a secret which now threatens everything. Only Anne can stop it. The Watch House is an epic new adaptation of Carnegie Medal-winner Robert Westall's original novel, from Olivier Award-winning theatre-maker Chris Foxon. This edition was published to coincide with the world premiere at Laurels Theatre in Whitley Bay, in December 2023.

'Some bright kid's got a gun and 2000 rounds of live ammo. And that gun's no pea-shooter. It'll go through a brick wall at a quarter of a mile.'Chas McGill has the second-best collection of war souvenirs in Garmouth, and he desperately wants it to be the best. When he stumbles across the remains of a German bomber crashed in the woods - its shiny, black machine-gun still intact - he grabs his chance. Soon he's masterminding his own war effort with dangerous and unexpected results . . .The Machine Gunners is Robert Westall's gripping first novel for children set during World War Two and winner of the Carnegie Medal. Now with a brilliant cover look celebrating its fortieth anniversary.Includes a bonus short story - 'The Haunting of Chas McGill' - and an extended biography of the author.

She made her way down the cliff, and on to the beach. At the edge of the waves, she stopped, shaking her wet paws. She knew that somewhere ahead was her person, but far, far away. She miaowed plaintively; stood staring at the moving blur of uncrossable sea.She led the way to safety, out of the blazing hell of blitzed Coventry. People touched her for luck; feared her as an omen of disaster. Wherever she went, she changed lives . . .From her beginning to her end she never wavered.She was the Blitzcat. Blitzcat by Robert Westall is the Smarties Prize-winning book about one brave cat's experiences during World War Two. Now with a brilliant new cover look and including an extended author biography.

An adaptation of the beloved, award-winning children's novel.It's 1940, and Britain is at war. Young Chas McGill has the second-best collection of war souvenirs in town, but desparately wants it to be the best. Amidst the bombs and air raids, Chas and his friends plan their own war effort in their newly built bunker. Friendships are forged and loyalties tested, in the adventure of a lifetime...Robert Westall's The Machine Gunners has been read, studied - and loved - by successive generations of younger readers. It won the Carnegie Medal and was voted one of the most important children's novels of the past seventy years.This thrilling stage adaptation comes from the award-winning playwright Ali Taylor, and premiered at the Polka Theatre, London, in 2011. It provides rich opportunities for discussion in the classroom, and for staging by schools, youth theatres and amateur companies.

There were three people, standing in the darkest place, watching him. Simon is outraged that his Mum plans to remarry. He can't bear her new fiancé or the way his mother and sister seem to have forgotten his late father. Overwhelmed by hatred and anger he seeks solace in a nearby abandoned water mill. But another, powerful hatred lingers within its walls. And it is about to be unleashed... Westall's immense talent is evident from the opening line - Simon's anger and unhappiness are tangible, and the Scarecrows' ill-intentions terrifying.