Patrick Ness shortlisted for Carnegie Medal

They've just announced the shortlist for the Carnegie and Greenaway Medals. I was pleased to see that Patrick Ness' The Knife of Never Letting Go was included. I read this because I'm going to be interviewing Patrick on May 10th as part of the Brighton Festival (tickets are still available here).

This book, and the sequel which is just being released (The Ask and the Answer) were both phenomenal. It's difficult to describe without sounding a bit silly (a world where men's thoughts can be read by everyone, animals can talk, it's another planet...), but he pulls it all together so convincingly. And it's a gripping and pacey read. Not for everyone, as there's some pretty gruesome violence, and the world described is fairly dark. There's also exploration of how we each form our identities, we are the choices that we make, etc. He does end both books on cliff-hangers, which can be frustrating when you know you have to wait for a year before the next book comes out. But I'm sure it will be worth the wait!