Meet The Authors

Theresa Breslin

Theresa Breslin is a Carnegie Medal winning writer and librarian living in Scotland who is committed to promoting reading and writing to young people and will talk about this to anyone who will listen! Her work, which is in translation in a number of languages, ranges from young readers to young adult/adult and has been filmed for television and dramatised on radio. She is a respected commentator, and contributor to professional journals, on the subject of children's literacy and youth librarianship.

Simon's Challenge, her first book, won the Young Book Trust Fidler Award for new writers and for Whispers in the Graveyard, her remarkable story about a dyslexic boy, she was awarded the Carnegie Medal. Remembrance, a tale of youth in World War One, was selected for the American Library Association's Best Books for Young Adults, and New York Public Library's Books for the Teen Age. Divided City, a compelling and courageous story of two boys who must find their own way forward in a world divided by difference, has been shortlisted for no fewer than nine awards.

Divided City and Mutant have been selected by Eileen Armstrong in the DfES funded Boys-Into-Books Project (11-14) supported by the School Library Association.

Divided City Footsteps. Running Graham didn't hear them at first ...

Mutant As Brad went past the Mutant Human Parts Section he rubbed the back of his neck. He knew that the Mutants could never get out of their containers, but he always felt uneasy here. Brad hurried on. On the wall behind him a shadow followed ...

Book titles include:

• Divided City
• Mutant
• Simon's Challenge
• Remembrance

Peter J Murray

Peter J Murray was born in 1951 and brought up on a council estate in Rotherham, South Yorkshire. He left school with few qualifications, feeling ill suited to an academic lifestyle, and followed in the family tradition of working in the dangerous steel works of Sheffield. What happened over the next 30 years is an amazing story ...

First of all Pete went back to school at the age of 21. No discos, no late nights, no girlfriends, no soccer matches, no ... Don't you believe it; he did all of those things and still managed to find time for school work. At the end of his studies he won a place at Cambridge University where he specialised in metallurgy and gained a Masters Degree in 1979. After a spell in Dubai working in the petro-chemical industry he decided he needed a change. He dabbled in teaching - loved working with kids and never looked back. After working in several comprehensive schools he became Assistant Headmaster of Cheam School - quite a 'posh school' in Pete's own words (Prince Philip and Prince Charles are both ex-pupils). From the gritty back streets of Rotherham to the leafy suburbs of Berkshire - quite a transformation. Despite his change in surroundings Pete remained a Yorkshireman through and through; down to earth with a great sense of humour.

Peter has always been a story-teller and a practical joker. Entertaining pupils with stories of spooky characters and unusual happenings was the ideal breeding ground for the creation for many of the characters that appear in Pete's current novels. To give up the security of teaching in one of the most well-respected schools in the country to become a full time author was a huge gamble for Pete to take, especially when his first book had been rejected by all the leading publishers. Peter self published his first book: Mokee Joe is Coming in 2003. To Pete's amazement his book won the prestigious Sheffield Children's Book Award voted for by 112 schools. The rest, as they say, is history. Peter is now one of the UK's leading children's authors and tours schools all over the UK and abroad, travelling as far afield as Saudi Arabia and Bangkok. He is currently preparing further visits to Russia, Canada, America, and the Far East. With over 500 school visits under his belt, Peter is one of the most sought after visiting authors and is renowned for inspiring even the most reluctant children to want to read (especially boys!)

2008/9 promises to be an exciting time for Peter as he has just launched a nationwide literacy campaign called Mokee Joe - Hooked on Books, and has also recently signed a film contract for the Mokee Joe Trilogy.

Peter lives with his wife on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales. He says that the hills and limestone scenery offer a constant source of relaxation and inspiration - in fact, they also provide the setting for Peter's sixth book, Moonwailer, due out in May 2008.

Book titles include:

• Mokee Joe Is Coming
• Mokee Joe Recharged
• Mokee Joe The Doomsday Trail

Justin Richards

Justin Richards has written over twenty novels as well as non-fiction books. He has also written audio scripts, a television and stage play, edited anthologies of short stories, been a technical writer, and founded and edited a media journal.

He is best known for his series of children's books The Invisible Detective, and as Creative Director of the BBC's highly-successful range of Doctor Who books.

The Parliament of Blood is Justin's third novel for Faber. He lives in Warwick with his wife and two children, and a lovely view of the castle.

The Parliament of Blood George, Liz and Eddie have made a rather unfortunate discovery: vampires actually exist, and they really do feed on human blood. Using an underground labyrinth of tunnels beneath Victorian London, these sinister creatures intend on destroying the human race, and they'll start by taking over the most powerful place in London: the House of Parliament.

The Chaos Code Matt discovers that his father had been searching for an ancient code, one rumored to have brought down the Mayans, and maybe even the fabled civilization of Atlantis. Now in the hands of a madman using high tech computers to decipher it, the code is being readied for new and sinister uses...

Book titles include:

• Martha in the Mirror
• The Parliament of Blood
• Starships and Spacestations
• The Chaos Code
• Wipe Out
• Thunder Raker
• The Death Collector