book cover

The Ghosts of Heaven

by Marcus Sedgwick

Interest age: 13+
Reading age: 12+

Published by Indigo, 2015

  • Fantasy
  • Science fiction
  • Short stories

About this book

One book - four stories, set in different times and different places. Each quarter has similar themes running throughout - spirals, philosophy, the written word and mental health to name a few. One story is set in a pre-historic age, another during the witch trials, a third around the turn of the 20th century, and a final story set in the future. Each story is set around a pivotal moment in the characters' lives, which makes it a particularly engaging read for teens and young adults.

The book is also laced with various narrative forms, from free verse to a diary entry, and the stories can be read in any way, not necessarily in the chronological order the book is printed in.

The Ghosts of Heaven is an excellent book that will open up new avenues of thought and future reading and introduces teenage readers to a more inventive understanding of storytelling. The Ghosts of Heaven is a book teens are likely to remember as a pivotal reading experience.

About the author

Marcus Sedgwick began to write seriously in 1994, and his first book, Floodland, was published by Orion in 2000, and won the Branford-Boase award for best debut children's novel. Witch Hill followed in 2001, and was nominated for an Edgar Allan Poe Award, the Independent Reading Association award and the Portsmouth Book Award. In 2002 The Dark Horse was shortlisted for the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize, The Carnegie Medal and the Blue Peter Book Award.

The Book of Dead Days was nominated for the Guardian Award, and was shortlisted for the Sheffield Book Award and the Edgar Allan Poe Award. He wrote more than 40 children's books and won many awards. Sadly, Marcus died in November 2022.

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