Crash: A Story of Love and Death (Bite) [Paperback]

A remarkably accessible verse novel ,,, The pages throng with a variety of verse forms,
voices and emotions. The tone changes from tender and funny to morally thoughtful and
very sad, yet there is also hope and recovery. (The Bookseller 20050501)

The Peters have produced a moving collection of poems dealing with the issue of road accidents... The form and the changing perspectives pull you rapidly into this 'novel'. CRASH is a good, deceptively quick and easy read, that winds you emotionally into the lives of these three teenagers and the drama that is unfolding. (Books for Keeps 20050501)

The voices ... are very recognisably those of a certain kind of raw-edged teenage
experience ... There is no denying [the verses'] strong emotional force; from a set of fairly
conventional circumstances the authors succeed in creating a story which many teenagers
should find genuinely relevant. (The Irish Times 20060801)

A totally innovative new form of teen novel ... This heart-wrenching tale of road abuse is brought vividly alive through the poems. It is a rich thought provoking read. (Northern Echo )

The authors have imagined a story ... with force, tenderness, eloquence and economy ... The story not only captures tragedy, but also the agony of not knowing how to be, the helpless and ecstatic obsession of new love, and healing power of friendship. It is original to its core in both telling and the tale - it should be read and discussed in classrooms and student common rooms up and down the land. (The Times Educational Supplement )

What makes this book distinctive is that the whole story of first love and loss is told in verse with a variety of narrative voices and poetic styles. The pace is fast, the emotions raw and the narrative voices ring true ... The pace and tone of the novel serve to grab the attention of the reader. The use of text messages, song lyrics and dialogue make the poems accessible to the intended audience of older teenagers. (School Librarian )

A novel in verse is novel, and in this instance it is successful. ... 'The Heart's Haiku' ... is a triumph of brevity and compressed feeling that pierces the reader's armoury. ... This book is bound to be a success with young teens who might normally resist the charms of poetry. (Inis )

A dramatic narrative in verse novel form ... with brilliantly varied perspectives. (The School Librarian )

Powerful and arresting medium of blank verse. Immediate and involving ... sympathetically and realistically drawn teenagers... the chilling climax is as visual on the page as it is emotional ... gritty and emotionally-impacting stuff and rightly so. The sparse telling and varied poetic forms superbly emphasise the bleakness of the issue, leaving more than enough room for the imagination of the reader to fill in the feelings of the strongly sketched characters. (Riveting Reads 12-16 )

Creates a brilliant sense of atmosphere especially towards the end ... Covers great issues too, like death and realtionships. It is a powerful drama about the best and worst moments in life. - Elizabeth Vjestica

Absolutely fantastic. A whirlwind of poetry, love and death. An extremely deep and strong book. A short and sweet book. I hope there are many more like CRASH in the future. This book will definitely be one of my favourites. - Amelia James

It was powerful, sad and sometimes funny. The story worked well through poetic voices. It was interesting to read and hard to put down. - Charlotte Dewdney (Unknown )

Nominated for the Carnegie Medal

Short-listed for the Stockport Schools' Book Awards

Short-listed for the North East Book Awards

Nat is the lead singer in a band. He and his best mate Carl (on bass) hang out, until Kate sees them performing one night. Soon she and Nat are going out together. They get on, fall out, make up, and feel their love growing deeper, leading them on. But in one moment everything changes, and all the hopes and promises of the future are shattered.

Deeply absorbing, this powerful story is told in different voices and entirely in poems. Lyrical, funny, heart-wrenching and gripping, the variety of poetic forms magically captures the panoply of emotions associated with falling in love for the first time and suffering a bereavement.

The authors are a highly experienced and successful poetry- and drama-writing team with a strong reputation for knowing what works for teen readers. (20041218)