Books with author Catherine Banner

Shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize 2018Nominated for the CILIP Carnegie Medal 2018Longlisted for the Branford Boase Award 2018In three years I will be able to vote and I will still have less power than I did at the moment that I saw that email, which was such a tiny thing but look what happened.Fifteen-year-old Alena never really knew her political activist mother, who died when she was a baby. She has grown up with her older half-brother Danny and his boyfriend Nick in the east end of London. Now the area is threatened by a bomber who has been leaving explosive devices in supermarkets. It is only a matter of time before a bomb goes off. Against this increasingly fearful backdrop, Alena seeks to discover more about her past, while Danny takes a job working for a controversial politician. As her family life implodes, and the threat to Londoners mounts, Alena starts getting into trouble. Then she does something truly rebellious.A searing, heartbreaking coming-of-age tale for fans of Lisa Williamson, Jenny Downham and Sarah Crossan.

Ukraine is the largest new state to appear on the map of Europe this century. With a population of more than 50 million people and a territory larger than France, the new Ukrainian state faces many challenges, not least of which is to forge a national identity after years of Soviet rule. Burden of Dreams examines daily life in Soviet and post-Soviet Ukraine, showing why Ukrainian nationalism and its program of "Ukrainianization" have appealed to the largest Russian diaspora and to millions of Russified Ukrainians. Focusing on schools, festivals, commemorative ceremonies, and monuments, Catherine Wanner shows how Soviet-created narratives have been recast to reflect a post-Soviet Ukrainocentric perspective. In the process, we see how new histories are understood and acted upon. This reveals regional cleavages and the resilience of cultural differences produced by the Soviet regime. For some people, the system they criticized yesterday is the one they long for today. The struggle to remember or to forget is particularly intense in post-Soviet societies. Burden of Dreams is especially valuable for showing us the monumental task facing a Ukrainian state that is seeking to craft cultural solidarity after years of Soviet rule.

They thought they'd have it easy being monster elites, but these three best friends still have to deal with pop quizzes, crushes, and even worse...humans.Frances Stein, Loralie Reaper, and Tsukiko Okami just want to play games and relax after their classes. Any hopes of chilling out, however, are destroyed when humans attack Monster Academy and try to use the students for ransom.In order to defeat the humans and protect their fellow monsters, they must work side by side with their crushes without giving away their secrets. Of course, that would be a lot easier if they were able to stick together, but in a move that betrays insider knowledge, the BFFs are separated. By tapping into their monstrous powers and working with their crushes, they will open their hearts and unlock abilities long thought dead. But will it be enough to save all of monster-kind? It's going to be one hell of a year at Monster Academy.

Dealing with the aftermath of her battle with the Prince of Drimla, Tilia is trying to continue with her duties as Princess of Crilan despite the hole she feels in her core. Finn, Faxon, and Tilia set off to investigate who is selling the dangerous devices that steal people's magic, but soon a request for aid takes them to a new land far beyond their Realm. Tilia and Finn meet the Prince and Princess of the Elves and make some unexpected friendships. The Gods and Goddess set them on a path that alters the course of their futures, and modifies their wedding plans.

Anastasia has never really fit in here with her off-standish attitude, strange looks, and awkward demeanor, being brought here as an infant to escape the decades long civil war raging in Magiahortus between the Catalyst and Spongos Clans. Not that her social ineptness was entirely her fault; she was trained, as all Magieks are, to control her emotions and in such an emotionally riddled place, that was not the easiest task for a teenager. In fear of being found out and imprisoned or ridiculed as the “witches” and “magicians” before them (where did you think the term magician was coined or all those witches they burned came from?), she was raised in seclusion with her caretaker, Vivian; only being allowed to attend high school. So, when a Hunter of her realm, sent by the Spongos Lord Stefan attacks her in her home and Vivian disappears, Anastasia is forced to run to the only friend she has, a human named Marion. Quickly traced to Marion’s home, a Hunter captures them and out of fear, she accidentally summons a force unknown to her, putting their quest into motion. Setting out to rescue Vivian, she and Marion discover that the rift amongst the realms has reopened and the only way back is a key that has never been found – uncovering the secrets and lies that Anastasia was raised on along the way.

They thought they'd have it easy being monster elites, but these three best friends still have to deal with pop quizzes, crushes, and even worse...humans.Frances Stein, Loralie Reaper, and Tsukiko Okami just want to play games and relax after their classes. Any hopes of chilling out, however, are destroyed when humans attack Monster Academy and try to use the students for ransom.In order to defeat the humans and protect their fellow monsters, they must work side by side with their crushes without giving away their secrets. Of course, that would be a lot easier if they were able to stick together, but in a move that betrays insider knowledge, the BFFs are separated. By tapping into their monstrous powers and working with their crushes, they will open their hearts and unlock abilities long thought dead. But will it be enough to save all of monster-kind? It's going to be one hell of a year at Monster Academy.

Anastasia has never really fit in here with her off-standish attitude, strange looks, and awkward demeanor, being brought here as an infant to escape the decades long civil war raging in Magiahortus between the Catalyst and Spongos Clans. Not that her social ineptness was entirely her fault; she was trained, as all Magieks are, to control her emotions and in such an emotionally riddled place, that was not the easiest task for a teenager. In fear of being found out and imprisoned or ridiculed as the "witches" and "magicians" before them (where did you think the term magician was coined or all those witches they burned came from?), she was raised in seclusion with her caretaker, Vivian; only being allowed to attend high school. So, when a Hunter of her realm, sent by the Spongos Lord Stefan attacks her in her home and Vivian disappears, Anastasia is forced to run to the only friend she has, a human named Marion. Quickly traced to Marion's home, a Hunter captures them and out of fear, she accidentally summons a force unknown to her, putting their quest into motion. Setting out to rescue Vivian, she and Marion discover that the rift amongst the realms has reopened and the only way back is a key that has never been found - uncovering the secrets and lies that Anastasia was raised on along the way.

Being a teenager is hard enough, but when your dad is an Alpha werelion it complicates matters even more. Victoria doesn’t feel like she fully fits in anywhere and things become more unsteady when she meets the new werelion in her dad’s pride, Brandon. Is there a way she can alter her genes to gain the ability to shift, or will she learn to accept who she is?

Marin doesn’t want to be a lady. She wants to kick ass and take names. But that’ll be hard to do if she gets captured by an unknown enemy…Being raised by the King and Queen of the Elves has given Marin quite a diverse background. Burdened by her humanity and femininity, she must push herself and train every day to hold her own against the elves around her. But while Marin wants to be the first girl to graduate Macon Academy as a mercenary, her mother wants her to be a lady. And an attempt by an unknown enemy to kidnap Marin is not helping her case. Between the kidnapping attempt, growing feelings for her best male friend, and now a fiery magic growing within her, Marin’s life is changing in ways she can’t understand. If she doesn’t get a grasp on things quickly, she may lose everything she’s fought so hard to gain.If she survives at all.Fans will love this fantastical adventure of passion, love, and loyalty.