Apr 09, 2020 open library is an open, editable library catalog, building towards a web page for every book ever published. In a carnegie medalwinning novel under the uk title, junk that cuts to the bone, burgess puts a group of teenage runaways through four nightmarish years of heroin addiction. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read smack. Jun 08, 2010 melvin burgess is the author of many novels for young adult and middlegrade readers. The title of this book is smack and it was written by melvin burgess.
The book portray the process of addiction, its degrading effects, and the difficult road to recovery. Smack mass market paperback by melvin author burgess and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Melvin burgess born 25 april 1954 is a british writer of childrens fiction. This detailed literature summary also contains related titlesadaptations on smack by melvin burgess. Social themes drugs, alcohol, substance abuse book.
Download the study guide during the course of the four years the novel records, gemma and tar link up with drug addicts and participate in prostitution, petty thievery, and burglary in order to sustain their drug addiction. There is no preaching here, just the artful revelation of cold, hard facts. Smack is a book about a drug and the hold it can have. Everything you need to understand or teach smack by melvin burgess. Gemma follows him to escape an infuriatingly repressive to her, at least home situation. The first edition of the novel was published in november 14th 1996, and was written by melvin burgess. It was published by square fish and has a total of 352 pages in the book. Melvin burgess author melvin burgess is the author of many novels for young adult and middlegrade readers. Smack isbn 9780312608620 pdf epub melvin burgess ebook.
Smack presents a fairly realistic view of life on the streets in bristol in the 1980s through the eyes of two runaways, gemma and tar. Smack overview melvin burgess this study guide consists of approximately 16 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of smack. Winner of the 1996 carnegie medal in literature and the guardian prize for fiction, two of englands most prestigious awards, smack tells a penetrating, isbn 9780312608620 buy the smack ebook. I got so lost in that book, really tied to the characters, all of them.
Melvin burgess is a british author of childrens fiction. For gilly authors note this book is set roughly in the early and middle 1980s, when i myself was living in bristol. Anarchists, drug abuse, fiction, heroin, prostitution, runaways, juvenile fiction, reading levelgrade 9, reading levelgrade 11, reading levelgrade 10, reading. Set on the streets of bristol, england, it features two runaway teens who join a group of squatters, where they fall into heroin addiction and embrace anarchism. Burgess won the annual carnegie medal from the library association. Pdf junk book by melvin burgess free download 389 pages.
Im sure you get emails like this all of the time, but i hope you take the time to really consider this one. Before his first novel, he had short stories published and a play broadcast on radio 4. Among them are nicholas dane, doing it a new york public library book for the teen age, the ghost behind the wall bank street best childrens book of the year. Both critically and commercially it is the best received of burgess novels. Smack has 4 available editions to buy at half price books marketplace. Nov 14, 1996 melvin burgess is a british author of childrens fiction. He convinces his girlfriend, gemma, to come with him.
Smack mass market paperback by melvinauthor burgess and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Its a book that every teenager should readthen pass along to a friend. He became famous in 1998 with the publication of junk, about heroinaddicted teenagers on the streets of bristol. Buy this book this searing account of two young runaways. Two teens escape their oppressive homes to live with anarchist squatters, only to become entrenched in heroin addiction and crime. And with the 42yearold british man, melvin burgess, who wrote her character in the original young adult book junk, published 20 years ago by andersen press. Melvin burgess has 49 books on goodreads with 72956 ratings. Edt 1642 gmt cnn the funny thing about smack is that. Written over a decade ago, smack is the original cautionary tale about modern drug abuse.
The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 389 pages and is available in paperback format. Among them are nicholas dane, doing it a new york public library book for the teen age, the ghost behind the wall bank street best childrens book of the year and smack winner of britains carnegie medal and the guardian prize for fiction, as well as an ala best book for young adults. Melvin burgess is the author of many novels for young adult and middlegrade readers. His most substantial book to date, this compelling story of a teenager caught in a corrupt 1980s care home is a powerful study of a particularly highly charged and distressing subject.
The story begins with tar, a fourteenyearold, who runs away from home. Winner of the carnegie medal and the guardian prize for fiction, two of englands most prestigious awards, smack tells a penetrating story about heroin use, a topic that is becoming familiar in the news and one of importance to teens everywhere. At 14, sweetnatured tar leaves his small seaside town for bristol to get away from his alcoholic, abusive parents. Dear melvin burgess, hi, my name is lindsie and i just finished reading smack yesterday. During the course of the four years the novel records, gemma and tar link up with drug addicts and participate in prostitution, petty thievery, and burglary in order to sustain their drug addiction. Burgess won the annual carnegie medal from the library association, recognising the years best childrens book by a british. It is a book about people, familiesreal and those constructed by young people with no one to turn to but each other.
The main characters of this fiction, young adult story are jerry, sal. Melvin burgess booklist melvin burgess message board. Handled with great sensitivity and engrossing narrative drive, it is an important addition to the understanding of how teenage lives. Winner of the 1996 carnegie medal in literature and the guardian prize for fiction, two of englands most prestigious awards, smack tells a penetrating story about heroin use, a topic that is becoming familiar in the news and one of importance to teens everywhere. In britain, junk became one of the bestknown young adult books of the decade. However, once in the city, they become entangled in the abuse of heroin. Jun 08, 2010 smack ebook written by melvin burgess. Smack book by melvin burgess half price books marketplace. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 293 pages and is available in paperback format. Smack or junk, a 1996 novel by melvin burgess smack, a song by zion i and the grouch, a bside of the single lift me up smack or smack white b. Nyplt books for the teen age, school library best books of the year, guardian award, carnegie medal, ala best books for young adults, books for the teen age, new york public. Carnegieprize winning author, melvin burgess, has written a longawaited new story.
With smack, winner of the carnegie medal and the guardian prize for fiction, melvin burgess brilliantly sketches a gradual descent into drug addiction. Smack by melvin burgess overdrive rakuten overdrive. Everythings valid in smack smack by melvin burgess. This acclaimed book by melvin burgess is available at in several formats for your ereader. Insightful, haunting, and real, smack is the go ask alice of the 90s. Tar and gemma run away from their homes for what they believe are valid reasons. His first book, the cry of the wolf, was published in 1990. Pdf smack book by melvin burgess free download 293 pages. Written directly for its audience of young people and unflinching in its honesty, smack is the teen book of the year. Among them are nicholas dane, doing it a new york public library book for the teen age, the ghost behind the wall bank street best childrens book of the year and smack winner of britains carnegie medal and the guardian prize for fiction, as well as an. The search for the next hit becomes allconsuminguntil a disaster forces gemma to take matters into her own hands. Smack by melvin burgess meet your next favorite book. He gained a certain amount of notoriety in 1996 with the publication of junk, which was published in the shadow of the film of irvine welshs trainspotting, and dealt with the trendy and controversial idea of heroinaddicted. Melvin burgess was born in london and brought up in surrey and sussex.
1008 1266 472 253 1637 752 1265 60 324 374 1271 610 1155 1681 525 1209 768 513 431 1137 888 1390 862 1118 726 389 1321 811 1227 271 1054