Julie Bertagna
Encyclopedia
Julie Bertagna is a Scottish author
who has written real life and science fiction
novels for both children and young adults. Her books have been shortlisted for several literature awards, including the Carnegie Medal
and her novel Exodus was the winner of the Lancashire County Library Children’s Book of the Year Award. Soundtrack, her second novel for young adults, won a Scottish Arts Council Award, the second highest award ever given to a Scottish children's writer.
and moved to Glasgow
when she was 7 years old.
After receiving an MA
Hons in English Language and Literature at Glasgow University she worked as an editor for a small magazine, then moved into teaching before working as a freelance journalist for various publications. She then published her first book, The Spark Gap, when she was 25 years old.
She currently writes full time and lives in the West End of Glasgow
with her husband and young daughter.
Other influences of her work include global warming
and climate change
, being major themes in her novel Exodus, which took the "highly commended" award, the equivalent of second prize, at the first Eco Prize, held by the Friends of the Earth
Scotland. Her first novel for Young Picador, Exodus, was shortlisted for the Whitbread Award and was described by the Guardian as "a miracle of a novel".
Her book, The Opposite of Chocolate, deals with issues of teenage pregnancy
.
is set in 2099 - and the world is gradually drowning, as mighty Arctic ice floes melt, the seas rise, and land disappears forever beneath storm-tossed waves. For 15-year-old Mara, her family and community, huddled on the fast-disappearing island of Wing, the new century brings flight. Packed into tiny boats, a terrifying journey begins to a bizarre city that rises into the sky, built on the drowned remains of the ancient city of Glasgow. But even here there is no safety and, shut out of the city, Mara realizes they are asylum-seekers in a world torn between high-tech wizardry and the most primitive injustice. To save her people, Mara must not only find a way into the city but also search for a new land and a new home...
Sixteen-year-old Mara and her ship of refugees are tracking the North Star, desperate to find a homeland in the melted ice mountains of Greenland. The vast, floating city of Pomperoy is just one of the shocks that are not in their navigation plans. Unwittingly, the refugees bring catastrophe in their wake for Tuck, a gypsea pirate-boy, and also for Ilira – a land whose inhabitants exist in a state of terror at the top of the world.
Back in the drowned ruins at the feet of the towering sky city, Fox is beginning his battle with the cruel, corrupt forces that rule the New World. But separated from Mara, his resolve begins to waver . . .
and the Gaelic Broadcasting Committee. It is aimed at 6 to 9-year-olds and will be broadcast in both English and Gaelic.
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
who has written real life and science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
novels for both children and young adults. Her books have been shortlisted for several literature awards, including the Carnegie Medal
Carnegie Medal
The Carnegie Medal is a literary award established in 1936 in honour of Scottish philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and given annually to an outstanding book for children and young adults. It is awarded by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals...
and her novel Exodus was the winner of the Lancashire County Library Children’s Book of the Year Award. Soundtrack, her second novel for young adults, won a Scottish Arts Council Award, the second highest award ever given to a Scottish children's writer.
Biography
Bertagna was born in AyrshireAyrshire
Ayrshire is a registration county, and former administrative county in south-west Scotland, United Kingdom, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine. The town of Troon on the coast has hosted the British Open Golf Championship twice in the...
and moved to Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
when she was 7 years old.
After receiving an MA
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
Hons in English Language and Literature at Glasgow University she worked as an editor for a small magazine, then moved into teaching before working as a freelance journalist for various publications. She then published her first book, The Spark Gap, when she was 25 years old.
She currently writes full time and lives in the West End of Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
with her husband and young daughter.
Influences
Her writing often reflects her Scottish background, sometimes being set in the country. An example of this is The Spark Gap, which she wrote specifically to include characters like the children she was teaching in Glasgow.Other influences of her work include global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
and climate change
Climate change
Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...
, being major themes in her novel Exodus, which took the "highly commended" award, the equivalent of second prize, at the first Eco Prize, held by the Friends of the Earth
Friends of the Earth
Friends of the Earth International is an international network of environmental organizations in 76 countries.FOEI is assisted by a small secretariat which provides support for the network and its agreed major campaigns...
Scotland. Her first novel for Young Picador, Exodus, was shortlisted for the Whitbread Award and was described by the Guardian as "a miracle of a novel".
Her book, The Opposite of Chocolate, deals with issues of teenage pregnancy
Teenage pregnancy
Teenage pregnancy is a pregnancy of a female under the age of 20 when the pregnancy ends. It generally refers to a female who is unmarried and usually refers to an unplanned pregnancy...
.
Notable works
Julie Bertagna has written books for both children and young adults. Bertagna's first book was The Spark Gap. Her most recent book is Zenith, the sequel to Exodus. Both of these books were written for young adults.The Spark Gap (1996)
Kerrie feels trapped. She can't spend another day in her chaotic mother's house. Then Kerrie finds an escape. On the rooftop of a nearby tower block live two castaway teenagers, Mauve and Skip. As Kerrie starts to share their sky-high home, she relishes her new-found freedom. And when a freak fire destroys their towerblock, Kerrie decides to leave the city with Mauve and Skip. She thinks that she can leave her problems behind in Glasgow – but what will happen when Kerrie stops running?Exodus (2002)
ExodusExodus (2002 novel)
Exodus is a science fiction novel written for young adults by Julie Bertagna published in August 2002. The story is set on an island faced with the problem of a rising shoreline, caused by a melting ice cap. Mara must think of a way to save herself, the other villagers and, most importantly, the...
is set in 2099 - and the world is gradually drowning, as mighty Arctic ice floes melt, the seas rise, and land disappears forever beneath storm-tossed waves. For 15-year-old Mara, her family and community, huddled on the fast-disappearing island of Wing, the new century brings flight. Packed into tiny boats, a terrifying journey begins to a bizarre city that rises into the sky, built on the drowned remains of the ancient city of Glasgow. But even here there is no safety and, shut out of the city, Mara realizes they are asylum-seekers in a world torn between high-tech wizardry and the most primitive injustice. To save her people, Mara must not only find a way into the city but also search for a new land and a new home...
Zenith (2007)
Zenith is a sequel to Exodus and continues the story of Mara as the world is gradually drowning, as mighty Arctic ice floes melt, the seas rise, and land disappears forever beneath storm-tossed waves . . .Sixteen-year-old Mara and her ship of refugees are tracking the North Star, desperate to find a homeland in the melted ice mountains of Greenland. The vast, floating city of Pomperoy is just one of the shocks that are not in their navigation plans. Unwittingly, the refugees bring catastrophe in their wake for Tuck, a gypsea pirate-boy, and also for Ilira – a land whose inhabitants exist in a state of terror at the top of the world.
Back in the drowned ruins at the feet of the towering sky city, Fox is beginning his battle with the cruel, corrupt forces that rule the New World. But separated from Mara, his resolve begins to waver . . .
Other works
- The Ice Cream Machine (1998)
- Soundtrack (1999)
- Bungee Hero (1999)
- Dolphin Boy (1999)
- Clumsy Clumps and the Baby Moon (1999)
- '"Amphibian City" (1999) (In Phenomenal Future Stories, edited by Tony Bradman)
- The Opposite of Chocolate (2003)
- Ice Cream Machine Totally Fizzbombed (2005)
Television series
In January 2007 a television series for children was created based on Bertagna's book, The Ice Cream Machine. The programme is produced in a co-production of Five with SMGSMG plc
STV Group plc is a Scottish media company. It is a constituent of the FTSE Fledgling Index. Originally formed as Scottish Television, it changed its name to Scottish Media Group in 1996 when it acquired Caledonian Publishing, owners of Glasgow-based newspapers The Herald and Evening Times...
and the Gaelic Broadcasting Committee. It is aimed at 6 to 9-year-olds and will be broadcast in both English and Gaelic.