Noughts And Crosses - Malorie Blackman

Advantages: Beautiful story, smart concept, brilliant
Disadvantages: terribly sad

...I've ever read before. Noughts and Crosses is the first in a trilogy followed by Knife Edge and finally Checkmate. Malorie Blackman has had an unaccountable amount of acclaim for this book and its the winner of the Children's Book Award. Noughts and Crosses is a book set in a world where you are either a Nought or a Cross. And although this concept is mostly interpreted as the different races, and in the book a Nought is white and a Cross is black, ...
...be one of the first Noughts to attend one of the best schools that Sephy goes to too. But this is nothing compared to what else happens in this book. Sooo much happens, I don't want to spoil any of it, but it just gets better and better, if you can call what happens 'better'... When I started reading it I liked it, but I wasn't too sucked into it. Yet. I went along with the story and I really liked how the writing changes from Sehpy's perspective ... Read review

Advantages: gripping storyline and you won't want to put it down!
Disadvantages: time!

...reversed in this revoloutionary book! Noughts and crosses gives you much of the information you need to know to understand the book, the blacks which are the dominant and powerful race are the crosses, while the whites which are little anad controlled by the crosses are the noughts. But this story focuses on the life of two young people named Sephy and Callum, Sephu being a cross and Callum being a nought which just adds to the drama and the passion ...
...so I would reccomend having a box of tissues at your side! This is a trilogy of books but recently a new one has been released: Noughts and Crosses Knife Edge Checkmate Double Cross (new one!) xxx *****This is also published on DOOYOO under the same name!***** ... Read review

Advantages: Amazing plot & characters
Disadvantages: Will make you cry!

Noughts And Crosses is the sort of book that when you've finished, you sit back and think "wow." It's impeccably written, the characters feel so real and the plot is like nothing you'll have read before. (Spoilers are in this review) **Blurb** The blurb on the back of the book reads: "Callum is a nought - a second-class citizen in a world run by the ruling Crosses... Sephy is a Cross, the daughter of one of the most powerful men in the country... ...
...is divided into two, with noughts and Crosses making up the population. Noughts are white people, and they are considered inferior; they have the manual labour, mindless, unskilled jobs and are generally of a lower class. Crosses are black people, and they hold the power, they are in government, they are the rich people and have only the best jobs. There is a divide between the two, the Crosses are not openly hateful towards the noughts, but you ... Read review

Advantages: Compelling, inventive and un-put-downable
Disadvantages: None

...Noughts and Crosses explores a world which reverses racial history. The 'Crosses' are the dominant race, while in contrast the 'Noughts' are nothing, they have no dark pigment in their skin and are considered unworthy. Noughts cannot attend the same schools as Crosses, they undertake menial low-paid employment, they are discriminated against openly and this discrimination is encouraged by the government. I found this racial reversal fascinating ...
...grow…. Noughts and Crosses explores the illicit teenage romance between Callum and Sephy in a world where they simply cannot be together and as such it has been known as 'A book of love'. But this is not a cheesy love story. The book also explores the prejudices encouraged in the Crosses and the Noughts fight for justice against the discrimination they face. The book has won a number of prizes including The FCBG Children's Book Award (2002) and the ... Read review

Advantages: Passionate writing, deep themes, excellent writing and there are sequels.
Disadvantages: Too mature themes for very young readers and gets a little long-winded in the middle

...upwards - including adults. Noughts and Crosses is a compelling story written by respected black author Malorie Blackman and takes a unique look at racism in an alternate world. Visually, it is an appealing novel with a simple cover of black and white and an easy to read typeface that doesn't have you squinting. The chapter sections are eaisly indentifiable and the book is sufficiently thick enough to challenge young readers, although it may scare ...
...against the backdrop of dissatisfied Noughts wanting equal rights and Crosses seeking to maintain dominance and this is brought home to the two teens when they are forbidden to see each other over something which happened in the past which no-one speaks about. The book itself is sepearted by short sections which alternate narration by either the idealistic Sephy or the gentle Callum and the narratiive styles are very different which is a refreshing ... Read review

Advantages: Gr8 idea 4 a trilogy, works gr8. gr8 charecters.
Disadvantages: Known as a childrens book when its not.

...*May Contain Spoilers, as it's about all four books* This review is not just about Checkmate, it's more about the whole story of the trilogy. There's always one book in everyone's life that always stays with them, with me it has to be the Nought's & Crosses trilogy written by Malorie Blackman. I first read this four years ago and fell in love, I managed to read Knife Edge and Checkmate within one day because I was just so absorbed in the story. This book is supposed to be a 'teen-read' but we won't let my sister who's 13 read it yet because of the context of the book and the fact that she probably wouldn't understand where the book was coming from and the pretty heavy love scene may not be suitable for younger kids. I did however read this book when I was my sisters age, as did a lot of my friends. It was probably one... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: well written; fast-paced; convincing characters; interesting issues
Disadvantages: slightly weak ending

...characters obsess over each other's relationships and get frustrated with each other's lack of perception. The first part of the novel is primarily concerned with Callie and Tobey's awkward transition from friends to something more and the dialogue they use is both amusing and realistic, peppered with teenage slang. While this is touching, the undercurrents of life surrounding them gradually exert greater pressure. Like the previous three books in this series, Blackman is concerned by the way in which racial prejudice tears apart people, lives and communities as the rage it engenders grows out of control. The issue of racism becomes most apparent when minor characters react to Callie, a mixed race girl who is viewed as Cross or Nought depending on the attitudes and mood of the speaker. Blackman subtly captures how difficult it is to be "in... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: engaging characters; interesting plot; interesting ideas
Disadvantages: a gruelling read emotionally in places

...After a predictable prologue to reveal a key piece of information, the opening chapter is stunning in its understated approach to horror: Callie Rose, a mixed race child in a racially intolerant world, is preparing to commit a shocking act at a young age. After this, the novel shifts continuously between the past and the present, including different viewpoints to allow you to witness over time the fragmentation of Callie's relationship with Sephy, her Cross mother, and her gradual disillusionment with her world. This is a well executed structure, which means that everything is clearly interconnected but Blackman is still able to surprise us along the way. After the depressing feel of 'Knife Edge', the second in the trilogy, this is a novel that has a steep path to climb to find some hope for the future, but Blackman manages, perhaps... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful