Noughts & Crosses series
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The Noughts & Crosses Trilogy by Malorie Blackman is a sequence of young adult, science fiction, novels and a novella set in a fictional, racist, dystopia.
[edit] The series in order
This list is chronological by date of publication, which is also the order in which the story occurs.
- Noughts & Crosses (2001)
- An Eye for an Eye, novella, (2003)
- Knife Edge (2004)
- Checkmate (2005)
- Double Cross (Out Nov 2008)
[edit] The Noughts & Crosses series
The Noughts & Crosses series is set in a world where the people with black skin (Crosses) are dominant over the white people (noughts). The books' world is quite similar to early 21st century Britain but racism and prejudice are much more overt, with resemblances to apartheid in South Africa. The series tells the story of several characters from two interlinked families with very different positions in society.
It can be compared with Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet in that the two leads - Sephy and Callum - "shouldn't" be in love because they are of a different skin color (Romeo and Juliet are of two different feuding families).
[edit] Characters
X = Cross O = Nought OX = Mixed Race
[edit] Noughts and Crosses
- Persephone "Sephy" Hadley X
- Jasmine Hadley X
- Kamal Hadley X
- Minerva "Minnie" Hadley X
- Callum McGregor O
- Jude McGregor O
- Lynette McGregor O
- Margaret "Meggie" McGregor O
- Ryan McGregor O
- Governor Giustini X
- Harry (Sephy's old driver) O
- Karl (Sephy's new driver) X
- Jack X
- Kelani Adams QC X
- Judge Anderson X
- Pete O
- Leila O
- Morgan O
- The General (Never seen, only mentioned) O
- Alex Luther (Never seen, only mentioned) O
- Andrew Dorn O
- Snakeskin
- Gordy
- A Newsreader
- Mr Costa
- Mr Jason OX
- Mrs Paxton
- Several Policemen X
[edit] An Eye for an Eye
- Persephone "Sephy" Hadley
- Jude McGregor
- Minerva Hadley
- Callum McGregor (deceased, only mentioned)
- Kamal Hadley (Never seen, only mentioned)
[edit] Knife Edge
- Persephone "Sephy" Hadley
- Jude McGregor O
- Nurse Fashoda
- Another Nurse
- Morgon O
- Margaret "Meggie" McGregor O
- Callie Rose McGregor OX
- Minerva Hadley X
- Jasmine Hadley X
- Kamal Hadley (Never seen, only mentioned)
- A Newsreader
- John Gresham (Never seen, only mentioned)
- Dylan Hoyle
- Cara Imega X
- Callum McGregor (deceased, only mentioned)
- Meena
- Jorja (Never seen, only mentioned)
- Several Policemen
- Jaxon
- Roxie
- Sam
- Delany (Never seen, only mentioned)
- Gina O
[edit] Checkmate
- Persephone "Sephy" Hadley X
- Jude McGregor O
- Jasmine Hadley X
- Callie Rose McGregor OX
- Meggie McGregor O
- Sonny O
- Nathen Ealing X
- Jordy Carson
- Jaxon O
- Rhino O
[edit] Double Cross
[edit] Note on the format of the books
The title appears to a reference to the game known in Britain as "noughts and crosses" and in the United States as "tic tac toe", where O represents a nought (or zero) (a white person in the book) and X a cross (a black person). The first book, and its sequels use first person narration (except for the prologues to Noughts and Crosses and Checkmate), with the narrator alternating between chapters, with X or O before the narrator's name indicating their race. Mixed-race Callie-Rose is represented by an O and X combined. In the first book, only Sephy and Callum narrate.
[edit] Noughts & Crosses
A Book of Love
Persephone Hadley is a Cross, daughter of a prominent politician, while Callum McGregor is a nought. As best friends, their relationship is frowned upon by society, a secret from Sephy's mother, and not approved by Callum's family.
Callum starts at Heathcroft, Sephy's exclusive school, previously inaccessible to noughts. Although he is two years older, Sephy is overjoyed to find him in her class. But the majority of her classmates will not accept that she, the daughter of a leading politician, wants to associate with a nought.
Their friendship goes from strength to strength as Callum's brother and father join the Liberation Militia, a violent organization supposedly aimed at promoting equality between the two races, and Sephy's mother becomes addicted to alcohol. They develop a more intimate connection.
Callum's troubled elder sister, Lynette, commits suicide.Only Callum knows this though as she leaves him a letter saying so Later, Callum's elder brother, Jude, and father, Ryan, are accused of a lethal shopping centre bombing; Callum is expelled from school and Ryan faces the gallows. Fortunately, with the help of a lawyer Sephy's mother hired, Ryan escapes hanging but must serve a lifetime in jail. Sadly, Ryan tries to escape and is killed.
Sephy finally convinces her mother to allow her to go to Chivers boarding school. As she has not heard from Callum for a week, she writes him a letter asking him to run away with her and uses Sarah, the housemaid, to send it to him. Callum has decided to join the LM and does not read the letter until just before Sephy leaves. Sephy concludes that their friendship is no longer as important to him as she thought it was, oblivious to the fact that Callum tried to catch up with her as she is driven away.
She returns from Chivers nearly three years later. Callum is now deep into the LM as part of the deadly Stiletto unit, having already stabbed a Cross civilian to death to reach sergeant rank. He is reunited with his brother who joins the unit, charged with organizing a mission.
Sephy receives a letter asking her to meet Callum. She does so, on an isolated beach. Callum kisses her but the meeting is a trap and the LM capture her for ransom.
During her imprisonment, Sephy believes she will not get out alive. On the night the terms of her release are to be met, Callum is assigned to guard Sephy, to make sure she doesn't escape. He soon realizes he was not able to destroy all the feelings he had for her and they make love.
Callum can no longer stand to see her captured and helps Sephy escape. He then runs away himself. A few months later, Callum hears that Sephy is pregnant and returns to see her. After meeting in the rose garden, and deciding on a name for the baby, Callum is captured. He is accused of raping Sephy. Sephy denies it but nobody listens to her protests and Callum is sentenced to be hanged for rape and kidnap.
Sephy's father disowns her and gives her the invidious choice of having an abortion in exchange for Callum's sentence being commuted to imprisonment or keeping the baby and seeing Callum hanged. Sephy feels that having the abortion would mean giving up everything she believes in, and denying her love for Callum, so she refuses. While in prison, Callum has time to think and he hopes Sephy will keep their child. He writes a final letter to her.
On the day of Callum's hanging, Sephy chooses not to be present but later changes her mind and declares her love for Callum as he drops from the rope. Hearing Sephy's shouts of love he replies, "I love you too", although Sephy isn't certain she heard the "too". The novel ends with the announcement of the birth of Sephy's daughter, Callie Rose McGregor
[edit] Release details
- 2001, UK, Doubleday, ISBN-10: 0385600089, ISBN-13: 978-0385600088, 279 pp, hardcover, February 2001
- 2002, UK, Corgi Children's (New Ed edition), ISBN-10: 0552546321, ISBN-13: 978-0552546324, 208 pp, paperback, 30 April 2002
- 2004, UK, Random House Children's Books, ISBN-10: 1856868613, ISBN-13: 978-1856868617, audiobook on compact disc, 5 February 2004
- 2006, UK, including An Eye for an Eye, Corgi Children's (New Ed edition), ISBN-10: 0552555703, ISBN-13: 978-0552555708, 448 pp, paperback, 8 August 2006
- from November 29th 2007 to February 2nd 2008, adaptation of the book in a play by the Royal Shakespeare Company
[edit] An Eye For An Eye
A novella which gives an insight to the events of Knife Edge. Written for World Book Day, 2003, it has been republished in a new edition of Noughts & Crosses. An Eye For An Eye describes one evening while Sephy is pregnant with Callie Rose, when Minerva visits her. However, soon after Jude arrives to kill Sephy.
[edit] Release details
- 2003, UK, Corgi Children's, ISBN-10: 0552549258, ISBN-13: 978-0552549257, 99 pp, paperback, 27 February 2003
- 2006, UK, Noughts and Crosses including An Eye for an Eye, Corgi Children's (New Ed edition), ISBN-10: 0552555703, ISBN-13: 978-0552555708, 448 pp, paperback, 8 August 2006
[edit] Knife Edge
A Book Of Hate
Sephy is a Cross, the privileged group in a society where Crosses treat noughts as inferiors, but her daughter Callie Rose's father Callum is a nought. Callum's brother Jude blames Sephy for the terrible losses his family has suffered and is determined to destroy Sephy's life by any means necessary. He meets Cara, a Cross, and befriends her to access her money.
Sephy, living with Callum's mother Meggie, becomes increasingly fond of her daughter, Callie Rose. Sephy receives a letter, supposedly written by Callum before he died, saying he never loved her and he cannot believe she was stupid enough to fall for him. Meggie refuses to believe the letter but Sephy becomes extremely depressed. She meets Jaxon, a hot-tempered man with a band, the Midges. He offers Sephy a singing part but the noughts are prejudiced against her because she is a Cross. She begins to neglect Callie Rose.
Cara spends a lot of time with Jude. Although he loathes Crosses he begins to fall in love with her. Cara is unsatisfied with the relationship, and can see Jude is unwilling to open up to her. However, the relationship develops and they almost reach the point of making love. However, frustrated and confused with the feelings he has for a Cross, Jude beats her severely, and she later dies as a result. Jude is charged with Cara's murder and faces a virtually certain death sentence.
Sephy struggles with seeing Meggie losing the last remaining member of her family. Sephy decides, for Meggie's sake, to pretend to be Jude's alibi for Cara's death. This works, and after serving a few months in prison for Liberation Militia (LM) membership, Jude is freed--he even manages to accuse senior LM leader Andrew Dorn of Cara's murder, and out him as a government informer: resulting in Dorn's swift "execution". Jude, despite Sephy saving his miserable life, still holds his grudge against her and is still plotting terrible revenge.
Sephy's life begins to fall apart. The Crosses hate her because she helped Jude escape the noose and the noughts because she did not come to his aid sooner. She suffers from post-natal depression which results in her hugging her daughter too tightly. Callie Rose stops breathing and the book ends with Meggie screaming, "What have you done?" at Sephy.
[edit] Release details
- 2004, UK, Doubleday, ISBN-10: 0385605277, ISBN-13: 978-0385605274, 449 pp, hardcover, 5 February 2004
- 2005, UK, Corgi Children's (New Ed edition), ISBN-10: 0552548928, ISBN-13: 978-0552548922, 449 pp, paperback, 30 June 2005
- Due 2007, UK, Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, ISBN-10: 1416900187, ISBN-13: 978-1416900184, 448 pp, hardcover, 24 July 2007
- Due 2007, UK, Random House Children's Books, ISBN-10: 1846576547, ISBN-13: 978-1846576546, audiobook on compact disc, 7 September 2006
[edit] Checkmate
A Book Of Hope
Callie Rose struggles with growing up as a 'halfer' and, when she learns the truth about her nought father's life from her friend Tobey; who calls her a terrorist's daughter, she becomes angry with her mother Sephy for hiding the truth and decides to follow Callum's path with her new hate filled personality. She also cuts off her friendship with nought Tobey, regardless of how sorry he is. Sephy feels trapped and rejects an offer of marriage from her boyfriend Sonny. Sephy then meets Nathan, the owner of the restaurant where she sings, and the two start a relationship. Callie Rose withdraws into her uncle Jude's clutches and he grooms her to become a suicide bomber in order to murder Sephy's father, Kamal Hadley. In the intervening years, Jude had become "the General", the fearsome commander of the Liberation Militia nought guerrillas.
Callie Rose starts dating the Cross Lucas, an ex friend's brother. Jasmine Hadley, Sephy's mother, does what she can to bring Callie and Sephy closer together but develops breast cancer and struggles with her life. In a moment of weakness she drinks a glass of wine, breaking her previous vow to never drink alcohol again. Nathan proposes to Sephy, and she accepts; but then Sonny shows up in her life again and she is left confused but engaged. Eventually, Sephy is given a letter written by Callum before he was hanged. It is the letter expressing his true feelings. The letter Sephy received in the second book had been an attempt to persuade Sephy to move on after his death. In this letter it is revealed that Callum did, indeed, love her more than anything. In the end, Sephy and Callie Rose resume their relationship while Jude and Jasmine (in pain from cancer) die together when Jasmine sets off Callie's bomb, in order to prevent Jude from hurting Callie and Sephy any more. Also, Kamal Hadley's attempt to become the next prime minister in the next election is foiled when his ex-wife Jasmine tells the press about his treacherous past, and some of the deals he was involved in.
[edit] Release details
- 2005, UK, Doubleday, ISBN-10: 0385607733, ISBN-13: 978-0385607735, 449 pp, hardcover, 30 June 2005
- 2006, UK, Corgi Children's (New Ed edition), ISBN-10: 0552551945, ISBN-13: 978-0552551946, 512 pp, paperback, 7 September 2006
- Due 2007, UK, Random House Children's Books, ISBN-10: 1846576512, ISBN-13: 978-1846576515, audiobook on compact disc, 6 September 2007
[edit] Double Cross
A fourth book in the series will be published in late 2008.[1]
[edit] Adaptations
The first book in the trilogy, Noughts and Crosses was adapted and directed by former RSC Associate Dominic Cooke on stage. The play, which has garnered positive reviews is performed by the Royal Shakespeare company, with Richard Madden and Ony Uhiara in the lead roles of Callum and Sephy. Noughts and Crosses is currently on its UK tour.
[edit] Awards and nominations
- 2002, Lancashire Children's Book of the Year.[2]
- 2002, Red House Children's Book Award.[2][3]
- 2002, Sheffield Children's Book Award.[2][3]
- 2003, Wirral Paperback of the Year Award.[2][3]
- 2004, Fantastic Fiction Award.[2]
- 2005, Berkshire Book Award (shortlist).[3]
- 2005, Lancashire Children's Book of the Year (shortlist).[3]
- 2005, Redbridge Teenage Book Award (shortlist).[3]
- 2006, Lancashire Children's Book of the Year (shortlist).[3]
- 2006, Staffordshire Young People's Book of the Year.[3]
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ Letter from London. Publishers Weekly (2007-11-29). Retrieved on 2008-01-26.
- ^ a b c d e Malorie Blackman. Contemporary Writers. British Council (2007). Retrieved on 2007-03-23.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Awards and Prizes. Kids at Random House. Random House Children's Books. Retrieved on 2007-03-23.
[edit] External links
- Noughts & Crosses at Malorie Blackman's official website
- Knife Edge at Malorie Blackman's official website
- Checkmate at Malorie Blackman's official website
