Darkwing
written by
Kenneth Oppel
Check out the Resources page for an interview.
Kenneth Oppel says: ”At around 12 I decided I wanted to be a writer (this came after deciding I wanted to be a scientist, and then an architect). I started out writing sci-fi epics (my Star Wars phase) then went on to swords and sorcery tales (my Dungeons and Dragons phase) and then, during the summer holiday when I was 14, started on a humorous story about a boy addicted to video games (written, of course, during my video game phase).
“It turned out to be quite a long story, really a short novel, and I rewrote it the next summer. We had a family friend who knew Roald Dahl - one of my favourite authors - and this friend offered to show Dahl my story. He liked the story and recommended it to his publisher - and that was how my first book got published, just when I was leaving high school.”
Extension Ideas
- Create your own flying ship. How will it run? What will it look like? What dangers will it pose?
- Read The Diddakoi by Rumer Godden for an example of another story about prejudice about the Roma.
Awards and Nominations
- Red Maple Award (Ontario Library Association)
- Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children\'s Book Award
- The 2005 London Times Children\'s Novel of the Year
- An Independent Book of the Year (UK)
- A New Statesman Book of the Year (UK)
- A Best Book for Young Adults (ALA)
- A 2005 Kirkus Editors\' Choice (for best fantasy sequel)
Shortlisted for:
CLA Canadian Library Association Young Adult Book Award
Longlisted for:
2005 Carnegie Medal (UK)
Other books by Kenneth Oppel:
- Darkwing, HarperCollins, 2007
- Airborn, HarperCollins, 2004
- Silverwing, HarperCollins, 1997
How to contact the author:
Email: Kenneth.oppel@sympatico.ca
Website: www.kennethoppel.ca
It’s 65 million years ago: the last dinosaurs are dying out, and the mammals are beginning to take over the earth. Dusk is a small tree glider - a chiropter – who discovers that unlike the rest of his colony he can flap his wings rather than just use them to glide downwards. Being the only member of his colony capable of powered flight, Dusk is shunned, and he escapes being driven out only because his father is the leader. But after his colony is massacred by a prowl of newly-evolved, cat-like carnivores, Dusk's skills may prove to be the salvation of his colony as they embark on a perilous journey to find a new home. Set during a thrilling and dynamic era of earth's history, Darkwing tells the story of the very first bat.
Please click here to download this year's poster.
