Malorie Blackman Quotes

Sephy Hadley and Callum McGregor are two young people in love. But Sephy is a Cross, the daughter of a government minister, and Callum is a Nought. In their world, Crosses and Noughts cannot be friends. Must they become enemies? Or is there hope for them - and for their unhappy country?

“What was she afraid of?” Maggie sighed. No matter how hard she tried. Sarah insisted on keeping her distance. Meggie turned back to watch the children. Life was so simple for them. Their biggest worry was what they’d get for their birthdays. Their biggest grumble was the time they had to go to bed. Maybe things would be different for them....”

“My head snapped up at the sound of my mother’s voice. Mother came hurtling down the steps, her expression dour and fierce - as always. She’d obviously not had as many glasses of wine today as she normally did, otherwise wouldn’t be in such a bad mood. I turned back where Callum had been, but he was already out of sight -which was just as well. Mother grabbed my arm with bony fingers that bit like pincers.”

“My sister looks like me- the same brown hair, eyes the same shade of gray... She is aways with the fairies, as my grandma used to say. She wasn’t always that way. Three years ago something happened that changed her. An accident. And just like that the sister I knew was gone. Now she doesn’t go out, doesn’t talk much, doesn’t think much as far as I can tell. She just is.”

Meggie’s smile wavered only slightly. She looked out across the vast lawn at Callum and Sephy. Her son and her employer’s daughter. They were good friends playing together. Real good friends. No barriers. No boundaries. Not yet anyway. It was a typical early summer’s day, light and bright and, in the Hadley household anyway, not a cloud in their sky.”

“Callum was the one person in the world I could tell anything and everything to without having to think twice about it. So why did I now feel so...out of step? Like he was leaving me behind? He suddenly seemed so much older, not just in years but in the things he knew and had experienced. His eyes were a lot older than fifteen.”

“I sat down at my place around the table y looked away from Mum. Dad wasn’t bothered about me -or anything else, for that matter. He was totally focused on his food. Jude, my seventeen-year-old brother, grinned knowingly at me. He’s a really irritating toad. I looked away from him as well. ‘He was with his dagger friend’ Jude smirked. ”

“Sephy Hadley and Callum McGregor are two young people in love. But Sephy is a Cross, the daughter of a government minister, and Callum is a Nought. In their world, Crosses and Noughts cannot be friends. Must they become enemies? Or is there hope for them - and for their unhappy country?”

“Every time I came back from Sephy’s, I flinched at the sight of the shack that was meant to be my home. Why couldn’t my family live in a house like Sephy’s! Why didn’t any naught I knew of live in a house like Sephy’s? Looking at our rundown hovel, I could feel the usual burning, churning sensation begin to rise up inside me. My stomach tightened, my eyes began to narrow... So I forced myself to look away.”

“Meggie’s smile wavered only slightly. She looked out across the vast lawn at Callum and Sephy. Her son and her employer’s daughter. There were good friends playing together. Real good friends. No barriers. No boundaries. Not yet anyway. It was a typical early summer’s day, light and bright and, in the Hadley household anyway, not a cloud in their sky.”

“Yes. It was quite quiet really....′ Meggie replied, confused. She looked from Mr. to Mrs. Hadley and back again. Mrs. Hadley was watching her intently. What was going on? The temperature in the garden had dropped by several degrees and despite his smiles. Mr Hadley was obviously furious at something -or someone. Meggie swallowed hard. Had she done something wrong. She didn’t think so, but God only knew that being around Crosses was like walking on eggshells.”

“Was she afraid of? Meggie sighed. No matter how hard she tried. Sarah insisted on keeping her distance. Meggie turned back to watch the children. Life was so simple for them. Their biggest worry was what they’d get for their birthdays. Their biggest grumble was the time they had to go to be. Maybe things would be different for them...”

“I wriggled my toes, enjoying the feel of the warm sand trickling like fine baby powder between them. Digging my feet even deeper into the dry, yellow-white sand, I tilted back my head. It was such a beautiful August afternoon.”

“Callum is a Naught, a second class citizen in a society run by the ruling Crosses. Sephy is a Cross, and daughter of the man stated to become primer minister. In their world, white Naughts and black Crosses simple don’t mix -and certainly don’t fall in love.”

“Besides raising questions on the ethics of heart transplantation when the heart is that of an animal it is also an eye opener on the world of teenage boys, the importance of belonging and above all of not losing face. ”

“He wants to just be an ordinary kid, but, when he was young, he caught a deadly heart disease that caused his ordinary life to be turned into an absolute mess.”

“To make things worse, his local hospital told him that he would barely live to his 14th Birthday. Since this event, his Mum and Dad are always arguing and making sure he is okay. ”

“It was like a radio being switched off. I sat down at the bottom of the swimming pool and opened my eyes. The chlorine in the water stung, but better that than not seeing what was coming and being kicked in the face.”

“I’ve just told you. I couldn’t say anything until I knew Dr Bryce would take Cameron’ s case and I didn’t know until a couple of hours ago. If I’d said something before-hand you just would’ve got upset for no reason.”

“Cameron is 13 years old and desperately in need of a heart transplant, when a pioneering doctor approaches his family with a startling proposal.”

“But, one day, when Cameron came home from school, he heard his Dad and Mum shouting about a heart transplant, from a pig.”

“Marlon had automatically assumed that I would be a spectator. But then what else could I do? I wasn’t much use for anything except watching. Everyone, from Travis Cross _our school year’s worse bully_ to my best friend, Marlon, said so.”

“As I turned the key in the front door. I could hear at one that Mum and Dad were at it again. And I’ve weighed up all the consequences. I’ve listed all the pros and cons. We don’t have any other choice_”

“My lab and most research projects involved in the same area rely on funding. We only get funding if we can persuade large organizations or wealthy individuals to part with their money.”