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Obernewtyn: The Obernewtyn Chronicles Volume 1
  • Published: 1 June 1993
  • ISBN: 9780140178548
  • Imprint: Penguin
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 272
  • RRP: $22.99

Obernewtyn: The Obernewtyn Chronicles Volume 1

Formats & editions
Paperback
1 June 1993
Hardback
20 Apr 2027
EBook
1 June 1993
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The iconic YA fantasy novel that became a much-loved classic, from the internationally acclaimed and bestselling author of the Obernewtyn Chronicles and The Gathering.

For Elspeth Gordie freedom is - like so much else after the Great White - a memory.

It was a time known as the Age of Chaos. In a final explosive flash everything was destroyed. The few who survived banded together and formed a Council for protection. But people like Elspeth - mysteriously born with powerful mental abilities - are feared by the Council and hunted down like animals . . . to be destroyed.

Her only hope for survival is to keep her power hidden. But is secrecy enough against the terrible might of the Council?

*SHORTLISTED, 1988 CBCA Book of the Year Award, Older Readers
*WINNER of the Marcus Clark Literary Award

'Through the breadth of her vision, the depth of her characters, and the strength of her language, Isobelle Carmody has created a world completely realized in all its details and completely persuasive. Multi-leveled, multi-dimensional, the Obernewtyn Chronicles promise to be a major work of fantastic imagination - which given our past history, may not be all that fantastic.' Lloyd Alexander

'A very forceful and carefully constructed tale that keeps the reader engrossed. One will indeed look forward to the following volumes promised.' Andre Norton

'A brave, multi-talented girl, her interesting friends, and animal characters with minds of their own - this book is a dream date for me.' Tamora Pierce

'With its plucky heroine, post-holocaust setting, and the fascinating puzzle of mental abilities enhanced by genetic mutation, Obernewtyn reminds me of the best of Andre Norton's work. Carmody offers us a similar sense of mystery and wonder to Norton's classic novels, but with an original voice and great heart.' Charles de Lint

'Isobelle Carmody's writing possesses the rare qualities of clarity and restraint, making the fantastic, post-apocalyptic world of Obernewtyn seem absolutely authentic.' Jeffrey Ford

'Powerful, thrilling and addictive . . . the kind of novel that leaves you thinking long after you devour its pages.' Kids' Book Review
  • Published: 1 June 1993
  • ISBN: 9780140178548
  • Imprint: Penguin
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 272
  • RRP: $22.99
Categories:

About the author

Isobelle Carmody

Isobelle Carmody is one of Australia's most highly acclaimed authors of fantasy. At fourteen, she began Obernewtyn, the first book in her much-loved Obernewtyn Chronicles, and has since written many works in this genre. Her novel The Gathering was joint winner of the 1993 Children's Literature Peace Prize and the 1994 CBCA Book of the Year Award, and Greylands was joint winner of the 1997 Aurealis Award for Excellence in Speculative Fiction (Young Adult category), and was named a White Raven at the 1998 Bologna Children's Book Fair. Isobelle's work for younger readers includes her two series, The Legend of Little Fur, and The Kingdom of the Lost, the first book of which, The Red Wind, won the CBCA Book of the Year Award for Younger Readers in 2011. She has also written several picture books as well as collections of short stories for children, young adults and adults. Recently she completed a PhD at the University of Queensland and currently divides her time between her home on the Great Ocean Road in Victoria and Brisbane.
portrait photo of Isobelle Carmody

Also by Isobelle Carmody

The Gathering
The Kingdom of the Lost Book 4: The Velvet City
The Kingdom of the Lost Book 3: The Ice Maze
The Red Queen: The Obernewtyn Chronicles Volume 7
The Obernewtyn Chronicles: Books 1 - 6
The Kingdom of the Lost Book 2: The Cloud Road
The Sending: The Obernewtyn Chronicles Volume 6
See all

Praise for Obernewtyn: The Obernewtyn Chronicles Volume 1

A book about persecution, discrimination and freedom . . . an underdog story about fighting for what is right . . . Carmody writes with gripping suspense, splicing in details with mystery and intrigue, leaving you begging for more . . . If you like science fiction and fantasy, you will like this book. If you like adventure and epic tales, you will like this book. If you like stories about strong heroines and underdogs who fight back, you will like this book. And the series that follows.

Kids' Book Review

Beautifully written and painstakingly imagined, with the kind of detailed world-building and intricate plotting that has ensured each new book is better than the last. It also boasts the most iron-willed, big-hearted and strong-minded heroine I have ever encountered.

Sarah McDuling, Booktopia

In the tradition of Andre Norton and Marion Zimmer Bradley, Carmody embarks on a promising new series . . . Readers will look forward to more.

Publishers Weekly

A thought-provoking tale of courage and sacrifice.

School Library Journal

Through the breadth of her vision, the depth of her characters, and the strength of her language, Isobelle Carmody has created a world completely realized in all its details and completely persuasive. Multi-leveled, multi-dimensional, the Obernewtyn Chronicles promise to be a major work of fantastic imagination - which given our past history, may not be all that fantastic.

Lloyd Alexander

A brave, multi-talented girl, her interesting friends, and animal characters with minds of their own - this book is a dream date for me.

Tamora Pierce

A very forceful and carefully constructed tale that keeps the reader engrossed. One will indeed look forward to the following volumes promised.

Andre Norton

With its plucky heroine, post-holocaust setting, and the fascinating puzzle of mental abilities enhanced by genetic mutation, Obernewtyn reminds me of the best of Andre Norton's work. Carmody offers us a similar sense of mystery and wonder to Norton's classic novels, but with an original voice and great heart.

Charles de Lint

Isobelle Carmody's writing possesses the rare qualities of clarity and restraint, making the fantastic, post-apocalyptic world of Obernewtyn seem absolutely authentic.

Jeffrey Ford

Powerful, thrilling and addictive . . . the kind of novel that leaves you thinking long after you devour its pages.

Kids' Book Review