City of Rust: an out-of-this-world sci-fi adventure!

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Thank you so much Gemma for your brilliant piece – Scythe is one of my favourite trilogies so I particularly loved seeing the influence of Thunderhead, and there’s lots of other memorable characters mentioned too! Firstly, welcome to The Reading Realm! I wondered if we could start with you introducing yourself and telling us about City of Rust? There is a satisfaction that comes from the editing process though. I can’t remember which author said it (it wasn’t me), but they likened the process to carving a statue – the first draft is a lump of granite, then with each edit the shape and form begins to emerge. I think that sums it up perfectly. What is the editing process like for you? What does it involve? What did you have to edit out of this book to make it work?

Set in a dystopian future world where the Earth has been overwhelmed with its own trash- an all too feasible scenario- and where the rubbish stored in space now completely encircles the planet. Very different life-styles have evolved, from the privileged few inhabiting the mountain top City of Glass and the earth dwellers scraping a living amongst the rusting junk below in Boxville- the City Of Rust. Above them all, the feared Junker clans make their fortunes mining the rubbish in space. Despite this idyllic East Midlands childhood, something bigger soon called, and after an eventful sojourn at the University of Lincoln, Gemma made her way to London. Being able to share whole worlds with readers. I’ll never get tired of people saying they liked a certain character, or wished they could taste a certain food, or that quote certain lines from the book that they liked. I just think… Wow, I made that up, this is crazy! How would you envisage teachers using your book in their classrooms? What age group is it aimed at? Do any activities or ideas spring to mind? I wanted to write a fun adventure that also talked about themes surrounding the environment, STEM and the power of friendship.

I always bang on about a book called The Otherlife by Julia Gray. It’s set in our world, but with a touch of Odin and Loki, heavy metal, and two of the most engaging characters I’ve ever read. I love it. Dapo Adeola, Tracy Darnton, Joseph Coelho and Chitra Soundar are among the 19 authors and illustrators longlisted for the Inclusive Books for Child... The Primary School Library Alliance is calling on the government to match-fund the private investment it has brought into helping primary schools c... The winners of the Diverse Book Awards 2023 have been announced, with one winner from each of the four categories announced: Picture book, Children...

I always miss the characters I have to edit out. There are lots of really fun Junkers and drone racers that didn’t make it into the final edit of City of Rust. I do miss them, but I know their characters will pop up again, in other forms in other stories. Fowler creates an unusual scenario that is a thrilling mix of steampunk with The Hunger Games , Wall-E , and Star Wars . The plot might be another teens-in-a-race-against-time affair, but the author delivers twists and turns that keep the action fresh and exciting. The Thunderhead is the morally conflicted computer ‘cloud’ that controls the post mortal age world in Neal Shusterman’s Scythe trilogy. These books have been some of my favourite reads of the last few years and I found the Thunderhead’s constant battle (and expert way it talks itself into making loopholes) with it’s own moral programing a refreshing take on the behaviour of artificial intelligence. I grew up loving the Magic Mirror in Snow White, and Enid Blyton’s winged Wishing Chair. When I was older I snorted with laughter at the escapades of The Luggage in Terry Pratchett’s The Colour of Magic, and most recently, have fallen in love with a cloud in Tamsin Mori’s The Weather Weaver. The book would make an excellent text for using with a class - as a class novel to inspire work, as a guided reading text or as a class story. The story's strong ecological theme, the world building and strong characterisation make it a gift for any teacher looking for a compelling, engaging, edge of the seat adventure.As the setting of this novel is fantastical, some young readers may benefit from guided visualisation to help them live out the action in the story. For example, how would you draw the container city of Boxville? What would the city look like if you were to walk along its streets? What might the people look like who live here – what jobs would they have and how might they dress? Take a floating cargo ship, a drone, a gyrosphere. Or just take a plunge into an abyss… However you travel, hold on tight, because this book is a ride! Despite being a complete layman, she still has an unwavering passion for space, and loves nothing more than sharing that passion through her stories and author events. I was captivated by the thrill of adventure in this book, I was on the edge on my seat reading through the chapters. I grew to adore the character Railey, a smart and tough girl who was ready to take it all on! Children aged 8+ will be captivated by the fun and adventure between two friends. It was here, whilst working as a writer in the advertising industry, she rediscovered her love for writing stories, and in 2017 finally realised her dream of becoming a published author.

Coffee house Caffè Nero has announced the 16-strong shortlist for the inaugural Nero Book Awards, recognising the outstanding books of the past 12... I think the themes around waste, the environment and STEM are great general talking points for classroom discussion – I’d love for the book to instil a make-do and mend attitude. Can we look at rubbish and see what it can be remade into? How can be reused again, rather than just recycled? An art project (Care, one of the Junker characters, creates art out of rubbish) would be amazing! I’m excited to see where and who my next story will take me to, an eggplant having an existential crisis like Marvin the Paranoid Android? …the beauty is, who knows?Ok, I’m going to talk about my IDEAL day. If I have a deadline approaching my day is basically just tapping away at the keyboard until my fingers hurt and making a million coffees, which is boring to hear about. But my ideal writing days are like this: Bestselling author Alexandra Christo, author of TikTok sensation To Kill a Kingdom, introduces her new book, The Night Hunt (Hot Key Books), a dark... There are drones, gyrospheres, runners(creative take on bounty hunters), floating ships, androids, gadgets, mechanics, & a creative futuristic rusty junk yard type world-that will actually make you think hard about our own current issues, & what the future may hold. The writing is so detailed, vivid, & atmospheric I felt like I was there w/them the whole way-so I was nervous, excited, scared, full of adrenaline, & on the edge of my seat the whole time basically lol. In this world junk has overtaken the world so much, it’s had to be taken out to space-which causes some unexpected dangers. Makes you wonder what we will do when there is no more room in the junkyards/dumps/etc. Also, it’s made junk a form of money in a way-so you need it to live, but fear for your life from it at the same time. An edge-of-your-seat thriller, combining an authentic YA contemporary voice with high-concept but accessible science fiction. Buy here! Arguably, every character gets the best lines in a Discworld novel, but I always grin when I see the unquoted small caps that indicate Death is about to make an appearance. Terry Pratchett managed to give Death a cheeky charm. Was there anything that man couldn’t do?

I was drawn to City of Rust right away because of the characterful futuristic steam-punk junk yard vibe, and because it’s a sci-fi. I do love a sci-fi. This one is set in a future where land and air are dominated by junk. But when junk is all that is left, it becomes a commodity, a currency, a beast that sustains existence as much as it threatens it… You could say that this vision is a direct consequence of our current-day throw-away lifestyle. But let’s put that to one side and skip to the action. And there is a lot of action! I remember reading Iva Ibbotson’s The Secret of Platform 13 a million times, and a book that I think was called the Gameboard Map (it’s probably called something completely different!), which I’ve never been able to find again, about a strange world made out of board games. I also loved audio books, In particular the Narnia series. Gemma was born in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, and spent a happy childhood recording radio shows onto cassette tapes, writing lyrics for her fictional girl band Maybe? and making high fashion haute couture out of old Tesco bags (yep). What advice would you give to teachers about how to develop reading for pleasure in their classrooms and schools?

By Author / Illustrator

Gemma Fowler’s world-building is exceptional, and her version of Earth has echoes of Blade Runner, Wall-E and Star Wars. A thrilling galactic mystery with a powerful message at its heart about caring for the planet we call home.” Book Trust, Best new books for April