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‘It was the first time I saw myself in literature’: Penguin authors on the book they wish they read in school

The Million Pieces of Neena Gill

*Shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize 2020* 
*Shortlisted for the Branford Boase Award 2020* 
*Shortlisted for the Romantic Novelists' Association Debut Romantic Novel Award 2020* 
 
'Powerful, relatable and uplifting' - Emily Barr, author of The One Memory of Flora Banks 
 
How can I hold myself together, when everything around me is falling apart? 
 
Neena's always been a good girl - great grades, parent-approved friends and absolutely no boyfriends. 
 
But ever since her brother Akash left her, she's been slowly falling apart - and uncovering a new version of herself who is freer, but altogether more dangerous. 
 
As her wild behaviour spirals more and more out of control, Neena's grip on her sanity begins to weaken too. 
 
And when her parents announce not one but two life-changing bombshells, she finally reaches breaking point. 
 
But as Neena is about to discover, when your life falls apart, only love can piece you back together.

Emily Barr, author of The One Memory of Flora Banks

An honest, thought-provoking story about grief and mental health

[P]owerful stuff . . . a refreshing and realistic spin on the average teen romance.

Smith-Barton . . . writes powerfully about mental health, psychosis and growing up between cultures

WOW! The Million Pieces Of Neena Gill is an authentic, compelling &amp; touching portrayal of teenage Neena's journey through the deterioration of her mental health

Abigail Tarttelin, author of Golden Boy and Dead Girls

This novel thoughtfully and sensitively portrays a teenage experience of psychosis, a mental illness rarely written about. A masterful piece of storytelling.

Emma Smith-Barton was born in South Wales to Pakistani parents, and growing up between cultures has heavily influenced her writing. Before writing, she taught in secondary schools and her adult short stories have appeared in various publications. The Million Pieces of Neena Gill is Emma's first novel for young adults.

How can I hold myself together, when everything around me is falling apart? 
 
Neena's always been a good girl - great grades, parent-approved friends and absolutely no boyfriends. But ever since her brother Akash left her, she's been slowly falling apart - and uncovering a new version of herself who is altogether more dangerous. 
 
As her wild behaviour spirals more and more out of control, Neena's grip on her sanity begins to weaken too. And when her parents announce not one but two life-changing bombshells - including that they want her to have an arranged marriage - she finally reaches breaking point. But as Neena is about to discover, when your life falls apart, only love can piece you back together.

Emma Smith-Barton

A deftly woven, beautiful story of friendship and support, with a nuanced yet perfectly pitched exploration of memories and memory loss for young readers

Sophie Anderson, author of The House with Chicken Legs

A wonderful tale of love’s resilience through times of forgetting with colourful themes of betrayal, loss and hope running through it. Emma Smith-Barton manages to deal with these themes with maturity whilst maintaining their readability for a younger audience in a beautiful way.

Atlas's Grandpa is beginning to forget things. The end of stories, where he put things - and Atlas is worried that soon Grandpa will forget him, too. Mum says that will never happen, not really - but Atlas is determined to fix him. 
 
Skye is forgetting things, too. Like how it feels to have her big sister around now she's left for uni, and the smell of her Grandma's perfume. She's never felt more lonely - until she meets Atlas, a new boy at school who needs her help. 
 
Together Atlas and Skye set out to piece together the missing memories of Grandpa's past - and learn how to live with a future that feels uncertain. 
 
Told in alternating verse and prose chapters between Atlas and Skye, this is a beautiful story about love, memory, and the power of learning to let go.

Atlas and Skye

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Emma Smith-Barton

Praise for Atlas and Skye

A deftly woven, beautiful story of friendship and support, with a nuanced yet perfectly pitched exploration of memories and memory loss for young readers

A wonderful tale of love’s resilience through times of forgetting with colourful themes of betrayal, loss and hope running through it. Emma Smith-Barton manages to deal with these themes with maturity whilst maintai ...

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‘It was the first time I saw myself in literature’: Penguin authors on the book they wish they read in school

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