 First edition | |
| Author | Nick Walker |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Headline Review |
Publication date | 7 May 2002 |
| Media type | Print (paperback) |
| ISBN | 0-7472-6876-2 |
Blackbox is the first novel by British writer Nick Walker.
| First edition | |
| Author | Nick Walker |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Headline Review |
Publication date | 7 May 2002 |
| Media type | Print (paperback) |
| ISBN | 0-7472-6876-2 |
Blackbox is the first novel by British writer Nick Walker.
A stowaway dies on board a flight.
A major theme of the book is six degrees of separation, the theory that people are linked by a surprisingly small number of connections. [1]
Six degrees of separation is the idea that all people are six, or fewer, social connections away from each other. As a result, a chain of "a friend of a friend" statements can be made to connect any two people in a maximum of six steps. It was originally set out by Frigyes Karinthy in 1929 and popularized in an eponymous 1990 play written by John Guare. It is sometimes generalized to the average social distance being logarithmic in the size of the population.
The book is written as a countdown of 840 chapters, some as short as a few words. The author creates an atmosphere which has been compared to those in novels by Chris Morris and J. G. Ballard. [2]
Christopher Crosby Morris is an American author of fiction and non-fiction, as well as a lyricist, musical composer, and singer-songwriter. He is married to author Janet Morris. He is a defense policy and strategy analyst and a principal in M2 Technologies, Inc. He writes primarily as Chris Morris, a shortened form of his name, but occasionally uses pseudonyms.
James Graham Ballard was an English novelist, short story writer, and essayist who first became associated with the New Wave of science fiction for his post-apocalyptic novels such as The Wind from Nowhere (1961) and The Drowned World (1962). In the late 1960s, he produced a variety of experimental short stories, such as those collected in the controversial The Atrocity Exhibition (1970). In the mid 1970s, Ballard published several novels, among them the highly controversial Crash (1973), a story about symphorophilia and car crash fetishism, and High-Rise (1975), a depiction of a luxury apartment building's descent into violent chaos.
The book was longlisted for the British Book Award and the Whitbread First Novel Award. [3]
The Costa Book Awards are a set of annual literary awards recognizing English-language books by writers based in Britain and Ireland. They were inaugurated for 1971 publications and known as the Whitbread Book Awards until 2006 when Costa Coffee, a subsidiary of Whitbread, took over sponsorship. The companion Costa Short Story Award was established in 2012.
The Carnegie Medal is a British literary award that annually recognises one outstanding new English-language book for children or young adults. It is conferred upon the author by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP). CILIP calls it "the UK's oldest and most prestigious book award for children's writing" and claims that authors call it "the one they want to win".
Nicholas Edward Cave is an Australian musician, singer-songwriter, author, screenwriter, composer and occasional actor, best known for fronting the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Cave's music is generally characterised by emotional intensity, a wide variety of influences, his baritone voice and lyrical obsessions with death, religion, love and violence.
Nicholas Peter John Hornby is an English writer and lyricist. He is best known for his memoir Fever Pitch and novels High Fidelity and About a Boy, all of which were adapted into feature films. Hornby's work frequently touches upon music, sport, and the aimless and obsessive natures of his protagonists. His books have sold more than 5 million copies worldwide as of 2018. In a 2004 poll for the BBC, Hornby was named the 29th most influential person in British culture.
Peril at End House is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, first published in the US by the Dodd, Mead and Company in February 1932 and in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in March of the same year. The US edition retailed at $2.00 and the UK edition at seven shillings and sixpence (7/6).
The Nestlé Children's Book Prize, and Nestlé Smarties Book Prize for a time, was a set of annual awards for British children's books that ran from 1985 to 2007. It was administered by Booktrust, an independent charity that promotes books and reading in the United Kingdom, and sponsored by Nestlé, the manufacturer of Smarties candy. It was one of the most respected and prestigious prizes for children's literature.
The Kate Greenaway Medal is a British literary award that annually recognises "distinguished illustration in a book for children". It is conferred upon the illustrator by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) which inherited it from the Library Association.
Robert Macfarlane is a British writer and Fellow of Emmanuel College, Cambridge. He is best known for his books on landscape, nature, place, people and language, which include The Old Ways (2012), Landmarks (2015) The Lost Words (2017), and Underland (2019). In 2017 he received The EM Forster Award for Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
A black box is a device, object, or system whose inner workings are unknown; only the "stimuli inputs" and "output reactions" are known characteristics.
A White Walker is a humanoid creature from the HBO television series Game of Thrones, and the George R. R. Martin novel series A Song of Ice and Fire on which it is based. Primarily referred to as the Others in the novels, White Walkers are a supernatural threat to humankind who dwell north of The Wall in Westeros. The Verge named them among "the most visually iconic creatures on the show". White Walkers are also featured in the show's merchandising.
Canongate Books is a Scottish independent publishing firm based in Edinburgh; it is named for the Canongate, an area of the city. It is most recognised for publishing the Booker Prizewinner Life of Pi. Canongate was named Publisher of the Year in 2003 and 2009.
Malcolm Charles Peet was an English author and illustrator best known for young adult fiction. He has won several honours including the Brandford Boase, the Carnegie Medal and the Guardian Prize, British children's literature awards that recognise "year's best" books. Three of his novels feature football and the fictional South American sports journalist Paul Faustino. The Murdstone Trilogy (2014) is his first work aimed at adult readers.
The Graveyard Book is a young adult fantasy novel by the English author Neil Gaiman, simultaneously published in Britain and America in 2008. The Graveyard Book traces the story of the boy Nobody "Bod" Owens who is adopted and raised by the supernatural occupants of a graveyard after his family is brutally murdered.
The Federation of Children's Book Groups Children's Book Award is a set of annual literary prizes for children's books published in the U.K. during the preceding calendar year. It recognises one "Overall" winner and one book in each of three categories: Books for Younger Children, Books for Younger Readers, and Books for Older Readers. The selections are made entirely by children, which is unique among British literary awards. It was previously known as the Red House Children's Book Award.
Man on Wire is a 2008 British-American biographical documentary film directed by James Marsh. The film chronicles Philippe Petit's 1974 high-wire walk between the Twin Towers of New York's World Trade Center. It is based on Petit's book, To Reach the Clouds, released in paperback with the title Man on Wire. The title of the film is taken from the police report that led to the arrest of Petit, whose performance had lasted for almost one hour. The film is crafted like a heist film, presenting rare footage of the preparations for the event and still photographs of the walk, alongside re-enactments and present-day interviews with the participants, including Barry Greenhouse, an insurance executive who served as the inside man.
Patrick Ness is a British-American author, journalist, lecturer and screenwriter. Born in the United States, Ness moved to London and holds dual citizenship. He is best known for his books for young adults, including the Chaos Walking trilogy and A Monster Calls.
Jillian Tamaki is a Canadian American illustrator and comics artist known for her work in The New York Times and The New Yorker and for the graphic novels Boundless, as well as Skim and This One Summer written by her cousin Mariko Tamaki.
Gone Girl is a 2014 American psychological thriller film directed by David Fincher and written by Gillian Flynn, based on her popular 2012 novel of the same title. The film stars Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Neil Patrick Harris, and Tyler Perry. Set in Missouri, the story begins as a mystery that follows the events surrounding Nick Dunne (Affleck), who becomes the prime suspect in the sudden disappearance of his wife Amy (Pike).
House of Secrets is a 2013 children's novel by Chris Columbus and Ned Vizzini. The book was first published on April 23, 2013 through Balzer + Bray and is the first book in the House of Secrets series. The book follows the three Walker family children as they attempt to find a secret book and rescue their parents in the process. Rights to the book were sold in 12 foreign territories.
The Ayn Rand Cult is a book by journalist Jeff Walker, published by Open Court Publishing Company in 1999. Walker discusses the history of the Objectivist movement started by novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand, which he describes as a cult.