As part of the blog tour, I am thrilled to share a Q&A with author Hannah Durkan about her books, characters and gadgets. Check out the teacher resources below as well!
Please can you introduce us to your characters Zeina and Jackson?
Zeina Starborn is brave and adventurous; she knows what she wants and doesn’t worry too much about bending (breaking) rules to get it! As a Below, she should be happy to work in her polluted city for the rest of her life, yet she dreams of exploring the skies and is determined to do that, no matter the consequences. On the other hand, Jackson Willoughby can be quite sensitive and cautious. As an Above, he is destined to live a life of luxury aboard an airship or sky whale hotel, but what he really wants is to find friends and a family who cares about him. Zeina and Jackson clash completely as characters, but they must begin to trust and learn from each other if they are going to discover the hidden truths in their world.
Please can you tell us a little about some new characters in Book 2? Do you have any personal favourites?
There are quite a few new characters in Book 2, many of which have already become firm favourites of mine! One of them is Nedra, a new spy working for the Smog Rats. Nedra has recently been liberated from the Above mining grounds. She’s a talented thief, pick-pocket and a master of disguise, who has an expandable bag filled with costumes – the perfect spy!
Where did the gadget inspiration come from?
A lot of the gadgets in the series are based on real Victorian inventions with a little fantasy twist. Zeina’s aerocycle is a bicycle with airships parts to help it to fly and the airships themselves are based on Victorian steamships. In book 2 there are glindaskis, which are propellor-driven sledges!
Were you an avid reader as a child?
Yes – I read lots as a child. I found (and still do) great comfort in becoming completely absorbed in a book. Anything with a fantasy or magical theme was usually my first choice, but I also loved murder mysteries! I can remember stealing my parents’ Agatha Christie books when I ran out of reading material on holiday. Agatha Christie is still my ultimate comfort read.
Do you have any advice for parents or teachers who want to discuss climate change with their children?
Children are naturally curious about the world around them and so I find that pollution and climate change are often topics that they have questions about. It’s hard sometimes to know how best to address such a big issue honestly without being frightening and how you do that depends on the individual child. I think empowering them to do what they can – teaching them that the smaller things they can do as individuals do make a difference in the world – is invaluable. Teaching them to stand up for what they believe in is important too.
What do you hope readers take from this series?
I hope that the series inspires its readers to be curious about the world around them, to ask big questions and to have the strength to make a stand when they don’t like the answers. Zeina, as a character, is far from perfect, but she’s brave, determined to follow her dreams, she cares for others and is learning all the time. I wrote her that way because that’s the advice I would give my children on how to best make their way in the world.
Hachette have produced some brilliant teaching resources for this book so do check those out via the link below.
My Shelves Are Full 