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Robert Swindells facts for kids

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Robert E. Swindells (born March 20, 1939) is a British author who writes exciting books for children and young adults. He is famous for his powerful stories that often deal with important real-world issues. For example, his young adult novel Stone Cold, which is about homelessness, won the prestigious Carnegie Medal in 1993. This award celebrates the best children's book by a British writer each year.

About Robert Swindells

Robert Swindells was born in Bradford, a city in Yorkshire, England. He left school when he was 15 years old and started working for a newspaper. After that, he served in the Royal Air Force and had several different jobs.

Later, he decided to train as a teacher for primary school children. While he was still training, he wrote his very first novel, When Darkness Comes. It was published in 1973. For a while, he balanced writing with teaching, but in 1980, he became a full-time writer. He continued writing for many years, even past his 70th birthday.

Stories with a Message

Robert Swindells won his first Red House Children's Book Award for his book Brother in the Land (1984). This novel tells a story set in a world after a big disaster. Swindells was a supporter of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, a group that works for peace and against nuclear weapons. He once said that Brother in the Land came from his "own anger and frustration" because nuclear weapons can harm millions of people.

He won three more Red House awards for his books:

  • Room 13 (1989)
  • Nightmare Stairs (1998)
  • Blitzed (2003)

Involvement in Politics

Robert Swindells also got involved in local politics. In 2010 and 2011, he ran as a candidate for the Green Party of England and Wales in his local area, Worth Valley, for the Bradford City Council. He wanted to help make his community a better place.

Awards and Recognition

Robert Swindells has won many important awards for his books. Here are some of them:

Other Recognitions

Some of his books have also been highly praised or shortlisted for other awards:

Selected Works by Robert Swindells

Here is a list of some of the books Robert Swindells has written:

  • When Darkness Comes (1973)
  • A Candle in the Night (1974)
  • Voyage to Valhalla (1976)
  • Ice Palace (1977)
  • The Weather Clerk (1979)
  • Ghost Ship to Ganymede (1980)
  • World-Eater (1983)
  • Brother in the Land (1984)
  • The Thousand Eyes of Night (1985)
  • Staying Up (1986)
  • A Serpent's Tooth (1988)
  • Room 13 (1989)
  • Follow a Shadow (1989)
  • Daz 4 Zoe (1990)
  • Stone Cold (1993)
  • Timesnatch (1994)
  • Inside The Worm (1994)
  • Unbeliever (1995)
  • Jacqueline Hyde (1996)
  • The Last Bus (1996)
  • Nightmare Stairs (1997)
  • Smash! (1997)
  • Hurricane Summer (1997)
  • Abomination (1998)
  • Dosh (1999)
  • Invisible! (1999)
  • Doodlebug Alley (2000)
  • A Wish for Wings (2001)
  • Wrecked (2001)
  • Blitzed (2002)
  • No Angels (2003)
  • Ruby Tanya (2004)
  • Roger's War (2004)
  • Branded (2005)
  • Snapshot (2005)
  • Snakebite (2006)
  • In the Nick of Time (2007)
  • Burnout (2007)
  • The Shade of Hettie Daynes (2008)
  • The Tunnel (2008)
  • Blitzed (2008)
  • A Skull in Shadows Lane (2012)
  • The Deep End (2013)
  • The Ghosts of Givenham Mansion (2021)

See also

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