Winner of the CILIP Carnegie Medal 2016. Winner of The Bookseller's 2016 prize for young adult fiction.
Award-winning Sarah Crossan tells an astonishing and difficult story with the surest of touches in this tender, funny and life affirming book. Grace and Tippi are twins. Not just twins but conjoined twins, sharing the lower half of their bodies. Somehow they have always managed to be individuals while also part of each other. Now teenagers, Tippi and Grace are facing increasing difficulties. They are off to school for the first time meeting new experiences and especially new friendships and relationships. While Tippi longs for things to remain the same, Grace yearns for something more. Falling in love with classmate Jon she begins to imagine a future full of romance and love. But will there be a future for Grace and Tippi? When a desperate decision needs to be taken the girls lives must change forever. Sarah Crossan tells an original and utterly gripping story brilliantly.
Grace and Tippi are twins - conjoined twins. And their lives are about to change. No longer able to afford homeschooling, they must venture into the world - a world of stares, sneers and cruelty. Will they find more than that at school? Can they find real friends? And what about love? But what neither Grace or Tippi realises is that a heart-wrenching decision lies ahead. A decision that could tear them apart. One that will change their lives even more than they ever imagined...
From Carnegie Medal shortlisted author Sarah Crossan, this moving and beautifully crafted novel about identity, sisterhood and love ultimately asks one question: what does it mean to want and have a soulmate?
'Sarah Crossan writes with insight and honesty in this moving story of family, friendship, and love' Claire Furniss, author of The Year of the Rat
‘This is such an honest story about family relationships and the way that things aren't always as they might first appear. Apple's innocence is sometimes funny and at times, heartbreaking - she tells her story with an openness that is very appealing. Apple and Rain is perfect for readers who want to read about an ordinary person with an extraordinary family’ Rebecca Westcott, author of Dandelion Clocks
'Apple and Rain is a beautifully crafted story about painful reunions, loyalty and the true meaning of love; a story with a deep emotional core, both heart wrenching and heart-warming.' Sita Brahmachari, author of Artichoke Hearts
‘This poignant, realistic tale is about learning to love and taking responsibility, and about how poems can tell the truth’ Sunday Times
‘A great, heartfelt book about two girls thrown together who form a bond that will help them through good times and bad’ Kiss magazine
‘It’ll make you laugh and cry . . .’ Company
‘Unreliable adults, complex friendships and family ties are explored with sensitivity in this finely crafted story’ The Bookseller
‘Crossan’s skill as a writer is at its most pronounced, contributing to a portrayal of adolescence that is subtle and humane’ Irish Times
‘Highly recommended for readers who like hard-hitting tales about real-life situations’ Irish Independent
‘An inspiring tale’ Irish Examiner
‘Engrossing and uplifting, challenging and charming’ Booktrust
Author
About Sarah Crossan
Sarah Crossan has lived in Dublin, London and New York, and now lives in East Sussex. She graduated with a degree in Philosophy and Literature before training as an English and drama teacher at the University of Cambridge. The Weight of Water and Apple and Rain were both shortlisted for the CILIP Carnegie Medal. In 2016, Sarah won the CILIP Carnegie Medal as well as the YA Book Prize, the CBI Book of the Year award and the CLiPPA Poetry Award for her novel, One.
Sarah is the go-to writer of the free verse novel in the UK and Ireland, and is the current Laureate na nÓg (Ireland’s Children’s Literature Laureate). Her theme as Laureate is #WeAreThePoets, a two-year project inspiring young people to express themselves through poetry and verse.
