Wow! eBook
The Blue Book of Nebo
Author(s): Manon Steffan Ros (Author)
- Publisher: Deep Vellum Publishing
- Publication Date: June 16, 2026
- Language: English
- Print length: 175 pages
- ISBN-10: 1646054342
- ISBN-13: 9781646054343
Book Description
Dylan was six when The End came.
Now he is fourteen. Since the disaster that changed everything, Dylan and his mam have survived in their isolated hilltop house above the village of Nebo in north-west Wales, learning new skills and returning to old ways of living. They trap rabbits, tend the vegetable garden, and take turns caring for Dylan’s little sister, Mona.
Dylan does not remember the time before they were alone, before the electricity went off for good, before the “normal” twenty-first century world disappeared.
His mother, Rowenna, has given him a simple task: to write in a journal, the book now in your hands.
When, one night, Dylan asks his mam to write too—the story of The End and of the life before that he cannot remember—the Blue Book of Nebo is created.
“We’ve agreed not to read what the other has written, just in case,” Dylan writes. “In case of what, I’m not sure.”
Together, they take turns writing their histories, what they remember, and what they can piece together of the outside world—and the secrets they have kept from each other for the past eight years.
What brought The End?
What was life like before?
Where did Dylan’s baby sister Mona come from?
Editorial Reviews
Review
Winner of the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing 2023
Longlisted for the UKLA Book Awards 2023
Winner of Wales Book of the Year 2019
Winner of the National Eisteddfod Prose Medal 2018
“Reminiscent of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road, Manon Steffan Ros’s The Blue Book of Nebo is an elegant, elegiac novel that tempers the enormity of nuclear Armageddon with personal, intimate relationships.” —Starred Review, Foreword Reviews
“[A] spare and intimate story of a family surviving a near-future global apocalypse…In a time rife with and ripe for stories of the end, this one stands out.” —Publishers Weekly
“A curiously sweet-tempered novel that finds the upside of global catastrophe.” —Kirkus Reviews
“A gentle, well-told story.” —The Modern Novel
“As 2021 draws to a close, a year stranger than most of us thought it would be, Ros’s quiet faith in quiet things, like cooking and mending, has appeal.” —Bethanne Patrick, “The Best Books of 2021 You May Have Missed,” Literary Hub
“[T]he book has resonated across Wales and, increasingly, the world; its dark, moving account of the resourcefulness of hope and love has propelled the book to a special place in contemporary Welsh writing.” —Casi Dylan, Words Without Borders
“The novel is a reflection on parenthood, consumerism, faith, language, and class, seen through the cynical eyes of the mother and the more hopeful outlook of her son. Both are careful to preserve their own truths and protect each other from hurt.” —Megan Farr, World Kid Lit
“A tender, tragic post-apocalyptic story, told with great simplicity and power.” —The Guardian
“This is a gentle, yet powerful read about how we live and what we pay attention to.” —Irish Times
“A thoroughly thought-provoking and enjoyable read, the folklore elements combine to provide a rich tale that’s perfect for both YA and adult readers.” —Buzz Magazine
“Manon Steffan Ros had created a remarkable story which encourages thought, discussion and further reading.” —Library Lady
“Manon Steffan Ros’s novel The Blue Book of Nebo intimately examines a post-apocalyptic world through the lens of the relationship between a mother and child.” —Largehearted Boy
“Set in North Wales following a nuclear explosion, The Blue Book of Nebo is surprisingly different from most post-apocalyptic novels. It’s entrancing and beguiling and full of life. Together Dylan and his mother Rowenna tell a wonderful and gripping story.” —Margot Livesey, author of The Flight of Gemma Hardy
“This short, searing tale has arrived in English at an eerily relevant time.” —Mary Wahlmeier Bracciano, The Raven Book Store
“An uplifting and thoroughly heart-warming take on the post-apocalyptic novel, this has all the markers of a modern classic.” —Lauren James
“An unforgettable story about survival – the survival of a language, a culture, and all of humanity.” —Francesca Rhydderch
“As insightful as it is honest.” —Mat Tobin
“Simply wonderful. Beautifully conceived, written and observed. A story infused with warning and sober hope.” —Nicola Davies
“Captivating. Raw. Memorable. Heartwarming.” —Jo Bowers
“This is storytelling at its most lean, at its fittest, at its very best.” —Gary Raymond
“A profound and deeply affecting novella.” —Simon Fisher
“I loved the fragile tender heart of this story.” —Zillah Bethell
“This novel gripped me from the very first sentence.” —Manon Rhys
“Gentle and tender, stark reality and loss and suffering…I didn’t want it to end.” —Sonia Edwards
About the Author
Manon Steffan Ros is a Welsh novelist, playwright, and screenwriter, and she is half of the Welsh folk duo Blodau Gwylltion. She has written more than forty books in her native Welsh language. Her novel Llyfr Glas Nebo (which translates to The Blue Book of Nebo) won the Welsh Book of the Year in 2019, as well as the People’s Choice Award and the prose medal at the 2018 National Eisteddfod. Her novels for children and young adults have won the Tir Na N’Og prize five times, and her novels Llyfr Glas Nebo and Blasu, as well as her play Two Faces/Dau Wyneb are on the Welsh curriculum for teaching in schools. Originally from Rhiwlas, a village in the mountains of north Wales, she now lives in Tywyn, a town by the ocean, with her family. Manon loves Liverpool Football Club, hiking, and cake.
