Additional information
by Nick Wood (Author), Giles Croft (Introduction by)
A Girl with a Book and Other Plays brings together four plays for young people by acclaimed playwright Nick Wood. Topical and wide-ranging, they concern refugees, friendship, loss and courage.The PlaysA Girl with a Book: Nick Wood's poignant political drama A Girl with a Book is based on the true story of Nobel Peace Prize Winner Malala Yousafza. In 2012, gunmen stopped a bus in Pakistan and shot three young girls. Their crime? Wanting to go to school. Knowing nothing about the situation, able to offer little more than outrage, the writer is forced out from behind his desk and in the search for answers to help him tell the story of a brave young woman's fight for girls' education, but when his research uncovers attitudes at odds with his liberal convictions he has to face what he learns about himself. Achieving international acclaim after its opening in Hamburg, A Girl with a Book examines Malala's story through a series of questions, for instance, whether a middle-aged, middle-class white man could ever understand the world of a young Pakistani girl. Using quotes from Malala, the two other girls involved in the shooting and Malala's father, the writer's journey attempts to piece together the story and come to an understanding of the issues surrounding it. He speaks to members of different communities, his own wife and even imagines speaking to Malala herself. During the process Wood remains grounded in his stance as an outsider looking in, picking at the hypocrisy of how we can criticise the oppression of women in one culture but not another as he struggles with his own prejudice and privilege. He asks how a girl who wanted to go to school could become such a target.
Bird boy: On an ancient fortress, two boys swear a pact of friendship. Eddie and Tim create their own den up on the Knoll, a secret place for heroes. The only problem is, winter is setting in and Eddie won't come down. As the snow falls, Tim must decide whether to take food to Eddie or betray him by telling the grown ups where he is. It is a play about transitions from childhood to adolescence, from loner to friend.
Mia: Of Roma background, Mia is a refugee who has lost her home, and most of her family. She has odd bits and pieces in her bag, which have stories attached to them. Mia has received a postcard of this town from her sister, Sofia, who has disappeared. She tells them about Sofia, shows them a photograph and reveals her fears.
A Dream of White Horses: Paul's father, Rick, was a professional climber who fell to his death climbing a cliff in Wales. Paul wants two things - to climb the same cliff and to find out whether his father's death was an accident or suicide. He is helped by friends Stevie and Martin, from the same town. On the climb, Paul discovers what happened to his father, and a great deal about himself.
Author Biography
Nick Wood was an actor, journalist and teacher before writing full time. Recent commissions have come from BBC Radio 4, Derby Playhouse, the Bridewell Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company, Nottingham Playhouse, Action Transport, and the Theatre Royal, Plymouth. His plays have been produced in Canada, the USA, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Croatia, and Bosnia, and have won several awards in Europe. He has also worked with young people running writing workshops and leading theatre based projects, both in the UK and abroad.
