Tag Archive | Orion Books

The Boy At The Back Of The Class by Onjali Q Rauf

Jun27

True Friendship

The Boy At The Back Of The Class by Onjali Q Rauf is a marvellous debut novel. It is a book that I just could not put down. It is suitable for ages ten years and over. In fact, it is a perfect book for anyone as it highlights the plight of refugees.

The book is written in the first person through the eyes of a nine year old living in London. Her school is a cosmopolitan one where children of all nations welcome the boy at the back of the class.

The only blot on the school landscape is that of the school bullies. We see them through the eyes of a child. We totally understand her thoughts and find her feelings easy to empathise with.

This is a tale of friendship that will go the extra mile in order to help improve a life.

Onjali Q Rauf writes through the eyes of a child, explaining her fears and her questions. There is humor in her words and sometimes well known phrases are heard and misquoted wrongly. “We didn’t say anything after that because sometimes you can tell grown-ups won’t listen to you anymore. Usually they say… ‘I’ve said my peas.’ “

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The Letter With The Golden Stamp by Onjali Q Rauf

May22

Engaging & Heartfelt

The Letter With The Golden Stamp by Onjali Q Rauf is a powerful contemporary children’s novel. It is perfect for ages ten years and over. Whatever your age, this book will leave you full of admiration for the lead character nine year old Audrey.

The book is about a single parent family in Swansea. The mother is often bed-ridden with osteoarthritis, leaving Audrey to run the house, looking after her four year old twin siblings and mother who has more bad days than good. “Some days we used to have what Mam calls a Sunshine Day. That’s when her bones feel like there’s a strong bit of sun heating them all up, and she’s not in too much pain, and I can go to school without worrying.” Audrey continually worries that if the authorities know, then she and her siblings will be taken away. Audrey feels isolated as she cannot confide in anyone.

Just occasionally Audrey does ‘normal’ things. “I felt normal. Like I was doing something everyone else got to do every day but I never usually did.” Audrey worries, so her Mam doesn’t have to. “I have to make sure Mam doesn’t worry about things too much.”

Audrey searches for her Tad, believing that he could fix things for her. This search leads her to take drastic action.

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The Stories Grandma Forgot And How I Found Them by Nadine Aisha Jassat

May23

Ripples

The Stories Grandma Forgot And How I Found Them by Nadine Aisha Jassat is a charming contemporary novel that is perfect for ages ten years and over. I am considerably older than the target market but I loved it.

The novel is about family, roots, love and grief. A twelve year old searches for her father whom she was told had died, but she is not convinced. With a new found friendship, she pieces together the clues of his life.

Children can be cruel. We witness the antics of Harry who bullies the lead character. She shows a maturity beyond her years in her approach to him.

Grief can last a lifetime. We witness a mother who is carrying on life for the sake of her daughter, after her husband died. The family unit is still made up of three members as they now look after the grandmother who has Alzheimer’s. “Alzheimer’s … it feels like… the person is slowly walking away.” The twelve year old has the ability to care for her grandmother and draw her out of herself as we glimpse who she once was. “It’s like having her fully back. Like she’s left Alzheimer’s in another time.” Grandmother and granddaughter are united by a secret.

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Lilac Skies by Shivani Bansal

Oct27

Powerful & Heartbreaking

Lilac Skies by Shivani Bansal is a powerful and heart-breaking historical novel that consumed me.

Lilac Skies is a novel by a woman about women. It is set mainly from 1942 and onwards to the mid 1960’s as we follow a young Asian girl from her teen years to marriage and beyond. We witness that girls are not always valued. They are seen as second class citizens. It is heart-breaking to witness. “Every night she swore she would love her daughter for eternity, should she ever have one.”

Arranged marriages are part of the culture. It is hard to witness the pain as a young girl is severed from her birth family to marry a stranger and to move across a continent.

The role of women in a marriage was often hard, so much was expected of them. They were at the mercy of their husbands, seen as possessions and punching bags more than a life partner. “She had heard neighbours hitting their wives before… She knew it was potentially part of being a wife.” It is heart-breaking to see that hitting is normalized and no one does anything about it.

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