The Boy at the Back of the Class - Onjali Q. Rauf

The Boy at the Back of the Class - Onjali Q. Rauf

"Mum says that the best books leave you with more questions than answers, and that's the fun part - you have to try to find the answers for yourself somewhere else."

Written in the first person, the book tells the story of 9 year old Ahmet, a refugee who arrives in a classroom unable to speak any English.  Told from the point of view of one of his new class-mates, the story tells the incredible journey of what it's like to join a class where everything and everyone is alien to you and the lengths children will go to when they are determined to become friends.

O's opinion:

From the start I loved how the main character wanted to help Ahmet and make friends with him so started giving him sweets. The fact that Ahmet wasn't talking to anybody for the first few days but started to speak to the children who met him at the end of school made me happy for him. I liked how he started coming out to break and was amazing at football, as this gave him something to connect to his classmates with without the need to talk.

This book is amazing and is one of my favourite reads ever. I loved the friendship that binds the four children together to help Ahmet and makes them want to be friends with him. This book should be on everybody's wish list. A truly stunning read about friendship. AMAZING!

K's opinion:

Everything about this book is beautiful!  

I'd seen lots of Tweets about the book and heard many positive reviews so I was keen to read it; however, I'm not certain how ready I was to be blown away by it!

I think the fact that it's written in the first person gives it a very personal quality and allows emotions to seep through the pages.  

The main character certainly has their own struggles: Dad is dead and Mum works all hours in order to provide for the two of them - I love the idea of their 'adventures' and now see pomegranates wherever I go!  This is a Mum who truly values her time with her child. I think this is why the main character is the driving force behind wanting to become Ahmet's friend and also the one who comes up the with plan to help find his family before 'the gates close'.

Despite the very serious nature of the theme of the book, there is a lightheartedness to it in places, perhaps because it's written from the point of view of a 9 year old, and this allows what is, at times, a very sensitive subject, to become identifiable and accessible to children.

The innocence of the main characters in the book I think is one of the best things about it: they're not swayed by prejudices or preconceived ideas; they simply want to become Ahmet's friend and to help him find his family.  There is most certainly a lesson for all of us to learn from this book.

This is a book about friendship; difference; acceptance; small gestures that can have a big impact; standing up for what you feel is right; perseverance; family (in whatever shape it comes in) - this book packs a big punch in all the best ways.

Favourite quotes from the book : 
"I love being tucked up in bed ... It's the best feeling in the world to be wrapped up all warm and fuzzy in a blanket by someone you love more than anything else on the planet, and who loves you right back."

(because I love this time of day as a Mum)

"Mum says that the best books leave you with more questions than answers, and that's the fun part - you have to try to find the answers for yourself somewhere else."

This is, in all the best possible ways, a book that will leave you with questions, meaning it's a book that will stay with you long after you've read it.  It's a triumph of a novel.