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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Not something I would usually read but it was for a book club. Really enjoyed it, glad I chose audio version as narration was excellent and really helped bring some parts alive.
Very tough subject matters, very emotional and hard at times. Some light humour as well. The author did a great job at writing from perspective of a child. Would highly recommend.
Very tough subject matters, very emotional and hard at times. Some light humour as well. The author did a great job at writing from perspective of a child. Would highly recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Violence, Police brutality
Moderate: Blood, Suicide attempt, Abandonment
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A lovely evocation of the times in which it’s set that gains momentum as you move towards the unrest you know is coming. If anything it resolves too neatly at the end; suddenly everyone is best pals which might just be credible but is a little unsatisfying - you get the feeling that a lot of the reconciliation/settling as friends again has been done behind the reader’s back.
I kind of only read this bescause the Author is my friends aunt, but it was fantastic!
it is lovely, sad, heartbreaking and heartwarming, all at the same time. the author has really captured the situation as she has worked in child services, and she tells the story from a childs point of view perfectly.
it is lovely, sad, heartbreaking and heartwarming, all at the same time. the author has really captured the situation as she has worked in child services, and she tells the story from a childs point of view perfectly.
challenging
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Genuinely heartbreaking. It's from the perspective of a nine year old boy Leon in the eighties with an absent father, a baby brother, and a mother that just can't cope.
Leon tries very hard to look after both his brother and his mother, but obviously given his age it's an impossible task, and social services soon have to step in.
The entire novel is almost hard to read, it's so heavy and heart wrenching. There are bright spots when Leon interacts with well meaning adults, but the trauma of his past weighs heavily on Leon throughout the novel.
4.5 stars
Leon tries very hard to look after both his brother and his mother, but obviously given his age it's an impossible task, and social services soon have to step in.
The entire novel is almost hard to read, it's so heavy and heart wrenching. There are bright spots when Leon interacts with well meaning adults, but the trauma of his past weighs heavily on Leon throughout the novel.
4.5 stars
Beautiful book. Deeply emotional while still easy to read. Captures Leon's experience well, reminiscent of [b:Room|7937843|Room|Emma Donoghue|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1344265419s/7937843.jpg|9585076] in its ability to portray a childlike perspective written for adult readers.
this book captured my heart.....made me really think a lot. Love can be found in the places and circumstances where you least expect it - even as you are pining for someone else's love...
It takes a special kind of author to write convincingly from the perspective of a child, and Kit de Waal does a tremendous job with My name is Leon. When we meet Leon, he is an almost 9 year old boy whose mother has just had a baby and is suffering mental health issues as well as problems with alcohol.
She leaves Leon in charge of the baby, often for days at a time. Leon is a brave and smart kid and handles the situation impressively, but it's only a matter of time before the social services come knocking on the door, and the two boys end up in foster care. The foster mum, Maureen, is a flawed but good-natured, well-meaning character whom I adored. Leon also befriends a couple of older chaps at the local allotments and experiences quite a few hairy situations with them. He doesn't have any friends his own age and is an outcast at school.
It's a beautifully written and very emotive novel, very much in a linear form, but it's the 1980s Britain backdrop that takes the quality of this novel from very good to excellent. Even though these were challenging, even upsetting times, I loved all the political, cultural and social reminders of those days. As a 9 year old, Leon doesn't understand most of what is going on (racial tensions, police violence, miners' strikes, IRA etc.), but thanks to his naughty eavesdropping habit, the readers get the adults' perspectives, not only on the politics but also on Leon's future.
The author, Kit de Waal, has a background in criminal and family law, and has been on adoption panels as well as contributed to adoption manuals. De Waal's mother used to foster, and all this first hand knowledge - factual and emotional - along with the author's superb writing makes this an outstanding debut novel. I loved it.
P.S. Kit de Waal will be in Zurich (CH) at the end of October as part of a local literary festival, and I will most definitely try and attend her event.
P.P.S. I listened to My name is Leon on audio. Lenny Henry performs the reading, and he is an inspired choice. You wouldn't think so given his age, but his voice, accents and pitch are absolutely perfect. I'm so glad I didn't read read it.
She leaves Leon in charge of the baby, often for days at a time. Leon is a brave and smart kid and handles the situation impressively, but it's only a matter of time before the social services come knocking on the door, and the two boys end up in foster care. The foster mum, Maureen, is a flawed but good-natured, well-meaning character whom I adored. Leon also befriends a couple of older chaps at the local allotments and experiences quite a few hairy situations with them. He doesn't have any friends his own age and is an outcast at school.
It's a beautifully written and very emotive novel, very much in a linear form, but it's the 1980s Britain backdrop that takes the quality of this novel from very good to excellent. Even though these were challenging, even upsetting times, I loved all the political, cultural and social reminders of those days. As a 9 year old, Leon doesn't understand most of what is going on (racial tensions, police violence, miners' strikes, IRA etc.), but thanks to his naughty eavesdropping habit, the readers get the adults' perspectives, not only on the politics but also on Leon's future.
The author, Kit de Waal, has a background in criminal and family law, and has been on adoption panels as well as contributed to adoption manuals. De Waal's mother used to foster, and all this first hand knowledge - factual and emotional - along with the author's superb writing makes this an outstanding debut novel. I loved it.
P.S. Kit de Waal will be in Zurich (CH) at the end of October as part of a local literary festival, and I will most definitely try and attend her event.
P.P.S. I listened to My name is Leon on audio. Lenny Henry performs the reading, and he is an inspired choice. You wouldn't think so given his age, but his voice, accents and pitch are absolutely perfect. I'm so glad I didn't read read it.