Scan barcode
amandasannes's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
alm_07's review against another edition
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Death, and Murder
arlothegooddinosaur's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
artisticbookworm's review against another edition
4.0
This is a story filled with hope and courage. It covered a topic called 'Domestic Abuse', which I don't usually think about and isn't usually included in children's books. It was told in an innocent child's point of view, but makes the story still seem realistic. I think books need to cover these topics more often, but in a kid-friendly way. (Definitely recommend!) :)
emilyyyrich's review against another edition
4.0
In short, this novel is simple yet touching story which follows four young protagonists as they try and get to Royal Observatory in London to name a star.
Onjali Q. Raúf is like the Jodi Picoult of the kids’ world. She does an incredible job of tackling tricky issues in a way that kids can easily access. In this book, she looks at the impact of domestic violence and children being put into the foster system. At the end of the novel, an author’s note tells the reader about Raúf’s personal experience with this: she had an aunt who was killed by her husband. As a result, Raúf has set up a women’s rights organisation called Making Herstory. And wrote this book, obviously.
If I’m totally honest, I didn’t enjoy this quite as much as The Boy at the Back of the Class. Despite the different context, the plot seemed fairly similar, with a young girl travelling into London with a group of friends to try and talk to ‘people in charge’.
I also feel like things wrap up just a bit too neatly in her books. I understand that they’re for children, but the fact that the people in charge always give the main character exactly what they want seems like it’s going to give kids an unrealistic view of the way the world works.
Despite this, I enjoyed the book and will definitely take to school as I think my class will love it. 3.75/5
Onjali Q. Raúf is like the Jodi Picoult of the kids’ world. She does an incredible job of tackling tricky issues in a way that kids can easily access. In this book, she looks at the impact of domestic violence and children being put into the foster system. At the end of the novel, an author’s note tells the reader about Raúf’s personal experience with this: she had an aunt who was killed by her husband. As a result, Raúf has set up a women’s rights organisation called Making Herstory. And wrote this book, obviously.
If I’m totally honest, I didn’t enjoy this quite as much as The Boy at the Back of the Class. Despite the different context, the plot seemed fairly similar, with a young girl travelling into London with a group of friends to try and talk to ‘people in charge’.
I also feel like things wrap up just a bit too neatly in her books. I understand that they’re for children, but the fact that the people in charge always give the main character exactly what they want seems like it’s going to give kids an unrealistic view of the way the world works.
Despite this, I enjoyed the book and will definitely take to school as I think my class will love it. 3.75/5
carolineroche's review against another edition
5.0
A beautiful story which made me cry. Powerful and moving, this story about the effects of domestic abuse on young children. It is also gently written so that the target audience of years 6 to 8 would not be unduly distressed in reading it but would be informed. The last pages has done useful information for anyone currently suffering from domestic abuse.
libby_gt's review against another edition
5.0
This book was truly one of the most heartbreaking things I have ever read - but it was wonderful at the same time. As in her more well-known novel "The Boy at the Back of the Class", Rauf has an amazing skill for imparting difficult topics through a child's eyes.
The story is told from the perspective of ten-year-old Aniyah, who has recently been put into foster care with her brother Noah. When she sees a news item about an unusual star spotted by astronomers, she believes this star is their mother watching over them, and sets out to make sure the star is identified as such by the scientists at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich. She is very determined, and - with the help of Ben and Travis, her new foster "brothers" - embarks on an epic race to London from a village in Oxfordshire to do so.
I found the last couple of chapters to be particularly emotional. Though what has happened with Aniyah's parents can be inferred by adult readers fairly early on, it is only as the novel ends that her innocent perspective begins to falter. Though I would be mindful of recommending this book to certain children due to the subject matter (namely domestic abuse and parental bereavement), I found it to be an extremely valuable, insightful and thought-provoking text.
The story is told from the perspective of ten-year-old Aniyah, who has recently been put into foster care with her brother Noah. When she sees a news item about an unusual star spotted by astronomers, she believes this star is their mother watching over them, and sets out to make sure the star is identified as such by the scientists at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich. She is very determined, and - with the help of Ben and Travis, her new foster "brothers" - embarks on an epic race to London from a village in Oxfordshire to do so.
I found the last couple of chapters to be particularly emotional. Though what has happened with Aniyah's parents can be inferred by adult readers fairly early on, it is only as the novel ends that her innocent perspective begins to falter. Though I would be mindful of recommending this book to certain children due to the subject matter (namely domestic abuse and parental bereavement), I found it to be an extremely valuable, insightful and thought-provoking text.
rikkir77's review against another edition
4.0
The Star Outside My Window is an emotional, devastating book about a young girl whose life is shattered by domestic abuse. All of her life, Aniyah’s mother has been protecting her and her brother Noah from the truth of what is really happening in their house. When they end up at a foster house, they know something has changed because they heard their mother’s heart leave her body and become a star. The siblings along with two other foster kids attempt to keep her mother’s name attached to the new star that everyone has been watching. I think this is a realistic look at how a child would respond to domestic abuse. I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because it ended a little too unrealistically for me. But, i still cried and really enjoyed reading this book.
suebarsby's review against another edition
2.0
Please consider better editing. There are only so many metaphors about feelings manifesting themselves like sea creatures that anyone can suffer. Plus this only gets going halfway through - there’s an incredibly long intro section. Not nearly as good as it could have been.
lucbooks's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0