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A review by jjoany
The Lion Above the Door by Onjali Q. Raúf
5.0
Another triumph from an incredible writer. Onjali Ralf has done it again. It sounds cliched to say “I laughed, I cried” but I genuinely laughed out loud whilst reading, got choked up by the emotional ending, and stayed up way past my bedtime to finish it. It’s safe to say that I loved it.
Leo, a boy living in the UK but of Singaporean descent, cannot see anyone who looked like him when studying World War 2- all the names sound like British royalty, and he feels like his ancestry are lesser to his classmates. Until, he spots a name on the cathedral wall honouring the soldiers from WW2, and not just any name- his own name. Suddenly, Leo wants to know, who was this soldier, what is his story, and could he have been named after this Leo? The race is on, especially as his class have been chosen to prepare an assembly and display board which might even make it onto TV. Can he find out the information in time, to make everyone remember a forgotten hero?
A story that deals with racism, and the lived experiences of many children here in the UK, in a sensitive but insightful way, and delivers a hopeful and inspirational message.
Leo, a boy living in the UK but of Singaporean descent, cannot see anyone who looked like him when studying World War 2- all the names sound like British royalty, and he feels like his ancestry are lesser to his classmates. Until, he spots a name on the cathedral wall honouring the soldiers from WW2, and not just any name- his own name. Suddenly, Leo wants to know, who was this soldier, what is his story, and could he have been named after this Leo? The race is on, especially as his class have been chosen to prepare an assembly and display board which might even make it onto TV. Can he find out the information in time, to make everyone remember a forgotten hero?
A story that deals with racism, and the lived experiences of many children here in the UK, in a sensitive but insightful way, and delivers a hopeful and inspirational message.