No Ballet Shoes in Syria

Aya is an asylum seeker from Syria, living in Manchester with her mother and baby brother. A talented ballet dancer, she fears that has all been left behind her in the cold, unfamiliar world she has found herself in where she must care for her mother and brother. However, she is drawn to a ballet class in the community centre whilst they are waiting to see their case worker and her talent is recognised by the dance teacher. The potential to gain a ballet scholarship gives her hope for the future, but her family must fight to be allowed to stay in the country- and to try to find Aya’s father.

Beautiful, powerful writing encouraging empathy and compassion, ‘No Ballet Shoes in Syria’ would make an excellent quality text for inspiring work in class. Offering plenty of opportunities for developing writing, drama and debating skills, using a rich vocabulary and adding the colour of dance and its ability to express emotion. It is a glorious read!

No Ballet Shoes in Syria

Catherine Bruton

Nosy Crow ISBN: 978-1788004503

Wisp- A Story of Hope

Idris is a refugee child, living in a world of shadows and barriers. This is the only life he knows. One day, the Wisp arrives on the evening wind, unnoticed by everyone, but Idris. For those who hold it, the Wisp evokes memories, reawakening hope and joy. For Idris who has known nothing but life in this camp, there are no memories to stir, yet he realises that for him it offers promise of change, a promise for the future.

Breathtakingly beautiful, ‘The Wisp’ is an extraordinary picture book. Hope is at the heart of the story; whatever the wisp might be- a message, a story, a secret, protest, solidarity- it offers the dream of a better future as well as the joy of memories, the importance of preserving what makes each person individual.

Full of imagery, the language used throughout the book is as stunning as the illustrations.

A swelling sea of rememberings twirled on the air and shimmered in the breeze

Idris tasted the pull of the moonlight and explored the soft scent of new knowings.

The story challenges the reader to think about refugees as real people who have past lives and hopes for the future. It challenges them to think of the darkness of the ‘small, small world’ refugees live in. It challenges them to see the individual.

The illustrations are so evocative, cleverly using colour to mirror the mood of the story and those in it. The whole book is simply captivating and offers plenty of opportunity for discussions about refugees and hope for change.

Simply stunning.

Wisp: A Story of Hope

Zana Fraillon, illustrated by Grahame Baker- Smith

Hachette ISBN: 978- 1408350119

A Story Like the Wind

Adrift on the wide ocean in a flimsy boat meant for pleasure, not rescue, a group of strangers huddle together. Each has their own story. Each is clinging to the hope of freedom.

Cradling all he has left, Rami feels lost. As his fellow travellers share their stories and try to share their meagre possessions with him, Rami refuses, saying he has nothing to offer in return. But he has the case he is cradling to his chest which contains a violin...

'Too fragile. Too intricate. Too beautiful. Suspended silence from some other world.'

And so Rami offers music and story with their power to heal and their gift of hope.

I cried as I read this book. That Gill Lewis is a powerful storyteller is no surprise, but in 'A Story Like the Wind' her lyrical writing coupled with the beauty of the illustrations and the poignance of the subject matter left me breathless.

As Rami shares the 'first story' of his instrument, remembered 'in the grain of wood of its body, in the tautness of its strings and in the scroll of its neck', the personal stories of those in the boat become entwined with it. As he plays, his inspiring tale of standing firm in the face of oppression and injustice offers each of them hope and the determination to keep the song of freedom alive.

The illustrations are fabulous. Each one is a real work of art, complementing the beautiful text in the telling of both the stories of the refugees and the traditional Mongolian tale of the origin of the horsehead violin.

If you only read one book this year, make this the one.

A Story Like the Wind

Gill Lewis, illustrated by Jo Weaver

OUP     ISBN: 978-0192758958