Onjali Q. Raúf is an award winning and best selling children’s author and activist. Her books are especially noteworthy for helping the children of today understand and deal with a range of issues in a narrative that they can relate to in an engaging way. Her debut book, The Boy at the Back of the Class, was met with critical acclaim whose awards include the 2019 Blue Peter Book Award and Waterstones Children’s Book Prize.
Onjali is the founder of Making Herstory, an organisation that mobilises men, women, and children from all walks of life to pro-actively deal with the abuse and trafficking of women and girls in the UK and beyond. She is also the founder of O’s Refugee Aid Team, an organisation that provides much needed support for refugee families surviving in Calais and Dunkirk.
Her other titles include The Star Outside My Window, The Night Bus Hero, and a followup to The Boy at the Back of the Class, called The Day We Met the Queen.
The Boy at the Back of the Class
2019
There used to be an empty chair at the back of Mrs. Khan’s classroom, but on the third Tuesday of the school year a new kid fills it: nine-year-old Ahmet, a Syrian refugee. The whole class is curious about this new boy–he doesn’t seem to smile, and he doesn’t talk much. But after learning that Ahmet fled a Very Real War” and was separated from his family along the way, a determined group of his classmates band together to concoct the Greatest Idea in the World–a magnificent plan to reunite Ahmet with his loved ones.
Balancing humor and heart, this relatable story about the refugee crisis from the perspective of kids highlights the community-changing potential of standing as an ally and reminds readers that everyone deserves a place to call home.
The Star Outside My Window
2019
Ten-year-old Aniyah and her little brother Noah find themselves living in foster care after the sudden disappearance of their mum. With her life in disarray, Aniyah knows just one thing for sure: her mum isn’t gone forever.
Aniyah believes that the people with the brightest hearts never truly disappear. They become stars. When scientists discover a new star acting strangely, Aniyah knows it’s really her mum. To make sure everyone else knows, too, she embarks on the adventure of a lifetime–one that involves breaking into the Royal Observatory of London, and meeting the biggest star in Hollywood.
The Day We Met the Queen
2020
Please note that this is a World Book Day 2020 special which is no longer available to buy new and used copies may be hard to come by.
10-year-old Ahmet has become the Most Famous Refugee Boy in the World.
In fact, he’s so famous even the queen wants to meet him – and his four best friends! So they’re off to Buckingham Palace, with a list of questions for her and one special challenge: will she help more refugee children like Ahmet?
But when their journey is unexpectedly interrupted by an old enemy, it will take some quick thinking and an ingenious plan to make it to the palace – and the queen – on time.
The Night Bus Hero
2020
I’ve been getting into trouble for as long I can remember. Usually I don’t mind ‘cos some of my best, most brilliant ideas have come from sitting in detention.
But recently it feels like no one believes me about anything – even when I’m telling the truth! And it’s only gotten worse since I played a prank on the old man who lives in the park.
Everyone thinks I’m just a bully. They don’t believe I could be a hero.
But I’m going to prove them all wrong…
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