My Name is Leon by Kit de Waal will be featured on the Radio 2 Book Club on Monday 6 June.
The book was selected with the help of a panel made up of Reading Agency and library staff from across the UK.
We have an exclusive extract available for you to read.
My Name is Leon
A brother chosen. A brother left behind. And a family where you’d least expect to find one.
Leon is nine, and has a perfect baby brother called Jake. They have gone to live with Maureen, who has fuzzy red hair like a halo, and a belly like Father Christmas. But the adults are speaking in low voices, and wearing Pretend faces. They are threatening to give Jake to strangers. Since Jake is white and Leon is not.
As Leon struggles to cope with his anger, certain things can still make him smile – like Curly Wurlys, riding his bike fast downhill, burying his hands deep in the soil, hanging out with Tufty (who reminds him of his dad), and stealing enough coins so that one day he can rescue Jake and his mum.
Evoking a Britain of the early eighties, My Name is Leon is a heart-breaking story of love, identity and learning to overcome unbearable loss. Of the fierce bond between siblings. And how – just when we least expect it – we manage to find our way home.
Selection panel review
Our library reading panel really enjoyed My Name is Leon – here are some of their comments:
“This book is absorbing and thought-provoking. The narrative is told from the perspective of a nine year old boy Leon and he is portrayed so realistically, and he is such an engaging character, that your heart goes out to him from the very beginning. He has to take care of his baby brother Jake when his mother is struggling with mental illness, which he does heroically well, but eventually he has to ask for help. His mother has to go to hospital, and he has to go to a foster home with Jake. The heart-breaking moment comes when Jake, who is white, is adopted, whilst Leon, who is not, has to stay with his foster mum Maureen. It gets even worse for Leon when Maureen is taken ill, and he has to go and live with her sister Sylvia. Leon becomes more and more angry, and determined to find Jake and take him away to live with his real family. No-one is perfect in this book, but everyone tries to do the best for Leon, and his foster mum is genuinely loving and a great character.”
“A well-written and compelling novel which, as we follow the very engaging character of Leon, looks at some uncomfortable issues around family life and what happens when that breaks down. Though thought-provoking the book is not a heavy polemic and has many humorous episodes, and in the end is warm and compassionate.”
About the author
Kit de Waal was born in Birmingham to an Irish mother, who was a foster carer and a Caribbean father. She worked for fifteen years in criminal and family law, was a magistrate for several years and sits on adoption panels. She used to advise Social Services on the care of foster children, and has written training manuals on adoption and foster care. Her writing has received numerous awards including the Bridport Flash Fiction Prize 2014 and 2015 and the SI Leeds Literary Reader’s Choice Prize 2014. My Name is Leon is her first novel. She has two children.
A word from Kit
“I’m chuffed to bits that My Name is Leon has been chosen for the Radio 2 Book Club. Can’t wait for you to read about Leon and Jake and really looking forward to your views and answering your questions.”
Get involved
Tune in to Simon Mayo’s Drivetime show on Monday 6 June to hear a live interview with Kit de Waal talking about her book.
Have you read My Name is Leon? You can share your thoughts with us on Twitter or follow author Kit de Waal.
Want to find out what other readers thought? Take a look at our reader reviews and leave your own.
Interested in discovering more? Take a look at the Radio 2 Book Club Twitter feed or find out more on the Radio 2 Book Club website.
