John Agard's Windrush Child

By Author / Illustrator

John Agard, Sophie Bass

Genre

Representation & Inclusion

Age range(s)

Publisher

Walker Books Ltd

ISBN

9781529501124

Format

Hardback

Published

10-03-2022

Synopsis

A Beautifully evocative story of a child's journey to England on board Empire Windrush, from an internationally celebrated, multi-award-winning poet and an extraordinary debut illusrator.

"you're stepping into history
bringing your Caribbean eye
to another horizon"

With one last hug, Windrush chid waves goodbye to his Caribbean home and sets sail across the ocean to Britain. In this powerful picture book, full of hope and promise, celebrated poet John Agard and illustrator Sophie Bass movingly evoke the journey made by children and their families as part of the Windrush Generation.

"A beautiful poetic and visual delight" Joseph Coelho. "John Agard's hopeful poem commemorates a child's Windrush journey from the Caribbean, and bold and vivid illustrations sing of palm trees and mangos left behind, and new experiences, including pigeons and terraced houses and snow." The Sunday Times (Culture)

Download Extract

Reviews

'When we first read John Agard's Windrush Child, illustrated by Sophie Bass, we didn’t realise how important the story was. We just thought it was about a boy moving home. When we realised just how unfairly people had been treated, it was surprising that these families stayed in the UK. It just goes to show that with resilience, things can change. We hope things will continue to improve and books like this for us kids will really help.' J aged 10.

'The bright, bold illustrations in Sophie's first book are so eye-catching. They switch between the warmth of Caribbean and they grey of the UK. Our favourite illustration was the sea with the blue water rolling by. It looked as if the water was moving and reminded us of Vincent Van Gogh's night skies.' H aged 10.

For any class looking at migration and needing to see a positive impact on communities, then this book is worth investing in.

Picture book / Reviewed by Sharon Porter, teacher, and her pupils