A review by gracegreenlaw
The Star Outside My Window by Onjali Q. Raúf

5.0

Aniyah and Ben’s mum has disappeared and become a star, ‘The Star Outside my Window’ follows their journey to finding their mum and understanding why she had to become a star. After reading the fantastic ‘The Boy at the Back of the Class’ by the same author I was excited to see whether this would be equally good. This book was moving and funny at the same time. It reminded me of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, I think because it is written largely from the perspective of Aniyah who, due to the trauma that she has experienced, recalls events that have happened in her life in an almost naive way. This makes the book even more moving to read because, as an adult, you are painfully aware of what Aniyah and her brother have truly gone through. The language used is simple with lots of ‘family’ dialogue that children would be familiar with.
While this is a great book that depicts a group of children, bonded by the fact that they are in foster care, going on wild adventures to London, the themes are heavy and some careful pre-work should be completed before reading with a class. Definitely for upper KS2 children with their individual backgrounds taken into consideration before reading.