‘‘ Cassie Kemp.
put into residential homes because laws forbade the servicemen to marry.” Jasmine felt there was an opportunity to combine real-life history with Arthurian mythology creating a story that featured a black knight. “This hadn’t previously been seen in UK children’s fiction. For
research, I went on a three-day walking holiday to the original Holincote House where many of the real-life brown babies lived. It’s now a hotel with the Exmoor moors all around. I also read Britain’s Brown Babies, watched documentaries Britain’s Secret War Babies (Ch4) and Black and British: A Forgotten History, as well as explored the Mixed Museum’s YouTube channel.”
Patrice Lawrence’s novella, Needle, was also influenced by research. “It was inspired by being on the advisory group for a project creating an anti- racist guide for lawyers to challenge the over-representation of black people in the criminal justice system. I was asked by Laura Janes, then legal director of the Howard League, to be involved. Laura recognised the power of stories. The story I was interested in was ‘what happens if you refuse to show remorse?” Needle won the Little Rebels Award for Radical Children’s books and was also shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal for Writing. Patrice recounts the story. “Charlene is a 15-year-old black girl who’s been in foster care since her mother died. Her younger sister, Kandi, lives with Kandi’s father. Charlene uses knitting like a meditation, to calm her
Autumn-Winter 2025
It’s vital that children’s fiction is inclusive and represents the diversity of the society we live in. – E. L. Norry
mind and her hands. After a particular stressful day, she arrives back at her foster mum, Annie’s, to find Annie’s son, Blake, returned from university. He purposefully unravels the blanket that Charlene has been making. She stabs him in the web of skin between the thumb and forefinger – apparently called the ‘purlicue’ – and refuses to apologise. She’s arrested and starts a journey through the criminal justice system.” One of the many strengths in the book is the intersectionality that it explores between being looked after in foster care, being black and racial disproportionality in the criminal justice system. “As a society, we are terrible at acknowledging grief unless it’s displayed in ways that doesn’t make others feel uncomfortable. We’re terrible at allowing young people to be angry, even when they have a very valid reason. Care-experienced young people have often experienced numerous losses and have every reason to be angry! The common movement between placements, the splitting up of siblings, the challenging circumstances that lead to them being taken from their families – it must be incredibly difficult to ever feel safe and secure.”
Repeated moves and leaving the
care system can be particular pressure- points as J.P. Rose discusses. “Birdie’s story reflects a reality that many care- experienced children of colour face: leaving the children’s home doesn’t just mark a change in circumstance, it marks the beginning of a journey through a world that may not receive them with understanding or warmth. Like Birdie, many young people and children are not only adjusting to new surroundings, they’re navigating identity in a space which might not be welcoming.” J.P. Rose believe stories can be powerful agents for change. “When children like Birdie see themselves in books not just as background characters, but as the hero of their own story they start to believe their experiences matter. That their voice counts. That they deserve to take up space in the world. And for those who haven’t lived Birdie’s experience, books can open hearts, challenge assumptions, offer connections and build empathy.”’ PEN&INC.
PEN&INC. 27
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