⭐ Good story about resilience and starting over

I read this with my 6-year-old over a couple of nights. My child isn’t particularly into sports, but they were quite interested in the story of Peter’s family moving from Sudan to Egypt, and then finally settling in Australia. Usually, we stick to purely fictional storybooks, so introducing a real-life biography was a bit of a change for us, but the format worked well.

The book handles the topic of being a refugee in a gentle, straightforward way that is easy for a younger child to understand. It doesn’t get bogged down in heavy political details, which is appropriate for this age group, but it also doesn’t oversimplify the challenges his family faced. Reading about Peter having to leave his home led to a helpful conversation about how difficult it must be to move to a completely new country where you don’t know anyone, don’t speak the language, and have to start all over again.

The illustrations are nice and expressive. They do a good job of showing how Peter felt at different stages of his life, from being a bit isolated and unsure as a kid in a new environment, to finding his confidence and a sense of belonging once he started running tracking clubs at school. It was good for my child to see that success didn’t just happen overnight; it took a lot of adjustment and practice.

If you are looking for a simple way to introduce kids aged 5 to 7 to different life experiences, moving to a new culture, and the concept of resilience, this is a useful book to have on the shelf. It’s a quick, easy read that handles a big topic well without being overly dramatic.

Get your copy here.