Book blog tour: Raz Beri by Matt Stephens (Children's, 9 years +, 10/10E)

 

29th August 2024, Firefly Press,  173 pages, Paperback, Review copy 

Summary from Firefly Press

 Billy has cerebral palsy and he’s had enough of his classmates treating him differently. But then Mia arrives and announces a school visit from her uncle: a famous footballer. Maybe being a star footballer in front of his classmates will help Billy prove to his class that he can be just like them. But when even the famous footballer turns out to be just as bad as the school bullies, Billy begins to realise that perhaps he doesn’t need to prove anything to anyone but himself.

Nayu's thoughts

It's an honour to be the first stop on this blog tour for Matt's newest book, Raz Beri. Beneath my review there is a special post from Matt talking about why he wrote Billy's tale. 

While I never watch football of any kind, for some unknown reason I enjoy reading football themed stories. Growing up at school I was bullied a little for my chronic illness, although I'd never heard the slur raspberry ripple (meaning cripple) before Raz Beri, so I instantly related to the premise of Billy's tale. A very good friend of my has cerebal palsy so I know a lot about Billy's condition too. Billy definitely suffers a lot. I hate how cruel children can be, and how low a person can feel when bullied. 

I enjoyed watching Billy slowly (ever so slowly at some points) learn to be more assertive. His pet dog bears the brunt of his experimentation which was amusing, and the catalyst is new girl Mia who is very connected to football. The twist to her plot point was unexpected and very much had me on tenderhooks. She is not a shy wallflower, quite gobby but being a wheelchair user means Billy has company in games. She isn't always friendly to Billy, but she forces him to change his life for the better. 

 I was utterly appalled by how Billy was treated by some of the teachers - unacceptable is an understatement to what they said and did. I feel their behaviour both validated and increased the bullying Billy received. I'd have maybe expected that when I was a child in the 80s and 90s, but the 2020s? No way. I sincerely hope that is not happening anywhere in the country. I'm not getting started on footballer Danny Cash, he is scum in my view, with an appalling attitude that I'm glad was brought into the spotlight and forced to change. 

The reason for the change was a combination of Billy and Mia's teamwork, after he gets hit in the face with a football. I could understand why the publicity wanted to smooth things over, but I'm glad Billy developed backbone and made his & dozens of other people's voices heard very publicly at a football match. It was a genius form of retaliation, not at all violent and it got the message across. 

Suggested read

If you like football check out this ball themed poetry book  Give Us a Goal by Paul Cookson (Children's, Non-Fiction, Poetry, 8/10)

 

Author guest blog post by Matt Stephens

Why I wrote Raz Beri  

I find it really hard to say why I write anything. It’s a cliché but the best work always seems to write itself. I feel almost like a cypher, having little or no idea what my pen will scribble next. Sometimes my motivation only becomes clear to me after the writing.

It’s easy though to identify the germ of the idea behind Raz Beri. Some years ago at Ashton Gate, home of Bristol City FC, a City player lost his temper at a refereeing decision, picked up the ball and hammered it into the crowd. Wholly predictably, the ball hit a child in the face causing her to need hospital treatment. There was a storm of local outrage and both player and club had to do some major PR work to smooth things over.

The story ended there but it lodged itself in my brain and that mysterious thing called “the back burner” clearly got to work. What if this had happened at a high-profile club? What if the player was a major star? What if the incident had been watched by millions on national television? What if the child had been a wheelchair user? What if, what if…?

I sat down with a pen and paper (yes, I always start with a pen and paper) and the story began to write itself. Chapter followed chapter and I began to realise I was writing a book! My planning really is that sketchy. Different narrative arcs began to weave themselves together. Diversity became a crucial theme, with regards to both disability and race.

The journeys that we go on is a central theme of Raz Beri. The main protagonists, Billy and Mia, are young teens, developing as people. They learn resilience. Billy learns he has a strength he never knew about. The main adult character, Danny Cash, is on a journey of his own. For much of the story, he is the epitome of the arrogant, entitled Premier League footballer. The inspirational actions of Billy and Mia force him to reconsider his values and his lifestyle. He learns he is capable of humility and empathy. Attributes he has been hiding very well for years. The point is, we must never stop learning. The day we do, we are in trouble and, more importantly, are those around us.

And my motivation for writing Raz Beri? I’m not sure yet. Ask me in a year’s time.