A moving, insightful book about two brothers -- one with black skin, one with white skin -- and their movement through the foster care system in England during the 1980s.

Leon, the title character in Kit de Waal's latest book, has shouldered more responsibility than any 10 year old should. Try as he might to be the best caretaker for his infant brother, and his mentally unstable mother, social services soon splits up the family. Leon learns the hard truth that while there are families willing to adopt a white baby, like his brother, he will likely live out his childhood and teen years in the foster care system.

This book is a poignant look at the fragile nature of kids in unstable situations, their desperation to just belong, and hope that maybe if they can just be "good enough" their family can get back together. It also shows the power of love and how "family" isn't necessarily the group we were born into.

Thank you to NetGalley and Viking for a galley of this book in exchange for an honest review. ( )

This is a book that didn't start well for me. The first few pages made me feel that here was a book I could trot through easily enough, but with no particular enjoyment. In fact, it soon engaged me. I was drawn into Leon's life, his circumstances of going into care for the nth time, away from the mother he loves, and later, the baby brother he adores.

I enjoyed the story as it moved on. The increasingly important role of the allotment in his life, Tufty and Mr Devlin, seemed likely. We know school isn't a success for Leon, despite his being a bright boy. I was surprised at how little we see of his unhappy and unsatisfactory school life, though most of his week is spent there. Though I think that's fine.

What is less fine is the ending. After the crisis with carers Maureen and Sylvia, when Leon believes they plan to move to Hastings, buy a dog and abandon him, when he unwittingly gets involved in the local rioting, we suddenly find ourselves facing a 'happily ever after' ending. Suddenly Leon seems to have accepted his situation. He seems to accept Maureen and Sylvia as his family. The longing for baby brother Jake seems to have taken a back seat. The implication seems to be that his pilfering may have stopped. Just like that. Or am I reading too much into that last chapter?

So ..... a readable book giving real insight into the difficulties so many vulnerable children face. It wasn't a thoroughly successful book, nevertheless it was eye-opening and thought-provoking.

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I received an e-arc of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. This did not affect my opinion of the book in any way.

What a great way to start 2017! My Name is Leon was everything a book could be: emotional, funny, well written and delicately touching upon terribly difficult topics. Go read it now!

No, seriously... What are you still doing here? Go!

Oh well, since you're still here, let me tell you why you should bother with this little gem of a book. Firstly, this book was highly original. I loved the fact that our protagonist is a biracial young boy whose family is so messed up he and his brother end up in foster care. This is a very sensitive topic, and one I actually rarely see represented in books. Yet somehow, the author managed to touch upon the issues faced by fostered children ever so lightly, truly helping the reader see the world from Leon's point of view. I was touched by this little boy's deep, deep love towards his mother and brother, I was amazed by his sense of responsibility and suffered his same frustration when his whole world collapsed.

Also, I loved the characters. Leon himself was incredibly well developed, growing and changing throughout the book. He is a real kid, with his problems, and his dreams. It was very interesting to get inside his little boy's mind to witness first hand exactly how he lived through all the things that happened to him. Themes of discrimination, equality, children's rights are delicately built in the story, so that it never feels like a lecture but still manages to get you thinking. The secondary characters were also very well developed, despite being seen only through Leon's eyes.

Heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time, My Name is Leon is one book that, even in its simplicity, will capture you entirely. Perfect to cozy up with in the cold winter, preferably with a good cup of English tea to get you in the right mood. ( )

I have very mixed feelings about this book. I really wanted to like it more than I did--especially because it held so much promise. The plight of Leon (a young mixed race boy in the foster care system) is way too common and realistic. You feel the emotion and pain every time Leon thinks about his brother, Jake. You grieve as Carol (Leon and Jake's mother) never steps up to the plate to take care of her sons. And because Leon is "old" he is less desirable--this bothers the reader.

However, the book lost me midway through; I wish it hadn't. I ceased to be as engaged with the story as I had been earlier in the book. The writing style changed, too many characters were introduced. And I get it--the core message of the book is that "family" looks VERY different than we imagine it to look, that it can be found in many places with many people. But there were too many people. It also went on too long (and it is a relatively short book). I stopped caring--not about Leon--but about everyone else. So.....can I really give an opinion on the end of the book? No. Because I just don't remember that much about it. ( )

My Name is Leon is a heartbreaking, beautiful, and all too real story, about a young boy forced by his mother's decisions to grow up too fast and shoulder responsibility no child should ever have to carry.

It's a story about the foster care system and how families can be separated, even when they want to stay together.

It's a story about parents who shouldn't be parents and children who make the best of the situations they find themselves navigating alone.

But above all, it's a story about family - the one we're born into and the one we choose for ourselves. It doesn't necessarily have a happy ending, but it does have a hopeful ending, and sometimes, that's better. ( )