The Great (Food) Bank Heist

Product Information

It's important to show kids that not everyone around them is as lucky as them, that some people struggle even just to survive. Onjali Q Raúf is the founder of Making Herstory, an organisation mobilising men, women and children from all walks of life to tackle the abuse and trafficking of women and girls in the UK and beyond. Now the UK being a developed country, it hardly seems possible that there would be people struggling to get a decent meal three times a day, but apparently it is a reality that many prefer to ignore. The issue of food poverty is a difficult one that urgently needs to be addressed, yet so many are still completely unaware of many peoples lack, even those we may see every day. Some times though, it isn't enough, Mum has to pawn her jewelry, they go without meals, and generous friends share their snacks.

The Great (Food) Bank Heist - Peters Fraser and Dunlop (PFD) Literary The Great (Food) Bank Heist - Peters Fraser and Dunlop (PFD)

I feel it would resonant so well with some of the children in our school who have their own experiences of needing to use a food bank. It was very interesting on how they caught the thieves who were stealing food that were going to go to the food Bank.

Nelson loves the food bank, and dreams of all the wonderful foods that he hopes to get there, but after he visits the bank with his mum, there’s a problem, they don’t have as much food as they usually get at the food bank and it seems someone is stealing the food meant for them and others in need. First of all, the illustrations are fabulous - I recognised Elisa Paganelli's work and was excited to see how it looked, such a great addition to the story.

The Great (Food) Bank Heist by Onjali Q. Raúf - Barrington Stoke The Great (Food) Bank Heist by Onjali Q. Raúf - Barrington Stoke

Nelson loves Voucher Thursdays as Mum takes him and his little sister Ashley to the food bank, the best place in the world.It is a book that should be shared widely, not only to educate others to the lifeline that is a food bank but to encourage others to help support those in their time of need. Such a reflective book to challenge the society on whether it's fair at all when some kids have mountains of treats in the house and some don't even know what it's like to feel full.

The Great (Food) Bank Heist | Book reviews | RGfE The Great (Food) Bank Heist | Book reviews | RGfE

It explores the lives of a family forced to rely on the local food bank, raising the issue of how we support other in our society. The size of the book being around100 pages makes this idea for reluctant readers too, although anyone can pick up a copy of this book, even avid bookworms, as it’s such a great read and a portion of all the profits of this book go to the Trussell Trust and Greggs Foundation which help provide breakfasts. It shed light on a different narrative that many children perhaps don't think about: that people they know and are close with, might be hungry. It would be good to see a book by Onjali in the future that includes a host of social problems and not just one as a central theme. I also love that it shows their mom works, she is a nurse and works really hard, they don't steal or load up on food that is donated, they are very grateful for all assistance given and their friends don't judge them.We all need to understand how bad this is, and hiding it from children only leads to adults ignorant of the issue. For children seven through 12 with no prior expectation of the book, they will be emotionally effected by the reality shown and feel empathy and compassion for characters that will hopefully translate into their real life. Many days the kids have nothing to eat and they have to pretend that they are eating good wholesome food which is filling.

The Great (Food) Bank Heist by Onjali Q. Rauf | WHSmith The Great (Food) Bank Heist by Onjali Q. Rauf | WHSmith

I have tried to score the above as how I might have voted as an 8 year old - as an adult, it was rather lacking in substance, but then I'm about 17*, not 8! The book throws light on the issue in a way that little kids would relate to and might be inspired to even do something about. Nelson and his families unfortunate situation is narrated initially in a realistic and relatable manner. Many children today face food poverty and food banks and breakfast clubs really help those in need to have a good meal and I like how this story highlights this issue but doesn’t focus too much on the negative thoughts around it, instead focusing on the characters and them attempting to discover the mystery and save the food bank. The games Nelson plays to distract from the hunger and the way he describes not having enough food is truly humbling to those who haven’t experienced hunger.I'm sure there will be some people who would say that this is too harsh for a children's book, that kids want to be wowed by adventure and happy stories rather than being faced with these kinds of topics; but I have to disagree with that sentiment. The book is also filled with some great illustrations, an example of which you can see on the book's cover. At the food bank, Nelson’s family usually get four and five bags of food but this time, they only give him two. A percentage of royalties from the sale of this book will be given to Trussell Trust Food Banks, the Greggs Foundation Breakfast Club Programme and selected grassroots food bank charities.