The Night Bus Hero
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- $6.99
Publisher Description
'The boy's an absolute menace.'
'He's a bully. A lost cause!'
'Why can't he be more like his sister?'
'I've been getting into trouble for as long I can remember. Usually I don't mind - some of my best, most brilliant ideas have come from sitting in detention. But recently it feels like no one believes me about anything - even when I'm telling the truth! Everyone thinks I'm just a bully. They don't believe I could be a hero. But I'm going to prove them all wrong...'
Meet Hector: a bully whose dastardly antics spiral out of control when, after school one day, he decides to bully a homeless man in the local park.
But as London's most famous statues and emblems go missing and its homeless communities are pointed to as the thieves, has Hector managed to pick on the leader of them all? And if so, what can he do in a world that won't believe a word he says?
Written in lockdown when - for the first time in history - London's homeless community were gifted shelter, The Night Bus Hero explores themes of bullying and homelessness, and the potential everyone has to change for the good.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
When 10-year-old bully Hector witnesses the theft of an artifact by London thieves who have been implicating unhoused people in their crimes, he publicly accuses Thomas—an unhoused man whose belongings Hector once pushed into a lake—of perpetrating the crime. When he realizes he's made a mistake, Hector connects with classmate and teacher's pet Mei-Li as well as Thomas's best friend, and learns to cooperate with others to break a code and discover the culprit. Though Hector's actions are at first entirely self-serving, his transition into a kinder and more aware person is welcome, with Raúf (The Star Outside My Window) providing credible opportunities for the protagonist's growth, including time spent volunteering in a soup kitchen and conversations with members of the unhoused community he serves. A focus on Hector's increasing understanding of the consequences of his actions—and readers' growing enlightenment of the experiences that contribute to his frequently cruel behavior—showcase the importance of compassion and forgiveness. Character ethnicity and race are unspecified throughout. Back matter includes a discussion of bullying and housing insecurity, and an author's note. Ages 10–up.
