When Anthony and his parents leave their house with just a small bag and Anthony’s teddy bear, it looks as though they are going out for a couple of hours. Yet they are leaving forever. Their journey takes them through a forest, where they have to overcome challenges and face their fears.
Will they all make it out safely?
This true story teaches young readers about people risking everything to escape to a better life.
Becca Perl is a copywriter, journalist and food writer who lives with her family in Christchurch, Dorset. She rediscovered a love of drawing during lockdown and has been illustrating ever since. Becca has been working on telling her family’s story after graduating with a Master’s degree in Creative Writing in 2012.
How The Book Came To Be
Becca explains: “Don’t Look Back tells the true story of my grandparents’ and my dad’s escape from Czechoslovakia. It’s a story I heard as I was growing up, but I only started to really absorb the magnitude of what they did when I was an adult. Can you imagine embarking on a journey so dangerous you’re carrying a gun loaded with three bullets? And you’ve made a pact with your spouse that if you are captured, you will first shoot them, then your child, then yourself. That’s the agreement my grandparents made with each other before their escape.
I’ve felt compelled to tell this story for a long time – in part to honour my family history and in part because it’s a great story! I felt a certain amount of time pressure, as my dad isn’t getting any younger.
I deliberately kept the time and place generic in my book, because it’s not just our story – it’s the story of so many. According to the European Commission, 110 million people around the world have been forced to flee their homes because it is not safe for them to stay there, and over 36 million of these displaced people are refugees. They share the same desperation as my grandparents and risk their lives to reach a better place. That’s why I’m donating 50p to The Refugee Council for every copy of Don’t Look Back sold.
I guess tales of displaced people, immigrants or refugees aren’t your average topics for kids’ books. Someone looked at me in horror when I explained what my book was about and said: “THAT doesn’t sound like a kids’ book.” Must kids’ books only be about dinosaurs and unicorns, farmyard animals and poo? I mean, all those subjects are popular for good reason. But isn’t there space in the market for something else? Can’t kids’ absorb big topics? I think we’re not giving them enough credit if we answer no. Children are like little sponges, ready to absorb a lot of information. We don’t need to dumb down for them. We just need to present things in an age-appropriate way. My two little boys are fascinated by this story, and have been my biggest supporters and critics throughout!”
RELEASE DATE: 28/10/2024 ISBN: 9781835740750 Price: £7.99