‘Home Girl’ by Alex Wheatle

Naomi, a teenage girl in the UK foster-care system, is placed with a temporary family, the Goldings. When she arrives at the Goldings’ home, Naomi is wary at first, especially of Tony, the father, because past experience has led Naomi to suspect men of wanting to sexually abuse her.

As her stay progresses, Naomi gradually comes to trust this new family; observing her become able to let down some of her barriers is one of the most moving aspects of this book.

Outside the household, on multiple fronts, this arrangement is bombarded with criticism. The reason is that Naomi is white and the Goldings are black ... and therefore any long-term stay would be “against official policy.” Tony’s father views the placement as “robbing” a black child of a stable home, and after foster-mother Colleen spends hours painstakingly braiding Naomi’s hair, another girl physically attacks Naomi because she decides that Naomi has appropriated a black hairstyle.

Altogether, Home Girl is a very moving book, which Young Adult readers might relate to. The author, Alex Wheatle, is known for inventing his own slang for use by his characters; his book Crongton Knights was a recipient of the Guardian Children’s Book Award.

I received a copy of this book through LibraryThing Early Reviewers