When Our Worlds Collided: Winner of the YA Book Prize and the Jhalak YA Prize!

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That you would have to just get used to the taunts, unprovoked checks by both the police and even school staff, just because your hue isn't lily-white? I was surprised to see that there was little hype to the book given that Danielle Jawando's debut book, "And The Stars Were Burning Brightly" created quite a buzz.

All the themes in the book are covered with sensitivity and care from witnessing an attack to dealing with the attitudes of others, relationships and sexuality. Some really hard themes, but an incredibly thorough book - and the interwoven theme of all of their friendship developing throughout whilst they are having to deal with so much was really touching. I’ll still fight in the Battle Nexus, I can promise you that, but I don’t want to be under contract. Nominated for the Yoto Carnegie 2023 Awards, I'm sensing a definite push with these nominations towards books that explore themes of identity and belonging and which have a clear focus on exploring social issues. I spent many years working in a further education college and this was something that I saw happening time and time again.

The three main protagonists led similar lives to those of their peers until circumstances throw them together. Make you tear up (if your heart is a tissue like mine 👀) and even maybe, open your eyes to the things you have been blinded from before. While this made no difference to my enjoyment of the story, I found myself infuriated by the mistakes made in regards to grading in schools. As both ‘When Our Worlds Collided’ and ‘And the Stars Were Burning Brightly’ explore quite challenging issues this is recommend for Year 9 and above. Racism against black people are seriously discussed throughout the plot, along with violence and deaths were mentioned multiple times.

There are themes of racism, representation, family and found family, abuse and violence in the book and I would suggest it for a 'YA' and above readership ie Year 9 up. Living with the prejudices and never ending pressures of being a teenager in an inner city location didn't however mean a lack of naivety about the situations they found themselves in and they were all likeable young adults who I wanted to succeed.Jackson is from a wealthy household with his mother and father and attends private school, while Marc and Chantelle struggle to make ends meet and have no relationship with their parents. With but a single moralisation stemming from the two jealous love rivals, boxes of urgent medical supplies are flown to a stranded group of people that everyone including us know are all going to be incinerated in a few days. I created them many years ago with the intent of them serving in my army, but they were stripped away from me, and are now nothing but annoying pests who are always getting in the way.