"Impeccably researched and vividly portrayed, this award winning debut will really make your aspiring football stars think about wider global issues and the reality of other lives"
Shortlisted for the UKLA Book Awards 2019 | Winner of the Branford Boase Award 2018
Like lots of kids in this country, Budi lives for football, training with his friends whenever he can, following his team with a passion and dreaming about playing at the top level. But Budi lives in Jakarta and works ten hours a day making the football boots his sporting heroes wear, and earning just pennies for doing it. The descriptions of his working conditions will shock readers, but Budi’s acceptance of them as inevitable is almost more upsetting. Lively, funny, always optimistic, Budi will win readers’ hearts and his positivity ensures the book remains an accessible page-turner even as his life gets very bleak indeed. A vividly told story that has lots to say about the world, and the importance of hope and fate, represented here by Real Madrid.
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Brilliant book for the ages of 10-13 years old. It's about a boy called Budi who loves football and who dreams of becoming a football star. Fantastic book and great ways to hook a reader because I am loving it! Defo worth a read
So I have read 116 pages of this book and already feel the need to do a book review! If you are between the ages of 10-13 years old and like sports this is the book for you. It's about a boy called Budi who dreams of becoming a football star. Mitch Johnson has created a really good book that I'm getting through very quickly because I'm loving it so much.... Read Full Review
