The Night Bus Hero

'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.

“Rauf's latest has a quite brilliant premise in which the bully, not the bullied, tells his tale. A thought-provoking and often very funny story which constantly plays with reader expectations.”

i
A hopeful, sensitive page-turner that proves that no one is ever a lost cause. -- Nicolette Jones The Times
Rauf is a remarkable storyteller - 'The Boy at The Back of The Class' is a must read - and this is another thought-provoking, well-written novel. Age 9+ -- Sarah Webb independent.ie
Rauf's books tackle challenging subjects and this is no exception, illuminating both the tragedy of homelessness and the power of unseen acts of kindness in our midst. -- Sarah Mallon The Scotsman
Onjali Q. Rauf won a raft of awards for The Boy At The Back Of The Class and she returns with The Night Bus Hero. In this lively, entertaining read, an unsettling encounter with a homeless man sets school bully Hector on the trail of robbers. -- Charlotte Heathcote and Emma Lee-Potter Daily Express

Winner of the Waterstones Children's Book Prize in 2019, the Blue Peter Book Prize 2019, and other international accolades since, Onjali Q Rauf's first book The Boy at the Back of the Class was inspired by a baby met in the refugee camps of Calais, France, whilst on an aid convoy for her organisation, O's Refugee Aid Team. Telling the story of a group of friends befriending a refugee boy at school with depth and humour, it continues to be a must-read for children and adults around the world.

Rauf's second release went on to win the Diversity Book Award for Children's Fiction (UK) 2020. The Star Outside My Window drew on her experiences as founder and CEO of Making Herstory - an organisation working to help women and children flee the impacts of male-led domestic violence. Her ongoing works with homeless communities, food banks, homeless shelters, as well as her personal experiences of racism, sexism and bullying, led to the releases of The Night Bus Hero, The Great Food Bank Heist and ultimately, The Lion Above the Door.

Following an influx of enquiries from children about how to aid refugees and the homeless, or fight for the environment and the rights of women and girls, Rauf wrote her first non-fiction title Hope on the Horizon, as a personal guide to budding young activists everywhere.

In 2023, a deep love for funny sayings coupled with that of travelling, led to the release Where Magic Grows: a collection of of seven original fairy tales in which Rauf celebrates the peoples and cultures of such lands as Syria, Egypt, Japan and India.

Rauf was recognised for her services to literature and women's rights in the 2022 New Year Honours.

Twitter: @OnjaliRauf / @MakeHerstory1 / @O_Refugee

Website:

From Onjali Q. Rauf, the award-winning and best-selling author of The Boy at the Back of the Class , comes another incredible story, told with humour and heart. '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 'cos 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! And it's only gotten worse since I played a prank on the old man who lives in the park.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... Told from the perspective of a bully, this book explores themes of bullying and homelessness, while celebrating kindness, friendship and the potential everyone has to change for the good.

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