Description:

“Taut, emotionally intense, and wholly believable, this beautiful and uplifting debut” (Kirkus Reviews) about a young black boy’s quest to reunite with his beloved white half-brother after they are separated in foster care is a sparkling novel perfect for fans of The Language of Flowers.

Leon loves chocolate bars, Saturday morning cartoons, and his beautiful, golden-haired baby brother. When Jake is born, Leon pokes his head in the crib and says, “I’m your brother. Big brother. My. Name. Is. Leon. I am eight and three quarters. I am a boy.” Jake will play with no one but Leon, and Leon is determined to save him from any pain and earn that sparkling baby laugh every chance he can.

But Leon isn’t in control of this world where adults say one thing and mean another. When their mother falls victim to her inner demons, strangers suddenly take Jake away; after all, a white baby is easy to adopt, while a half-black, nine-year-old faces a less certain fate. Vowing to get Jake back by any means necessary, Leon’s own journey will carry him through the lives of a doting but ailing foster mother, Maureen; Maureen’s cranky and hilarious sister, Sylvia; a social worker Leon knows only as “The Zebra”; and a colorful community of local gardeners and West Indian political activists.

Told through the perspective of young Leon, too innocent to entirely understand what has happened to him and baby Jake, but determined to do what he can to make things right. In the end, this is an uplifting story about the power of love, the unbreakable bond between brothers, and the truth about what ultimately makes a family. My Name Is Leon will capture your imagination and steal your heart with its “moving exploration of race and the foster-care system that offers precious insight into the mind of a child forced to grow up well before his time” (Booklist).

Review

“An inspiring debut. . . . My Name Is Leon grows an entire garden of vibrant characters who, through shared experiences with societal racism, become the nurturing family Leon needs. Their arrangements may not be traditional, but the exquisite results prove that families can sprout in the most unlikely places.” —Shelf Awareness

“Taut, emotionally intense, and wholly believable, this beautiful and uplifting debut gives readers a hero to champion.” —Kirkus Reviews

"De Waal’s debut novel is exemplary in its portrayal of tender Leon, and his child’s worldview of tragic events adds pathos to trying circumstances. . . . This moving exploration of race and the foster-care system offers precious insight into the mind of a child forced to grow up well before his time." —Booklist

"Kit de Waal has already garnered praise and attention for her short fiction. She worked in family and criminal law for many years, and wrote training manuals on fostering and adoption; she also grew up with a mother who fostered children. This helps explain the level of insight and authenticity evident in My Name Is Leon, her moving and thought-provoking debut novel. . . De Waal skilfully brings her adult characters to life through the perspective of her child protagonist and she bestows great compassion on all her protagonists." —The Guardian

"This is the unforgettable story of a boy struggling to belong, and the author captures both his mindset and the period impeccably. Heartbreaking and uplifting—just read it." —The Daily Mail

“Leon is pure goodwill in a wicked world, and he won't leave you when you put this unique book down. Authentic and beautiful, urgent and honest, this novel does what only the best do: it quietly makes room in your heart. At the end of the story I couldn't bear to close the book on Leon. I felt I was abandoning him. I wanted to talk about it straightaway with someone else who’d read it, and I know a great many readers will feel the same." —Chris Cleave, bestselling author of Little Bee

“There is something about small boys and mothers that really tugs at me. I found it tender and heart-breaking." —Rachel Joyce, bestselling author of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry

"An important book and a beautiful story told with compassion, urgency, and wit. My Name Is Leon is in many ways a tribute to kindness: to those who need it most, and those who distribute it with least reward. Leon and Maureen are heroes, and I fell in love with them instantly." —Stephen Kelman, author of the Man Booker Prize-shortlisted Pigeon English

"Please read this book because Leon needs you as a champion, as does every Leon out there now. This is a superbly written book that will break your heart but also I hope spur you to action." —Heidi Durrow, New York Times bestselling author of The Girl Who Fell from the Sky

About the Author

Kit de Waal is an award-winning short story writer. She was born in Birmingham, UK, to an Irish mother and Kittian father. She worked for fifteen years in criminal and family law and writes about the urban underbelly, forgotten and overlooked places where the best stories are found. She has an MA in Creative Writing from Oxford Brookes University and is a founder member of Leather Lane Writers and Oxford Narrative Group. My Name Is Leon is her first book.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

My Name is Leon

1

April 2, 1980

No one has to tell Leon that this is a special moment. Everything else in the hospital seems to have gone quiet and disappeared. The nurse makes him wash his hands and sit up straight.

“Careful, now,” she says. “He’s very precious.”

But Leon already knows. The nurse places the brand-new baby in his arms with its face toward Leon so that they can look at each other.

“You have a brother now,” she says. “And you’ll be able to look after him. What are you? Ten?”

“He’s nearly nine,” says Leon’s mom, looking over. “Eight years and nine months. Nearly.”

Leon’s mom is talking to Tina about when the baby was coming out, about the hours and the minutes and the pain.

“Well,” says the nurse, adjusting the baby’s blanket, “you’re nice and big for your age. A right little man.”

She pats Leon on his head and brushes the side of his cheek with her finger. “He’s a beauty, isn’t he? Both of you are.”

She smiles at Leon and he knows that she’s kind and that she’ll look after the baby when he isn’t there. The baby has the smallest fingers Leon has ever seen. He looks like a doll with its eyes closed. He has silky white hair on the very top of his head and a tiny pair of lips that keep opening and closing. Through the holey blanket, Leon can feel baby warmth on his belly and his legs and then the baby begins to wriggle.

“I hope you’re having a nice dream, baby,” Leon whispers.

After a while, Leon’s arm begins to hurt and just when it gets really bad the nurse comes along. She picks the baby up and tries to give him to Leon’s mom.

“He’ll need feeding soon,” she says.

But Leon’s mom has her handbag on her lap.

“Can I do it in a minute? Sorry, I was just going to the smoking room.”

She moves off the bed carefully, holding on to Tina’s arm, and shuffles away.

“Leon, you watch him, love,” she says, hobbling off.

Leon watches the nurse watching his mother walk away but when she looks at Leon she’s smiling again.

“I tell you what we’ll do,” she says, placing the baby in the crib next to the bed. “You stay here and have a little chat with your brother and tell him all about yourself. But when your mommy comes back it will be time for his feed and you’ll have to get on home. All right, sweetheart?”

Leon nods. “Shall I wash my hands again?” he asks, showing her his palms.

“I think you’ll be all right. You just stand here and if he starts crying, you come and fetch me. Okay?”

“Yes.”

Leon makes a list in his head and then starts at the beginning.

“My name is Leon and my birthday is on the fifth of July, nineteen seventy-one. Your birthday is today. School’s all right but you have to go nearly every day and Miss Sheldon won’t let proper soccer balls in the playground. Nor bikes but I’m too tall for mine anyway. I’ve got two Easter eggs and there’s toys inside one of them. I don’t think you can have chocolate yet. The best program is The Dukes of Hazzard but there are baby programs as well. I don’t watch them anymore. Mom says you can’t sleep in my room till you’re older, about three, she said. She’s bought you a shopping basket with a cloth in it for your bed. She says it’s the same basket Moses had but it looks new. My dad had a car with no roof and he took me for a drive in it once. But then he sold it.”

Leon doesn’t know what to say about the baby’s dad because he has never seen him, so he talks about their mother.

“You can call her Carol if you like, when you can talk. You probably don’t know but she’s beautiful. Everyone’s always saying it. I think you look like her. I don’t. I look like my dad. Mom says he’s colored but Dad says he’s black but they’re both wrong because he’s dark brown and I’m light brown. I’ll teach you your colors and your numbers because I’m the cleverest in my class. You have to use your fingers in the beginning.”

Leon carefully feels the downy fluff on the baby’s head.

“You’ve got blond hair and she’s got blond hair. We’ve both got thin eyebrows and we’ve both got long fingers. Look.”

Leon holds his hand up. And the baby opens his eyes. They are a dusty blue with a deep black center, like a big period. The baby blinks slowly and makes little kissing noises with his mouth.

“Sometimes she takes me to Auntie Tina up on the next landing. I can walk up to Auntie Tina’s on my own but if you come, I’ll have to carry you in the basket.”

The baby won’t be able to speak until it’s much bigger so Leon just carries on.

“I won’t drop you,” he says. “I’m big for my age.”

He watches the baby blowing him kisses and leans into the crib and touches the baby’s lips with his fingertip.

His mom and Tina and the nurse come back all at the same time. Leon’s mom comes straight over to the crib and puts her arm round Leon. She kisses his cheek and his forehead.

“Two boys,” she says. “I’ve got two beautiful, beautiful boys.”

Leon puts his arms round his mom’s waist. She’s still got a round belly like the baby was still in there and she smells different. Or maybe it’s just the hospital. All the babyness made Leon’s mom puffed out and red in the face and now she’s near back to being herself again. Everything except the belly. He carefully touches his mother through her flowery nightie.

“Are there any more in there?” he says.

The nurse and Tina and his mom all laugh at the same time.

“That’s men for you,” says the nurse. “All charm.”

But Leon’s mom bends down and puts her face close to Leon.

“No more,” she says. “Just me and you and him. Always.”

Tina puts her coat on and leaves ten cigarettes on the bed for Carol to have later.

“Thanks, Tina,” she says, “and thanks for having Leon again. Think I’ll be out on Tuesday by the sound of it.”

Carol shuffles up in the bed and the nurse puts the baby in her arms. He is making little breathing noises that sound like the beginning of a cry. Leon’s mom begins to unfasten her cardigan.

“Isn’t he lovely, Leon? You be good, all right?” and she kisses him again.

The whole of the baby’s head fits into her hand.

“Come to Mommy,” she whispers and cradles him against her chest.

Tina’s flat is very different from Leon’s but it’s exactly the same as well. Both maisonettes have two bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs and a kitchen and living room downstairs.

Leon’s house is on the ground floor of the first block by the divided highway and Tina’s house is up on the next landing. The roadway has three rows of traffic on each side and the cars go so fast that they put a barrier up by the sidewalk. Now if Leon and Carol want to cross the road, they have to walk for ages to go to a crossing and press a button and wait until it starts to beep. The first time it was exciting but now it just makes it take longer to get to school in the morning.

Tina lets Leon sleep in the same bedroom as her baby. She always makes a bouncy, comfortable bed when Leon stays. She takes two cushions off the sofa and then wraps them in a blanket and puts a little baby’s quilt over him. When he is lying down she throws some coats on top and covers everything over with a bedspread. It’s like a nest or a den because no one would know he was there, like camouflage in the jungle. His bed looks like a pile of clothes in the corner but then “AAAGGGH,” there is a monster underneath and it jumps up and kills you. Tina always leaves the light on in the hall but tells him he has to be very quiet because of her baby.

Her baby is big and wobbly and his name suits him. Bobby. Wobbly Bobby. His head is too big for his body and when Leon plays with him, he always gets some of Bobby’s dribble on his hand. Bobby’s Wobbly Dribble. Leon’s brother won’t be like Bobby and just suck on his plastic toys all day and get his bib soaking wet. He won’t topple over on the sofa under the weight of his big head and just stay there till someone moves him. Leon always sits Bobby up but then Bobby thinks it’s a game and keeps on doing it.

Bobby loves Leon. He can’t talk and, anyway, he always has a pacifier in his mouth but as soon as Leon walks in the door, Bobby wobbles across the carpet and holds Leon’s legs. Then he puts out his arms for Leon to pick him up. When Leon’s brother is older they’re going to play together, soldiers and Action Man. They’re going to both have machine guns and run all over the house shooting at targets. Bobby can watch.

Tina’s house always has a window open and smells of baby lotion. Tina looks a bit like a baby herself because she’s got a round face with puffy cheeks and round eyes that bulge. She makes her hair different colors all the time but she’s never happy with it and Carol keeps telling her to go blond.

Tina always says, “If I had your face, Carol, it wouldn’t matter so much,” and Leon thinks she’s right.

Tina has a leather sofa that is cold and slippery on Leon’s legs and a sheepskin rug in front of the gas fire and a massive TV. She doesn’t let Leon call her “Tina,” like he calls his mom “Carol.” He has to call her “Auntie Tina” and he has to call Carol “Mom” because she says children have to have respect. And she doesn’t let Leon eat in front of the TV. He has to sit at a wooden table in the kitchen where there isn’t much room because she has a big fridge-freezer with ice cream in it. Bobby sits in his high chair smiling at Leon and Tina puts two scoops in Leon’s bowl and one for Bobby. Leon’s brother will probably only get half a scoop because he’ll be the smallest.

Sometimes, Tina’s boyfriend comes, but when he sees Leon he always says, “Again?” and Tina says, “I know.”

Reviews:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant

A.C. · September 7, 2016

I read the description and was reluctant to read on this day, having had experiences on both sides of adoption. I was having a day that needed uplifting! Started a sample earlier today and finished the book. I was so engaged by Leon and his story. Amazing character definition I could hear and see them all. Love and sadness and just real life, I couldnt put it aside, and yes the realness was uplifting and thought provoking through the voice of a child.

4.0 out of 5 stars Foster Care, Racism and the Wedding or Royals

V.W. · November 22, 2019

This is a heart-wrenching story of a young boy who goes into the foster system, never to get out. Along with Leon is his baby brother Jake, but Jake is a white baby and is adopted quickly while Leon is stuck in the system. Leon has to leave behind his favorite toys, his mentally challenged mother, his grandmother and the only home he has known. He goes into a world of ladies who seem to like him okay, but do they really love him? He sets out on a quest to find Jake again and to take care of him as he did when Jake was a young infant. This seems to be a realistic look at the foster care system and at children who want to escape but can’t. It also portrays, in the background, the upcoming wedding of Princess Diana to Prince Charles and the racial tensions of the early 1980’s.DisclaimerDisclosure of Material Connection: I own a hard copy of this book, purchased from Bolo. I was not required to write a positive review.

5.0 out of 5 stars A convincing tale of an unhappy little boy, with real narrative power.

P.C. · November 20, 2020

I am always interested in books about children and found Kit de Waal's creation of Leon compassionate and convincing. His fondness for his baby brother was heartfelt as was his mother's collapse and his final acceptance of that. The story had real narrative momentum too. A great read which has enlarged my understanding.

3.0 out of 5 stars Very intriguing

D. · April 6, 2019

Review of My Name Is LeonHot Toasty Rag, April 6, 2019From the first few pages of this extraordinarily written novel, I was hooked. Since I’m renowned for my lack of interest in children, that speaks very highly of Kit de Waal’s writing style. She’s written a book for an adult audience entirely from a child’s perspective, and it’s engaging and mature.The protagonist is Leon, a young black boy in England, whose mother is so incompetent and disinterested, she loses custody of her children. Leon is thrown into foster care, along with his infant half-brother whom he loves dearly and feels duty-bound to care for. While Leon’s brother is deemed adoptable because of his skin color and age, Leon is looked at as a lost cause. The boys are separated, and Leon has to adjust to a completely new world he has no control over and doesn’t understand. It’s a brilliant concept, and one that could have gone horribly wrong had it not been so carefully crafted and treated with kindness. The story is painfully realistic, and characters who could have been turned into evil stereotypes are given life.The book does take a surprising turn by introducing a political English environment, so be prepared if you decide to read this book that a large chunk of the novel seems incongruous with Leon’s relationships within the foster care system. I wasn’t prepared, and it wasn’t until I’d finished the book and read a question-and-answer section with the author that I understood why she included it. I still enjoyed the family and foster sections much better, and but there are probably many other readers who would understand the connection sooner than I did and therefore wouldn’t mind it. Deep-feeling readers who see characters becoming real will enjoy this book, since even I came to believe Leon was a real boy.

4.0 out of 5 stars The child’s voice comes across well.

L.L. · October 16, 2017

An engaging read told from the point of view of Leon an eight year old boy who we meet as he visits his mother in hospital as she has given birth to his new brother Jake. Leon adores his mother and his brother and as his home life is chaotic he believes he can look after them both , but as things go from bad to worse he has to ask for help which changes his life forever. The child’s voice comes across very well.

5.0 out of 5 stars It's a real world story

C.R. · August 4, 2016

I would actually love to see middle school to high school students read this and see the world in a different light. Almost thru their own eyes that haven't yet opened up. To be able to trust, see hope, know there are people out there that care and need caring. But then again it may make the ones that have no hope, no salvation angry. It's conflicting.

5.0 out of 5 stars I really loved this book

D.R. · September 6, 2017

I really loved this book. I fell in love with Leon. What a courageous character. Beautiful and sad story about a bi-racial boy who is separated from his white baby brother and placed in foster care.

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good story about a child in foster care

A.C. · February 14, 2017

Very good story about a child in foster care. It is a good story, by which I mean that the things that happen to Leon in Foster Care are primarily good and I think that is not the typical experience of a foster care child. But it is well written and Leon survives the system which is heartening.

A Must read!

M. · August 28, 2025

I can understand why this book has been turned into a film and apparently used as part of the school curriculum? There’s no melodrama it’s just a look at this wee boys’ dysfunctional life and the positive impact of the good people who inadvertently come into his life. As the author says; the stops at 10 so we don’t know if theres a happy ending.. who knows ?

Cosa resta a questo bambino quando tutto gli viene tolto?

P.B. · April 13, 2018

Un romanzo che non dimenticherete, nella Gran Bretagna degli anni '80, tra tensioni razziali e un matrimonio reale. La storia di un bambino che toccherà anche i più cinici.

A lovely story of heartbreak and triumph.

P.T.G. · October 24, 2019

A delightful story of a boy surviving a very broken childhood and building his own 'family' from a variety of interesting characters that he meets along the way.

Takes a piece of your heart...

J.G. · August 21, 2017

Warm, heartbreaking, real. I was pulled into the story through deWaal's style of spotlighting Leon even while telling the story in third person. Enlightening and the story did not go as expected. Don't miss this book.

Great

M.M. · July 28, 2025

Great book, as this is now on the GCSE and Eu Bac courses; it would be great if someone made a student annotated version!

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My Name Is Leon: A Novel

Name: My Name Is Leon: A Novel
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Rating: 4.2 (13 reviews)

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Visit the Simon & Schuster Store

My Name Is Leon: A Novel

Product ID: U1501117467

Condition: New

4.2

Type: Paperback

^AED87³⁶

Price includes VAT & Import Duties

Availability: In Stock

Quantity:

Order today to get by 7-14 business days

Delivery fee of AED 20. Free for orders above AED 200.

Returns & Warranty policies

Imported From: United States

At BOLO, we work hard to ensure the products you receive are new, genuine, and sourced from reputable suppliers.

Your trust is our top priority, and we are committed to maintaining transparency and integrity in every transaction.

Unless otherwise stated, all prices displayed on the product page include applicable taxes and import duties.

All items are shipped by air, and any products classified as “Dangerous Goods (DG)” under IATA regulations will be removed from the order and cancelled.

Description:

Review

About the Author

Reviews:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant

A.C. · September 7, 2016

4.0 out of 5 stars Foster Care, Racism and the Wedding or Royals

V.W. · November 22, 2019

5.0 out of 5 stars A convincing tale of an unhappy little boy, with real narrative power.

P.C. · November 20, 2020

3.0 out of 5 stars Very intriguing

D. · April 6, 2019

4.0 out of 5 stars The child’s voice comes across well.

L.L. · October 16, 2017

5.0 out of 5 stars It's a real world story

C.R. · August 4, 2016

5.0 out of 5 stars I really loved this book

D.R. · September 6, 2017

I really loved this book. I fell in love with Leon. What a courageous character. Beautiful and sad story about a bi-racial boy who is separated from his white baby brother and placed in foster care.

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good story about a child in foster care

A.C. · February 14, 2017

A Must read!

M. · August 28, 2025

Cosa resta a questo bambino quando tutto gli viene tolto?

P.B. · April 13, 2018

Un romanzo che non dimenticherete, nella Gran Bretagna degli anni '80, tra tensioni razziali e un matrimonio reale. La storia di un bambino che toccherà anche i più cinici.

A lovely story of heartbreak and triumph.

P.T.G. · October 24, 2019

A delightful story of a boy surviving a very broken childhood and building his own 'family' from a variety of interesting characters that he meets along the way.

Takes a piece of your heart...

J.G. · August 21, 2017

Great

M.M. · July 28, 2025

Great book, as this is now on the GCSE and Eu Bac courses; it would be great if someone made a student annotated version!

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