Miracle Boy

Inscribed within the pages of his beloved copy of Great Expectations, Raymond Rawnsley is informed that he is Miracle Boy. With no past or family to call his own, this is his only clue to his true identity. Miracles, however, are as scarce in the strict care system of the 1960s as safety, freedom and hope. As he navigates his way through an unforgiving foster home and oppressive children’s homes, he relies on his strength and ingenuity, and the compassion and dignity instilled from a love of books, for survival. Never truly finding a refuge, Raymond is ridiculed at his Grammar School for using Welfare tokens on the bus and mocked in his home for the unfamiliar posh badge on his blazer. He is beaten, humiliated and exiled from the joys of childhood, but never gives up the hope that his journey to unravel the past, accompanied by a colourful patchwork of characters, will lead him to realise his own Great Expectations. Miracle Boy is heartbreaking and heart-warming in equal measure. Raymond Rawnsley is a selfless character who, through his dignity, honour and resilience, will have you shouting at the page for him to succeed.