Kick

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The book shows his struggles trying to earn some money to support his family and to make it is a professional footballer. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes football as it is not only about football but also about how children working in a poorer country are treated.

I found this book to be really eye-opening and could provide children with insight into what life might be like for children in other parts of the world. It's wonderful, addressing exploitation of child labour and using football to drive home the stark inequality present in our world.Honestly, at first I was reluctant to read this as I am not a football fan, but this book is so much more than a 'football' book. Although I didn’t know it at the time, I had just witnessed the birth of a superstar footballer named Kieran Wakefield, a tyrannical landlord known as the Dragon, and Budi, a little boy from Jakarta with big dreams. As much as I hope Kick will shed light on a desperate global issue, I feel it must also remain a testament to the transcendent, unifying power of sport. He believes he will save enough to fly to Madrid to watch his favourite team, and he believes the very boots he stitches are worn by his favourite player. His family can not afford food some days in the week and when they do eat it is just rice and vegetables.

The book begins and we also meet his friend Rochy who is, like Budi, a massive fan of football and there is a lot of focus in here on their mutual dreams and their connection of friendship through this shared love of football. Meski begitu, Budi tidak serta merta kehabisan akal, dengan kepolosannya dia mulai melancarkan aksinya. I would possibly choose this book for guided reading, but it would definitely need a lot of thought as it may be stressful for some children with particular backgrounds and situations. And when Budi attracts the notice of the dangerous Dragon, it seems less and less likely that he will ever achieve his dream. Johnson does not shy away from the difficult issues and even finds space to touch on people trafficking.

I understand why the publishers have done it because they want the book to appeal to the audience which the book is written for. I then compared it to other books that I had read with stressful content, in which Michael Morpurgo’s books came to mind.

He's going to play for the greatest team on earth, rather than in the square behind the factory where he works. Equivocal tales of Budi's grandmother, purity of the fellowship between Budi and Rochy, and the passion towards dreams - without which certain people simply cannot exist, speaking from experience. The writing style in this is, most of the time, quite plain: it is very compatible with children between the ages of 12-15 maybe and there is something in the writing style which reminded me a lot of how YA books are written, in general.Kisahnya sederhana, tapi rasanya tak adil saja kalau kubilang 'sederhana' tanpa embel-embel lainnya, karena memang tidak sesederhana yang dibayangkan, ada banyak bagian menarik, kesannya biasa tapi memiliki filosofi yang luarbiasa— sederhana tapi bermakna, aku sangat menyukai itu. As a reader, you are carried through the book by a real compassion for Budi and also the author’s humour, which acts as light-hearted relief in the story and doesn’t distract from the matter in hand. This first part of the novel could have been tightened up and then the tension would have continued through to the gripping finale. Budi is 11 and trains with his friends to be a professional football player like his hero Kieran Wakefield who plays for Real Madrid.

They have the posters on the walls, they can name all the players, they worship their favourite player and they never miss a game. Kick deals with issues such as poverty, child labour and human rights in a way that proves we share more than makes us different. Outline of the Book: Budi is going to play for the biggest team in the world, instead of making shoes every day but one unlucky kick brings his whole world crashing down. I think Johnson tries to cover it up with comparisons to football but as an adult reading this, I can see past it.Maybe I'm just selfish and cold-hearted but personally, I think that is a pretty poor way to repay him! One of Budi’s friends has an old television and they sometimes watch matches together too, late at night Indonesia time. Masalah seorang pemimpi adalah terkadang dia akan mengalami mimpi buruk— kau hanya harus memastikan mimpi-mimpi buruk itu tidak pernah cukup menakut-nakutimu sehingga kau ingin terbangun dari tidur. The book shows the wider aspects of life in Indonesia: the oppressive dry season giving way to the tropical monsoons, the impact of earthquakes, and the under-the-surface corruption. The read focuses on showcasing the life of Budi who works in a football show factory and dreams of playing football professionally professionally.