English Cymraeg

Hardit Singh Malik: World War One Flying Ace

Name: William Joseph
Price range: $

by Bali Rai

Interest age: 9 to 11

Published by Scholastic, 2024

Historical

About this book

When Hardit Singh Malik grows up in Rawalpindi in Punjab, India – which would, after World War Two, become part of Pakistan – he has no idea of the life that awaits him.

When he moves to England to go to school, Hardit experiences a culture shock: life in England is very different from Rawalpindi, and British people are not that welcoming to him, even though he is a British subject – especially at his school, where he is expected to pray in a Christian chapel, despite it not being his religion.

Yet, when war breaks out in 1914, Hardit is studying at Oxford University and has been asked to play cricket for the Sussex County Cricket team. Everything changes overnight, and Hardit wants to do his bit. But, as an Indian, he isn’t permitted to enlist in the armed forces. Instead, he joins the French Red Cross as an ambulance driver, and then, finally, the British Royal Flying Corps.

This wonderful title joins the Voices series from Scholastic, which presents a series of gripping adventures that reflect the authentic and unsung stories of under-represented voices from history. Hardit’s story is one of bravery, perseverance and strength of character, expertly told by Bali Rai, a master storyteller.

About the author

Bali Rai was born in 1971 and raised as a working class Punjabi in Leicester. He grew up in a deprived area of Leicester, a city which is almost unique in terms of cultural mix and his style of writing is firmly grounded in the reality that he has seen around him since he was a child. The senior school he attended was about 80% BAME - 20% white children in terms of ethnic makeup.

Bali Rai has been writing short stories and poetry since the age of eight. As a child he made up wild and exciting stories and his imagination has been vivid ever since. At school he excelled at English language and told his teachers that he would one day be a writer.

He left school with eight GCSE’s and English was always his favourite subject. After school he did three a-levels at a local sixth form - none of which was English Literature, which he now regrets. He went on to graduate from Southbank University in London with a 2:1 in politics and since then he has had various jobs in retail, cinema, and telesales and has kept a keen, almost obsessive, interest in current affairs.

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