Why working-class stories make such a difference to children

Published on: 30 July 2024

Author Oliver Sykes explains why working-class children need to see their people, voices and culture celebrated in books.

Photo: Dawn Kilner

I come from a large, rough-and-ready tribe: one of six kids brought up by a single-parent dad on a council estate in rural Derbyshire. Growing up, our family faced many challenges, but we were never short of the things that matter most: love, fun and (for me, at least) books.

In our living room, we had a tiny cupboard under the stairs that housed several rows of books. All you had to do was open it up and step inside, and within moments, the power of reading could magically transport you anywhere.

One book in particular was to change the course of my life: Roald Dahl's Danny the Champion of the World.

Following Danny through his day-to-day activities, and then into his big adventure, was the first time I saw myself represented in a book: a young, motherless, working-class boy, misunderstood at school and being raised by his single-parent dad.

Meeting Danny – a boy who shared my background, experiences and struggles – reinforced my own sense of identity. His very existence made me feel validated, inspired and proud to be working-class, particularly when faced with institutions, such as school, that sought to stamp out all trace of my working-class roots. Not only did this book spark my inner rebel, it also turned me into an avid reader and made me feel worthy to write and tell my own stories and poems.

The difference working-class representation makes

Fast-forward 25 years. I'm an author, poet and a passionate advocate for under-represented voices. I believe working-class kids need their people, voices and culture to not only be represented but also celebrated in books. And so, here I am, on a mission to recreate that same light-bulb moment I had with Danny for working-class kids across the country.

My debut children's novella, Alfie's First Fight, truly champions working-class culture. It's inspired by growing up as a keen amateur boxer in a single-parent family on the breadline. It's not about trying to escape working-class culture through education. It doesn't purport that fair play will be rewarded.

If you're not from a working-class background, read the book and you'll see life through another lens. And if you are from a working-class background, read the book and you'll find out pretty quickly – I tell it how it is.

When I pitched this series of books for not-yet-reached readers to literary agents and publishers, I was met with no interest. But two years later, after going it alone, it was voted for by children to win Best Illustrated Young Reader at the Children's Literature Festivals' Book Awards.

If all children are to discover the magic of books, and reap the long-term rewards, then they need to see themselves and their families in stories. If the way they speak and the way they live is shown to be worthy of a story, the benefits to a child are immense.

After reading my books (and also after watching theatre adaptations of my books) children have raved about them. Parents, teachers and librarians have also been quick to comment on how important it is for children to hear these kinds of working-class stories.

My debut children's poetry collection, We Are Family: Six Kids and a Super-Dad, also champions working-class culture in its vivid depiction of my own real-life childhood – rough, tough, but happy – in a story told in poems. It touches on food and fuel poverty, grief and abandonment, and the need to come together as a family to support one another when one parent leaves.

When I go to schools, I see in the classes what I saw in myself 25 years ago when I picked up Danny the Champion of the World: lots and lots of little light-bulb moments; kids being switched on to the magic of stories; working-class kids with books; working-class kids seeing their people, voices and cultures being celebrated, and absolutely loving it.

We Are Family: Six Kids and a Super-Dad by Oliver Sykes, illustrated by Ian Morris, is out now.