Escape: One Day We Had To Run by Ming & Wah

We found 'Escape' such a thought provoking read.

Filled with incredible real life stories from all over the world. Showing true bravery and determination of people trying to find a safer life. It’s great for inspiring and educated young readers and patents too!

I feel the book is more aimed for older children. The different stories are easy to read and not at all long winded. The accompanying illustrations are beautiful.

My 9 year old could understand the stories and they prompted lots of questions and important conversations. Hopefully helping to raise informed and empathetic children.

I read this with my 8 year old and he became very engrossed with the stories. They are short stories so he was able to read them confidently on his own and he had lots of questions, so it was great opportunity to start conversations about courage and sacrifices that people have made to help others. He was surprised to see that one of the ‘escapes’ happened in 2015 so during his lifetime and we talked about empathy and it made him realise how fortunate we are.

Overall a fantastic book, and I will read this with my 5 year old when she’s a bit older and will be able to understand and appreciate it more.

Would recommend this book for older children - the illustrations are beautiful and quite muted, so paired with the topics it may be a bit overwhelming for younger readers.

I haven’t shared this with my son yet as he hasn’t been well but my first thoughts on reading it was I wish when we heard more stories like this. I can’t stand reading such abuse in the media towards people risking their lives to get to safety. We are privileged, and these people and their stories matter.
Will I read it word for word to my son at the moment, no. I will show him the beautiful illustrations and discuss on an appropriate level for him. There’s a gorgeous map too which is a lovely conversation starter for younger children.
After receiving this book I’ve spoken to two mums who gave me there thoughts. One has been in an escape situation twice and wishes her sons knew they weren’t alone in there past. That their school peers understood more about how they came to be here so they’d be kind. The other brought up a very valid point that this would almost certainly be a triggering book for children who have been in care, or fled domestic abuse.
With that in mind I’d recommend this book but suggest reading before sharing with children and in a group setting making sure it’s appropriate for all children.
These are stories we should hear, and we should know about and I hope my sons generation is a lot more accepting than ours!

I wasn't sure what to expect about this book, but it is fantastic. My daughter who is young primary age enjoyed reading the stories, and my pre-school son liked to listen to the stories.
The stories are a page long, which means you can dip in and out of the book. A great way of engaging children in stories around the globe of events that impact on people, and why they must Escape. Generating probing questions, discussion and a good degree of empathy. We used the stories to generate questions about how you might feel, how you might one to help, to never give up, and to link back to some of the events you hear today.
The illustrations are colourful and big, and draw you into the book. It makes children have a greater insight and appreciation of the impact that the actions of others can have on lives.

Escape is one of the most important books in our extensive book collection. Short true stories about how different people from all around the world have escaped & fled in search of safety. The stories cover different reasons and methods of fleeing danger from war, famine, slavery, climate change & more. It covers the courage it takes and sacrifices people must make. Highlighting the risks they must take to survive situations they did not choose to face. An important conversation starter for all ages, adults included! It was an eye opener for my 9 year old! Even the teens got a lot from listening in. My 4 year old enjoyed discussing the illustrations and it was a great resource to start discussing the challenges faced by people around the world on an age appropriate level. A must buy!