Raz Beri

by Matt Stevens

Billy has cerebral palsy and he's had enough of his classmates treating him differently. But then Mia arrives and announces a school visit from her uncle: a famous footballer. Maybe being a star footballer in front of his classmates will help Billy prove to his class that he can be just like them. But when even the famous footballer turns out to be just as bad as the school bullies, Billy begins to realise that perhaps he doesn't need to prove anything to anyone but himself.

176 pages, Paperback

Published April 29, 2025

Reviews

[theuntidybookshelves · Rating 2 out of 5]

Raz Beri is a fictional story with a very realistic premise. Aimed at 9 to 12-year-olds, Matt Stephens’ novel puts disability at the forefront and pushes the boundaries of children’s fiction. The story is narrated by 13-year-old Billy Turpin, an Earls Court FC superfan with cerebral palsy. His sidekick is his feisty best friend and classmate, Mia. Together, they make a great team. Billy is shy and likes sticking to the rules, but Mia is loud and fiercely independent. When Billy is bullied by his classmates, he is unsure how he can stand up to them, but Mia is excellent at putting people in their place. When the classroom buzzes with excitement during a visit from some of Earl’s Court’s top players, including football legend and Billy’s all-time hero, Danny Cash, Billy hopes that his enthusiasm for football will finally show his classmates that he’s more than his disability. However, Billy soon realises that bullying isn’t just confined to the classroom, and his heroes aren’t as heroic as he once thought.

At its core, Raz Beri is a story about confidence, the importance of self-belief and standing up for what's right.

Raz Beri is a poignant read which doesn’t shy away from depicting the difficulties of being a disabled teenager. Stephens’ unapologetic approach to disability incorporates ableist language used by Billy’s bullies, as well as Billy and Mia themselves. Although the book attempts to reclaim this language, it makes for an uncomfortable read, and it is because of this that the book has attracted a 2.5-star rating from me. I believe that slurs should not feature in children's literature under any circumstance, as there are other ways of telling this story without incorporating derogatory language. It feels very dated. Some of the words used have fallen out of the lexicon (thank goodness) and I think it's better to leave them in the past rather than teach a new generation ten ableist terms they probably aren't even aware of.

Nevertheless, this book will create conversations with children about ableist language, which is arguably necessary and important. I just hope that a ten-year-old doesn't pick it up off the shelf, learn a load of horrible words (with definitions!) in the first chapter, and then decide not to bother reading the rest of the story (where the ableist language is reclaimed).

2.5 stars.

[Steph Warren · Rating 5 out of 5]

*I received a free copy of this book, with thanks to the author, Firefly Press and Graeme Williams of Graeme Williams Marketing. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*

This middle-grade book about football, bullying and finding your voice has taken Minishine’s (11) and Babybows’ (8) votes for their read of the year so far!

The story introduces Billy, who is being brutally bullied and ostracised at school but sees the arrival of new girl Mia and an upcoming famous footballer visit to the school as an opportunity to change how he is seen and treated.

This is by no means an easy read – we read it as a family and frequently paused to discuss the numerous discriminatory slurs, and how the bullying wasn’t just peer-to-peer but came from some adults as well (along with some unconscious prejudices from very well-meaning individuals).

Here’s what Minishine (11) and Babybows (8) had to say about the book:

Babybows: Amazing! Nettle is my favourite character and the best dog EVER… except for OUR dog, of course! I’m glad Mia and Billy stood up to the bullies in the end, especially the grown-up ones because they were the worst because grown-ups are supposed to be nice and help children. And we learned about “slurs”, which are really bad, but not when Mia and Billy took them and made it cool, like with the name of the book.

Minishine: Mia is my favourite because she is super confident and doesn’t let anyone treat her differently or touch her wheelchair! I did NOT like the PE teacher because he was just bullying Billy all the time and tried to bully Mia too.

Babybows: I would give this 99999 out of 10… the best book nearly in the world. The only bad thing was it has rude words. I didn’t like the mean people but I liked how Billy told his story. And Rio was really bad, but I kind of understood why because I would be angry too. I liked how Billy and Mia worked together to solve their problems.

Minishine: Yes, but Mia was stronger and braver, until the end anyway. She didn’t let being in a wheelchair get her down and was really independent. I liked everything, really. This is such a good book! I loved how it had cliffhangers at the end of the chapters cos it made me just want to keep reading more and more to find out what happened and all the secrets. And it was exciting because there wasn’t just one plot, there were multiple plots. And Billy was a bit of a coward at the beginning, but when Mia came along he got more confident, and by the end he was really brave too.

She isn’t exaggerating about the cliffhangers either! Every night I tried to read just one chapter, only to be begged for more! Was Billy okay?! What would he do?! Would Danny Cash save the day?! They were insatiable!

With a fantastic story and characters, and some fascinating family discussion fodder, we all thoroughly recommend Raz Beri and will be on the lookout for more from Matt Stephens in future.

Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpres...

[Bookgirl888 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a brilliant story about a boy with a disability who loves football. Unfortunately, the other children at school don't see him as anything more than a boy in a wheelchair. That is, until Mia arrives at school. She too is in a wheelchair, but makes Billy challenge himself and his beliefs. When professional footballers visit the school, Billy hopes he will be able to prove himself at last. That doesn't happen and it seems that things have got worse. With the help of online friends he's never met face to face, Billy makes a huge stand and causes people to rethink their attitudes to disabilities and Billy. There were happy, poignant and funny parts. Billy could be anyone with a disability, or anyone with anything that makes them stand out. This is a really important book for people to read to ask them to think about their attitudes to disability.

[Sophie Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

A bit of a gut punch book! This is the kind of book that needs to be written to make adults and children alike think about their attitudes to disability - as the book says people are people!

The story was one of strength of character, determination and bravery- it was a really good read and looking forward to dropping this one off at school!

[Trisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent exploration of disability in a humorous yet bittersweet way. Surely young people in wheelchairs don't have to deal with this level of bullying today.

But Billy is a strong, loyal and respectful young man. He deals with his situation positively and with dignity.

Also, just a great story about family, football and friends.

[Simon Packham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this.