Why Does Ben Zephaniah Create A Sense Of Hope

A book published in 2001 by Benjamin Zephaniah; refugee boy, describes the events and trauma that asylum seekers of any age have to go through. During the novel, there are moments that are very controversial, and can be viewed differently from other perspectives. Some may consider them thought provoking and resilient. But how does Benjamin Zephaniah create a sense of hope in the novel?

After being abandoned in the alien-like country, Alem’s world is rocked when he discovers that he has to stay in a derelict children’s home: a house with over 80 boys. He is adamant that he would not enjoy it. He tries to blend into the crowd as much as possible, but just shy of an hour into this new life, he get’s into a scuffle about a biscuit “I don’t want any biscuits. If you want biscuits you can get them for yourself.” This remark had no intention of creating offence, but only to get his point across. This traumatic experience forces him to run away. This is one of the first signs of lack of hope in the novel. But things do look up for him.
After Alem read a letter send from his father, he first ‘entered the room expressionless’, but once he continued to read his father’s words, he discovered that his parents say, “we shall be writing to you soon”. From this I get the impression that his father has hope for Alem, and believes that everything will be okay. The words chosen such as ‘soon’ are words that suggest this suffering will not be for long, and Alem is an independent ‘young man’ who is responsible enough to face the challenges with a positive mindset. ‘Soon’ also implies that Mr Kelo’s situation will also improve and things will begin to look