The Fights That Make Us arrived unlooked for in the post. I have a mystery friend at Usborne Books, who sends me books for review, and I have them to thank for opening my eyes to some amazing children’s fiction published in the last 12 months. Usborne’s stable of authors seems to be able to deliver issue-driven narratives with heart-warming stories and engaging characters. The Fights that Makes Us is no exception. Indeed, it may be the best of them all.
What Is The Fights That Make Us?
The Fights That Make Us is an examination of the struggles of the LGBTQ+ community, both today and in the 1980s. Two school-aged children, Jesse and their best friend Simran, discover an old diary written by one of Jesse’s relations who has passed away. Lisa was a teenager in 1980s Britain and was falling in love with her best friend, Nicky.
The 1980s in Britain was the time when Section 28 was being brought into law. Section 28 brought in legislation that prohibited the promotion of homosexuality by local authorities; most notably in schools. Reading the diary, Jesse discovers how Lisa struggled with the ignorance and prejudice of the time, how her relationship with Nicky blossomed, and about the movement that tried to stop Section 28 from being enshrined in law. (The movement was doomed to failure with the legislation only finally being removed in 2003.)
Jesse and Simran, have an affinity with Lisa and Nicky, both being members of the LGBTQ+ community; Jesse is non-binary. Thanks to a history teacher, the pair are inspired to recreate Lisa’s story and the story of the anti-section 28 movement as a school history project. Yet, in 2024, Jesse and Simran still face ignorance and prejudice. When they are prevented from telling their story at school, they look beyond its gates to bring Lisa’s story to life.
Why Read The Fights That Make Us?
It’s hard to stress, just how good I think The Fights That Make Us is.
It’s a deeply compassionate rendering of the experiences of people in the LGBTQ+ community, across two generations. It shows how things have changed for the better, but also highlights how prejudice and wilful ignorance still permeate society.
The use of the diary and history project was inspired; allowing a delicate “show don’t tell” device, that helps readers appreciate the struggles faced both in the past and today. What The Fights That Makes Us does best, however, is to put human beings and their emotions at the heart of the story.
The toxic trans debates that play out in the media, and in particular social media, rip all traces of humanity from the people involved. Sarah Haggar-Holt’s portrayal of Jesse and Lisa, as uncertain teenagers, trying to understand themselves, in a world unwilling to understand them, is inspired.
I would imagine this book is an invaluable read for children going through similar anxieties about their identity and whether they will be accepted. As a parent, I found it both affecting and educational. It encapsulated the experience of being a LGBTQ+ teenager, in a way I could never have imagined. It helped me to some sort of understanding of a situation I have no experience of (and as a cis male 50-year-old, can have no experience of).
I consider myself open-minded, and accepting, but I’d like to personally thank Sarah Hagger-Holt, for helping me repositition my understanding of the fights that have made the characters in her book. I would urge any parent to read it, whether they have LGBTQ+ children or not. Teenage allies should read The Fights That Makes Us, too. I’ll be waving it under my sons’ noses, as I think they have a lot to gain from reading it.
Sarah Haggar-Holt manages to do all of this without ever being preachy while making history sound enthralling too. (Bonus marks for that!) I was desperate to know how things were going to play out and I loved the meticulous way in which Jesse used their passion to build up a social history of the LGBTQ+ movement in the 1980s.
The novel’s characters are engaging and their stories very real. Not just the main cast, but those in the wings, brought into play by Jesse as they did their research. It all added weight and a great emotional heft to Hagger-Holt’s tale. I was teary-eyed many times reading this book, for a whole number of different reasons.
As I said at the top of this review, Usborne Books publishes many excellent issue drive books. Jesse and their tale of discovery and acceptance is up there with the very best of them.
If you would like to pick up a copy of The Fights That Make Us, you can do so, here. (Affiliate Link). This is UK link as a US edition does not currently appear to be available.)
If you enjoyed this review, check out my other book reviews, here.
I received a copy of this book in order to write this review.
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