Last Stop on Market Street Matt de la Pena illustrated by Christian Robinson

Through simple yet powerful storytelling, Matt de la Peña explores themes of gratitude, perspective, and community. CJ begins the story feeling envious of what others have, 

but as he listens to his grandmother’s wisdom, he comes to see value in his experiences—in the people they meet, in the music of the streets, and in the sense of belonging 

that isn’t tied to material wealth. The book captures how young children process social differences and how caregivers can shape their understanding of privilege, joy, and human connection. Reading is Resistance

Last Stop on Market Street is a timeless masterpiece transcending age and genre, creating an immersive reading experience that will stay with readers long after turning the final page. This book is not just a journey through the city; it’s a journey of the heart—a celebration of diversity, resilience, and the beauty of the human spirit. Allow yourself to be transported by its magic. 

The Children's Book Review

It is easy to see this is part of CJ and his grandmother's weekly routine. After church they head to the bus stop. CJ has lots of questions but it is the answers that are truly special. His grandmother is filled with the joy of life even though clearly, as we discover, life is tough - she always has a positive answer to questions such as 'Nana how come we don't got a car?'; 'How come we always gotta go here after church?'; and 'How come it's always so dirty over here?'.

The bus is filled with many different people - not in a forced didactic way - if you have been on a suburban bus, you have seen they are usually filled with a variety of people from all walks of life. We see an older lady, a businessman, a young boy with tattoos, a blind man with his guide dog and a guitar player. The bus feels like a small community. His grandmother reacts to each person in a genuine and warm way - what a beautiful example for CJ to follow. When the guitar man plays his tunes, the experience of this bus ride becomes quite magical - but where are they going?

Last stop on Market Steet is a soup or community kitchen. It is in a poor part of town, but CJ sees a rainbow and the scene is transformed. Now look closely at the final page - have CJ and Nana come here for food - no - why are they here?

Last Stop on Market Street won the 2016 Caldecott Medal. 

Other awards:

• 2016 Caldecott Honor Book
• 2016 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Book
• #1 New York Times Bestseller
• New York Times Book Review Notable Children’s Book of 2015
• NPR Best Book of 2015
• Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2015
• Wall Street Journal Best Book of 2015
• 2015 Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year
• Horn Book Best Book of 2015
• The Huffington Post Best Overall Picture Book of 2015
• Boston Globe Best Book of 2015
• Chicago Public Library Best Book of 2015
• 2015 E.B. White Read Aloud Award Finalist

The air smelled like freedom, but it also smelled like rain, 

which freckled CJ's shirt and dripped down his nose.

He ducked under his nana's umbrella, saying 'How come we gotta wait for the bus in all this wet?' 'Trees get thirsty, too,' his nana told him. 'Don't you see that big one drinking through a straw?' CJ looked for a long time but he never saw a straw.'

You need to take your time reading this book - the story unfolds slowly.

Last Stop on Market Street doesn’t make political points. It just shows a visit to a soup kitchen from a small child’s perspective. The lead up to their arrival shows community spirit and strangers being nice to each other (whether they are heavily tattooed, or elderly ladies, or blind men with guide dogs). And the soup kitchen is an extension of that – from CJs point of view, it is about being nice to others and helping those who need help. So while it may be, on one level, an ‘issue’ book, it is also a simple ‘day in the life’ story of a little boy, who just happens to regularly go to a church, and take a bus to help out in a soup kitchen. It can be read in that simple way for children to enjoy and make sense of however they wish. But it also opens a window to experiences that are (hopefully) outside of their own and make them think about the difficulties that other people suffer....  It’s an observation of the world, designed to make us and our children think. Rhubarb and Wren

Christian Robinson’s acrylic and collage illustrations are smart, captivating snapshots of CJ’s day as he watches and interacts with a variety of people on the bus and at the soup kitchen. The visual camaraderie of the passengers—old and young, tattooed, talented, and disabled—as they talk together and smile at one another will cheer readers. The color scheme of bright and pastel colors shared from page to page enhances the book’s themes of interconnectedness and cohesion, and the clean, unadorned images reflect the idea that often the simple things in life really are the best. Celebrate Picture Books

Companion books (including one for older readers):

It's a no money day

Free Lunch

The Night Bus Hero by Onjali Q Rauf

Hector and his two friends (read henchmen/women) Will and Katie, take great delight in terrorising kids at school. They extort money and sweets from the youngest kids every single day and no one seems to be able to stop them. They seem to wear their daily detention sessions as a badge of honour.  In the park, after school one day, the trio spy an old homeless man sitting on a park bench. 

"I'd seen him there before, lots of times, sitting on the bench next to a trolley piled high with rubbish. He was in his usual long, old, crumply black coat that looked as if it had been pulled out from a bin, and was wearing the bright yellow woolly hat he always had on his head, even in summer."

Hector swoops in a snatches the yellow hat. The man fights back. Hector feels as though he has lost face and his mates have seen this. He leaves the park furiously making plans for retribution against the old man.

A few days later, visiting the park again, Hector swoops in and this time he takes the old man's trolley. Pushing the trolley down the slope the wheels gain momentum and the trolley lands in the lake.  So now a fairly minor prank has escalated. Later in the story you will discover the truth about the contents of the trolley. This revelation nearly broke my heart.

While all of this is going on, something bigger is happening in the city of London. Someone is stealing important city icons and each time they have added symbols which come from a code used by homeless people. Late one night in the city Hector sees one of these robberies. He is convinced the robber is the old man from the park and Hector is certain the police will be very happy when he leads them to the culprit. But is Thomas, the old man, guilty of these strange crimes? Or is something bigger going on?

1. Paddington Station: stolen Paddington Bear 
2. Selfridges: stolen winged angel
3. Picadilly Circus: stolen the bow of Eros
4. Great Ormond Street Hospital: stolen Tinkerbell
5. Leicester Square: stolen Mary Poppins Umbrella; Charlie Chaplin's stick, and Paddington Bear's sandwhich
6. Fortnum and Mason: stolen lanterns

This is one of the hardest books I have ever read. Not hard in the sense of complex or difficult to understand. The first part of this story contains utterly dreadful bullying and unkindness.  I almost gave up and stopped reading several times. Around page 200 (of 288 pages) the plot finally takes a turn in the "right" direction. I am so glad I kept reading. I was hopeful for that all important happy ending but I was also desperately worried about Hector and hopeful that he could view the world in a different way, hopeful that his parents might reach out to him and hopeful that he might make better choices with friends at school. Thank goodness for Mei-Li, the wisest girl in Hector's class. 

A brilliantly written and totally engrossing story that will help children understand and think deeply about the real human beings whose lives are impacted by homelessness - and also more generally about the power of kindness, friendship, empathy and how everyone has the potential to change for the better. Book Trust

Told from the perspective of a bully, this book explores themes of bullying and homelessness, while celebrating kindness, friendship and the potential everyone has to change for the good. LoveReading4Kids

I picked up The Night Bus Hero because I previously really enjoyed The Boy at the Back of the Class by Onjali Q Rauf.

Take a look at this review which gives more plot details. At the back of the book Onjali shares her personal story which inspired this book along with the details of many UK organisations which support homeless people.  In Australia we have many organisations like this. You may like to read about  Orange Sky - a street Laundry service; and The Wayside Chapel (Sydney).  If you use this book with a class (and yes you should think about doing this) I recommend you also share these picture books about homelessness.

Here is a short interview with Onjali Q Rauf where she talks about The Night Bus Hero and her previous book The boy at the back of the class. You can find out more about Onjali from this Ted Talk given early in 2020.