Dustbin Baby

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article does not cite any references or sources. (December 2007) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.

Dustin Baby (2001) is a children's novel by British author Jacqueline Wilson. It tells the story of fourteen year old April who is born on April 1st- subsequently her nickname is "April Fool". On her fourteenth birthday April takes a trip down memory lane, visiting the places of her childhood in adoption and fostering.

[edit] Plot summary

When she was a few minutes old, April was abandoned by her Mother in a Dustbin behind a local pizza restaurant. Discovered by a young waiter there she was taken in by Patricia Williams, a new foster Mother. Named April at the hospital following her discovery, April lived with Pat for only a short while. After rowing with her new adoptive Mother Marion on her fourteenth birthday April re-visits Pat's house and finds that she remembers little of it and Pat remembers little of her. However she does befriend one of Patricia's new foster children Tanya (a character seen before, along with Pat, in Wilson's other book Bad Girls)

After this April visits the graveside of her first adoptive Mother, Janet Johnston, who adopted April with her husband. Janet later killed herself after battling a depression stemming from the break up marriage and her husbands affiars.

April then tells readers of the time she spent at a foster home with Maureen and Pete, who she called Mum and Dad, and where she shared a house with dozens of other foster children. However another foster child in the home, Pearl, bullies April until April pushes her down the stairs causing Pearl injury and April's removal from the house.

Next April visits the care home she once lived in, SunnyBank. She tells the story of how she was befriended by older, cooler girl gang within the home and was protected by their ringleader Gina. Along with the gang, April robbed houses and shops. But when the stealing was discovered April was again moved on. On her visit to the old SunnyBank home April visits Gina at her new home and discovers Gina is now settled down with a child and a respectable career.

After leaving SunnyBank April was taken to Fairleigh, a school for learning impaired children. Here April stayed for five years and formed a close bond with her history teacher Marion. Marion begins to bond with April and refers her to be moved to a mainstream school. Here April make new friends in Hannah and Cathy and Marion decides to foster her.

The story ends with April meeting the pizza boy who saved her life by discovering her in the dustbin the day she was born and resolving the fight she had with Marion at the start of the story.