Bali Rai (born 30 November 1971) is an English author of

children's A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person young ...

and

young adult fiction Young adult fiction (YA) is a category of fiction written for readers from 12 to 18 years of age. While the genre is primarily targeted at adolescents, approximately half of YA readers are adults. The subject matter and genres of YA correlate ...

Early life

Rai was born in

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

in 1971, to

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...

parents. At the age of eleven, he read ''

The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...

'' by

Sue Townsend Susan Lillian Townsend, FRSL (née Johnstone, 2 April 194610 April 2014), was an English writer and humorist whose work encompasses novels, plays and works of journalism. She was best known for creating the character Adrian Mole. After writing ...

, which inspired him to take up writing. He has also cited

Roald Dahl Roald Dahl (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British novelist, short-story writer, poet, screenwriter, and wartime fighter ace of Norwegian descent. His books have sold more than 250 million copies worldwide. Dahl has be ...

as an early influence on his writing. He attended

Judgemeadow Community College Judgemeadow Community College is a mixed secondary school located in the Evington area of Leicester in the English county of Leicestershire. History The school was established in 1973, and moved into a new building on the same site in June ...

, moving to

Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth I College Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth I College () is a sixth form college, located in Leicester, England. The college is led by Paul Wilson who was appointed the eighth principal in March 2018. The college merged with the nearby Regent College in 2018 ...

for

sixth form In the education systems of England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepare for ...

. In 1991, Rai moved to London to study at Southbank University, graduating with a 2:1 in Politics. He stayed in London for two years after graduating, but was forced to return to Leicester due to personal circumstances. He had a number of jobs, including working for a supermarket, in telesales, and managing a bar. He began to write his first novel, '' (Un)arranged Marriage'', during this period.

Writing career

Bali Rai showed parts of his debut novel, '' (Un)arranged Marriage'', to literary agent Jennifer Luithlen, who agreed to represent him. Once the novel had been edited, Rai signed a contract with Transworld. The novel was published in 2001 to critical acclaim. ''Rani & Sukh'', which Rai described as a "true mash-up of

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" ...

and Punjabi folk tales", was published in 2004 and later became a

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...

set-text. He has also written several books for dyslexia-friendly publisher

Barrington Stoke Barrington Stoke is a children's book publisher based in Edinburgh, Scotland. The company was founded in 1998 and publishes fiction and non-fiction adapted to different reading ages for reluctant, under-confident and dyslexic children and teens. ...

, such as ''Dream On'' and its sequel ''Game On''. His work has been published in various anthologies, including the 2017 book ''Here I Stand'', raising money and awareness for the human rights charity

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and s ...

. Rai has made appearances on television and radio to discuss racism, his writing, and promoting reading for pleasure. He has also been an ambassador for

The Reading Agency The Reading Agency is a charity registered in England and Wales which promotes the benefits of reading among children and adults in UK, working with partners including public libraries, colleges and prisons. Operations Sue Wilkinson served as t ...

's Reading Ahead programme, and was BookTrust's sixth online writer-in-residence. In 2019 he became an Ambassador for audiobook charit
Listening Books
In 2014, Rai received an honorary doctorate from

De Montfort University De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) is a public university in the city of Leicester, England. It was established in accordance with the Further and Higher Education Act in 1992 as a degree awarding body. The name De Montfort University was tak ...

in Leicester.

Awards

Works

* '' (Un)arranged Marriage'' (2001) * ''The Crew'' (2003) * ''What's Your Problem?'' (2003) * ''Rani and Sukh'' (2004) * ''The Whisper'' (2005) * ''Dominoes and Other Stories'' (2005) * ''The Last Taboo'' (2006) * ''The Angel Collector'' (2007) * ''City of Ghosts'' (2009) * ''Killing Honour'' (2011) * ''The Guru and The King'' (2012) * ''Fire City'' (2012) * ''Demon Hunter'' (2012) * ''The Night Run'' (2014) * ''Kiss of Death'' (2014) * ''Web of Darkness'' (2014) * ''Tales from India'' (2017)

''Soccer Squad'' series

* ''Starting Eleven'' (2008) * ''Missing!'' (2008) * ''Stars!'' (2008) * ''Glory!'' (2008)

''Tales from Devana High'' series

* ''Concrete Chips'' (2004) * ''Sold as Seen'' (2005) * ''Jugglin' '' (2006) * ''Trouble'' (2013) * ''Secrets'' (2013)

Barrington Stoke

* ''Dream On'' (2002) * ''Two Timer'' (2005) * ''Revenge of the Number Two'' (2007) * ''Are You Kidding?'' (2008) * ''Them and Us'' (2009) * ''The Gun'' (2011) * ''Shivers'' (2013) * ''Old Dog, New Tricks'' (2014) * ''Game On'' (2015), sequel to ''Dream On'' * ''The Harder They Fall'' (2017)

Non-fiction

* ''Politics: Cutting Through the Crap'' (2006)

Contributor

Bali Rai has contributed short stories to a number of anthologies, including: * ''Thirteen'' (2005) * ''Losing It'', edited by Keith Gray (2010) * ''How to be a Boy'', edited by

Tony Bradman Tony Bradman (born 22 January 1954) is an English writer of children's books and short speculative fiction best known for the '' Dilly the Dinosaur'' book series. He is the author of more than 50 books for young people published by multiple house ...

(2011) * ''The Library Book'' (2012) * ''Love Hurts'', edited by

Malorie Blackman Malorie Blackman is a British writer who held the position of Children's Laureate from 2013 to 2015. She primarily writes literature and television drama for children and young adults. She has used science fiction to explore social and ethica ...

(2015) * ''Here I Stand'', by

(2017)

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rai, Bali 1971 births English children's writers Living people Alumni of London South Bank University