Raw, captivating, and undeniably real, Nic Stone joins industry giants Jason Reynolds and Walter Dean Myers as she boldly tackles American race relations in this stunning debut.
Justyce McAllister is top of his class and set for the Ivy League—but none of that matters to the police officer who just put him in handcuffs. And despite leaving his rough neighborhood behind, he can’t escape the scorn of his former peers or the ridicule of his new classmates. Justyce looks to the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for answers. But do they hold up anymore? He starts a journal to Dr. King to find out.
Then comes the day Justyce goes driving with his best friend, Manny, windows rolled down, music turned up—way up, sparking the fury of a white off-duty cop beside them. Words fly. Shots are fired. Justyce and Manny are caught in the crosshairs. In the media fallout, it’s Justyce who is under attack.
When Justyce’s ex-girlfriend is about to drunk drive, he has no choice but to take her keys and try to get her to sit in the backseat of the car. But when a cop sees this, all he sees is a black guy trying to force a girl into a car. After Justyce is arrested the rest goes downhill, including loosing his best friend.
This is probably one of the best books I have read this year so far, this and The Hate U Give have changed me. While I was reading, it got me thinking about myself and my own prejudices and how we do things when without even realizing.
Justyce is a smart, driven, fun and amazing character. He is one of the few black kids at his prep-school, and deals with racism from one of his classmates on the daily. I HATED Jared so much for the majority of the book. Justyce is at his prep-school on a scholarship, which makes him even more different from the others at his school.
Manny is amazing. His parents love him and Justyce, as if Justyce was their own son. Manny is fun and he is Justyce’s best friend. I loved getting to see their friendship and getting to know him. Manny is also one of the few black kids at school with Justyce.
Then we have Jared, who is wealthy and one of Manny’s best friends even though Jared has a prejudice towards black people that he doesn’t even realize. I hated him for majority of the book, until he changed somewhat.
And finally we have Sara Jane, SJ, the token Jew of the story. SJ is full of life, argument and care. She is Justyce’s debate partner and after everything goes down, she is one of the few people who Justyce feels comfortable talking to. Their conversations about race and the like are deep and great. I really love SJ.
The letters that Justyce wrote to Dr. King were heartfelt and raw. He spills his feelings in the letters and we get to learn a lot more about Dr. King. I never learnt much about Dr. King growing up, I wish I learnt more and I was able to learn a lot more in this book.
I really recommend this book to everyone. I used to shy away from books that touched upon heavy topics because I used my reading time as a time to just zone out the world. But now, reading this book I have realized how many books I am missing out on and I desperately need to read. So please, read this book. It is so important, especially in today’s political climate. It is well written, the characters are amazing and its just a great book.
I am so excited for Nic Stone’s next book, Odd One Out.
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