Author: Wade Hudson
Genre: realistic fiction
Similar books: Take Back the Block by Chrystal D Giles
The Probability of Everything by Sarah Everett
Rating:
.JPG)
Summary (provided by publisher): Lamar can’t wait to start his filmmaking career like his idol Spike Lee. And leave behind his small town of Morton, Louisiana. But for now, Lamar has to learn how to be a filmmaker while getting to know his grandfather.
When Gramps talks about his activism and Black history, Lamar doesn’t think much about it. Times have changed since the old Civil Rights days! Right? He has a white friend named Jeff who wants to be a filmmaker, too, even though Jeff’s parents never let him go to Lamar’s Black neighborhood. But there’s been progress in town. Right?
Then Gramps is killed in a traffic altercation with a white man claiming self-defense. But the Black community knows better: Gramps is another victim of racial violence. Protesters demand justice. So does Lamar. But he is also determined to keep his grandfather's legacy alive in the only way he knows how: recording a documentary about the fight against injustice.
My opinion: This is a solid concept for a middle grade novel. We have a young Black man starting to have an awakening to racism and history. He's learning how to be an activist and what things are worth fighting for. He's also starting to become aware of the difference between himself and his white peers. An unexpected tragedy becomes a catalyst for real change in his community. That all sounds quite solid and important. Unfortunately, the reading experience is stiff. The dialogue doesn't read like a real kid. The topic is important enough to be worth reading but it doesn't live up to the potential.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
No comments:
Post a Comment