All American Boys ( 310Pages)

It's been a long time since I've posted on this site, but I just finished reading a book of such importance, of such timeliness, of such  a need for discussion between students, that I need to get this information out.  This was not a beach book, or a relaxing, recreational read. It centers on a small group of black and white high school boys. Most of them are members of their school's basketball team. Rashad is friends with several of the boys, but not on the team. His father is a retired policeman who has "issues" with what he deems as necessary behavior for black boys. Quinn, is a white boy and his dad was killed in Iraq. Paul Galluzzo is a white boy whose younger brother has been Quinn's best friend for years. Paul is a member of the town's police force and has been a mentor to Quinn, acting as a surrogate father. One night Quinn is on his way to a Friday night party, but stops at the neighborhood store where kids are often able to get people to buy them beer. As he is about to round the corner, he sees Rashad thrown from the store's door and Paul follows, placing him in cuffs and throwing him to the ground. He then sees Paul pummel Rashad, beating him up beyond belief. SO, what does Quinn do? Rashad is in the hospital with broken ribs, a broken nose, and internal bleeding. BUT, he's alive. The news of this incident spreads like wildfire. This book is written by two authors, one black and one white. It poses the problem to all of us: what must we do about this problem that is so prevalent in our country today. One quote from the text is from Desmond Tutu and it sums up what we must face: IF YOU ARE NEUTRAL IN SITUATIONS OF INJUSTICE, YOU HAVE CHOSEN THE SIDE OF THE OPPRESSOR. Authors Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely have pushed the readers of this book into the necessity of deciding whether to remain neutral to injustice or take a stand on what they believe is the right thing to do.