All American Boys by Brendan Kiely/Jason Reynolds

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Synopsis

Sixteen-year old Rashad is accused of stealing from a corner store in his neighborhood. Classmate, Quinn, witnesses his brutal beating at the hands of a police officer who's the older brother of his best friend. 

I Am Black

Just a little on my background. I am from LA. I don’t mean the best part(s) of LA either. I mean Compton, Watts, Inglewood areas. I didn't live in a house. I lived in the projects. If you are unfamiliar with that, it is a large housing complex for low income families. Impoverished areas are never the safest places to live in, let alone grow up. Nearly 18 years I spent in Nickerson Gardens. I’ve seen everything. Specifically, police brutality right outside my window. This was before recording was a notion. This was before boldness was a movement. All we were was scared. 

I know what it’s like to be afraid of the police. I know what it feels like to be profiled and treated unfairly not only because I was black, but because I was poor. So reading this book was a priority for me. Knowing that a book like this was written for young adults was an important step that needed to be taken. 

Let’s Begin

I will start by stating that I respect the fact that this book was also written by a white author. We cannot address crime against blacks by removing white people from the equation. They are both the solution and the problem. 

But

I feel as though more issues could have been discussed. Some ends were tied and some ends were left loose. Like did Paul ever have an awakening? Did his family come to terms with what actually happened? I also would’ve liked to seen Rashad get a little angrier than he did or at least hear more of his thoughts about what happened to him. I would also say the same for his father. The only one that was really passionate would be his brother and Quinn. 

I enjoyed the POV’s. I felt as though they helped to diminish the line between the audience of black and white readers. 

Still a 5 Star Rating

My few dislikes don’t indicate that I didn’t enjoy the book. I appreciate All American Boys in its entirety. I guess the fact that I wanted more proves that I enjoyed it.