Reviews with content warning for Alcoholism - The Nickel Boys

This is a fantastic book, which feels weird to say since the content is so heavy and dark. However, it is very well written. More importantly, it tells the story of boys whose stories were largely unheard. It is based on a true story of what happened at a reform school in Florida. The only thing I didn’t like about it is that I felt it wasn’t fully resolved. Which is perhaps intentional.

I read this for book group and was forewarned that I needed to start reading it earlier than I normally would because I’d need to take breaks from the heaviness of it. And that turned out to be the case. The only other book I’ve read that I remember having to put down and come back to this much was John Hersey’s Hiroshima.

I recommend this to everyone. It’s a lot to handle, but it’s so important. It’s important to know about and learn to recognize the injustices that have happened, and are still happening, in our country so that we can affect change.

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babieyunie's review

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challenging dark informative sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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mblanke's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

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bookcaptivated's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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emakay's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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nibs's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I picked up this book because it was recommended by John and Hank Green on a podcast, as being painful but also super important to read. Seeing it was by Colson Whitehead and that it won the Pulitzer Prize in 2020 brought it to the top of my to read list.

This book was painful to read, but I knew that going in. It is so well-crafted - it could be twice the length if it wanted to be, there are so many stories to tell and the characters are so fleshed out - but condensing it makes it pack more of a punch. Elwood's fierce hope in people and justice is so relatable and powerful, with the words of Dr Martin Luther King Jnr echoing through his head. But we also relate to Turner's lack of trust in anyone, since when the world is against you that seems to be the safest option.

In the end, powerful people exert their power on vulnerable people, and they either don't realise, don't care or relish in it. And that is still very much happening today. American segregation is gone, but racism and the systemic echoes of it still exist.

When I first started reading it, I was so upset by the injustice of the whole situation. But as I got engrossed in the book, it switched to more directly empathising with the characters and their immediate emotions, which hits you in a different way.

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