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4.32 AVERAGE
4.32 AVERAGE
dark
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
sad
fast-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
sad
medium-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:
No
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The main reason why I am giving this book 4⭐️ is because I want to provide a distinction between this book and Underground Railroad, which I adored. Technically and structurally I did really enjoy The Nickel Boys, but it just didn’t have the va-va-voom that I got from the other book. In that story I was immediately sucked into the life of Cora the slave, and her adventures of escaping and fleeing the slave hunter. There was a real emotional depth that made my heart leap on every other page to see what was happening.
What I found really interesting was the sense that if you put the books together, they shared so many similarities despite there being about 100 years between them. Looking at the attitudes of whites to blacks, and seeing the sheer discrimination makes it so very evident that in this respect there was very little progress during this time.
Although you can definitely tell that the books are written by the same author, this one almost has a more rigid style that makes it less easy to read. You still feel that connection with Elwood but it was not quite as seamless. His story is completely heartbreaking, and I actually found it more emotionally difficult to read than Railroad. Maybe due to the time period which was only a stones throw away, maybe it was his age, maybe it was the life he had waiting for him in college if it hadn’t been for one decision, and maybe it was his incredible moral fibre and the code which governed his life and his actions.
I looked at a couple of other reviews while trying to gather my thoughts, and one person used the word “detached” when talking about it, and this definitely resonates. As I mentioned I personally felt that Railroad was an emotional book, whereas the writing in this one did feel more detached. I’m not sure whether this was intentional, to provide the reader some space away from the atrocities in the school, and to be able to continue reading with some semblance of compartmentalisation. To read those scenes without the emotion? And to be honest I’m not sure which style I would have preferred for this particular story.
What I found really interesting was the sense that if you put the books together, they shared so many similarities despite there being about 100 years between them. Looking at the attitudes of whites to blacks, and seeing the sheer discrimination makes it so very evident that in this respect there was very little progress during this time.
Although you can definitely tell that the books are written by the same author, this one almost has a more rigid style that makes it less easy to read. You still feel that connection with Elwood but it was not quite as seamless. His story is completely heartbreaking, and I actually found it more emotionally difficult to read than Railroad. Maybe due to the time period which was only a stones throw away, maybe it was his age, maybe it was the life he had waiting for him in college if it hadn’t been for one decision, and maybe it was his incredible moral fibre and the code which governed his life and his actions.
I looked at a couple of other reviews while trying to gather my thoughts, and one person used the word “detached” when talking about it, and this definitely resonates. As I mentioned I personally felt that Railroad was an emotional book, whereas the writing in this one did feel more detached. I’m not sure whether this was intentional, to provide the reader some space away from the atrocities in the school, and to be able to continue reading with some semblance of compartmentalisation. To read those scenes without the emotion? And to be honest I’m not sure which style I would have preferred for this particular story.
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
informative
inspiring
reflective
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:
No
Must read.
Necessary reading.
For the sake if black american history and to reflect upon humanity.
It creates a very present and maddening feeling in you, because we just don’t get why some people believe they are better than others - or other races. History all over again.
It is quite slow paced but expands over decades and the main characters whole life.
It includes friendship, and hardships and - sadly - enlightens about american black torture methods white people used before the 1970’s.
Necessary reading.
For the sake if black american history and to reflect upon humanity.
It creates a very present and maddening feeling in you, because we just don’t get why some people believe they are better than others - or other races. History all over again.
It is quite slow paced but expands over decades and the main characters whole life.
It includes friendship, and hardships and - sadly - enlightens about american black torture methods white people used before the 1970’s.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Torture
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-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:
No
This book is extremely compelling. This book follows the life of our main character before, during, and after his time in a boy's reform school in Florida in the 60s. The author was inspired to write this book when the torture, exploitation, and horrible conditions at a similar school were discovered/reported. You will fall in love with and grieve for the characters in this book. You will question how people can treat other people like this. And you will understand why books like this are vital to understanding our history and why we are where we are.