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4.32 AVERAGE
4.32 AVERAGE
challenging
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:
Complicated
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
This was a good but not great read. I felt like Whitehead was holding back. The book is a slow burn that never really picks up momentum. Whitehead keeps his characters at arms length never letting very close to them. I kept looking for more depth to the story, more intimacy with the characters. It's a timely story which probably edged it to the Pulitzer but I've read other Pulitzer winners that were far more engaging.
“Even in death the boys were trouble.”
So begins The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead, with one of the best opening lines I’ve read in a while. Short and snappy, it pulls you in. But there’s also so much packed into that one sentence - a whole history. Which boys? Why are they dead? Why are they a source of trouble? And, perhaps most importantly, who are they trouble for? The rest of this novel is equally sparse yet packed with meaning.
It follows a boy named Elwood. He’s a high school senior hoping to take classes at a local Black college later in the year. But it’s the 1960s in the Jim Crow South, and no matter how responsible and respectable the townspeople think he is, he’s just another Black boy in the eyes of the law and its enforcers.
In the wrong place at the wrong time, he’s sent to a juvenile reformatory school known as Nickel Academy. It’s supposed to be a school that “transforms” these boys into contributing members of society, but it’s closer to a prison. The staff mentally, physically, verbally, psychologically, and sexually abuse the boys, and no one’s coming to save them.
As Elwood tries to survive, in this cruel environment, he thinks about the words of MLK Junior, “Do to us what you will and we will still love you” and how impossible that really is.
I noticed some other reviews mention that the non-fiction, journalistic writing style wasn’t their favorite. This is my first Whitehead book, so I’m not sure if The Nickel Boys is indicative of Whitehead’s usual narrative style or a more “calculated” choice. Regardless, I didn’t mind the distanced narration because I think that in some cases, that’s the only way we can talk about trauma.
To give voice to every emotion and every thought is to revisit those traumatic moments. And most people don’t want to revisit those memories. They’re too painful. I think the power of this book comes from the fact that we don’t need to be completely inside a character’s mind to feel deeply for them.
I think a lot of people should read this! I still can’t stop thinking about that opening line…whew.
So begins The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead, with one of the best opening lines I’ve read in a while. Short and snappy, it pulls you in. But there’s also so much packed into that one sentence - a whole history. Which boys? Why are they dead? Why are they a source of trouble? And, perhaps most importantly, who are they trouble for? The rest of this novel is equally sparse yet packed with meaning.
It follows a boy named Elwood. He’s a high school senior hoping to take classes at a local Black college later in the year. But it’s the 1960s in the Jim Crow South, and no matter how responsible and respectable the townspeople think he is, he’s just another Black boy in the eyes of the law and its enforcers.
In the wrong place at the wrong time, he’s sent to a juvenile reformatory school known as Nickel Academy. It’s supposed to be a school that “transforms” these boys into contributing members of society, but it’s closer to a prison. The staff mentally, physically, verbally, psychologically, and sexually abuse the boys, and no one’s coming to save them.
As Elwood tries to survive, in this cruel environment, he thinks about the words of MLK Junior, “Do to us what you will and we will still love you” and how impossible that really is.
I noticed some other reviews mention that the non-fiction, journalistic writing style wasn’t their favorite. This is my first Whitehead book, so I’m not sure if The Nickel Boys is indicative of Whitehead’s usual narrative style or a more “calculated” choice. Regardless, I didn’t mind the distanced narration because I think that in some cases, that’s the only way we can talk about trauma.
To give voice to every emotion and every thought is to revisit those traumatic moments. And most people don’t want to revisit those memories. They’re too painful. I think the power of this book comes from the fact that we don’t need to be completely inside a character’s mind to feel deeply for them.
I think a lot of people should read this! I still can’t stop thinking about that opening line…whew.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
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
content - 7/10
style - 8/10
resonance - 8/10
holy moly this book is HAUNTING….. a horrible horrible story that i am HORRIFIED to find out is based in TRUTH?!?!?! about a reform academy in a recently post jim crow america and a young protagonist who unfairly ends up there. his ambition and idealism (instilled by martin luther king jr speeches) contrasts sharply with the brutality of the school’s environment, where the torture of students on school ground is commonplace.
as the book jumps back and forth between the past and present with no real indicator except for the content of each chapter, i found it slightly difficult to catch up and follow where i was in the timeline of the story. but i realise this makes the “reveal” near the end particularly effective, which had me gagged.
i really like the contrast between elwood and turner’s perspectives on the world and of life, reflecting the duality within each of us, where the idealism of a child meets the pessimism of an adult, and it was really interesting to have that framed and discussed in such a brutal and cruel circumstance.
i was particularly haunted by griff’s death which is just…. so tragic and upsetting, and i really cant imagine how the trauma at such a young age can influence the students forever. it’s actually crazy that this is based on true experiences and highlights the importance of protecting our most vulnerable children in society, definitely a necessary book to tell the survivor’s unheard stories.
sidenote: i really like the way the author writes about weather in this book, it’s just so unique and he really puts the reader in the environment / atmosphere of the space and time so effectively
style - 8/10
resonance - 8/10
holy moly this book is HAUNTING….. a horrible horrible story that i am HORRIFIED to find out is based in TRUTH?!?!?! about a reform academy in a recently post jim crow america and a young protagonist who unfairly ends up there. his ambition and idealism (instilled by martin luther king jr speeches) contrasts sharply with the brutality of the school’s environment, where the torture of students on school ground is commonplace.
as the book jumps back and forth between the past and present with no real indicator except for the content of each chapter, i found it slightly difficult to catch up and follow where i was in the timeline of the story. but i realise this makes the “reveal” near the end particularly effective, which had me gagged.
i really like the contrast between elwood and turner’s perspectives on the world and of life, reflecting the duality within each of us, where the idealism of a child meets the pessimism of an adult, and it was really interesting to have that framed and discussed in such a brutal and cruel circumstance.
i was particularly haunted by griff’s death which is just…. so tragic and upsetting, and i really cant imagine how the trauma at such a young age can influence the students forever. it’s actually crazy that this is based on true experiences and highlights the importance of protecting our most vulnerable children in society, definitely a necessary book to tell the survivor’s unheard stories.
sidenote: i really like the way the author writes about weather in this book, it’s just so unique and he really puts the reader in the environment / atmosphere of the space and time so effectively
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
fast-paced
Puts you in the place. A dark place. A place that should have never existed.
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A