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kaylawhata 's review for:
Code of Honor
by Alan Gratz
***I received this book as a Firstreads giveaway through Goodreads***
What a timely and thought provoking read! Kamran Smith has always wanted to be like his old brother, Darius. As children, the two created a code of honor that would define their lives and adhere to their goals of joining the United States Military: "Be the strongest of the strong. Be the bravest of the brave. Help the helpless. Always tell the truth. Be loyal. Never give up. And kill all monsters." Now a senior in HS, Kamran is on his way to following his brother's footsteps to West Point. A member of the football team, recently crowned homecoming king to his girlfriend Julia's queen, Kamran has it made.
Until his brother is seen taking full responsibility for an al-Qaeda attack on the US Embassy in Turkey. Kamran and his parents are in shock; this is not the son they raised. "They feared me---hated me---just because my skin is brown." Kamran's family was not religious and attended no church, Christian or Muslim. "But nobody cared about facts. They'd already decided I was Muslim, and that I was going to turn on America, just like my brother had."
As more videos come out, it appears that Darius became a devout Muslim in the years following 9/11 and joined the military to pass secrets to al-Qeada. Kamran isn't convinced that Darius believes in the things he is saying; maybe he has been kidnapped and brainwashed. Some of the things Darius says harkens back to the childhood games they used to play. Is Darius trying to communicate with Kamran? While being detained by Homeland Security, Kamran tries to clear his brother's name. Only one person seems to agree with Kamran that Darius may be innocent: CIA agent Mickey Hagen.
Code of Honor is full of twists and turns. While reading, I could imagine the character's voices and actions---this would make a great movie. As a 25 year old, Darius I were the same age when September 11th happened. The references may date the novel, but I think it is an important addition to the dialogue of terrorism and Islamophobia in America.
My main complaint with the book is that the chapter lengths felt too short and choppy. This made it a great bathroom read, which is why it took me nearly 3 weeks to finish it, though I must say the book was hard to put down at times. However, I felt that some chapters could have been combined rather than having 92 chapters averaging about 2-3 pages each.
Overall, 4 out of 5 stars! I loved Alan Gratz' book Prisoner B-3087. Definitely want to read more of his works!
What a timely and thought provoking read! Kamran Smith has always wanted to be like his old brother, Darius. As children, the two created a code of honor that would define their lives and adhere to their goals of joining the United States Military: "Be the strongest of the strong. Be the bravest of the brave. Help the helpless. Always tell the truth. Be loyal. Never give up. And kill all monsters." Now a senior in HS, Kamran is on his way to following his brother's footsteps to West Point. A member of the football team, recently crowned homecoming king to his girlfriend Julia's queen, Kamran has it made.
Until his brother is seen taking full responsibility for an al-Qaeda attack on the US Embassy in Turkey. Kamran and his parents are in shock; this is not the son they raised. "They feared me---hated me---just because my skin is brown." Kamran's family was not religious and attended no church, Christian or Muslim. "But nobody cared about facts. They'd already decided I was Muslim, and that I was going to turn on America, just like my brother had."
As more videos come out, it appears that Darius became a devout Muslim in the years following 9/11 and joined the military to pass secrets to al-Qeada. Kamran isn't convinced that Darius believes in the things he is saying; maybe he has been kidnapped and brainwashed. Some of the things Darius says harkens back to the childhood games they used to play. Is Darius trying to communicate with Kamran? While being detained by Homeland Security, Kamran tries to clear his brother's name. Only one person seems to agree with Kamran that Darius may be innocent: CIA agent Mickey Hagen.
Code of Honor is full of twists and turns. While reading, I could imagine the character's voices and actions---this would make a great movie. As a 25 year old, Darius I were the same age when September 11th happened. The references may date the novel, but I think it is an important addition to the dialogue of terrorism and Islamophobia in America.
My main complaint with the book is that the chapter lengths felt too short and choppy. This made it a great bathroom read, which is why it took me nearly 3 weeks to finish it, though I must say the book was hard to put down at times. However, I felt that some chapters could have been combined rather than having 92 chapters averaging about 2-3 pages each.
Overall, 4 out of 5 stars! I loved Alan Gratz' book Prisoner B-3087. Definitely want to read more of his works!