A review by swordsparks
All American Boys by Brendan Kiely, Jason Reynolds

3.0

All American Boys details two different fictional experiences of police brutality. Rashad (a young black teen) is shot by a police officer one night, which is witnessed by Quinn (a white teen) who is friends with the officer. One of the strengths of the book was it was written from insider perspectives, as the Jason Reynolds (a black man) wrote Rashad’s chapter and Brendan Kiely (a white man) wrote Quinn’s chapters. While it was interesting to compare the perspectives of Rashad and Quinn, it may have been also interesting to hear more from the perspectives of Rashad’s friends (especially English) or perspectives from any of the female characters. Diversity is represented through the representation of young black men and women, as well as discussions of police brutality. I would recommend this book to teenage boys who are reluctant readers, as the book moves at a fast pace, uses simple language, and centers around sports. I would also recommend this book as a jumping off point for starting conversations about race in classrooms, as there are multiple perspectives for students to identity with and compare.