Myers's (Monster
) compellingly readable novel in verse unfolds through an array of characters, all linked by Damien Battle and Junice Ambers—who both live in Harlem but come from very different worlds. Damien has been accepted to Brown University; Junice's mother has been sentenced to 25 years for possession and drug dealing. A pair of early rap poems set up a rivalry between Damien and Sledge (whose "crew... wore their colors"), and also Damien's fascination with a "beauty" who "walks darkly, as if her mind weighs down/ Her steps," later revealed to be Junice. Myers crafts some memorable moments here, as when Junice describes her mother ("She gave freely/ To those in need, or to those who, like/ Her, were broken, and needed a fix") or when Miss Ruby, Junice's grandmother, expresses grief for her convicted daughter in a blues poem ("Yeah, it's hard, baby/ It's hard right down to the bone/ I said Oh, it's hard baby/ It's hard right down to the very bone/ It's hard when you're a woman/ And you find yourself all alone") and the banter between Damien and a buddy. Yet some readers may wish for a deeper understanding of what draws Damien to Junice, and why he risks his own family's upheaval and his future at Brown for this new romance. Though both Damien and Junice come off as sympathetic characters, their attraction to each other remains a mystery. Ages 12-up. (Nov.)
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Reviewed on: 10/09/2006
Release date: 11/01/2006
Genre: Children's
Open Ebook - 160 pages - 9780061783364
Peanut Press/Palm Reader - 160 pages - 9780061783395
Paperback - 134 pages - 9780064407328
Other - 160 pages - 9780061783425
Other - 160 pages - 9780061975080
Library Binding - 134 pages - 9780060280802
Prebound-Sewn - 134 pages - 9780756981020
Hardcover - 134 pages - 9780060280796
Hardcover - 197 pages - 9780786296293