Elwood Curtis lives in the black area in segregated Tallahassee, but the Civil Rights movement is stirring and he's in awe of Martin Luther King's words. As a high school senior about to take classes at a local college, he's ready for the world. His grandmother has kept him on the straight and narrow.
cover blurb: But for a black boy in the Jim Crow South of the early 1960s, one innocent mistake is enough to destroy the future.
Elwood finds himself at the Nickel Academy - its mission is to provide moral training. It's true goal - to break down the soul of "colored" delinquents. Elwood tries to hold on to Dr. King's words, but his friend Turner thinks that Elwood is worse than naive, that the world is crooked, and that the only way to survive is to scheme and avoid trouble. (cover)
Colson Whitehead's The Nickel Boys is based off of a real life reform school in the South, where horrors came to the forefront. You'll root for Elwood's ideals and hope for the best. Twists and turns abound, and through it all the writing is stellar, the characters rich, and you'll shed a tear for the torment of tough times in the 1960s South.
Looks great Jonne, you read some excellent books.
ReplyDeletethanks. I read reviews and a lot catch my attention
DeleteWhat a terrible place!
ReplyDeleteoh, it was horrible based on this story
DeleteSounds fascinating - the 60's were a great decade, east and west both. Rich as a setting.
ReplyDeleteyou would like this writer a lot
DeleteSure sounds like a learning and gripping read, and that place sounds horrible.
ReplyDeleteWhitehead is a great writer, takes you into the scene
DeleteSounds like a good read...
ReplyDeletequite intense.
DeleteWow, this sounds intense and intensely good. Thank you for pointing out a winner.
ReplyDeleteYou'd appreciate his writing and truths. He's a Wow!
DeleteSounds like a captivating story!
ReplyDeleteIf the story's based on the reform school in Florida where all the dead bodies were dug up, I can imagine how horrific the tale must be. But maybe one that needs to be read.
ReplyDelete