Publisher's Synopsis
In this Coretta Scott King Honor Award–winning novel, two teens—one black, one white—grapple with the repercussions of a single violent act that leaves their school, their community, and, ultimately, the country bitterly divided by racial tension.
A bag of chips. That’s all sixteen-year-old Rashad is looking for at the corner bodega. What he finds instead is a fist-happy cop, Paul Galluzzo, who mistakes Rashad for a shoplifter, mistakes Rashad’s pleadings that he’s stolen nothing for belligerence, mistakes Rashad’s resistance to leave the bodega as resisting arrest, mistakes Rashad’s every flinch at every punch the cop throws as further resistance and refusal to STAY STILL as ordered. But how can you stay still when someone is pounding your face into the concrete pavement?
There were witnesses: Quinn Collins—a varsity basketball player and Rashad’s classmate who has been raised by Paul since his own father died in Afghanistan—and a video camera. Soon the beating is all over the news and Paul is getting threatened with accusations of prejudice and racial brutality. Quinn refuses to believe that the man who has basically been his savior could possibly be guilty. But then Rashad is absent. And absent again. And again. And the basketball team—half of whom are Rashad’s best friends—start to take sides. As does the school. And the town. Simmering tensions threaten to explode as Rashad and Quinn are forced to face decisions and consequences they had never considered before.
Written in tandem by two award-winning authors, this four-starred reviews tour de force shares the alternating perspectives of Rashad and Quinn as the complications from that single violent moment, the type taken from the headlines, unfold and reverberate to highlight an unwelcome truth.
A bag of chips. That’s all sixteen-year-old Rashad is looking for at the corner bodega. What he finds instead is a fist-happy cop, Paul Galluzzo, who mistakes Rashad for a shoplifter, mistakes Rashad’s pleadings that he’s stolen nothing for belligerence, mistakes Rashad’s resistance to leave the bodega as resisting arrest, mistakes Rashad’s every flinch at every punch the cop throws as further resistance and refusal to STAY STILL as ordered. But how can you stay still when someone is pounding your face into the concrete pavement?
There were witnesses: Quinn Collins—a varsity basketball player and Rashad’s classmate who has been raised by Paul since his own father died in Afghanistan—and a video camera. Soon the beating is all over the news and Paul is getting threatened with accusations of prejudice and racial brutality. Quinn refuses to believe that the man who has basically been his savior could possibly be guilty. But then Rashad is absent. And absent again. And again. And the basketball team—half of whom are Rashad’s best friends—start to take sides. As does the school. And the town. Simmering tensions threaten to explode as Rashad and Quinn are forced to face decisions and consequences they had never considered before.
Written in tandem by two award-winning authors, this four-starred reviews tour de force shares the alternating perspectives of Rashad and Quinn as the complications from that single violent moment, the type taken from the headlines, unfold and reverberate to highlight an unwelcome truth.
Our Reviews
All American Boys is about two high school teens who attend the same school and get caught up in an act of racially motivated police violence. Rashad Butler is the African American victim and Quinn Collins is Caucasian and witnessed the event. All American Boys handles race and violence in a way that the people are conflicted and don't know who they should side with, as for some the lines and what is the truth aren't clear. The novel is told in dual narrative from Rashad and Quinn's POVs. The voices shift chapter to chapter and can be confusing to follow at times early in the book. That being said, I loved the last chapter which is told by both Rashad and Quinn. The narratives are compelling and it's interesting to read from a victim's POV and a witness's POV of the attack. I highly recommend this book to be read in high schools as a powerful way to discuss a highly charged topic. 4.5 stars ~M. Vannoni
All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
Two sixteen-year-olds--one black, one white--grapple with the aftermath of an episode of police brutality. Issues of family dynamics, loyalty, and racial inequality are unflinchingly addressed in this engrossing book, as the two authors tell their story from the boys’ alternating points of view. Perhaps the most compelling aspect of this novel is the exploration of the boys’ psychological responses to the initial act of violence and its consequences within their peer group, their families, and their community. Rashad is uncomfortable with his celebrity and struggles to understand why he was targeted; Quinn witnessed the brutality, and contends with his loyalty to the police officer who was a father figure to him. Readers will find themselves able to identify with the feelings of each boy, making this an excellent book for discussion. Although more distinct voices for the two main characters could have limited confusion, this book is still highly recommended for high school students. 4.5 stars ~Sheila Tobin Cavooris
Two sixteen-year-olds--one black, one white--grapple with the aftermath of an episode of police brutality. Issues of family dynamics, loyalty, and racial inequality are unflinchingly addressed in this engrossing book, as the two authors tell their story from the boys’ alternating points of view. Perhaps the most compelling aspect of this novel is the exploration of the boys’ psychological responses to the initial act of violence and its consequences within their peer group, their families, and their community. Rashad is uncomfortable with his celebrity and struggles to understand why he was targeted; Quinn witnessed the brutality, and contends with his loyalty to the police officer who was a father figure to him. Readers will find themselves able to identify with the feelings of each boy, making this an excellent book for discussion. Although more distinct voices for the two main characters could have limited confusion, this book is still highly recommended for high school students. 4.5 stars ~Sheila Tobin Cavooris
All American Boys deals with the very sensitive topics of race relations and police brutality. Two high school students, one black and one white, come to grips with racism from their own perspective. Rashad, the African American was beaten by a white police officer for a crime he did not commit. Quinn, a white young man, witnessed the beating. Both young men struggle with the repercussions of this event and how it effects the dynamics within their own families, with their friends, and with the community at large. To make things more complicated for Quinn, the police officer is a close family friend who Quinn has looked up to as a father figure since his own father was killed in Afghanistan. The book alternates between the two boys' points of view and provides us with the in depth struggle they both face. This is an excellent book with powerful messages that would be appropriate for high school students. You will find lots of opportunity for discussion. 5 stars ~Donna DeLuca