Brother Hood by Janet McDonald
Reviewed by Mimi
Brother Hood was a book that inspired me and moved me deeply enough that at points I could feel Nate's anxieties, his sadness and his disappointment. The story tells life through the eyes of Nathaniel, a boy born into the poverty of New York's infamous Harlem streets, who comes through it all and is accepted to a top notch private school. There, almost everyone is rich and barely anyone is of color. Nate lives life as two different people, Schoolie, the semi-gangster, relaxed street boy and Nathaniel, the smart, good-looking jock. When pressures from the street call Nate back to his old life will he succumb to his hood family or will the days of academics keep him on the fast track? What I enjoyed most about this book were the dimensions of Nate as well as the other supporting characters. Each and every person has a personality far deeper that what can be seen solely by reading the text. What I also liked is that the author did not promote racial stereotypes and had people of different races coming from all types of economic backgrounds. I would recommend this book to anyone. It has a bit of cursing, but is an overall great story will have you reading it over and over again.
Posted by at March 24, 2010 01:53 PM