The Black Kids

What up book people? Let’s jump right into today’s book. It’s The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed. This author is an amazing human as well as a dope writer and I’m definitely looking froward to more from her.

Alright so the book takes place in LA where Ashley is living her best life, going to a private school, chilling with the other rich kids. I can speak from experience (shout out to Park Tudor in Indianapolis) but there’s always that one Black student that doesn’t really rock with the rest of the Black kids. That’s Ashley.

So life is good for her but then the po-po that beat Rodney King are acquitted and Ashley’s perfect little world changes. The book follows Ashley as she navigates this new normal of realizing her Blackness influences how she is treated.

Since the book is set in 1992, it’s considered a YA Historical Fiction but it gives the page turning energy of a thriller. I wanted to reach through the pages and drag a couple of these characters cuz yes I will fight a fictional kid. While we all know about the LA riots, we’ve never seen it through the eyes of a teenager. This story looks at how class and wealth can impact how we view race.

It’s definitely a must read so scoop it up ASAP.

You’re welcome