Disclaimer: First of all,I was very kindly sent an early copy of the book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review and then they so kindly invited me to be part of the blog tour for the UK release. That being said,none of that affects my views on the book in any way,shape or form.Secondly,this book is very obviously by and about people unlike myself,so while I highly appreciate you stopping by and checking my review out,do make it a priority to seek own voices reviews before anything else.
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮
"You can't change how other people think and act,but you're in full control of you.When it comes own to it,the only question that matters is this: If nothing in the world ever changes,what type of man are you gonna be?"
Plot:
(CW: racism,police brutality)
Justyce McAllister is top of his class and set for the Ivy
League—but none of that matters to the police officer who just put him in
handcuffs. And despite leaving his rough neighborhood behind, he can't escape
the scorn of his former peers or the ridicule of his new classmates. Justyce
looks to the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for answers. But do they
hold up anymore? He starts a journal to Dr. King to find out.
Then comes the day Justyce goes driving with his best
friend, Manny, windows rolled down, music turned up—way up, sparking the fury
of a white off-duty cop beside them. Words fly. Shots are fired. Justyce and
Manny are caught in the crosshairs. In the media fallout, it's Justyce who is
under attack.
My thoughts:
It seems futile to even try to seek out the right words that'd do this book any justice.Dear Martin is a visceral story that surely packs a punch and shines light on painfully realistic situations that are sadly the reality that too many people live in. Nic Stone has managed to craft such a powerful story in the span of a fairly short book and has established herself as one of the most important and promising voices in the community and I will definitely eagerly look forward to anything else she publishes.
First thing first,I thought the writing style was great.It walked that fine like between having this heavy tone necessary to such a dark story,yet it kept its youth and authenticity. There were a lot of elements that jumped out to me as things that give circularity and symmetry to the story,which the nerd in me always appreciates.Hell,even the choice of our protagonist's name,Justyce, seems like such powerful symbolism and a small,yet momentous choice. The different formats used -from the regular narrative,to the letters to MLK,to the news report transcripts- make it very easy to fly through the book in no time.Also the choice of using 3rd person in the main narrative feels like such a compelling authorial choice and feels like a symbol in itself (though I might be reaching a little and looking for symbols everywhere,which is kind of on brand for me.Alas.)
The characters were all so well shaped.I thought Justyce was such a great protagonist.It was so easy to become invested in his story and the stories of those around him.His journey and thought process felt very authentic and the base concept of him writing these stories to MLK in itself feels like such a ~teen~ thing to begin with.Nic Stone perfectly captures the spirit of adolescence,for what is easier for one to do to cope with the heavy things life throws at you than trying to make sense of them through the perspective of someone you look up to?
The plot itself did feel like it kept throwing punch after punch after punch,which makes it all the more sickening to realise that what Dear Martin portrays is the reality of oh so many teens.It is a constant reminder of the importance and relevance of telling these stories and shining light on them in the hope of raising awareness.
I was also intrigued by the portrayal of all the things that Justyce has to be around without even processing them at times; you have all these showings of both allyship and microagressions and the way it is often harder than one might imagine to perceive both of these things and their implications through a filter.
I hope I managed to at least scratch the surface on how phenomenal this book is and I highly recommend that you check it out asap.
(Note: it is already out in the US and available in the UK starting May 3rd)
(PPS: I must insist that you also seek out own voices reviews and listen to the voices of those like Justyce when discussing stories like theirs)
Comments
Post a Comment