Status
Call number
Publication
Description
Juvenile Fictio Juvenile Literatur HTML: From debut author Lisa Moore Ramée comes this funny and big-hearted debut middle grade novel about friendship, family, and standing up for what's right, perfect for fans of Angie Thomas's The Hate U Give and the novels of Renée Watson and Jason Reynolds. Twelve-year-old Shayla is allergic to trouble. All she wants to do is to follow the rules. (Oh, and she'd also like to make it through seventh grade with her best friendships intact, learn to run track, and have a cute boy see past her giant forehead.) But in junior high, it's like all the rules have changed. Now she's suddenly questioning who her best friends are and some people at school are saying she's not black enough. Wait, what? Shay's sister, Hana, is involved in Black Lives Matter, but Shay doesn't think that's for her. After experiencing a powerful protest, though, Shay decides some rules are worth breaking. She starts wearing an armband to school in support of the Black Lives movement. Soon everyone is taking sides. And she is given an ultimatum. Shay is scared to do the wrong thing (and even more scared to do the right thing), but if she doesn't face her fear, she'll be forever tripping over the next hurdle. Now that's trouble, for real. "Tensions are high over the trial of a police officer who shot an unarmed Black man. When the officer is set free, and Shay goes with her family to a silent protest, she starts to see that some trouble is worth making." (Publishers Weekly, "An Anti-Racist Children's and YA Reading List")… (more)
User reviews
"I'm allergic to trouble," twelve-year-old Shayla says, and she means it. Following the rules makes life easier, but now in her first year of
Shayla's voice carries this story with humor, heart, and the authenticity of an imperfect but principled girl in progress. Even with this middle grade novel's social justice theme, it's just as much a mix of universal growing pains—adolescents facing the newness, excitement, and awkwardness of an awkward stage.
It's the last third of the novel, though, that pulled me in the most. The depiction of the alarming shame it is when people are more concerned with stopping peaceful protest than with addressing the injustices that led to protest in the first place. The message of the value of human life.
And what I may appreciate most about the novel is its nuance. The simple way it illustrates complexities in social and racial relations, and how Shayla's journey isn't just a path of easy, cheesy no-brainers. What she's dealing with isn't all black and white.
Pardon the pun.
I hope that many, many young readers of all backgrounds will get a hold of this amusing, relatable, timely, and inspiring read.
When multiple shooting incidents with the police happen, Shayla and her family go to a silent protest and Shayla gets more involved with the Black Lives Matter movement even daring to get into trouble at school to stand up for what she believes.
Shayla's life changes more than she believes it would. She assumes nothing will change as they enter junior high, believing that with her two best friends, they will remain a threesome. Junior high, however, offers more
As I said, this is a novel about perceptions. Shayla's perceptions of her friends do not represent the truth because she isn't honest (or brave) enough to seek out the answers. Her perceptions about Bernard are also unfair, as there is more to him than she's willing to see. Ironically, Shayla gets upset when her sister asks why Shayla doesn't have any black friends, although now she can say she knows Yolanda. Shayla believes color doesn't matter. Her sister, however, believes strongly in the movement, Black Lives Matter. As a trial ends in town for a white officer who killed a black person, and the officer is found not guilty, Shayla recognizes the injustices afforded to black people. She absolutely hates causing trouble, but she feels that wearing an armband in protest brings attention to an unfair situation.
This novel speaks more to middle school than other books about the same subject. It's very accessible and appropriate to this age group, especially for those not ready for The Hate U Give or Dear Martin. Her conversations with her friends and the prejudices against them for their cultures are discussed adding a broader comment on people's perceptions of others based on their race or ethnicity. It's a well-written and good book about learned bias and the need to acknowledge the wrongs and fight for what's right.
But then trouble starts—and Shayla does not like trouble. Her older
It's got the true ring of 7th grade dialogue and "drama," but there is an underlying tone of seriousness. When the police officer is acquitted, she's outraged, but discovers that not everyone at school views the outcome the same way. When she decides to wear a black armband like her sister to demonstrate that Black Lives Matter, her principal doesn't hide her disgust and goes after Shayla with a vengeance.
I found this to be the perfect novel to begin or continue a discussion about race and equality and justice with 4th graders on up. This is Lisa Moore Ramée's first book, and I can't wait for more of her work to add to our school library.
summary: 12 y.o. Black girl deals with middle school, including arguments with her Asian- and Latinx-American BFFs, boys who don't know how to act around girls (and vice versa), other black
This character-driven novel is a bit slow on plot but I don't mind because Shayla feels so genuine. Middle school is not really a time that any of us prefer to revisit, but there is something about seeing it through Shayla's eyes and experiences that make it much more palatable, even if is still often unpleasant (ugh, middle school). The story is more centered on her figuring out how to speak up for herself around her friends and classmates at school, but (unfortunately, these days) there is a point when one just cannot avoid social justice issues, and so some of this story is Shayla learning about the Black Lives Matter movement, learning about the prejudices that affect her and her classmates at her own school, and learning the hard truth that even when there is video evidence that a police officer shot an unarmed person in the back, that officer will likely still be found "not guilty" under current law. This story is "distinguished" in the way that Newbery contenders ought to be, and it's really well done.
Things I loved: vivid, believable characters (seriously, always my number 1 draw to a book). Shayla's story feels unique to her and at the same time offers a lot of space for others to empathize. I love Shayla's burgeoning interest in track, her mother's explanations for what is happening with Black Lives Matter, her two best friends from different backgrounds (they refer to themselves as the United Nations) and her new friendships.
There's a lot in here about jealousy and boys and crushes, so if that isn't your jam, it may not be for you. There's also a ton about not judging people until you know them better and about standing up for yourself and creating community. Spectacular for Tweens -- it's all about figuring out what you care about and how you are going to represent that.
This middle grade novel would be a great way to ease younger kiddos into thinking about issues of race. It doesn't sugar-coat anything, but it manages to discuss the issues in a medium-stakes kind of way; think The Hate U Give lite.