Little, Brown Ghost Boys

As a teacher, I've loved Jewell Parker Rhodes's work for some time now and this book is no exception. Rhodes has a talent for telling what is not an easy story in a manner that is totally appropriate for this age range and also engaging so that they will WANT to read on. Also for teachers the book includes discussion questions and classroom activities so it's very easy to make this into a novel unit for your class.

The story is riveting for young audiences. The author takes a serious and sensitive approach to make this reality accessible for youth.

Read this book in a sitting, really interesting and thought-provoking, its not the easiest topic to read about but very important messages in it.also my pup really liked chewing on the front cover when i was done.

I read this to my 7th graders during the quarantine during an optional Google meet. The kids generally liked it, however it is more catered to 4th-5th graders (not surprised—I took it off the elementary approved reading list). My district has it approved for 4th graders.It’s the only book I have encountered that addresses prejudice and police brutality for that age group.The characters are not complex and the story is rather simple. It’s a very at-the-surface story. You aren’t going to get the characterization of, say, The Outsiders. You aren’t going to get the twists and turns of the Westing Game. You aren’t going to get the harsh realities of a Walter Dean Myers book. But it does the job and kids will like it.I should warn you, however, that there is a page that mentions Emmitt Till’s body after his murder. His mother famously and bravely had a glass casket so the world “could see what they did” to him. It mentions the character doing a Google image search to see a picture of his body. When I learned about Till in 10th grade—it was troubling even for me. I suggest searching it for your child first, and then deciding if they can handle it. I’m sure there are 10-year-olds who can handle it, there are some who will have nightmares. It will leave a huge impact, though.If your child reads this book, I suggest reading it with them so you can have a discussion with them. I didn’t have to do that with my 7th graders (they understand prejudice at their age), but a ten-year-old might not. The value of the book is lost if a child isn’t able to process the message.I also suggest you do some extra research with your child on Emmitt Till. It’s worth it.If you have an older child, I would suggest having them read Mississippi Trial, 1955 (about Emmitt Till) to see a perspective on hate crimes, or Monster by Walter Dean Myers to see a perspective of prejudice and injustice against Black teenage boys rather than this book.

My Middle Schooler is reading this book right now and loves it. He's a big fan of historical non-fiction and that's a hard niche to feed. I don't know where I saw this book recommended but it was on a list in the Googleverse. I took a chance and I'm so glad I did. It is keeping his attention and meeting our school reading requirements. He reads to my Father-in-law who is also enjoying the book. Maybe just get it for yourself. Joking. Sort of. Great book for everyone.