Ghost Boys

In the current climate of youth, in particular black boys, dying violently on both sides of the Atlantic, this novel by an African American writer is all too timely. The story is narrated by Jerome who has died after being shot by a police officer who thought he was holding a gun. The opening shocks as Jerome sees his own body lying on the snowy ground. The novel alternates between sections where Jerome is a ghost, mingling with other black boys who have died violently including Emmett Till, giving the book a sense of history, and sections where he is still alive and describing the events leading up to the shooting. The use of the present tense and short sentences make this a fast-paced and gripping, as well as thought-provoking, read.