Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes


Available At: Challenger, Chinook Trail (MS), DCC (MS), Eagleview, Frontier, Mountain Ridge, Prairie Hills, Timberview, Woodmen-Roberts
Added to Mountain Ridge approx. Nov 2023
Categories: Anti-Police, Racism, Violence, Whiteness
Description: After seventh-grader Jerome is shot by a white police officer, he observes the aftermath of his death and meets the ghosts of other fallen black boys including historical figure Emmett Till.
YA Label?: No
Notes: This book contains inflammatory racial commentary; explicit violence; and derogatory terms.
Rating: 2
N | N | Y | N | N | Y |
The above scale indicates whether, in our view, the referenced book violates established and upheld Federal (Miller Test) and State (Colorado Obscenity Test) standards. Books that violate ALL established standards will have a table printed in red. Under Colorado Law, willful distribution of such material is deemed a Class 6 penalty carrying a fine and/or up to 18 months in prison.
Snippets
Page 23: “It’s man’s will- it’s a policeman acting a fool. Murdering my boy.”
Page 24: “No sense why my boy’s dead and those white men are walking around alive. Free.”
Page 25: “No justice. No peace,” says Pop. “Since slavery, white men been killing blacks.”
Page 106: “’No justice, no peace!’ They carry signs: JUSTICE FOR JEROME; BLACK CHILDREN’S LIVES MATTER; STAY WOKE; IS MY SON NEXT?
Additional Snippets Here