Write Out Loud (Reviews and Writing)

On the face of it, this series of books is a really good idea. Inverting the whole white/black supremacy dynamic so that white people can really get a sense of what black people have gone through.

I’ve thought of doing something similar. I have considered writing a novel based around England being conquered – perhaps by India or some African country – and the people being subjugated because of their ‘race’. Mine would be set in the current ‘real’ world though whereas Blackman’s novel is set in a parallel ‘dystopian’ version of reality.

This allows the author to explore much of the racial prejudices and politics that were in existence in America from the time of the end of the civil war through to the early 70s. In particular, the scenario of post-‘Little Rock Nine’, where the white ‘Noughts’ are only newly allowed into schools with the darker ‘Crosses’ and the system is stacked against them. More generally, references to the Jim Crow laws and the protests of Malcolm X et al abound.

It all comes out pretty well and it is no wonder the book series has become a bestseller and, at least, a minor classic. I wasn’t a huge fan of the first book but found it interesting that when I mentioned the book to my family, my daughter’s fiancé – in his twenties – erupted with his love and fond memories of studying the book for GCSE English. He had the same reaction I have when someone mentions Steinbeck’s ‘Of Mice and Men’ which brings back happy memories of my (ahem) O Level English days, and I realised that it wasn’t inappropriate to equate the two.

That said, the book didn’t really gel for me. I wasn’t keen on either of the two characters – teenage Romeo and Juliet as they are – and couldn’t care less what happened to them in the end. I won’t give away the end (be aware I’m about to hint at it), but I found the final chapter laughably flat despite its attempts to recreate the type of ending you get in ‘Of Mice and Men’ or ‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’. It just wasn’t convincing.

But then, I have to remember this book is for young adults. Would Steinbeck’s novel shock me now? Possibly not. ‘The Color Purple’ rocked my world on the very first page thirty years ago. Would it now? Probably not. I can imagine students studying this book in school and being totally unprepared for what is to come. If so: good for them! It has done its job (and it certainly seems that is the case). So perhaps this book is simply telling me I’m too old to appreciate YA fiction any longer? I hope not, considering my latest book is YA itself…

It might simply be that I did not engage with the characters. Callum seems permanently angry, not with the political world around him (justified) but with everyone including those closest to him. Sephy is very naïve and it is difficult to believe the twists and turns in her development as she matures. Neither warrants much in the way of praise. I may just be expecting too much.

In the end, this is a very good book for engaging teenagers who, on the whole, just don’t read anymore. With the current anti-immigrant hatred rife in the UK right now, it has its parallels which probably weren’t apparent to the author when the book was published in 2001. It is certainly a book that doesn’t just bring alive modern American social history; it is a book that is of our time here in the UK too. It is gripping and toes the line carefully between moralising to the readers and letting the story reveal its own truths. For that, I hope it brings fond memories and (more importantly) changed attitudes to young people for years to come.

Social Entrepreneur, educationalist, bestselling author and journalist, D K Powell is the author of the bestselling collection of literary short stories “The Old Man on the Beach“. His first book, ‘Sonali’ is a photo-memoir journal of life in Bangladesh and has been highly praised by the Bangladeshi diaspora worldwide. Students learning the Bengali language have also valued the English/Bengali translations on every page. His third book is ‘Try not to Laugh’ and is a guide to memorising, revising and passing exams for students.

Both ‘The Old Man on the Beach’ and ‘Sonali’ are available on Amazon for kindle and paperback. Published by Shopno Sriti Media. The novel,’The Pukur’, was published by Histria Books in 2022.

D K Powell is available to speak at events (see his TEDx talk here) and can be contacted at dkpowell.contact@gmail.com. Alternatively, he is available for one-to-one mentoring and runs a course on the psychology of writing. Listen to his life story in interview with the BBC here.

Ken writes for a number of publications around the world. Past reviewer for Paste magazine, The Doughnut, E2D and United Airways and Lancashire Life magazine. Currently reviews for Northern Arts Review. His reviews have been read more than 7.9 million times.

Get a free trial and 20% off Shortform by clicking here. Shortform is a brilliant tool and comes with my highest recommendation.

Social Entrepreneur, educationalist, bestselling author and journalist, D K Powell is the author of the bestselling collection of literary short stories “The Old Man on the Beach“. His first book, ‘Sonali’ is a photo-memoir journal of life in Bangladesh and has been highly praised by the Bangladeshi diaspora worldwide. Students learning the Bengali language have also valued the English/Bengali translations on every page. His third book is ‘Try not to Laugh’ and is a guide to memorising, revising and passing exams for students.

Both ‘The Old Man on the Beach’ and ‘Sonali’ are available on Amazon for kindle and paperback. Published by Shopno Sriti Media. The novel,’The Pukur’, was published by Histria Books in 2022.

D K Powell is available to speak at events (see his TEDx talk here) and can be contacted at dkpowell.contact@gmail.com. Alternatively, he is available for one-to-one mentoring and runs a course on the psychology of writing. Listen to his life story in interview with the BBC here.

Ken writes for a number of publications around the world. Past reviewer for Paste magazine, The Doughnut, E2D and United Airways and Lancashire Life magazine. Currently reviews for Northern Arts Review. His reviews have been read more than 7.9 million times.

Get a free trial and 20% off Shortform by clicking here. Shortform is a brilliant tool and comes with my highest recommendation.