If I Grow Up - Softcover

Strasser, Todd

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1847387314 ISBN 13: 9781847387318

Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK, 1831

Synopsis

In the Frederick Douglass Project where DeShawn lives, daily life is ruled by drugs and gang violence. Dropping out of school and joining a gang is the norm and every kid knows someone who's died. Gunshots ring out on a regular basis. DeShawn is smart enough to know he should stay in school and keep away from the gangs. But while his friends have drug money to buy anything they want, DeShawn's family can barely afford food for the month. How can he stick to his principles when his family is hungry? In this gritty novel about growing up in the inner-city projects, award-winning author Todd Strasser opens a window into the life of a teenager struggling with right and wrong under the ever-present shadow of gangs.

About this title

About the Author

Todd Strasser has written many award-winning novels for adults, teenagers and children including Boot Camp, Can't Get There from Here, Give a Boy a Gun and Girl Gives Birth to Own Prom Date, the latter of which was adapted for the Fox feature film Drive Me Crazy, with script by Rob Thomas. Todd Strasser speaks frequently at schools. He lives in Westchester County, New York.

From School Library Journal

Grade 8–10—For DeShawn, joining a gang seems like a terrible decision—why would he want to work for a pittance running drugs when the inevitable consequences are jail or an early death? A bright boy, he does well in school and tries his best to obey the grandmother who has raised him since his mother's accidental death in gang crossfire. But as DeShawn enters adolescence, the lure of the streets becomes a stronger force, pulling him away from his seemingly meaningless academics and toward the glamour of life in the Douglass Disciples, his housing project's premier gang. He knows he's risking his life, but DeShawn sees no other hope for supporting his pregnant girlfriend and growing family without the fast money life as a Disciple can provide. But when he finds himself entangled in a series of political struggles and murderous schemes within his own crew, the wisdom of his choice becomes less clear, and the danger of imminent death or life in prison looms closer than ever. Strasser's didactic purpose for this novel couldn't be more obvious; the events that it chronicles are unremittingly grim to the point of unbelievability, and characters sometimes seem to exist only to demonstrate the miscellaneous horrors of housing-project life. Tight plotting and a crisp style will satisfy readers looking for nonstop action and plenty of urban drama. However, for a more subtle take on inner-city poverty from a teen's perspective that shows more depth and compassion, try Coe Booth's Tyrell (Scholastic, 2006).—Meredith Robbins, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis High School, New York City
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About this edition

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
• Publication date: 1831
• ISBN 10: 1847387314
• ISBN 13: 9781847387318
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English