If no, remind the challenger that it is very difficult to judge individual scenes from a book out of context, and suggest that the challenger read the book. If yes, ask the challenger what he or she finds offensive.
Edwards Award for lifetime contribution to young adult literature. In 1994, the American Library Association honored Myers with the Margaret A. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature. Myers is the five-time recipient of the Coretta Scott King Award, a two-time Newbery Honor award winner, a two-time National Book Award finalist, and the winner of the first Michael L. Among his most famous works are Monster, Fallen Angels (1988), Hoops (1983), Motown and Didi (1987), Slam (1998), and Scorpions (1990). Myers is the author of over thirty books for young adults. He currently lives in Jersey City, New Jersey. He was raised in Harlem, New York City, and most of his writing is set in that area. Walter Dean Myers was born on August 12, 1937, in Martinsburg, West Virginia. This book might make teen readers more open to poetry, which I consider a very good thing. I love the format chosen for the novel, as poetry is something most teens read only when they are forced to do so in school. Myers’s take on one of the most copied stories of all literature is surprisingly fresh, and I don’t doubt its appeal to teen readers for a second. Several different characters take turns narrating the story, so the reader gets the benefit of multiple perspectives. Myers’s writing is tight, flows with a hip-hop beat, and keeps the reader moving quickly through this short novel.
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The novel is written entirely in short bursts of free verse poetry, which sounds like something that might turn teen readers off, but oddly enough, it works. In this modern urban retelling of Shakespeare’s classic play Romeo and Juliet, Myers brings a new spin on the story to a new generation. What will Damien have to do to make sure that he and Junice can stay together? As Damien defies his parents’ wishes by continuing his relationship with Junice, he finds his life going in a direction he never expected. Damien and Junice are so different, but when they meet, it is love at first sight. Junice and her sister are in danger of being separated and put into foster care, and it doesn’t seem like Junice can do anything to stop it. Her mother is in prison for dealing drugs, and it’s up to Junice to support herself and her little sister.
Junice is a 16-year-old girl who is struggling just to stay off the streets. His family has supported him and sacrificed to make his life comfortable and build a promising future for him.
Will they ever find a way to be together?ĭamien is a 17-year-old basketball whiz and star student with college in his immediate future. Damien and Junice come from very different backgrounds, but they fall in love nonetheless.