Bronx Masquerade

Bronx Masquerade, by Nikki Grimes, is a story about an inner-city school where on teacher is striving to make a difference in a way that seems contradictory to the setting where the story takes place. The teacher, Mr. Ward, is trying to get his students to travel the path of self revelation by writing poetry, a medium in which none of his students are very well versed in. The book follows a few of Mr. Ward's Students as they go about their daily lives. Each chapter about the kids is followed by a short poem, written by a student. The book continues like this, and you can see the subtle, but powerful, change that is worked within each of Mr. Ward's students. The book is a powerful testimony to the changing power of words.

Though Bronx Masquerade was a book that deviated from the normal type of book that I was reading at the time, it still kept me entertained as I read it. I would say that I liked it, even if it was not my favorite book of all time. I think the poetry within the chapters was what threw me, but the story kept me coming back for more. By the end of the book I had come to terms with the poetry, and I was not just skipping over it. The poetry in the book is half the story, so if you think that you are going to skip over most of it, then this probably is not the book for you. The story and the poetry are well written, and the individual tones of the students gives the book a charm that is hard to find in many books about inner city life. This book portrays life in the Bronx as difficult but engaging, and the way that Nikki Grimes writes really brings out the best in each of the characters. If you are a fan of poetry, or if you can stand some poetry along with a story, then Bronx Masquerade is a good choice for a high school reader.



Also a quick question. I am going to be away at camp from June 21st to July 14th and will need some reviews for the blog. I wanted to know whether any of the readers would like to submit a review that would be published? If you are interested drop me a line on my email: alagaesia00@gmail.com.

Thanks,
Royce