All American Boys

What Goodreads say:  Rashad is absent again today.

That’s the sidewalk graffiti that started it all…

Well, no, actually, a lady tripping over Rashad at the store, making him drop a bag of chips, was what started it all. Because it didn’t matter what Rashad said next—that it was an accident, that he wasn’t stealing—the cop just kept pounding him. Over and over, pummeling him into the pavement. So then Rashad, a ROTC kid with mad art skills, was absent again…and again…stuck in a hospital room. Why? Because it looked like he was stealing. And he was a black kid in baggy clothes. So he must have been stealing.

And that’s how it started.

And that’s what Quinn, a white kid, saw. He saw his best friend’s older brother beating the daylights out of a classmate. At first, Quinn doesn’t tell a soul…He’s not even sure he understands it. And does it matter? The whole thing was caught on camera, anyway. But when the school—and nation—start to divide on what happens, blame spreads like wildfire fed by ugly words like “racism” and “police brutality.” Quinn realizes he’s got to understand it, because, bystander or not, he’s a part of history. He just has to figure out what side of history that will be.

Rashad and Quinn—one black, one white, both American—face the unspeakable truth that racism and prejudice didn’t die after the civil rights movement. There’s a future at stake, a future where no one else will have to be absent because of police brutality. They just have to risk everything to change the world.

Cuz that’s how it can end

This book literally changed my life, All American boys touches on today's issues with racism and police brutality, All-American Boys is the story of Rashad, a black teen who is assaulted by a white cop, and Quinn, a white classmate of his who witnesses the crime (and who also happens to be friends with the cop). It's quite a painful story to read because it's all too familiar. It's impossible to even count the number of true stories about people of color who have been beaten and killed by white police officers. No matter where you live I'm sure you've all heard countless stories of people dying by the hands of police and more important, black people dying over police brutality what I really liked about this book was that the word racism or that the fact that he was black took a long time for them to come to that conclusion (that also annoyed me) What I liked about this was it wasn't stereotypical with the black kids using slang and the white kids talking all 'proper' no they all behaved like regular teenagers using slang, enjoying the same activities, it was more believable.

A collaboration between authors Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely, this book gives the reader an eye-opening perspective about police brutality and racial injustice. It's interesting to see the incident portrayed through the point of view of both a victim and a bystander, and it brings up many questions: How do you choose sides especially when someone you once looked up to and praised is in the wrong? If we want the violence to stop, how do we end it?

I think books save lives and they change minds and hearts. This is one of those books

So I challenge all my followers, whether your white, black, Hispanic, Asian or anything else to read this book.

#SayherName

#RashadisAbsentAgainToday

-FOREVER bloggin on Caffeine,

Sherri

ALSO HAPPY 17TH BIRTHDAY TO ME ON OCTOBER 18TH!

Goodbye Summer

Atlas summer is almost over... well at least for me I go back to school Monday, August 15th,

I'm currently reading the 4th book of the Broke Love series and GIRLLLLLLLL, let me tell you, I think I wrote a review on the first book awhile ago but I'm going to have to write another one for the rest of the books, so check back later 

I hope everyone had a great summer, and have an even better school, year !

Forever blogging on caffeine,

Sherri;)

Freakonomics

What Good reads says: Which is more dangerous, a gun or a swimming pool? What do schoolteachers and sumo wrestlers have in common? Why do drug dealers still live with their moms? How much do parents really matter? How did the legalization of abortion affect the rate of violent crime?

These may not sound like typical questions for an economist to ask. But Steven D. Levitt is not a typical economist. He is a much-heralded scholar who studies the riddles of everyday life—from cheating and crime to sports and child-rearing—and whose conclusions turn conventional wisdom on its head.

Freakonomics is a groundbreaking collaboration between Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner, an award-winning author and journalist. They usually begin with a mountain of data and a simple question. Some of these questions concern life-and-death issues; others have an admittedly freakish quality. Thus the new field of study contained in this book: freakonomics.

Through forceful storytelling and wry insight, Levitt and Dubner show that economics is, at root, the study of incentives—how people get what they want, or need, especially when other people want or need the same thing. In Freakonomics, they explore the hidden side of . . . well, everything. The inner workings of a crack gang. The truth about real-estate agents. The myths of campaign finance. The telltale marks of a cheating schoolteacher. The secrets of the Klu Klux Klan.

What unites all these stories is a belief that the modern world, despite a great deal of complexity and downright deceit, is not impenetrable, is not unknowable, and—if the right questions are asked—is even more intriguing than we think. All it takes is a new way of looking.

Freakonomics establishes this unconventional premise: If morality represents how we would like the world to work, then economics represents how it actually does work. It is true that readers of this book will be armed with enough riddles and stories to last a thousand cocktail parties. But Freakonomics can provide more than that. It will literally redefine the way we view the modern world. 

I loved this book, but then again I don't 

though I think the title is a bit misleading. It's not really about economics. In fact, he's showing you what interesting things you can discover when you apply statistical analysis to problems where you wouldn't normally think of using it.

Even though i was forced to read this for school, It was ok however I learned so much from it, it truly does explore the hidden side of everything while comparing thing that you would never think could be compared. 

the style and tone of Freakonomics were well written and relaxed, he divided the chapters into four main themes, Incentives, Conventional Wisdom, Cause and Effect, and Information Hording. With each theme Levitt and Dubner compared two things that not many would easily connect. I really enjoyed this book since it was not just a bunch of statistics and facts, but real life, explanations, and connections between very different things Overall I'd give it 4/5 stars for the themes but I wouldn't have read this book if it wasn't for school.

Forever Blogging on Caffiene,

Sherri! :)

The Program

       

What Goodreads says: In Sloane’s world, true feelings are forbidden, teen suicide is an epidemic, and the only solution is The Program.

              Sloane knows better than to cry in front of anyone. With suicide now an international epidemic, one outburst could land her in The Program, the only proven course of treatment. Sloane’s parents have already lost one child; Sloane knows they’ll do anything to keep her alive. She also knows that everyone who’s been through The Program returns as a blank slate. Because their depression is gone—but so are their memories.

           Under constant surveillance at home and at school, Sloane puts on a brave face and keeps her feelings buried as deep as she can. The only person Sloane can be herself with is James. He’s promised to keep them both safe and out of treatment, and Sloane knows their love is strong enough to withstand anything. But despite the promises they made to each other, it’s getting harder to hide the truth. They are both growing weaker. Depression is setting in. And The Program is coming for them.

The Program is set in a world where depression and suicide are considered a virus. If you are thought to have caught the virus, the handlers come to get you and take you to a facility known as The Program.

*May contain spoilers*

This book took me awhile to finish do to school work, But I really enjoyed it, I got it from my friend, Kendra has a birthday present, it was very well written, I highlighted throughout this entire book, This book touches on the topic of depression being a world wide epidemic where kids are committing sucide so society has come up with the Program, to help them, but by helping them they're erasing EVERYTHING their memories , emotions, anything that they feel is not important and that may have caused their depression. Sloane and her boyfriend Justin have been trying to fight depression They look out for each other and want to keep the other from either being "infected" or being snatched up by the Program.The Program. That's kinda like a helicopter parent watching the teens for any signs of suicide signs. They take the teens and wipe their memories clean so viola! they are cured. Creepy cured. Because they come back with no memories and everything is squeaky clean and new. But with her brother "accidentally" dying and her best friend taking quikdeath but didn't die and her other friend committing suicide its harder and harder for her and Justin to hang on.

How the programs work to cure them is they feed the teens "relaxing" pills to make them relax, and stupidly Sloane takes the damn pills?! I remember countless times I wanted to smack her, she says she doesn't trust them yet she's taking the pills to relax? your in the flipping program why would you want to relax?! But anyway the pills latch onto an infected memory and wipes it away. And I thought why are they giving sucidal teens all these different colorful pills this often?

There in the Program she meets Realm, who helps Sloane through her rough spots and what not and try to help her "stay well" since friends are recommended in the program, when you meet Realm and you think he's too perfect and too happy to be in the Program guess what your right! He's an implant in the program whose job their is to act like a patient and to help Sloane forget about Justin and to give in to the program, but he falls in love with her and helps her when she's out, so its sort of a love triangle.

       With this book I loved how we got to see the transition of her before and after the program even when her and Justin both got the memory of each other erased they still found each other, to me this book was another unwind in the way it made you think, "What if something like this truly happen?" I really want to meet Suzanne, and get my copy of The Program signed overall I give this book a 5/5 and I can't wait to read the second book!, even though I feel this book should have been a stand alone. But I still wouldn't change a thing ! and I suggest you guys read it!!!

-Forever Blogging on Caffeine,
Sherri :)

Grasshopper Jungle

     

What Goodreads say : Sixteen-year-old Austin Szerba interweaves the story of his Polish legacy with the story of how he and his best friend , Robby, brought about the end of humanity and the rise of an army of unstoppable, six-foot tall praying mantises in small-town Iowa.

         To make matters worse, Austin's hormones are totally oblivious; they don't care that the world is in utter chaos: Austin is in love with his girlfriend, Shann, but remains confused about his sexual orientation. He's stewing in a self-professed constant state of maximum horniness, directed at both Robby and Shann. Ultimately, it's up to Austin to save the world and propagate the species in this sci-fright journey of survival, sex, and the complex realities of the human condition.

One of my reactions after reading this book... 

      Okay so I read this book for my schools book club, although it took me awhile to get into, its very repetive and the main character Austin really annoyed me, because I felt like he was a stereotypical horny teenage boy because  literally every other sentence in this book discussed how horny he was, my favorite character was Robby, Austins best friend, I felt like Austin was a terrible friend to Robby and cared about no one but him self.

      However what really made me like this book was the dramatic turn it took, this book was really silly and funny throughout the whole book, There were six feet tall horny grasshoppers who ate everything and tried to have sex with everything for god sakes ! but then towards the end the book turned serious which was so unexpected and I think you all should give this book a try!

p.s. I also heard this book will probably be made into a movie? 

- Forever blogging on Caffeine

Sherri :)

New Books

I am so sorry, for not updating, in an entire year, but its summer! which means no school, yay! 

Here are some new books I got also featuring my summer reading list for school and books I plan to read this summer, along with my black polaroid camera and a really old polaroid camera my grandma found in her closet and gave it to me.

I also got "Unsouled" signed by Neal Shusterman, He came to my high school, for April is For Authors day I got to meet him, ask him questions and get him to sign my books! I also went the previous year and got my book"Ten Mile River" by Paul Griffen signed.

-Forever Blogging on Caffeine
Sherri