What Is The Theme Of The Ghost Boys Chapter Summary

(Gavin) Hook: A 12-year-old black boy gets shot because of racism, he is not killed by a criminal, he is killed by a police officer, a person who provides safety.

(Max) Book Introduction: Today, the book we are going to discuss is the book called “Ghost Boys”. It is created by the author Jewell Parker Rhodes. The book was published in 2018, it includes 25 chapters, but it has plain words which makes the book easy to read and it has 224 pages. The genre of the book is Historical Fiction, and children literature.

(Gavin) The plot is about a 12-year-old black kid from Chicago named Jerome who was killed by a cop named Officer Moore. He meets people throughout his new afterlife such as Sarah and Emmett Till, though only Sarah can see him.

Each of the characters played a powerful role in the narrative and helped each other in various ways. Jerome and Sarah especially supported each other emotionally and in resolving Sarah’s strained relationship with her father.

(Max) The narrative unfolds in a present-day Chicago neighborhood that serves to highlight the theme of racial tensions. The neighborhood is extremely impoverished with meth labs and demolished buildings covered with graffiti. It’s a dangerous neighborhood that forces people like Jerome’s mother to be vigilant about the area.

(Gavin) Certainly, the setting does intensify the theme of the book. And speaking of which it also connects to the theme of the book. The theme is a dark/sad theme talking about racism and police brutality. The book deals with serious topics and highlights the injustice of white privilege. Even when a dead body is involved, white privileged men can still be viewed as justified in their actions because of fear. This reminds me of the TV show Brooklyn 99. Sergeant Terry Jeffords of the NYPD was stopped while looking for his child's lost toy. He was only let go once the officer that stopped him proved him to be a cop. Terry Jeffords said “I wasn’t stopped as a cop, I was stopped as a black man. And my kids, I couldn’t stop thinking about them. What if one day they get stopped like this and they don't have the police card? I don’t like that

The book portrays various conflicts that are primarily internal. These conflicts revolve around different characters such as Jerome, Carlos, Officer Moore, Sarah, and Jerome's family. Jerome has a negative perception of white people because he had been killed by a white person, which caused a significant emotional impact on him. Carlos is struggling to admit that he provided the gun to Jerome, which ultimately led to his death. Officer Moore is facing difficulties during his preliminary hearing. Sarah, on the other hand, fails to acknowledge the existence of racism. In the meantime, the grief-stricken family of Jerome is constantly talking about him and fighting for justice in court. Carlos and Sarah are alike in that they are undermining their potentialities by not acknowledging their