Review: The Black Kids, by Christina Hammonds Reed
Original Pub.: 2020
Edition: Simon & Schuster UK 2020
Pages: 359
Age Range: 14+
Genre: YA, historical fiction
Dedication: Yes — “In loving memory of Hover and Isabelle and William and Alberta”
Why I picked it up: Christmas gift from a friend
I did not know about the Los Angeles Riots of 1992. I did not know that they were real, historic fact until after I had read the whole book and read the acknowledgements at the end. Perhaps due to the fact that I am white, or not American— who knows. As I read the story I never thought “this couldn’t have happened.” I just thought it hadn’t. My ignorance of this historic event can maybe be forgiven. But my surprise at other aspects of it — not so much.
Ashley is a typical protagonist of a certain type of young adult literature. She lives in L.A., her family is rich and distant: she’s raised by a lovely Latina woman who calls her “mija.” I expected the romantic subplots, and I expected an identity struggle, perhaps surrounding her blackness amongst her white friends. The back cover of the book certainly points to those things. I did not expect the real, historical, and senseless violence of white society towards black people— organised, political, bullying, acab stuff. My naiveté, to think that this story would NOT be about societal racism, is embarrassing, and rooted in racial privilege. I don’t know what I thought. That the period between the civil rights movement and the arbitrary point at which I became “woke” enough to recognise systemic racism was somehow free from it?
This book is historical fiction. And yes, it’s light-hearted, and it contains the prom hijinks, loss of virginity, fights with the mother, family drama, happy ending, and all of the other teen tropes you might expect. But it’s also a so very real encounter with what it means to be black in a white world. It is difficult to give details without spoilers, but there are so many moments of deep and fundamental injustice in the book which are not resolved. And so many of these moments are echoed in the daily news in America and around the world.
With material like this it would be easy to either shy away from violence or overdo it in an attempt to drive home the message. But Christina Hammonds Reed does neither of these. Her sensitivity means that as a reader you are not traumatised, but also that you cannot look away. This is Reed’s first novel, and I hope it is not her last. My only criticism would be that her voice isn’t completely developed yet; her characters are strong but can tend towards archetypes.
Conclusion: I would recommend this book, especially to anyone who is interested in depictions of race in YA.
*** Spoilers Below***
A list of things that I think made this book COMPLEX and INTERESTING:
- The most important relationship turns out to be with Jo — the 2nd person future tense writing in Chapter 25! Just…. *chef’s kiss*
- and of course the way Ashley grows closer to her sister through listening to her music
- how the mum’s story about the three boys stopped by the cops changed to fit the racist narrative in order to absolve her of guilt for not stopping and helping
- Ashley’s rumour that LaShawn had stolen the trainers
- the whole mental health subplot with Ashley’s grandmother, and the inter-generational trauma
- Ashley not realising Lana isn’t white
- Ashley practicing vernacular in front of the mirror to feel more like she belongs with the other black kids at school
- and finally a simple one: I loved that the star jock character, LaShawn, was a complete sweetheart and not a bully like in a lot of teen books
