ARC, 389 pages
Release Date: July 28, 2020
Published by: Random House Books for Young Readers
Read from: July 24-31, 2020
Stand-alone
Source: Traded for a physical ARC
TW: Racism, Murder, Mention of White Hate groups, past lynching, Death Penalty
For fans of: Social Justice, The Hate U Give, Just Mercy, Sparkly Covers, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary, Tear-Jerkers, Diverse Authors, POC MC, POC on cover, #OwnVoices, Mysteries, Teachy Not Preachy, DEAR, YADear Martin meets Just Mercy in this unflinching yet uplifting YA novel that explores the racist injustices in the American justice system.
Every week, seventeen-year-old Tracy Beaumont writes letters to Innocence X, asking the organization to help her father, an innocent Black man on death row. After seven years, Tracy is running out of time–her dad has only 267 days left. Then the unthinkable happens. The police arrive in the night, and Tracy’s older brother, Jamal, goes from being a bright, promising track star to a “thug” on the run, accused of killing a white girl. Determined to save her brother, Tracy investigates what really happened between Jamal and Angela down at the Pike. But will Tracy and her family survive the uncovering of the skeletons of their Texas town’s racist history that still haunt the present?
Fans of Nic Stone, Tiffany D. Jackson, and Jason Reynolds won’t want to miss this provocative and gripping debut.
*MY THOUGHTS*
I didn’t need to hear much about this book to be interested in it. Normally all I needed was the pitch, and I added it to my TBR. And now that I’ve read it, I can honestly say, this needs to be required reading in schools. Anything less than 5 stars is unacceptable.
“Innocence X knows who I am, and now it’s the principle of writing. There’s nothing I’ve been able to control about what happened to Daddy. I’m broke. Can’t vote. Can’t afford a lawyer. But I’ve got contro of my voice and my mind, and that means I can do at least one thing: write a letter.”pg. 36
Tracy Beaumont’s dad is in prison serving a death sentence. She’s been writing tirelessly Innocence X to get him a fair trial because she knows there’s no way he could have done the heinous things the police said he did. But they won’t answer her. And then her brother is caught up in a murder that makes it look like he’ll be next behind bars. Now Tracy must find a way to clear both her brother and her dad’s name, all before her dad’s time runs out.
“Daddy told me he wanted to lie still, but your body does the opposite. Survival. Someone’s holding you down, you want to ask why, yell out in pain.”pg. 67
The first thing I liked about this book was the setting. I read that it was set in Galveston, County and I was literally gasped out loud. I grew up there! I do wish we had seen some actual legit Galveston places. But I understand that no one realizes that it wasn’t real except someone who’s from there, so I ignored that.
“I’ve seen this before. How the veiled language in news stories and police reports contain coded phrases like suspicious behavior acted like a monster, and the all-too-common the officer feared for his life can change how people you thought were your friends act around you. And how I know [he] isn’t immune. Somehow I thought [he] was different.”pg. 218
I LOVED the characters. Tracy was a BOSS. She was so smart, determined, and focused. It was amazing to see how she wasn’t scared and didn’t take no shit. She knew the facts and she stuck to what she knew. She didn’t let anyone change her mind. I hope teens that read this will see how she spoke out for justice and do the same. I also hope they take her workshops to heart, because they can definitely help ALL people of color.
“…white kids asked why it’s not racist to say Black Lives Metter but a problem to say White Lives Matter or Blue Lives Matter. What they don’t get is that those lives have always mattered. Ours are treated like we’re less than equal. Like we don’t deserve the same respect.”pg. 242
I also loved the ending. There was another way this could have gone, and let me just say, I was expecting it to go that way. But this way was unexpected. I think the thing that popped up was a great way to do it because any other way it wouldn’t have been believable. Sad to say, but it’s the truth. I found myself crying, like sobbing. Just read it. It’s so good y’all.
“An Ak-47 in a white hand got more rights than a Black kid with Skittles.”pg. 243
As for the writing style, are we sure this was Johnson’s first book? I was HOOKED from page one! I admit, I did have to take some breaks here and there because the subject matter hit too close to home, but I knew it was going to be hard going in, so I powered through. There are some things that need to be edited (like I’m waiting on the outrage that will occur if they don’t change that A&M Orange lmfao) but I’m hoping that’s just because I read an ARC. Otherwise, I thought it was almost perfect.
“…I need to flip that switch in my brain so that I can believe these police are here to help. I wish I could trust them automatically, but I can’t. History has a way of latching on to you. Like touching a hot stove- you only need to do it once before you know better.”pg. 269
In the same thought as the last paragraph, this whole novel is an example of why #OwnVoices novels are important. No one else could have written this novel with the same care and real life experiences that Johnson had. There is no amount of research in the world that can show you how to write a Corinne with so much innocence, or a Mrs. Beaumont with such strength to keep going in the midst of hard times. These aren’t things you’ll find through research. You have to LIVE these types of experiences.
“Let’s focus n keeping you away from any trouble. Trouble already found me.”pg. 324
There is so much to say about this book, but I still fear I have not done it justice. (No pun intended lol) I can’t wait until more of you have read this book! It needs to be talked about and read by everyone, not just the Black community.
Overall, I give this
Have you read this? Have you read any other social justice books? Will you read this one? Let me know in the comments!