All of us have heard the saying, “Boys will be boys”.....but, at the Urban Promise Prep School, the boys that are “selected” to attend, they are treated as if they are being readied for prison, the rules they are made to follow, the harsh treatment of the principal and the methods employed in it, by the creator, Moore, boys are not allowed to do much of anything. Boys are not treated as boys but as if they have already committed crimes, meant to learn in this manner, more like a prison work program, but for students. All that is missing is a number rather than a name.
Promise Boys are not allowed to talk in the hallway and are made to walk on a line outside their classrooms, even when school time is over. While many of the young men who grow up in the urban areas from which these boys come from end up without an education, many even, in jail, educators and the author of this program, Principal Moore does not seem to believe in a self fulfilling prophecy. That by these boys being treated like criminals will only induce them to become criminals in the future, so used to being treated as if they have already committed a crime. Being who these boys are, where they come from, essentially, making them dangerous before anything has even happened.
As I continued to read Promise Boys, I felt worse and worse for these young men, especially after their principal ended up murdered, and any of those that had an issue with him are immediately suspects. Three boys that were in detention during that time, especially since they had current issues with Moore, immediately became the lone suspects. It’s as if no one could see that Principal Moore had any issues with outsiders, that only these young men would be the murderer, because of who they are and where they come from. Nick Brooks, the author of Promise Boys, has managed to bring the reality of our society to print, how it treats young men with black or brown skin, and puts into story form, their plight, currently, as they are raised in a world that doesn't seem to want them. Or know how to make anything better, society casting them as a criminal before a crime has even been committed.
Nick Brooks, in writing the book, switches back and forth between many people that make up the entire culture surrounding the Urban Promise Prep School and what happens there. He uses people that go to the school, neighbors and friends of those that know of the school or those that attend, even gang members who know the boys there. From Hispanic grandmothers to outside students from others schools who go to the prep school for “community service”, even boosters who support the school with funds and others things, we see a wide range of thoughts when it comes to the boys, Principal Moore and all that goes on at this newfangled urban “prep” school, and the murder, as readers piece together the puzzle surrounding the principal and what was really going on with his methods, which got worse and worse as time passed.
Those that readers really want to hear from, J.B., Ramon and Trey, the three boys who, at the time, had some issue with Principal Moore when he was murdered and are the only suspects for his murder, do not seem to be the ones that have done it. But, there is still the intent there, that the boys could have committed the act. But, then, everyone has some issue with Moore. And, even if they aren’t the one that pulled the trigger they all may be, in some way, attached to the crime. However, the real crime that comes to the surface as readers continue, is that Moore seems to have created an environment in which several or almost every person that interacted or met the man could have killed him, for one reason or another. And that, most definitely, is not a person you want developing and employing methods to educate young men who already have a disadvantage, most growing up in very troubled, dangerous environments, at an institution that oversees their education and future.
As you read the stories of J.B. Ramon and Trey, you realize these boys have had a hard life, made all the harder by the way that Principal Moore has set up this Urban Prep School. One of the boys, to make a little extra money, makes foodstuff at home and brings it to school and sells it to the other young men, to help pay the bills for his grandmother's household where he lives. He doesn't do anything illegal, the boy is an entrepreneur, doing something that should be supported by others. But, Principal Moore, when he finds out, does not allow the food sales, deeming it “contraband”, saying “the street food garbage” makes the school “smell like a block party”, along with using swear words freely, when talking (yelling) at the students. Moore even keeps the money that Ramon makes, when he last catches him selling, pocketing it in front of the student body. Setting a good example for the young men is definitely not a school objective and readers begin to think the the Moore Method is Principal Moore doing whatever he wants, whatever form seems to be the worst treatment of the boys, he employs.The lives of the Promise Boys who go to this school, nothing is easy and nothing, it seems, is allowed.
The day of the murder, an accident of fate brings a gun to the school. While no one would ever believe the gun “accidentally” got there, this is why, when we take an innocent person, try to convict them, all the evidence needs to be present, in a court of law. Because, while no one would believe a kid would take the wrong book bag of a gun carrying ex-Marine (and that is why all you conceal carry adults have to be ever vigilant about where you keep your weapon) to school, be afraid of what would happen if he were to disrupt his schedule to return it, this was the reality of how the gun got there. The gun that ends up being the weapon that shoots Mr. Moore. Well, maybe. Probably. But, Nick Brooks writes the books so that evidence of what happened that day slowly presents itself to readers, so that you can piece the ending together, what happened, by the book's conclusion.
Moore being the harsh, demanding man he is, of course there were problems with many other people, any teacher, even an outside booster, could be the murderer. And, each of the three boys, acting on their own, begin to unravel the life of Moore, the lives of others involved with the school, and each other, to find the culprit before they, themselves, are arrested and convicted of the crime. Because no one else who seems to matter is helping them. But, while they may have done nothing, the very fact that they are suspects may ruin their entire lives, regardless of whatever the truth is. We find that the only “promise” the boys at the Urban “Promise” prep school really get, is the promise that they themselves, may never make it out of the urban environment in which they were birthed into. And to boys like this, that is a promise that they had all along, nothing new coming from this prep school, but more problems than they already had.
Nick Brook’s, Promise Boys, is a look at urban youth and the things that can happen when dreams (and children) go unchecked, told through a fictional story. It is a mystery, yes, the whole story, as the reader searches, waiting, until the end, for Principal Moore’s killer to be revealed. And, it’s a really good mystery, if that’s all you take from the book. That reader’s piece the mystery through different people’s stories, throughout the book, was also a fun change of pace, like puzzle pieces from different people that fit together to make a whole picture. And, without knowing it, the reader, I think, is reading the killer's words too, all the while, not knowing who it is. But the story isn’t as simple as everyone in the book thinks it is, just as our reality, the same is true here. And, there is no footage from the murder on school security cameras and emails are released to the public, threatening ones sent to Moore saying he would be punished, the three boys try and cast aside their differences, not cast the blame on one another like everyone else has, and work together to figure out who really did it.
This book teaches the reader so much, there are so many warnings, lessons here that the writer reveals, much more than the simple mystery..and, in the end, that people come together, rather than separating themselves… I took much more away from Promise Boys than who-done-it and I promise that you too, will. Just make sure that you look for the truth in these pages, because it is here. Not the truth of this exact story, but the thoughts and issues behind it. What is beneath and beyond all the words, the story.
And, of course, I cried, in the end. A very, very, good one! Truly a real ending, with a promise. Really, a book with one too.
Happy Reading!
Promise Boys are not allowed to talk in the hallway and are made to walk on a line outside their classrooms, even when school time is over. While many of the young men who grow up in the urban areas from which these boys come from end up without an education, many even, in jail, educators and the author of this program, Principal Moore does not seem to believe in a self fulfilling prophecy. That by these boys being treated like criminals will only induce them to become criminals in the future, so used to being treated as if they have already committed a crime. Being who these boys are, where they come from, essentially, making them dangerous before anything has even happened.
As I continued to read Promise Boys, I felt worse and worse for these young men, especially after their principal ended up murdered, and any of those that had an issue with him are immediately suspects. Three boys that were in detention during that time, especially since they had current issues with Moore, immediately became the lone suspects. It’s as if no one could see that Principal Moore had any issues with outsiders, that only these young men would be the murderer, because of who they are and where they come from. Nick Brooks, the author of Promise Boys, has managed to bring the reality of our society to print, how it treats young men with black or brown skin, and puts into story form, their plight, currently, as they are raised in a world that doesn't seem to want them. Or know how to make anything better, society casting them as a criminal before a crime has even been committed.
Nick Brooks, in writing the book, switches back and forth between many people that make up the entire culture surrounding the Urban Promise Prep School and what happens there. He uses people that go to the school, neighbors and friends of those that know of the school or those that attend, even gang members who know the boys there. From Hispanic grandmothers to outside students from others schools who go to the prep school for “community service”, even boosters who support the school with funds and others things, we see a wide range of thoughts when it comes to the boys, Principal Moore and all that goes on at this newfangled urban “prep” school, and the murder, as readers piece together the puzzle surrounding the principal and what was really going on with his methods, which got worse and worse as time passed.
Those that readers really want to hear from, J.B., Ramon and Trey, the three boys who, at the time, had some issue with Principal Moore when he was murdered and are the only suspects for his murder, do not seem to be the ones that have done it. But, there is still the intent there, that the boys could have committed the act. But, then, everyone has some issue with Moore. And, even if they aren’t the one that pulled the trigger they all may be, in some way, attached to the crime. However, the real crime that comes to the surface as readers continue, is that Moore seems to have created an environment in which several or almost every person that interacted or met the man could have killed him, for one reason or another. And that, most definitely, is not a person you want developing and employing methods to educate young men who already have a disadvantage, most growing up in very troubled, dangerous environments, at an institution that oversees their education and future.
As you read the stories of J.B. Ramon and Trey, you realize these boys have had a hard life, made all the harder by the way that Principal Moore has set up this Urban Prep School. One of the boys, to make a little extra money, makes foodstuff at home and brings it to school and sells it to the other young men, to help pay the bills for his grandmother's household where he lives. He doesn't do anything illegal, the boy is an entrepreneur, doing something that should be supported by others. But, Principal Moore, when he finds out, does not allow the food sales, deeming it “contraband”, saying “the street food garbage” makes the school “smell like a block party”, along with using swear words freely, when talking (yelling) at the students. Moore even keeps the money that Ramon makes, when he last catches him selling, pocketing it in front of the student body. Setting a good example for the young men is definitely not a school objective and readers begin to think the the Moore Method is Principal Moore doing whatever he wants, whatever form seems to be the worst treatment of the boys, he employs.The lives of the Promise Boys who go to this school, nothing is easy and nothing, it seems, is allowed.
The day of the murder, an accident of fate brings a gun to the school. While no one would ever believe the gun “accidentally” got there, this is why, when we take an innocent person, try to convict them, all the evidence needs to be present, in a court of law. Because, while no one would believe a kid would take the wrong book bag of a gun carrying ex-Marine (and that is why all you conceal carry adults have to be ever vigilant about where you keep your weapon) to school, be afraid of what would happen if he were to disrupt his schedule to return it, this was the reality of how the gun got there. The gun that ends up being the weapon that shoots Mr. Moore. Well, maybe. Probably. But, Nick Brooks writes the books so that evidence of what happened that day slowly presents itself to readers, so that you can piece the ending together, what happened, by the book's conclusion.
Moore being the harsh, demanding man he is, of course there were problems with many other people, any teacher, even an outside booster, could be the murderer. And, each of the three boys, acting on their own, begin to unravel the life of Moore, the lives of others involved with the school, and each other, to find the culprit before they, themselves, are arrested and convicted of the crime. Because no one else who seems to matter is helping them. But, while they may have done nothing, the very fact that they are suspects may ruin their entire lives, regardless of whatever the truth is. We find that the only “promise” the boys at the Urban “Promise” prep school really get, is the promise that they themselves, may never make it out of the urban environment in which they were birthed into. And to boys like this, that is a promise that they had all along, nothing new coming from this prep school, but more problems than they already had.
Nick Brook’s, Promise Boys, is a look at urban youth and the things that can happen when dreams (and children) go unchecked, told through a fictional story. It is a mystery, yes, the whole story, as the reader searches, waiting, until the end, for Principal Moore’s killer to be revealed. And, it’s a really good mystery, if that’s all you take from the book. That reader’s piece the mystery through different people’s stories, throughout the book, was also a fun change of pace, like puzzle pieces from different people that fit together to make a whole picture. And, without knowing it, the reader, I think, is reading the killer's words too, all the while, not knowing who it is. But the story isn’t as simple as everyone in the book thinks it is, just as our reality, the same is true here. And, there is no footage from the murder on school security cameras and emails are released to the public, threatening ones sent to Moore saying he would be punished, the three boys try and cast aside their differences, not cast the blame on one another like everyone else has, and work together to figure out who really did it.
This book teaches the reader so much, there are so many warnings, lessons here that the writer reveals, much more than the simple mystery..and, in the end, that people come together, rather than separating themselves… I took much more away from Promise Boys than who-done-it and I promise that you too, will. Just make sure that you look for the truth in these pages, because it is here. Not the truth of this exact story, but the thoughts and issues behind it. What is beneath and beyond all the words, the story.
And, of course, I cried, in the end. A very, very, good one! Truly a real ending, with a promise. Really, a book with one too.
Happy Reading!