Ghost Boys

Jerome knows he's dead.  He's watching his own body lying on the ground in a puddle of blood.  He sees the police officer who shot him and his mother crying behind the police tape.  He just wanted to play in the park.  It was a toy gun, and he wasn't bothering anyone, but now he's dead.

He doesn't understand why he can't move one or why he can't communicate with his best friend, his little sister, or even his mother.  The only living person who can see and hear him is Sarah, the daughter of the officer who shot him.

There's someone else he can talk to, another dead boy named Emmett Till.  Jerome has heard his grandmother talk about Emmett before but he doesn't really know anything about him.

Jerome is angry he's dead and angry he can only talk to a dead boy and Sarah, who has a different view of the events in the park.

Jewell Parker Rhodes's newest book is a heartbreaking journey through anger, forgiveness, and understanding.  Rhodes deftly helps the reader and Jerome understand the connections between modern unconscious bias and the violent racism of the past.  Her handling of Sarah is more surprising as she goes from oblivious bystander to a voice for change and understanding.  This is the book middle school librarians have been waiting for to address these issues.  Highly recommended!