Bronx Masquerade

Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes, published in 2002, is a realistic fiction, young adult book short enough it could be considered a novella, but it is written and organized more like a series of short stories, telling their own independent stories (designated by the names of the students whose story it is as the chapter titles), as well as serving the purpose of an overall story which tells about learning about poetry in Mr. Ward's English class by writing it themselves and performing the poems for their class in a poetry slam style readings. These stories, or chapters, are separated by the poems of the students and the opinions of Tyrone, a student whose interest in school was severely lacking until these "Open Mike Friday" poetry readings were put in place by Mr. Ward.
The students telling these stories are from the Bronx and represent all different races, but it is made clear that the school's population is mostly made up of Black and Latino students. There is a general resentment among the students against the teachers and white students due to their privilege, which is not sugarcoated throughout the book. Instead the book tries to represent each student as an individual with their own trials and tribulations, and each students seeks to teach the others about how they aren't just what they see, and it is amazing how Grimes, in just a few pages per student, paints each character as complex with their own set of obstacles to overcome, whether it is an abusive home life, the reductive opinions of their classmates, or the neighborhood they live in (which for some students includes fearing drive-by shootings and pervasive gang culture of that society).

This book mixes formats with both prose and verse, and not a single word of this short book is wasted. The overall story ends on a hopeful note with the students having realized their own potentials and discovering positive things that they want for themselves and finally knowing that they can get it with hard work and help from Mr. Ward.

This book was refreshing, compared to many stories that take place in urban schools that are often racially charged and soaked in gang violence and depressing endings where often times it appears that only one character has a future outside of that setting. This book takes on those stereotypes and runs all over them, showing that with hard word from both teachers and students, a cycle can be stopped for those who truly want it.