About the Book:
Title: DEAR MARTIN
Author: Nic Stone
Pub. Date: October 17, 2017
Publisher: Crown Books for Young Readers
Pages: 224
Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook
Justyce
McAllister is top of his class, captain of the debate team, and set for the Ivy
League next year—but none of that matters to the police officer who just put
him in handcuffs. He is eventually released without charges (or an apology),
but the incident has Justyce spooked. Despite leaving his rough neighborhood,
he can’t seem to escape the scorn of his former peers or the attitude of his
prep school classmates. The only exception: Sarah Jane, Justyce’s gorgeous—and
white—debate partner he wishes he didn’t have a thing for.
Struggling to cope with it all, Justyce starts a journal to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. But do Dr. King’s teachings hold up in the modern world? Justyce isn’t so sure.
Then comes the day Justyce goes driving with his best friend, Manny, windows rolled down, music turned up. Way up. Much to the fury of the white off-duty cop beside them. Words fly. Shots are fired. And Justyce and Manny get caught in the crosshairs. In the media fallout, it’s Justyce who is under attack. The truth of what happened that night—some would kill to know. Justyce is dying to forget.
I am so excited to have Nic Stone stop by the blog today. I think this book is so important as a mirror, windows and door book! It's a needed mirror book for right now, yet it's also an important windows book for right now. It's a windows book for me and I took the opportunity to ask Nic questions that were rolling around in my mind. Not surprisingly, her answers have made me think even more! Without further ado, here's Nic:
Hi, Mrs. Knott! Thank you for
having me :)
1. Can you tell us about the significance of
Justyce's name?
So the use of Justyce is a very deliberate double
entendre. The book, to me, is really an allegory. If you take some of the
things that happen to Justyce, the character, and change the “y” to an “I” so
that they happen to justice, the
sociological concept, I think you’ll find that the situations are still very
realistic. For instance: the novel opens with Justyce being unfairly arrested
and made to sit in handcuffs without having done anything wrong. It could be
argued that the concept of American justice is currently being unfairly
detained.
Also, a fun
fact: in a previous draft, Justyce had a sister named Liberty. As I’m sure you
can imagine, she had her own set of allegorical struggles, lol.
2. Who do you want most to read this book?
EVERYONE. I
really mean that. I really and truly believe there is something for everyone in
this book, whether it’s humanized representation (African American teen boys),
encouragement in your power to bring about change (teen girls), or a safe space
to examine one’s own biases (pretty much everyone). Also, I worked super hard
on it, so the more people who read it, the better I feel about how much went
into it.
3. Race was a factor throughout Justyce's life -
friendship, school, girlfriends, the law.
How were you able to weave these strands together so well? What went into the planning stages of
the book?
Believe it or
not, this is a VERY different version of the book than the initial draft. THAT
draft had eight points of view and was non-linear, so it was very tightly plotted and well outlined.
We scaled the whole thing down and simplified it for the final version, but I’m
thankful for the heavy planning because it did help to make the shorter,
simpler version very tight (at least I hope
it’s tight, lol). I will say though: as a black person, all the things you
mentioned have always intersected
with race in one way or another, so the way you see them come together on the
page was very *organic* as they say.
4. The book mostly takes place at a predominately
white preparatory school. Did you
ever consider having it in a different setting?
I didn’t! While
I went to public school, that only-black-kid-in-class dynamic was a very real
thing for me, and that’s the experience I wanted to reflect on the page in Dear Martin. Oftentimes, when awful and
unjust things happen to African Americans, I’ll hear people say “Well if he
would’ve just followed the rules…” or “if he’d been an upstanding member of
society…” or “If hadn’t looked like such a thug…” the bad thing wouldn’t have
happened. But that frankly isn’t true, and that’s what I set out to show in the
book: this good, respectable kid
wasn’t any more immune to prejudice or racist assumptions than the guy who sags
his pants and “looks like he’s up to no good.” It’s a wakeup call for Justyce
that being good won’t make people less prone to judge him harshly, and
hopefully it’ll be a wake up call to readers too.
5. There have been more books being published in
#ownvoices and books that have resulted from Black Lives Matter and We Need
Diverse Books. Do you think these
books are starting to make a difference in the conversations readers are
having?
I honestly
couldn’t tell you at this point? For me, It’s difficult to say because most of
the readers I encounter are readers
who already feel these books are necessary. I sure HOPE they are though!
Thank you so much to Nic Stone for answering these questions, and thank you to Rock Star Book Tours for letting me jump on board this tour!
Here's more about the fabulous Nic Stone:
About
Nic:
Nic Stone
was born and raised in a suburb of Atlanta, GA, and the only thing she loves
more than an adventure is a good story about one. After graduating from Spelman
College, she worked extensively in teen mentoring and lived in Israel for a few
years before returning to the US to write full-time. Growing up with a wide
range of cultures, religions, and backgrounds, Stone strives to bring these
diverse voices and stories to her work.
Be sure to stop by the other stops on this blog tour. Find more reviews, interviews and guest posts!
Week One:
10/16/2017- LILbooKlovers- Interview
10/17/2017- YA Bibliophile- Review
10/18/2017- Mama Reads Blog- Guest Post
10/19/2017- Here's to Happy Endings- Review
10/20/2017- Eli to the nth- Excerpt
Week Two:
10/23/2017- Chasing Faerytales- Review
10/24/2017- Omg Books and More Books- Interview
10/25/2017- BookHounds YA- Review
10/26/2017- Novel Novice- Guest Post
10/27/2017- The Bookish Libra- Review
Week Three:
10/30/2017- Never Too Many To Read- Review
10/31/2017- Mrs. Knott's Book Nook- Interview
11/1/2017- Reese's Reviews- Excerpt
11/2/2017- Novel Ink- Review
11/3/2017- Wandering Bark Books- Guest Post
Week Four:
11/6/2017- Amanda Gernentz Hanson- Review
11/7/2017- Lisa Loves Literature- Excerpt
11/8/2017- Feed Your Fiction Addiction- Review
11/9/2017- Lost in Ever After- Interview
11/10/2017- A Backwards Story- Review
Thanks to the generous people at Rock Star Book Tours, they are giving away 3 copies of Dear Martin. Be sure to enter the giveaway for your chance to win this amazing book. Open to U.S. residents only.
