Black and White

Black and White by Paul Volponi is a gripping story of two friends who must live with the consequences of poor choices they have made. Told from both boys’ (Black is Marcus and White is Eddie) perspective, the story catches the reader up in the lives of these two best friends as the struggle to make sense of how their lives and their friendship have changed once Marcus gets arrested for the robbery/shooting that both boys committed.

When I first started reading this book, I wasn’t sure I would be able to identify with the story or the characters. I’m not a teenage boy from an urban area. I’m a Caucasian female who has lived her entire life in suburbia. I grew up comfortably, never needing to worry about the basic needs of life nor the extras such as “senior dues”. Yet, the further I read, the more engaged I became in these boys’ story. At points, I didn’t want to put the book down. Volponi’s idea to write the story alternating between Marcus and Eddie was brilliant. Not only was I brought along the path with these boys, I heard the story from each in their own voice. Volponi wrote in such a vivid ways, painting clear pictures not only of what physically was happening but also of the emotional journey the boys faced. I felt the excitement from the basketball court as Marcus and Eddie played as a well-oiled team, the rush the boys felt after the first two robberies and then the fear when the third went incredibly wrong. From Marcus, I first shared the shame he felt when he was arrested and he thought of his mother, the pain of uncertainty of his friendship with Eddie, acceptance of his punishment and hope at the end. Eddie shared Marcus’ uncertainty about their friendship; but the overriding feeling I got from him was that of guilt. Guilt because they hurt someone, guilt because Marcus took the fall, guilt because he lost the “big” game, guilt because his father knew about the gun, guilt because he accepted the scholarship the night Marcus was arrested, guilt he will have to live with the rest of his life if he does not come forward and accept responsibility the way Marcus did.

This book would be a powerful tool to use in a classroom to discuss race relations. I know one of the themes this book tries to bring forth is that of racial inequity in the justice system. This book would be a good springboard for the discussion. In my opinion, it wasn’t so much racial inequities but economic inequities. Marcus was identified by the victim and therefore arrested first. The police officers continued to investigate until they were able to arrest Eddie as the accomplice, though that victim wasn’t 100% sure. I feel the differing situations for the boys came down to money; Eddie’s parents were able to afford a lawyer to fight the charges. Might there also be the argument of morals? Though both boys were in the wrong, at the end of the story, Marcus was the only one to admit to his failures and to accept the consequences. In a way, the truth set him free while Eddie was weighed down by lies and guilt.

I think one of the reasons I like teaching in the elementary grades is because these children are for the most part still innocent. When I speak of time before the Civil Rights Movement, they are outraged that blacks were treated so differently. They cannot imagine school without all of their friends (regardless of color). If only life stayed so simple.