Towers Falling

Ghost Boys

Paradise on Fire

Ninth Ward

Treasure Island: Runaway Gold

Becoming Beatriz

Rebel Belle

If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period

From award-winning and bestselling author, Jewell Parker Rhodes comes a powerful coming-of-age story about two brothers, one who presents as white, the other as black, and the complex ways in which they are forced to navigate the world, all while training for a fencing competition.
Framed. Bullied. Disliked. But I know I can still be the best.

Sometimes, 12-year-old Donte wishes he were invisible. As one of the few black boys at Middlefield Prep, most of the students don't look like him. They don't like him either. Dubbing him "Black Brother," Donte's teachers and classmates make it clear they wish he were more like his lighter-skinned brother, Trey.

When he's bullied and framed by the captain of the fencing team, "King" Alan, he's suspended from school and arrested.

Terrified, searching for a place where he belongs, Donte joins a local youth center and meets former Olympic fencer Arden Jones. With Arden's help, he begins training as a competitive fencer, setting his sights on taking down the fencing team captain, no matter what.

As Donte hones his fencing skills and grows closer to achieving his goal, he learns the fight for justice is far from over. Now Donte must confront his bullies, racism, and the corrupt systems of power that led to his arrest.

Powerful and emotionally gripping, Black Brother, Black Brother is a careful examination of the school-to-prison pipeline and follows one boy's fight against racism and his empowering path to finding his voice.

Discover Your Child's Next Read

Towers Falling

Jewell Parker Rhodes, 2016

Ghost Boys

Jewell Parker Rhodes, 2018

Paradise on Fire

Jewell Parker Rhodes, 2021

Ninth Ward

Jewell Parker Rhodes, 2010

Treasure Island: Runaway Gold

Jewell Parker Rhodes, 2023

Becoming Beatriz

Tami Charles, 2019

Rebel Belle

Rachel Hawkins, 2014

If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period

Gennifer Choldenko, 2007