By: Mars Hauser
THE BOY IN THE BLACK SUIT by Jason Reynolds Jason Reynolds was already on my radar this year. Before reading this book, I finished ALL AMERICAN BOYS by Reynolds and Brendan Kiely, a book I wished I could have used in my recently-completed critical thesis paper on social media and YA novels, and also a book I wish I could hand to most teenagers who want to start understanding race relations in America. The Youth Media Awards reminded me that Reynolds had two excellent books out this year, earning a Coretta Scott King honor for both ALL AMERICAN BOYS and THE BOY IN THE BLACK SUIT. He is a name to watch in YA, and I'd previously loved his Steptoe New Talent Award-winning book WHEN I WAS THE GREATEST. |
This year I lost a number of people who were close to me, so I was both hesitant to read Reynolds' other book this year, and anticipating the experience. I haven't been in the mood for so many grief-and-dying books, but for Reynolds, I made an exception, knowing that I was in warm and observant hands. I am so glad I did, as THE BOY IN THE BLACK SUIT was perhaps one of the best YA books on grief and the death of a family member I have read in the last decade. | Image edited. Photo used under creative commons. Original property of Simon & Schuster Canada. |
Matt's mother has just died of breast cancer, and his pops is not handling it well, turning back to the bottle he was absorbed in before his marriage. Matt plans to mark time in his last year until graduation and perhaps work at the Cluck Bucket, rumored to pay well enough. But a chance encounter with Mr. Ray, who runs the local funeral home, earns Matt a very different job opportunity. This job gives him a chance to sit in on other funerals in his Bed-Stuy neighborhood -- and somehow, find a little bit of peace. But after he meets Lovey, a girl who's had hard losses of her own, and connects with Mr. Ray as his mentor, Matt slowly finds reasons to let go of the grief that has him in its grip. |
There's nothing melodramatic about the grief process depicted in this book. Reynolds shows grief through the way that Matt can't bring himself to cook anymore because his mother's cooking was so important to their family; through the way that his father stumbles and never quite resolves if he will pull himself up again; and through different kinds of grief experiences that Matt connects to in his new job. We see joyful funerals, messy funerals, services where everyone's tense and on edge; services where everyone laughs, and through it all, Matt starts to feel less alone when he observes others who have the most to grieve. Reynolds' depiction of the isolation grief brings is stunning and memorable in what is otherwise a prime example of "quiet YA" that can fly under the radar. |
Reynolds is a poet, and a good one, and in places his descriptions of setting are amazingly elegant, but he's even better at handling character. His protagonist Matt is one of the most lovable in YA fiction of the past year. THE BOY IN THE BLACK SUIT has a large cast of characters, many weaving in and out in only short scenes, and all of them feel vivid and round and real. I was particularly impressed at the handling of Lovey, Matt's eventual love interest. Lovey appears early in the book, but her actual screen time in the novel is relatively short. This doesn't mean she's shortchanged. She feels unique and realistic, as if her life on the page is buoyed by a well-drawn and complete life outside of the story. I would happily read a sequel entirely about Matt and Lovey's later relationship, so much did I come to care about these characters and their neighborhood an lives. |
I know, after having read three of Jason Reynolds' books, that warmth shines through everything he writes, and that his characters will be handled with exceptional empathy, detail, and grace. THE BOY IN THE BLACK SUIT has tremendous young adult and adult appeal, but is also an excellent "read up" choice for mature middle-school students, as it's also a fairly 'clean' read. |