Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes

"Bronx Masquerade" is one of my favorite YA books. This is because I had the chance to feel what teens are truly feeling. Often, teens hide their emotions for fear of being laughed at by peers, being disciplined by parents or just because there not sure they aren't the first person in the whole wide world who has felt the same way or wanted to act the same way. "Bronx Masquerade" is about students in a New York school have a very creative teacher. This book is mostly about Mr. Ward's Friday's class, "Open Mike Friday." On Fridays the boys and girls have a chance to speak to the class. They share what they have written during the week. Tyrone is the voice that acts as interpreter. Every so often he will speak out in a chapter telling more about a student, about himself or sharing what he doesn't make sense to him yet. All of the teens come from a wide range of experiences. So, each poem is unique as a person's handprints. This made me think about how wrong it is to try and compare teens. Their feelings seem to be as wide as the ocean. Even though this is true I could identify easily with each poem. My favorite part of "Bronx Masquerade" are the poems. Each poem is passionate. Each person is special who got up from seat and read their words. I would gladly read this book again and again.