Bronx Masquerade

Bronx Masqurerade is an engging book that grabs your attention fast and holds it. It has unexpected plot twists and turns that keep you on your toes. The in-your-face story and plot leave you begging for more! 5 stars! A must-read! Nikki Grimes is on my new-favorite-authors-list! thanks Jimmy P.

I am the library/media specialist at a middle school. This book was easily the best piece of YA fiction that I've read all year. The teachers with whom I shared it were similarly impressed. One teacher just couldn't put it down, so she began reading it aloud to her class. (Fortunately they were in the middle of their poetry unit!) After class several of her students came to the media center looking for copies they could check out. The characters' voices ring true to readers of all ages and the message the book sends is timeless. I highly recommend this book to all!

This is the first book of Nikki Grimes' that I have ever read and I loved it. "Bronx Masquerade" gives teens a whole new perspective on not only the importance and enjoyment of literature and poetry but also the identities of individuals in a multicultural society. The fact that this book is composed of kids' thoughts about themselves and others and the pomes they create in response to these thoughts really capture your attention. Each of the 18 students learns something about himself that changes his perspective about his future. A young black teenager who sees no future for himself in a community where guns and violence have taken over suddenly realizes he has a passion for words. A chubby teenage girl notices that her friends no long pay attention to the way she looks because they have become so immersed in her beautiful poetry. All of this comes from writing poems and reading them in front of the class on what their teacher calls Open Mike Friday. The poems these students "write" are so creative and really make this book quite unique. I could not put it down because I was so eager to read how these kids were going to write about their lives in their next poem. This book shows kids that they are allowed to different and they are allowed to be smart. It's ok to want to read and do well in school. I think that nay teen that is interested in poetry, or rap for that matter, even in the slightest should read this book. As a future teacher, I see books like these as leading our students in the right direction toward enlightenment. The only thing I think could have been added to this book would be the teacher's perspective on what is taking place in his classroom. I wonder what he would say? This book makes me want to write my own poems!! I am truly inspired.

...The book Bronx Masquerade is so far the best book i've ever read.Even though my sixth grade class ...has not finished reading the book almost everyone loves this book. If you are reading this then I strongly urge you to buy this book.This book has a extremely realistic plot.I have to say my favorite character of this book is Tyron.I say this because he acts like a actual person in Brooklyn.It also has real problems that would happen in a school.So this is the end of my review of the book Bronx Masquerade By:Nikki Grimes.If possible i would have gave this book 10 stars but they only let you give 5, but it deserves every one.A awsome book.

I am a sixth grade language arts teacher and an amateur poet, and I must say that Bronx Masquerade is one of the most phenomenal books I have read in my humble 26 years of existence on the face of this earth! I read the entire book in one sitting (about four hours) because I couldn't put it down! Nikki Grimes is definitely a jewel of a writer. She demonstrates serious skill and talent as a writer by creating poetry and prose from 18 different and quite distinct personalities, and she makes it sound so um, um, good! Grimes' poetry is a very real and absolutely awesome depiction of the power, frankness, and infectious nature of spoken word poetry. As my students would say, her writing is "tight" and "off the heezy!" Her writing is so realistic that I feel like I personally know each of the students in Mr. Ward's class. I definitely want to be like Mr. Ward, the English teacher in the book, "when I grow up!" I participated in open mike sessions quite a bit during my college years, so reading Bronx Masquerade definitely took me back to a good time in my life. As a matter of fact, I can feel the muse beginning to awaken. I think Bronx Masquerade should be in the possession of every English/Language arts teacher and student (in middle school and high school). Regardless of your locality, ethnicity, or comfort level with poetry, you can appreciate this candid salute to the minds of teenagers who have quite a lot to tell and not enough people to listen. I am a sold fan of Nikki Grimes!