Boy 21

Quick, M. (2012). Boy21. New York: Little, Brown and Co.

Summary:

Basketball is everything for Finley. It’s a way for him to escape the broken town he lives in. Bellmont is run by the Irish mob. Drugs and violence run rampant. Even if the mob didn’t run things, the town is also racially charged. But Finley has basketball, and he has Erin, his girlfriend, a basketball star in her own right.

Then comes Boy21. His real name is Russell Allen, but after a family tragedy, he grieves by believing himself to be an alien from another planet. Coach has asked Finley to befriend Russell.

A friendship soon develops between the two boys they didn’t know they needed.

Reaction:

Boy 21 is a complicated novel in its own right. Finley and his girlfriend have to navigate not only the Irish mob but the predominately African-American neighborhood and school they attend. They have dreams of basketball scholarships that will take them out of Bellmont but events outside of their control dash those plans. Finley has to make a difficult decision at the end of the novel: leave his family to start a new life with the girl he loves or continue to stay in Bellmont where Russell has taken over his starting position on the basketball team.

Russell immediately feels a connection to Finley. It’s possible that he feels a kindred spirit within Finley. They have both suffered dramatic events in their lives they are trying to deal with in their own ways. Russell pretends to be an alien from another planet and believes his father will retrieve him at any time. Finley speaks little and loses himself in the game of basketball, so much so that he and Erin break up each season to better focus on the game.

The friendship between Russell and Finley develops quickly, especially on Russell’s part. At first, Finley is there for Russell. Since Finley doesn’t really speak, he is just there for Russell. He doesn’t push Russell to talk about anything. At some points, they just lie together, not speaking. And it’s exactly what Russell needs. Eventually, when Erin disappears, Russell is there for Finley, to be a friend, to listen to Finley when he is ready to talk.

Boy 21 highlights the importance of friendship and one’s part in deciding their future.

Connections:

Activities:

- Describe the main characters in Boy 21. Finley, Erin, Russell. How do their personalities make them unique?
- Write an alternate ending to the book. How would things be different? Why do you feel this to be a better change?
- Create a soundtrack for this book, at least 5 songs. Explain how these songs best represent Boy 21.
- Prompt: What is your earliest memory?
- “It’s like none of us really matter. Anyone could disappear and nothing would change too much. It’s like our lives don’t count.” (pg 221). What would happen if you disappeared? How would live be different?
- Use the discussion questions provided at the end of the novel for a Socratic Seminar.
- Prompt: How do your friend shape who you are?
- How is PTSD represented in this novel?
- Research the Irish mob. Discuss its role in this book.
- Redesign the books cover. Why did you make these changes