Riot

In 1863, desperate for more Union soldiers, President Abraham Lincoln institutes a controversial draft. However, the wealthy are able to escape serving in the army by paying a $300 waiver - more than a year's income for the recent immigrant Irish. On 11 July, as the first drawing takes place in Lower Manhattan, the city of New York explodes in rage and fire. Shops are looted, buildings are burned down and black Americans are attacked, beaten and murdered. 15-year-old Claire, the daughter of a black father and Irish mother, finds herself torn between the two warring sides.

“"The setting is New York City, July 1863. Lincoln has just called up more troops after the devastation at Gettysburg. Tensions rise and then boil over into riots as Irish immigrants rail against the draft and direct their wrath at the city's African-American population. Fifteen-year-old Claire, daughter of a black father and white mother, finds herself at the center of the vortex. She is forced to grapple with the notion that her race has suddenly become the entirety of her identity while friends and family are pulled into different camps and a mob mentality consumes the city. The author revisits the screenplay format utilized to much acclaim in Monster (HarperCollins, 1999), yet here it serves a wholly different purpose. While the screenplay helped Monster's Steve reveal a creative identity apart from his mug shot, in Riot it gives a sense of the proportion and chaos of the times, as the camera pans across the city jumping from one incident to another, simultaneously tracking numerous characters. Myers crafts a sympathetic cast, which is excellent fodder for conversations about race and class, and the book is also a choice pick for reluctant readers who will relish both format and pacing. Once again, this master storyteller has delivered." starred, School Library Journal”

"Another innovative work by an author constantly stretching the boundaries of what fiction can be, and a natural for readers' theater in the classroom." --starred, Kirkus Reviews

"Myers crafts a sympathetic cast, which is excellent fodder for conversations about race and class, and the book is also a choice pick for reluctant readers who will relish both format and pacing. Once again, this master storyteller has delivered." --starred, School Library Journal

"There are no easy resolutions, idealized characters, or stereotypes, and the conflicts are unforgettable....Great for reader's theater, this is sure to spark discussion about race, class, conflict, and loyalty, then and now." --starred, Booklist

Walter Dean Myers is one of the best known writers of children's literature working today. His work has received numerous awards, including two Newbery Honors, five Coretta Scott King Awards, the Michael L. Printz Award, the Margaret A. Edwards Award, two Lee Bennett Hopkins Awards, the ALAN Award, and many others, including the 2008 Arbuthnot Award from the ALA. This year, he is the first time winner of the Coretta Scott King-Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement, which will be presented at ALA in Washington. Besides writing, Walter loves collecting photographs and ephemera dealing with black history, and owns several pieces from this period, including an actual $300 waiver of the Civil War draft."

This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.