Dear Martin. Finished 2-2-25, 4.75/5 stars, YA fiction, 224 pages, 2017

Justyce McAllister is top of his class and set for the Ivy League—but none of that matters to the police officer who just put him in handcuffs. And despite leaving his rough neighborhood behind, he can’t escape the scorn of his former peers or the ridicule of his new classmates. Justyce looks to the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for answers. But do they hold up anymore? He starts a journal to Dr. King to find out. from Goodreads

Dear Martin is my first book by Nic Stone but it won’t be my last. Justyce lives at a fancy high school prep school, escaping his neighborhood, but not the color of his skin. When he’s unfairly treated by a police officer while trying to help his girlfriend he starts to see his Ivy League future in a different way.

This book is powerful. It’s also thoughtful and has a 💯 chance of being banned by those on the DEI hunt. You should need no other reason to read it than that, but I can give you a few more.

It will give you all the feels and educate at the same time. Justyce owns his own prejudices. He doesn’t shy away from admitting where he too could use some growth. His letters to Martin Luther King Jr. are inspiring. He aspires to be more and because of that he is.

There’s never been a better time to read this!

“You can’t change how other people think and act, but you’re in full control of you. When it comes down to it, the only question that matters is this: If nothing in the world ever changes, what type of man are you gonna be?”

“Yeah, there are no more “colored” water fountains, and it’s supposed to be illegal to discriminate, but if I can be forced to sit on the concrete in too-tight cuffs when I’ve done nothing wrong, it’s clear there’s an issue. That things aren’t as equal as folks say they are.”

“But before you say something “isn’t fair,” you should consider your starting point versus someone else’s.”

“I thought if I made sure to be an upstanding member of society, I’d be exempt from the stuff THOSE black guys deal with, you know? Really hard to swallow that I was wrong.”