THE F WORDS

A boy, infuriated with injustices in his world and community, learns how to fight back.

Cole Renner is a White sophomore at August Mersy High School in Chicago. His principal has labeled him a troublemaker for daring to take action against injustices—just like his father, who is currently a prisoner in Cook County Jail after leading a protest to save a neighborhood public school. Struggling with his father’s recent sentencing, Cole lashes out and spray-paints the F-word multiple times on school property. Caught by Mr. Nachman, his English teacher, he is offered a choice: face suspension or clean it off and write two poems every week about other words starting with F. Choosing the latter option, Cole writes about the injustices that surround him and his schoolmates, who are of diverse cultural backgrounds. Despite his initial reluctance, he finds solace in poetry, and it becomes an outlet for each new wrong that Cole and those he cares about face. The teen characters’ discussions of issues such as deportation and racism may inspire young readers who are fed up with witnessing inequities, though this first-person novel tackles many concepts in its five-month timeline, causing events to be rushed and detracting from some of their impact. However, the author admirably showcases the power young people hold when they come together and speak out against a biased system.

A timely novel about empowered teens.