In my previous article, I talked about my favorite author Sarah Dessen. It was difficult picking just one favorite author, so I thought that I would write about my top two favorites. One of my other favorite authors is Sharon M. Draper.
I began reading her books during my senior year of high school. The first book I read was Romiette and Julio. It is a modern day take on Romeo and Juliet. I remember one night I was so eager to finish reading the book and find out what happened at the end, I read quietly with my lighted magnifier. I kept the lights off so I wouldn’t disturb anyone. From that moment on, I was hooked on Sharon M. Draper’s books.
When I started college, I didn’t have time to read for fun. Besides I couldn’t find these books in my college library. A few years later, I began searching on the internet for books that I haven’t read. I found Draper’s books at the local public library and book stores and I started reading again.
When I visit the book stores, I do not see many books for African American young adults. While I enjoy reading Sarah Dessen, Susane Colasanti, and Deb Caletti; I want to read about characters that I can fully relate to. I am sure that many teens today want to read about characters who share a background similar to their own. Teens today no matter their ethnic or social economic background deal with many of the same problems such teen pregnancy, family problems, trying to fit in, etc.
Sharon M. Draper writes about problems common to teens today. She writes about hazing in The Battle of Jericho, teen pregnancy in November Blues, and bullying and school violence in Just Another Hero. One of the qualities that I appreciate most about Sharon M. Draper is that she doesn’t talk down or preach to teens. Instead she presents the problem and allows the readers to see how the characters work through the situation and hopefully make the right decision at the end. No matter what age we are no one likes to be preached to.
One of the most memorable characters from her novels is Jonathan Hathaway from Darkness Before Dawn. The main character Keisha deals with the aftermath of her of her boyfriend’s suicide. Feeling lonely and sick of immature high school boys, she falls for Jonathan Hathaway the principal’s son. Even though he is older, mature, and has traveled, reading the story from an adult’s prospective I knew that he was up no good. To find out what happens you have to read the book yourself.
Another book that I enjoyed by Sharon M. Draper is Copper Sun. Copper Sun is a historical fiction novel about a young girl named Amari who was captured by slave traders who killed her entire family. She makes the long journey to South Carolina and sold to a plantation owner who gives her to his son as a birthday present. I learned a lot through this story, more than I learned in any history class I ever taken in school. For instance, in school I was always taught that slaves escaped North. However, I didn’t know that escaped South because they would least likely be captured. I think this is a must read for African American young adults . This will give them the opportunity to learn about their history and see what their ancestors experienced. The novels deals with topics such as rape and other topics that may be sensitive for young readers; parents should use discernment when deciding to allow their children to read this novel. I strongly suggest this novel for mature young adults.
There are many other memorable books and characters by Sharon M. Draper. She not only writes for teens but for young children as well. To learn more about Sharon M. Draper visit her website at: www.sharondraper.com. .
