The story is narrated by two young boys living in the projects of downtown Chicago, LeAlan Jones and Lloyd Newman. Briefly, the first section of the story is an extended version of a thirty minute episode of All Things Considered that originally aired on NPR called Ghetto Life 101. The story chronicles a week in the life of the two boys. Jones and Newman describe in detail their family life, school life, and general home life (neighborhood etc.). The second section of this book follows the boys a few years later after a horrific event takes place in their neighborhood involving a young boy, Derrick Morse, witness his even younger brother, Eric Morse, being thrown out of a fourteen story window by two other young boys.
Jones and Newman, themselves, question this idea of individuals as a product of their environment. If one is born into a life of violence will they too continue to lead a similar life, because that may be all they know? I think it is hard to completely generalize this idea, but there is some evidence that can support it. The boys who murdered Eric Morse were subject to some horrendous lifestyles leading up to the incident. Both boys did not live in a two parent household, or a household at all. One of the boys were squatting in a vacant apartment in the projects with their mother and siblings sharing a single mattress, only to be later deserted by their mother and left to fend for themselves. Later in life, the boys have found themselves in and out of jail with no occupational possibilities. Derrick Morse, years later, has also found himself incarcerated after killing someone at a family BBQ.
Personally, I think it is important for people to read this book, or any book like it that will take the reader out of their comfort zone and introduce them to a life that is not familiar to their own. I especially think it is important for the future teachers of America, like myself, to read this book. It is so important to know our students' lives outside of school. It says so much about how they learn or can learn inside of our classrooms... Are they eating healthy meals? Are they sleeping at night? Do they have a home? Do they have parents? These are all questions we must ask ourselves when we attempt to change a child's life and give them the best educational opportunities. Before we meet their needs, we must understand them.
I encourage everyone to listen to the NPR episode:
Ghetto Life 101
http://soundportraits.org/on-air/ghetto_life_101/
-Alex Keenan
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