One Book One Bronx: The Nickel Boys at JBOLC
One Book One Bronx partners with the James Baldwin Outdoor Learning Center to host a conversation on Colson Whitehead’s The Nickel Boys.
James Baldwin Outdoor Learning Center (Outdoors)
100 W Mosholu Pkwy S • BX NYC
Free and open to the public. Free books are available.
9/16: Intros & book distribution
9/23: Prologue to Chapter 3
9/30: Chapters 4 to 8
10/7: Chapters 9 to 12
10/14: Chapters 13 to epilogue
When Elwood Curtis, a black boy growing up in 1960s Tallahassee, is unfairly sentenced to a juvenile reformatory called the Nickel Academy, he finds himself trapped in a grotesque chamber of horrors. Elwood’s only salvation is his friendship with fellow “delinquent” Turner, which deepens despite Turner’s conviction that Elwood is hopelessly naive, that the world is crooked, and that the only way to survive is to scheme and avoid trouble. As life at the Academy becomes ever more perilous, the tension between Elwood’s ideals and Turner’s skepticism leads to a decision whose repercussions will echo down the decades.
One Book One Bronx features lively discussions that mirror our community's interests. These weekly conversations, available both online and in-person, cover a range of topics like gentrification, the Me Too Movement, social justice, racial inequality, and more. Take part in these restorative discussions and be a part of the community!