teriboop's review
3.0
Jodi Picoult's The Color War explores the issue of racism today from the eyes of a young black boy. The story is about a young boy name Raymond from an inner-city home that goes to a Bible summer camp. He joins a swimming class and is enamored with his teacher, a young white girl named Melody who helps Raymond feel like everyone else. During the summer, tragedy happens back home, that throws Raymond into a bit of a spiral until Melody helps him come to terms with his fears.
I liked the story throughout but the final scene kinda left me hanging.
I liked the story throughout but the final scene kinda left me hanging.
marilynmalloy's review
4.0
A nice quick book. Read in a bout an hour. I hope Jodi Picoult later expands on some of the characters
sswee391's review
2.0
The story is only 23 pages long...wish I didn't spend $2 on it. It would be good if the story continued; it ends with a cliffhanger.
marryallthepeople's review
3.0
Short story! I feel like I need to be in an English class to fully understand the layers that I read...
nany007's review
4.0
While extremely short, this was a perfect little morsel of what could be another great novel for Jodi. I wish it was longer, but I did think she did well. Didn't seem much like a complete "short", but more like a chapter in a novel. I love her way of hooking you! Great writing.
readsweattravel's review
3.0
Quick but insightful read. Thought-provoking undertones about privilege, "white saviour complex" and the impact of violence within communities.
cwaugh's review
4.0
Color War is a short story by one of my favorite authors, Jodi Picoult. It is about an African American boy that lives in the inner city who is sent to a religious summer camp that is run by white teenage kids who are not from their neighborhoods. The children realize that even though they are physically out of their neighborhoods for a few weeks that they are not truly separated from it because when they return, all will be the same. I liked this story. I only wish Picoult would use some of these themes on her novels rather than a short story. As a fan, I wanted more.
tegsreadsbooks's review
3.0
I thought I liked it, but now I'm finally getting around to reviewing this, over two weeks after finishing it, and I've already forgotten most of what its about. I guess it wasn't that memorable of a story, so it's going down to a 2.5 star.
shanameydala's review against another edition
2.0
A short story about a boy dealing with a heartbreaking tragedy that heads to camp. I wish there was more to the story.
thereadingknitter's review against another edition
1.0
THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR PRESENTS A MOVING STORY ABOUT THE SUMMER THAT CHANGED A BOY’S LIFE FOREVER.
Jodi Picoult is one of the most beloved authors of our time. Her many novels, consistently topping both national and international bestseller lists ("Sing You Home," "My Sister’s Keeper," "Nineteen Minutes"), are celebrated for addressing controversial issues with courage, grace, and empathy. In her new Byliner Original, "The Color War," she showcases her versatility and storytelling gifts once again with a moving and revealing portrait of a boy coming of age in an America where the lines between black and white, rich and poor, and insider and outsider too often divide minds and hearts and separate a child from his own sense of promise.
All Raymond wants to do is hang out with his best friend, Monroe, but life has other plans. This summer, his mother has decided to send him to Bible camp for inner-city kids. On the bus there, he dreams of the best night of his life, when he and Monroe slipped away from home and jumped the turnstiles to ride the subway to downtown Boston on New Year’s Eve. The elaborate ice sculptures on display thrilled them, especially an angel with outstretched wings that glowed ghostly in the night. Raymond wakes on the bus to what he takes for another angel: Melody, a camp counselor and lifeguard. Like all the staff, she’s white. Pretty, blond, and friendly, she’s the person Raymond most wants to impress during the Color War, the camp’s sports competition, and to whom he confesses his most painful secret, a loss that has made him grow up far too fast and left him wise beyond his mere nine years.
Will Raymond manage to connect to Melody—or anyone—when he’s so far from what he’s known and loved? Or will he discover that sometimes the road to hell is paved with good intentions? A searing look at race and what it means to survive our own color wars.
My Review - this book was super short. Jodi Picoult is one of my favorite authors but this book wasn't very good. It was to short and ended weird.
Jodi Picoult is one of the most beloved authors of our time. Her many novels, consistently topping both national and international bestseller lists ("Sing You Home," "My Sister’s Keeper," "Nineteen Minutes"), are celebrated for addressing controversial issues with courage, grace, and empathy. In her new Byliner Original, "The Color War," she showcases her versatility and storytelling gifts once again with a moving and revealing portrait of a boy coming of age in an America where the lines between black and white, rich and poor, and insider and outsider too often divide minds and hearts and separate a child from his own sense of promise.
All Raymond wants to do is hang out with his best friend, Monroe, but life has other plans. This summer, his mother has decided to send him to Bible camp for inner-city kids. On the bus there, he dreams of the best night of his life, when he and Monroe slipped away from home and jumped the turnstiles to ride the subway to downtown Boston on New Year’s Eve. The elaborate ice sculptures on display thrilled them, especially an angel with outstretched wings that glowed ghostly in the night. Raymond wakes on the bus to what he takes for another angel: Melody, a camp counselor and lifeguard. Like all the staff, she’s white. Pretty, blond, and friendly, she’s the person Raymond most wants to impress during the Color War, the camp’s sports competition, and to whom he confesses his most painful secret, a loss that has made him grow up far too fast and left him wise beyond his mere nine years.
Will Raymond manage to connect to Melody—or anyone—when he’s so far from what he’s known and loved? Or will he discover that sometimes the road to hell is paved with good intentions? A searing look at race and what it means to survive our own color wars.
My Review - this book was super short. Jodi Picoult is one of my favorite authors but this book wasn't very good. It was to short and ended weird.