Geoffrey Canada Book Analysis

This memoir from Geoffrey Canada is now a graphic novel which was adapted by Jamar Nicholas. It begins by explaining Geoff’s first experience with violence, when his brother’s jacket was stolen in the park. His mother forced the oldest brother to go back out and take it back, that he would get a worse beating at home if he did not get it back. This was Geoff’s first exposure, at four years old he learned that he should not be made a victim. The text continues on showing different moments from Geoff’s live, where over and over he was taught that you do not back down from a fight, even if it was a fight you were not going to win. The book shows an escalation as Geoff grows up, which is mirrored in the title, fist, stick, knife, gun, which can probably help you guess where the text goes. This book shows a lot of tension between Geoff and his culture. He has to do what he has to do to survive, but hearing it from his perspective, you can tell that he does not understand why life has to be that way. I really enjoyed the content of this book, I think that the themes and tension were
It has very tough issues and a lot of language. This would be a book for upper middle school to high school. This is a book you would have to be very careful with, you would need a lot of parent permission and a class/student that you could have great discussion with. However, that is not to say that it is not worth reading. I think that a lot of students today have a hard time backing down from an issue, even if it is meaningless, so this could really be relatable. Some strategies that could be used with this book include predicting, inferring, and making connections. I think that inferring could be a great strategy for this book because you can use the pictures and the text to find out what the author is really