A Tragedy Worth Reading: A Review of ‘The Nickel Boys’

“You can change the law, but you can’t change people and how they treat each other.”

That was more hard-hitting than I expected it to be. Even though, I knew it was going to be a rough ride, but I wasn’t expecting it to have as much of an impact on me as it did. Published in 2019, Colson Whitehead’s ‘The Nickel Boys,’ follows the story of an African American boy, Elwood Curtis, in the early 1960s. After being unjustly sentenced to a juvenile reformatory (Nickel Academy), Elwood is forced to experience the cruel and abusive environment of the institution. Along the way, Elwood befriends another boy, Turner, and together they face the racism, corruption, and dark secrets of Nickel Academy, things found in most American juvenile systems during this period.

I was astonished to find out that this book was loosely inspired by real life events that took place at the Dozier School for Boys in Marianna, Florida. Dr Erin Kimmerle and her archaeology students from the University of South Florida conducted forensic studies of the grave sites at this school, evidence which Colson claimed was “invaluable.” From there, he wrote ‘The Nickel Boys.’

Elwood Curtis is the protagonist of the novel, his story serving as a lens through which the racial injustices of the 1960s are explored. Despite being an extremely intelligent and morally grounded teenager, Elwood’s life takes a drastic turn when he is wrongly accused of a crime and is sent to Nickel Academy. There, he becomes a helpless victim of the racism, corruption, and physical and emotional abuse of the institution. It was hard to see him struggle but it was also inspiring to see him remain principled and optimistic.

Serving as a microcosm, Nickel Academy embodies the unjust discrimination and mistreatment of African Americans prevalent at the time. The legal system in the novel is also presented as extremely unjust and racially biased, a fact which is important to bring to attention.

His friend, Turner, however, has a more cynical outlook on life. The boys’ relationship kind of reminded me of Oliver Twist and the Artful Dodger – Turner is the one to show Elwood the ropes of Nickel Academy. Turner is less idealistic than Elwood, a trait which makes him extremely cautious and sceptical when it comes to some of Elwood’s defiant ideas. Additionally, he is street-smart, a quality which helps him navigate the oppressive nature of Nickel Academy and ultimately survive its injustices. His evolution throughout the novel and his agreement to finally help Elwood at the end made him a very complicated, yet well fleshed-out character…possibly my favourite.

I loved how this book addressed the issue of racism in 1960s America. The impact it had on African American individuals was shocking, and it was hard to see how many lives were ruined because of it. I think the novel does an excellent job in explaining how institutional racism works. Serving as a microcosm, Nickel Academy embodies the unjust discrimination and mistreatment of African Americans prevalent at the time. The legal system in the novel is also presented as extremely unjust and racially biased, a fact which is important to bring to attention. Set against the backdrop of the Civil Rights Movement, the novel highlights the segregation of American society at the time – one part that shocked me the most was the segregation of the academy into ‘blacks,’ and ‘whites.’ Jaimie, a boy of Mexican descent, creates a hard time for the staff when they try to decide whether he should live in the white dorms or the black dorms – it just felt utterly ridiculous.

Without ruining the plot, this book includes a very well-placed and shockingly good narrative twist – my mouth was literally hanging open when it was revealed. This twist (which gave details about the fate of a certain character) truly deepened the impact this novel had on me.

One very harsh criticism I have of this book was the order of events. The narrative unfolds over different time periods and is divided into several parts. Although I thought it was a clever structural choice, especially when it came to the twist, jumping between the present day and the 60s was hard to keep up with at points. I also thought that it interrupted the pace of the book sometimes, making it hard for the book to maintain consistent momentum.

However, I have thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and would recommend it to absolutely anyone. Exploring themes such as racism, justice, resilience, and trauma, this book’s moral message will leave you astounded.

4/5