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Title details for New Boy by Tracy Chevalier - Available

New Boy

#5 in series

by Tracy Chevalier
Prentice Onayemi
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
1 of 1 copy available

Random House presents the unabridged, downloadable audiobook edition of New Boy by Tracy Chevalier, read by Prentice Onayemi.
'O felt her presence behind him like a fire at his back.'
Arriving at his fourth school in six years, diplomat's son Osei Kokote knows he needs an ally if he is to survive his first day – so he's lucky to hit it off with Dee, the most popular girl in school. But one student can't stand to witness this budding relationship: Ian decides to destroy the friendship between the black boy and the golden girl. By the end of the day, the school and its key players – teachers and pupils alike – will never be the same again.
The tragedy of Othello is transposed to a 1970s' suburban Washington schoolyard, where kids fall in and out of love with each other before lunchtime, and practise a casual racism picked up from their parents and teachers. Watching over the shoulders of four 11-year-olds – Osei, Dee, Ian and his reluctant girlfriend Mimi – Tracy Chevalier's powerful drama of friends torn apart by jealousy, bullying and betrayal will leave you reeling.

  • Creators

  • Series

    Hogarth Shakespeare

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    May 11, 2017

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781473549357
      • File size: 155225 KB
      • Duration: 05:23:23

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      March 27, 2017
      The latest in Hogarth’s Shakespeare series finds Chevalier (Girl with a Pearl Earring) relocating Othello to Washington, D.C., in the early 1970s, where sixth grader Osei, the son of a Ghanaian diplomat, faces his first morning at a new elementary school, his fourth in six years. The day starts well, as Osei meets popular girl Dee and the pair fall head over heels in love. But seeing the school’s only black boy woo a white girl is too much for Ian, a schoolyard bully, and he hatches a plan to ruin their blossoming relationship. Ian drags others into his manipulations, and by the end of the school day, hearts are broken and tragedy strikes the normally placid schoolyard. Chevalier smartly uses her narrative as an opportunity to spin a story commenting on racism in America, and while she weaves Shakespeare’s narrative arc into her novel by bouncing between characters’ experiences, the final result is only moderately effective. By compressing everything into one morning and afternoon, Chevalier rushes some action, and while the reader may recognize how children tend to amplify emotions, moments are occasionally difficult to believe.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      The fifth entry in the Hogarth Shakespeare series reimagines OTHELLO taking place in the 1970s in Washington, DC. Narrator Prentice Onayemi's rhythmic performance carries listeners through Osei's first day as the only black student in a private elementary school. Well-liked Dee is asked to make Ghana-born Osei feel welcome, tipping the first domino in the destruction of the sixth-grade social sphere. Onayemi's believable African accent provides a sharp contrast between the ambassador's son and his American classmates. The distinctions among the female characters are less clear, however, as both teachers and students are given a similar lilt and vocal register. Despite the emotional punch Onayemi injects into the story's end, listeners may find it difficult to connect with the Shakespearean tragedy as enacted by 11-year-olds. C.B.L. © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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