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An Indie Next Pick

Ghost Boys – The Graphic Novel

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Experience Jewell Parker Rhodes's award-winning storytelling in this tender yet visceral graphic novel adaptation of her New York Times bestselling novel, with poignant illustrations by Setor Fiadzigbey.

Twelve-year-old Jerome is shot by a police officer who mistakes his toy gun for a real threat. As a ghost, he observes the devastation that’s been unleashed on his family and community in the wake of what they see as an unjust and brutal killing.

Soon Jerome meets another ghost: Emmett Till, a boy from a very different time but similar circumstances. Emmett helps Jerome process what has happened, on a journey towards recognizing how historical racism may have led to the events that ended his life. Jerome also meets Sarah, the daughter of the police officer, who grapples with her father’s actions.

Once again Jewell Parker Rhodes deftly weaves historical and socio-political layers into a gripping and poignant story about how children and families face the complexities of today’s world, and how one boy grows to understand American blackness in the aftermath of his own death.

The cover of Ghost Boys graphic novel by Jewell Parker Rhodes. A young black boy stands in the center with ghostly child figures behind him in the background.
School Library Journal

“Introduce[s] a whole new audience to this powerful and pivotal story.”

The Guardian

“Hauntingly powerful…A moving, enraging version of the original novel.”

The Irish Times

“The use of colour and panel size does a superb job at emphasizing key moments in this heartbreaker of a story…chilling and impactful.”