“Dear Martin” by Nic Stone tackles issues with racism

“Dear Martin,” a realistic novel, written by Nic Stone shares the story of Justyce McAllister, an African American teenage boy, who faces racism and police brutality first hand. Along with this, he deals with other issues like friendships, crushes and the loss of loved ones. After an incident with a police officer, Justyce starts writing letters to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as a way to talk about his experiences with racism and his other everyday life problems. 

This beautifully written novel discusses topics that can be uncomfortable but are necessary to have in today’s world. It helps readers who may not face the same problems understand more about racism and how it affects lives daily.  Multiple characters in this book are treated unfairly because of their skin color. This is a sad reality in our own world. There have been many examples of people being misjudged, which leads to devastating outcomes.

Although there have been numerous other books that discuss the same topics, “Dear Martin” is a short, captivating novel  for anyone who wants to learn more about the struggles that Black people face.