Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: Anger Is a Gift
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: https://www.markoshiro.com/
CITY: New York
STATE: NY
COUNTRY: United States
NATIONALITY: American
markreadsandwatches@gmail.com
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Male.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer and editor. President of board of directors, Con or Bust.
WRITINGS
Creator of the website, Mark Does Stuff website; editor of Queers Destroy Science Fiction!; editor, with Foz Meadows, of Speculative Fiction 2015.
SIDELIGHTS
Mark Oshiro is a writer and editor based in New York, New York. He is the creator of the website, Mark Does Stuff. Oshiro edited a volume called Queers Destroy Science Fiction!. He and Foz Meadows are the editors of Speculative Fiction 2015. In addition to his writing and editing work, he also holds the title of president of board of directors for an organization called Con or Bust.
In 2018, Oshiro released his first book, Anger Is a Gift. The volume a geared toward young adult readers. Its protagonist is Moss Jeffries, a high school student living in Oakland, CA. Moss, who is black and Latino, has grown up without his father, whom the police mistakenly killed when Moss was young. Moss’s anger about police brutality comes to a head when the police begin enforcing strict new “safety” measures at his school. Kids in marginalized groups are routinely mistreated, and violence becomes even more commonplace. Moss decides he must do something to stop what is happening at his school. He bands together with other students and people from the community to stand up against police brutality.
In an interview with a contributor to the Medium website, Oshiro discussed the inspiration behind the book, stating: “I’d been toying with the idea of writing a story about how my experience in high school … did not resemble the sort of narrative you see in most fiction. However, the actual inspiration for the plot came from when I was reviewing the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer back in 2012. I got the idea of exploring a community dealing with a terrible question: Who deserves to live?” Oshiro told Priya Sridhar, writer on the Book Riot website: “It wasn’t until I got to college that I discovered that having a resource officer stationed on campus was abnormal. I also didn’t know that it was uncommon to watch your peers get arrested at school, to be funneled through the juvenile system for fairly minor offenses. I knew it was wrong, but I assumed it was the standard. Once I left the insular community I grew up in, I had to rethink what was normal.” Oshiro continued: “And this is the case for tons of kids across the US! I recently did a school visit in the Bronx, and these kids went through metal detectors and were subjected to invasive searches daily, and that’s their normal. I wanted to write a book about that and how for many communities—usually ones that are disproportionately poor and Black/brown—our schools don’t look like the others.” Oshiro also told Sridhar: “While this book is intensely personal and quite heavy at times, I never wanted things to seem hopeless. The situations might be dire, but the future isn’t. I wanted to offer hope to kids who feel stuck, trapped, isolated, and ignored. I see you. Many of us do. There is a way out for you, and perhaps Anger Is A Gift can be a roadmap for you.”
Anger Is a Gift received favorable assessments. A Kirkus Reviews critic asserted: “A masterful debut rich with intersectional nuance and grass-roots clarity, Anger is a Gift is hella precious, hella dope.” “Oshiro … takes readers on an emotional roller-coaster in this powerful and timely debut novel,” commented a contributor to Publishers Weekly. Reviewing the book in Voice of Youth Advocates, Jewel Davis suggested: “While some dialogue and descriptions are awkward, the narrative is compelling, providing a new and noteworthy account.” “This title begs to be read and discussed,” remarked Kristin Lee Anderson in School Library Journal. Anderson also described the novel as “a strong addition to the current wave of excellent social justice-themed contemporary realistic titles.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Kirkus Reviews, April 1, 2018, review of Anger Is a Gift.
Publishers Weekly, March 26, 2018, review of Anger Is a Gift, p. 121.
School Library Journal, April, 2018, Kristin Lee Anderson, review of Anger Is a Gift, p. 136.
Voice of Youth Advocates, June, 2018, Jewel Davis, review of Anger is a Gift, p. 61.
ONLINE
Book Riot, https://bookriot.com/ (May 30, 2018), Priya Sridhar, author interview.
Mark Oshiro website, https://www.markoshiro.com/ (August 7, 2018).
Medium, https://medium.com/ (August 7, 2018), author interview.
Mark Oshiro is the Hugo finalist (in the Fan Writer category) creator of the online Mark Does Stuff universe (Mark Reads and Mark Watches), where he analyzes book and television series unspoiled. He was the nonfiction editor of Queers Destroy Science Fiction! and the co-editor of Speculative Fiction 2015 with Foz Meadows. He is the President of the Con or Bust Board of Directors. His first novel, Anger is a Gift, is a YA contemporary about queer friendship, love, and fighting police brutality. It will be released on 5/22/2018 with Tor Teen. When he is not writing, crying on camera about fictional characters, or ruining lives at conventions, he is busy trying to fulfill his lifelong goal: to pet every dog in the world.
Mark is represented by DongWon Song of the Howard Morhaim Literary Agency.
Mark's publicist at Tor Teen is Saraciea Fennel, and they can be reached at saraciea.fennell at tor dot com.
If you are interested in Mark's services as a sensitivity reader for your project, please see his page on Sensitivity Reads for qualifications before contacting him.
QUOTED: "It wasn’t until I got to college that I discovered that having a resource officer stationed on campus was abnormal. I also didn’t know that it was uncommon to watch your peers get arrested at school, to be funneled through the juvenile system for fairly minor offenses. I knew it was wrong, but I assumed it was the standard. Once I left the insular community I grew up in, I had to rethink what was normal."
"And this is the case for tons of kids across the US! I recently did a school visit in the Bronx, and these kids went through metal detectors and were subjected to invasive searches daily, and that’s their normal. I wanted to write a book about that and how for many communities—usually ones that are disproportionately poor and Black/brown—our schools don’t look like the others."
"While this book is intensely personal and quite heavy at times, I never wanted things to seem hopeless. The situations might be dire, but the future isn’t. I wanted to offer hope to kids who feel stuck, trapped, isolated, and ignored. I see you. Many of us do. There is a way out for you, and perhaps Anger Is A Gift can be a roadmap for you."
INTERVIEW WITH MARK OSHIRO, AUTHOR OF ANGER IS A GIFT
PRIYA SRIDHAR
05-30-18
anger is a gift by mark oshiro interviewAnger Is A Gift is a novel about grief, activism, and living despite trauma. High school student Moss lost his father several years ago to police brutality, and he hates how people define him by the incident. Then metal detectors and the police show up at his school, and Moss realizes that they have to organize against it, or more people will die.
Author Mark Oshiro started his career by reviewing fantasy and science fiction, creating the Mark Reads and Mark Watches blogs and receiving a Hugo nomination for best Fan Writer. His chapter-by-chapter takes on Harry Potter, Discworld, and other works have won readers’ hearts. His novel Anger is a Gift premiered in May 2018 from Tor Teen. When Mark wrote the first draft, he didn’t realize the story was going to become a commentary on coming-of-age while facing police brutality and systematic racism. In fact, according to the novel’s afterword, the story was planned as the first book to a science fiction trilogy.
ANGER IS A GIFT IS AN INTENSE BOOK, FILLED WITH HARSH REALITIES ABOUT STUDENT LIFE AND ABOUT CONFRONTING TRAUMA ON A REGULAR BASIS. THE AFTERWORD MENTIONS THAT IT WAS CONCEIVED IN 2012, IN A VERY DIFFERENT GENRE BUT BASED ON YOUR EXPERIENCES AS AN ACTIVIST AND HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT. WHAT WAS YOUR INSPIRATION?
There are two basic things that make up the inspiration for Anger Is A Gift. I had long wanted to write something addressing resource officers and the presence of police violence within the context of a high school. It was tied to my own experiences and observations, and I’d never seen a book about it before. But that didn’t solidify into an actual plot or story until nearly six years ago. The plot for Anger was inspired by an episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer (specifically “Seeing Red”), which I was reviewing for Mark Watches. I wrote a scene as a sort of free-writing experience to deal with my reaction to that episode, and while some small details changed over the years, that same sequence is STILL in Anger.
“NORMAL WAS DIFFERENT FOR MOSS AND EVERYONE ELSE WHO ATTENDED WEST OAKLAND HIGH.” WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON HOW NORMALCY IS ARBITRARY, DEPENDING ON WHERE WE LIVE?
It wasn’t until I got to college that I discovered that having a resource officer stationed on campus was abnormal. I also didn’t know that it was uncommon to watch your peers get arrested at school, to be funneled through the juvenile system for fairly minor offenses. I knew it was wrong, but I assumed it was the standard. Once I left the insular community I grew up in, I had to rethink what was normal. And this is the case for tons of kids across the US! I recently did a school visit in the Bronx, and these kids went through metal detectors and were subjected to invasive searches daily, and that’s their normal. I wanted to write a book about that and how for many communities—usually ones that are disproportionately poor and Black/brown—our schools don’t look like the others.
IT SEEMS THAT THE MAIN PROBLEM COMES FROM POLICE AND AUTHORITY FIGURES NOT LISTENING TO STUDENTS AND ADDRESSING THEIR NEEDS, INSTEAD IMPOSING THEIR BRAND OF CRUELTY UPON BYSTANDERS AND THE PEOPLE THEY’RE SUPPOSED TO PROTECT. I WAS REMINDED OF TUMBLR POSTS THAT WOULD DETAIL UNDERFUNDED CLASSROOMS AND VIOLENT PROTESTS. HOW HARD WAS IT TO CONVEY THIS REALITY IN FICTION, GIVEN HOW BRUTAL IT IS TO READ?
It’s interesting because I found many of those scenes detailing the state of West Oakland High to be incredibly easy to write. Sometimes, being authentic just means being honest, and it wasn’t hard to talk about having few supplies, or going to a school that’s falling apart, or being under the weight of the scam of state testing and real estate taxes. That hypocrisy is on display in this book because, again, it’s the reality for a lot of kids in our nation. Money is spent on “protecting” them, but isn’t spent on actually educating them.
THE NOVEL IS VERY INTERSECTIONAL, WITH A BLACK LEAD WHO HAS A NONBINARY FRIEND, A LATINO LOVE INTEREST WHO IS DELIGHTFUL, AND AN EPILEPTIC STUDENT WHO IS TARGETED FOR THE CRIME OF SPEAKING OUT. HOW MUCH RESEARCH DID YOU HAVE TO DO INTO THE MANY LANES THAT THE NOVEL EXPLORES? WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR POC AUTHORS WHO WANT TO TAKE THE SAME ROUTE?
Some of the book required research, particularly for experiences that I don’t have. After writing that first scene in response to Buffy, I spent months split between the main branches of the Oakland Public Library and the San Francisco Public Library gathering research on a number of issues. Most of that appears in the technology you see in the novel, as well as the logistics of protesting and the history of police brutality that other characters reference. When it came to writing identities and experiences that were not my own, I found a lot of great resources online. I always recommend Writing The Other by Nisi Shawl and Cynthia Ward as a fantastic starting place. But research can only go so far, and so I recommend that authors rely on the editorial process. That includes beta readers or critique partners; your own editor if you’ve got a publishing deal; and please, PLEASE utilize sensitivity readers. I’ve been doing sensitivity reads for well over two years now, and it’s an incredible service that helps make your story better. Treat sensitivity reads just like any other edit and accept that you’re paying someone to give you guidance, not attack you personally.
YOU’VE BEEN NOMINATED FOR A HUGO FOR YOUR REVIEWS ON FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION IN MARK DOES STUFF. HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE EQUATION, AS A FICTION WRITER AND NOT A REVIEWER?
It’s very strange! I have all the spoilers for the first time in my life, and because the Mark Does Stuff universe is incredibly anti-spoiler, I’m not used to being on the other side. But I’m glad that my first novel is coming after having spent nearly a decade doing literary analysis. I’ve devoted a significant portion of my life to picking apart plot, characterization, and narrative structure, and I consider that a kind of training that has been vital to my writing career. I don’t think I could have finished a novel, let alone deal with all the massive edits it has gone through, without this part of my life.
WHAT WAS THE NOVEL LIKE WHEN IT WAS ORIGINALLY GOING TO BE PART OF A SCIENCE FICTION TRILOGY? WHAT ELEMENTS HAVE CHANGED OR STAYED THE SAME BETWEEN DRAFTS?
For at least the first two thirds of Anger, the bones of the story is more or less the same as the original story. Moss was still the main character, it was still about invasive metal detectors being installed on campus, and you still had the thread of dealing with the trauma of police brutality. It’s just that there was ANOTHER giant thread on top of all of this, and I’m eternally thankful that my agent, DongWon Song, told me that the book would be better if I separated out these two stories and made them their own thing. I ended up removing all the science fiction stuff, which included a plot about MURDER ROBOTS hiding under Oakland, and focusing on the contemporary narrative. I’m very happy I did.
DO YOU HAVE ADVICE FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE BATTLING THE DESPAIR THAT WE CAN MAKE A BETTER WORLD WHEN HORRIBLE TRAGEDIES KEEP HAPPENING AND THE SYSTEM SEEMS TO NOT CHANGE? HOW DO WE KEEP FINDING LIGHT WITHIN THE DARKNESS?
On a personal level, I am trying to be less harsh on myself and on others. It’s hard some days to find hope, and I say that as someone who has depression, anxiety disorders, and lives with the specter of PTSD hanging over me. I am much more forgiving of myself, and I am also much more willing to allow myself the tiny joys. I have picked up long-distance running again as a means to burn off some of my anxiety, and I cherish how many friends I’ve made since moving to New York City. I celebrate good books and the careers of people who are putting out positive energy into the world. And I get angry! I get angry at the world, and I find ways to direct that anger so that I can feel like I’m making a difference. Whether that’s through marching, volunteering my time and energy, or donating to worthy causes, I channel my distaste for the world into something that helps.
HOW CAN READERS AND WRITERS ALIKE CHANGE THE FACE OF PUBLISHING TO RELEASE MORE DIVERSE BOOKS? WE NEED MORE STORIES LIKE THIS, AND AUTHORS LIKE YOU.
Thank you! There’s only so much that readers and writers can do. I want readers to support who they love, obviously, and I’ve been flattered by the support I’ve gotten in the months prior to release. But it’s important that we stay critical of our own desires and enjoyment. Are we only supporting men? Only white writers? Do we celebrate abled-bodied writers giving us stereotypical depictions of ableism while ignoring those who are actually part of that community? One thing I do as a reader is make sure I’m reading at least one new author a month, and I do my best to make sure that these books are from people of communities that are under-represented in publishing. As a writer, I try to make my work reflect the world at large, and for genre stuff that’s set in another world, I still try to be as conscientious about what I’m putting out to others.
However, I think the bulk of this question should be directed at the publishing industry itself. Who gets the big, flashy deals? Which stories get promoted? Which authors are praised for their “brave” or “courageous” stories about experiences that are not their own, only for authors of those communities to be sidelined as tokens? Given that we now know that just 7% of all published authors in children’s books are Black, Latino, or Native, why is it that most of the books written about these communities are not from these communities?
THE BOOK ALSO DISCUSSES FRANK ISSUES SUCH AS MENTAL HEALTH AND FINDING HEALTHY COPING STRATEGIES FOR DEALING WITH TRAUMA. HOW IMPORTANT WAS IT TO SHOW A POSITIVE EXAMPLE OF THERAPY CLASHING WITH THE REALITIES THAT THE HUMAN MIND CAN BE RESISTANT TO GETTING BETTER?
I don’t know that I’d say that this is about therapy clashing with Moss so much as it’s about the logistics of mental health on a day-to-day basis. As someone who dealt with PTSD, anxiety, and depression in high school, I did not have the support system Moss does. So, I wanted to imagine what that would look like. What if his mother supported him and allowed him to be honest about his mental health? And despite that he does go to therapy, it doesn’t provide an instant solution to his issues. Instead, he learns coping mechanisms to deal with the challenge of having anxiety. I would say it’s the world that clashes with Moss more than his therapy. He’s triggered by people bringing up his history with police brutality; he’s triggered when his school escalates their demonization of their own student body. What does mental health look like in an environment like that?
WHAT DO YOU HOPE PEOPLE WILL FIND WHEN THEY READ ANGER IS A GIFT?
First of all, I have a pretty sweet joke about museums and biphobia (aversion toward bisexuality and toward bisexual people as a social group or as individuals) in the book, so I hope people are pleased with that, because it’s one of my favorite moments in the whole book. I also say that because while this book is intensely personal and quite heavy at times, I never wanted things to seem hopeless. The situations might be dire, but the future isn’t. I wanted to offer hope to kids who feel stuck, trapped, isolated, and ignored. I see you. Many of us do. There is a way out for you, and perhaps Anger Is A Gift can be a roadmap for you.
WHAT UPCOMING WORKS CAN WE EXPECT FROM YOU?
I just released my first short story, “No Me Dejas,” a YA sci-fi tale about memory transfer and honesty. I’m in the midst of a massive rewrite on my second book for Tor Teen, which is NOT a sequel to Anger. It’s currently got a secret title that I hope to reveal soon, but what I can share now is that it is a story that combines magical realism and psychological horror while talking about what forces people to migrate from their homes. I can’t wait to share it with the world!
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME, MARK, AND FOR YOUR BOOK. ANGER IS A GIFT IS OUT NOW, SO BE SURE TO BUY A COPY.
QUOTED: "I’d been toying with the idea of writing a story about how my experience in high school ... did not resemble the sort of narrative you see in most fiction. However, the actual inspiration for the plot came from when I was reviewing the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer back in 2012. I got the idea of exploring a community dealing with a terrible question: Who deserves to live?"
Interview with Debut Young Adult Author Mark Oshiro
For Mark Oshiro, today marks a day many authors dream about — his debut novel ANGER IS A GIFT is being published by Tor Teen, an imprint of Macmillan Publishers. With starred reviews from School Library Journal and Kirkus Reviews, Anger is a Gift is generating early buzz and we’re delighted to have had the opportunity to interview Mark on his publishing experience.
Question: What are you most excited about Anger is a Gift being published right now?
Mark Oshiro: You know, I just recently had a discussion with a friend about both the timeliness of Anger and how it took me so long to get it published. I genuinely don’t think I would have found an agent or have gotten it published if I’d finished it ten years ago. The incredible work done by activists, writers, agents, and publishers to push for work that better represents the world helped make my success story possible. On top of that, I had never intended for my work to be a commentary on the activism that students and teens are doing right now, so it’s been a strange coincidence that my little book about walkouts and protesting seems to have hit at the right time.
Q: What’s been most challenging to you with Anger?
Mark: There are lots of challenges to publishing a book, but I think the sheer span of time it takes was not something I initially prepared for. From the spark of inspiration to publication date was five years and eight months. Even after I got my deal, I learned that publishing moves very slow… right up until it goes VERY fast. (I’m in the fast part.)
Q: What’s the background of how this story came to be written?
Mark: I’d been toying with the idea of writing a story about how my experience in high school wasn’t typical and did not resemble the sort of narrative you see in most fiction. However, the actual inspiration for the plot came from when I was reviewing the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer back in 2012. I got the idea of exploring a community dealing with a terrible question: Who deserves to live? Who deserves to die?
Q: After reading Anger, what’s one thing you hope a reader would take away?
Mark: I do hope that for those who may not relate to or recognize Moss’s struggle, they can see it as a window into an experience that is common for Black and Brown teenagers in America.
Q: For kidlit writers just getting started, what is the single best piece of advice you could offer them?
Mark: Don’t stop writing! I spent years in my early 20s not doing any serious writing until I stumbled on non-fiction as a creative outlet. But this advice also works if you are working on a current project. When I finished Anger and started querying it seriously, I started plotting out other novels or short stories. By the time I got a deal, I was seriously working on Book 2. Don’t wait around for a project to get greenlit or accepted; just move on to something else until that original project calls you back. I’m now working on books three and four, and that momentum helps keep me inspired.
Q: What’s one thing you wish you knew earlier in your writing career that you know now?
Mark: You can write stories about brown queer boys, and people will want to read them.
Q: What’s up for you next in your writing career?
Mark: At the time I’m doing this interview, I am waiting for the first round of edits on Book #2! It is a YA fantasy/horror novel that is coming out with Tor Teen in 2019.
MARK OSHIRO is the Hugo-nominated writer of the online Mark Does Stuff universe (Mark Reads and Mark Watches), where he analyzes book and TV series. He was the nonfiction editor of Queers Destroy Science Fiction! and the co-editor of Speculative Fiction 2015, and is the President of the Con or Bust Board of Directors. When not writing/recording reviews or editing, Oshiro engages in social activism online and offline. Anger is a Gift is his debut YA contemporary fiction novel.
QUOTED: "A masterful debut rich with intersectional nuance and grass-roots clarity, Anger is a Gift is hella precious, hella dope."
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Print Marked Items
Oshiro, Mark: ANGER IS A GIFT
Kirkus Reviews.
(Apr. 1, 2018):
COPYRIGHT 2018 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Full Text:
Oshiro, Mark ANGER IS A GIFT Tor Teen (Young Adult Fiction) $17.99 5, 22 ISBN: 978-1-250-16702-6
Rooted in the working-class neighborhoods of Oakland, California, this is a tale of youth of color, diverse in
sexuality and gender, organizing to challenge state-sanctioned violence.
Black teenager Moss Jeffries is still grieving from the loss six years earlier of his father by the trigger finger
of a police officer. Moss struggles with self-doubt and anxiety-induced panic attacks, finding comfort in his
emerging relationship with Javier, a Latinx boy who's just as tender as he is bold. As the school year begins,
the school resource officer assaults Moss' friend Shawna, claiming to suspect drugs--but the young people
know that it's really about her decision to fully embrace her black trans identity. When the administration
installs metal detectors, resulting in a tragic injury for their friend in a wheelchair, Moss and his circle
organize to dismantle the system of violence at their school, beginning with a wildcat student walkout. They
demonstrate that there will continue to be resistance wherein aggrieved communities gather in solidarity to
build meaningful lives of collective joy, heartful struggle, and deep love. Moss' mother, Wanda, offers,
"Anger is a gift. Remember that....You gotta grasp on to it, hold it tight and use it as ammunition. You use
that anger to get things done instead of just stewing in it."
A masterful debut rich with intersectional nuance and grass-roots clarity, Anger is a Gift is hella precious,
hella dope. (Fiction. 14-adult)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"Oshiro, Mark: ANGER IS A GIFT." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Apr. 2018. General OneFile,
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A532700461/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=c5bb4c28.
Accessed 15 July 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A532700461
QUOTED: "Oshiro ... takes readers on an emotional roller-coaster in this powerful and timely debut novel."
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Anger Is a Gift
Publishers Weekly.
265.13 (Mar. 26, 2018): p121+.
COPYRIGHT 2018 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
Anger Is a Gift
Mark Oshiro. Tor Teen, $17.99 (464p) ISBN 978-1-250-16702-6
Oshiro, creator of the Mark Does Stuff website, takes readers on an emotional roller-coaster in this powerful
and timely debut novel that conveys a community's bitter experience living within a culture of white
supremacy. Sixteen-year-old Moss Jeffries, a gay African-American student attending run-down West
Oakland High School, has experienced panic attacks since police shot his father six years earlier. A warm,
mutually respectful relationship with his mother, an extended network of friends of diverse genders, sexual
orientations, and family makeup, and a budding romance with Javier, a cute Latino comic book artist, all
indicate a hopeful future. Yet violent incidents continue to threaten the community's well-being. In one
improbable event that affects the story's plausibility, a boy with metal pins in his knee suffers a severe injury
as a result of being forced to walk through a school metal detector. This event and several police assaults on
students lead to organizing, with the community's fear building to a crescendo in a planned walkout gone
awry. Oshiro deftly captures the simmering rage that ultimately transforms Moss from a quiet teenager to a
committed activist against a brutal, menacing system. Ages 14-18. Agent: DongWon Song, Howard
Morhaim Literary Agency. (May)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"Anger Is a Gift." Publishers Weekly, 26 Mar. 2018, p. 121+. General OneFile,
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A532997248/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=5925c480.
Accessed 15 July 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A532997248
QUOTED: "While some dialogue and descriptions are awkward, the narrative is compelling, providing a new and noteworthy account."
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Oshiro, Mark. Anger is a Gift
Jewel Davis
Voice of Youth Advocates.
41.2 (June 2018): p61+.
COPYRIGHT 2018 E L Kurdyla Publishing LLC
http://www.voya.com
Full Text:
Oshiro, Mark. Anger is a Gift. Tor Teen/ Macmillan, May 2018. 464p. $17.99. 978-1250-16702-6.
4Q *5P * J * S (a)
Afro-Latino high school student Moss Jeffries is searching for love, navigating friendships, and coping with
insecurities while communities in his home city of Oakland, California, confront issues of social justice. At
an early age, Moss witnessed the murder of his father, shot by the police in a case of mistaken identity.
When Moss's underfunded school partners with the police to pilot a new safety program, Moss and his
classmates experience treatment more fitting for criminals than students. When the students and community
stand together to challenge the unfair treatment, violence breaks out, and Moss has to again confront the
horrors of brutality and death against the people he loves.
Oshiro gives voice to a cast of activists who find agency, hope, and justice within a community that has
weathered continual discrimination. This debut novel provides a riveting, devastatingly realistic portrayal of
the criminalization of marginalized groups and an unwavering examination of the lasting impact of bigotry.
His teenage characters have authentic intersectional depth and are developed beyond the various ways
society labels them: black, Latinx, disabled, Muslim, asexual, nonbinary, gay, lesbian. While some dialogue
and descriptions are awkward, the narrative is compelling, providing a new and noteworthy account that
continues the conversation and depiction of society's opposition to otherness. This is not to be missed and
should be placed in a prominent position in every library serving teens.--Jewel Davis.
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
Davis, Jewel. "Oshiro, Mark. Anger is a Gift." Voice of Youth Advocates, June 2018, p. 61+. General
OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A545022913/ITOF?
u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=fff7adc1. Accessed 15 July 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A545022913
QUOTED: "This title begs to be read and discussed."
"a strong addition to the current wave of excellent social justice-themed contemporary realistic titles."
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OSHIRO, Mark. Anger Is a Gift
Kristin Lee Anderson
School Library Journal.
64.4 (Apr. 2018): p136+.
COPYRIGHT 2018 Library Journals, LLC. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No
redistribution permitted.
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
Full Text:
* OSHIRO, Mark. Anger Is a Gift. 464p. Tor/ Tor Teen. May 2018. Tr $17.99. ISBN 9781250167026.
Gr 8 Up--High schooler Moss is a survivor. He's witnessed his father's death at the hands of the police and
has anxiety, but his friends and mother help him through panic attacks. He struggles with self-consciousness
and body image, and his dating life as a large, gay, African American male teen has been nonexistent--until
he meets Javier, an undocumented immigrant from a different school, and begins to fall in love. As Moss
starts his junior year, metal detectors and random locker searches arrive at West Oakland High. Both new
policies cause immediate issues for innocent students. Moss's group of friends is affected and they begin
organizing. Tragedy strikes during a planned school walk out, and Moss must stand up and fight for what is
right. The heartbreaking last lines are a call to action; there is no resolved, happy ending. Part sweet love
story, part social justice commentary, this title begs to be read and discussed. There are no good models of
white ally-ship, and the title is stronger for this fact. In the same vein, the diversity of this title also makes it
shine: sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, race, and ethnicity are all portrayed in Oshiro's inner-city
Oakland setting. This timely title will provoke much-needed discussion. VERDICT A strong addition to the
current wave of excellent social justice-themed contemporary realistic titles. Give this to fans of Angie
Thomas's The Hate U Give.--Kristin Lee Anderson, Jacksoii County Library Services, OR
KEY: * Excellent in relation to other titles on the same subject or in the same genre | Tr Hardcover trade
binding | lib. ed. Publisher's library binding | Board Board book | pap. Paperback | e eBook original | BL
Bilingual | POP Popular Picks
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
Anderson, Kristin Lee. "OSHIRO, Mark. Anger Is a Gift." School Library Journal, Apr. 2018, p. 136+.
General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A533409104/ITOF?
u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=7c9e6eda. Accessed 15 July 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A533409104